Family Bed
For those of you who have never heard of a family bed, it’s a king-size bed that the whole family plops into at night. (I might argue that it’s a challenge to create a larger family when your family is in your bed, but that’s not my point here.) Some parents are convinced of the emotional benefits of such arrangements. The families I see adhering to this philosophy are all happy and balanced. On the other hand, the families that are scattered into a queen-size bed and a few twin-size ones are also happy and balanced. My feeling is that frequent physical contact in the first few months is essential, whether you sleep with your kids or not, but after that kids quickly adjust to whatever routine you provide. The reverse may not be true: Some parents still need close contact with their kids until they are older, and this is perfectly fine, within reason, of course.