Hellobee Boards Topic: How often do you use your Video Monitor? Do you think it was worth it?

Hellobee Boards Topic: How often do you use your Video Monitor? Do you think it was worth it? https://boards.hellobee.com/ Pregnancy, Baby and Parenting blog, by Hellobee en Wed, 03 Jun 2026 00:00:35 +0000 shopaholic on "How often do you use your Video Monitor? Do you think it was worth it?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/how-often-do-you-use-your-video-monitor-do-you-think-it-was-worth-it#post-319377 Mon, 01 Oct 2012 14:03:31 +0000 shopaholic 319377@https://boards.hellobee.com/ @cocobee - I know. Everyone tells me they were against pacifiers, and then they needed it. DH just brought it up because he said his friend's LO "would scream bloody-murder" every-time you tried to take it away." mediagirl on "How often do you use your Video Monitor? Do you think it was worth it?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/how-often-do-you-use-your-video-monitor-do-you-think-it-was-worth-it#post-319270 Mon, 01 Oct 2012 13:21:25 +0000 mediagirl 319270@https://boards.hellobee.com/ Keep it. It's been so wonderful. Yes, sometimes we will just sit on the bed and watch her roll around like crazy. The reason I really am glad i have it is this: At 3am we had our normal feeding this morning. I put her down and went back to bed. I watched her moving around on the monitor and she rolled over from her back to her belly!!!! I was so freaked out, I went back in there and found her pushing up on her arms like she was doing tummy time. I rolled her over and told her that this was all too soon for Mommy and please go to bed now. :) Mrs. Pen on "How often do you use your Video Monitor? Do you think it was worth it?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/how-often-do-you-use-your-video-monitor-do-you-think-it-was-worth-it#post-319206 Mon, 01 Oct 2012 13:05:46 +0000 Mrs. Pen 319206@https://boards.hellobee.com/ @shopaholic: hahahaha that is so funny! Oh, and a btw - I had every intention of no paci either... until my nb baby screamed the entire time we got in the car. Then it became a lifesaver. SO don't be totally opposed to some things that don't hurt baby. DS weaned himself off the paci at 5 months so it was never an issue. But I sure did appreciate it during those early months! Mrs. Yoyo on "How often do you use your Video Monitor? Do you think it was worth it?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/how-often-do-you-use-your-video-monitor-do-you-think-it-was-worth-it#post-319196 Mon, 01 Oct 2012 13:03:29 +0000 Mrs. Yoyo 319196@https://boards.hellobee.com/ @zippylef: You aren't the only one! We haven't had one and haven't missed it. heffalump on "How often do you use your Video Monitor? Do you think it was worth it?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/how-often-do-you-use-your-video-monitor-do-you-think-it-was-worth-it#post-319182 Mon, 01 Oct 2012 13:00:38 +0000 heffalump 319182@https://boards.hellobee.com/ We have it on whenever she's sleeping. It's nice to see if she's really up or if she's just making noise, especially because now if I go get her before she's fully awake and standing up in her crib she's a big cranky pants. I would never know if she was standing up in her crib if I didn't have the video monitor.... and then I would go in way too soon just because I heard some noise and then I'd be screwed for the rest of the day. birdofafeather on "How often do you use your Video Monitor? Do you think it was worth it?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/how-often-do-you-use-your-video-monitor-do-you-think-it-was-worth-it#post-319099 Mon, 01 Oct 2012 12:32:37 +0000 birdofafeather 319099@https://boards.hellobee.com/ we didn't register for a monitor of any kind, but you all are convincing me that maybe it's worth it.... LAGS on "How often do you use your Video Monitor? Do you think it was worth it?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/how-often-do-you-use-your-video-monitor-do-you-think-it-was-worth-it#post-319010 Mon, 01 Oct 2012 12:01:15 +0000 LAGS 319010@https://boards.hellobee.com/ I don't have one, we didn't think it was necessary because our house is so small and LO is just across the hall.... but man do I wish we had one now that she's regressed with her sleep. I have the hardest time not going in to check on her when she's just lightly fussing or moaning... because "what if she's on her belly?!", what if, what if, what if. So I break down and check on her and she ALWAYS sees us come in if she's awake. I feel like I'd be doing her a favor if we had one and I could reassure myself to look at it and just stay out of her room and let her drift off on her own. mrsjyw on "How often do you use your Video Monitor? Do you think it was worth it?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/how-often-do-you-use-your-video-monitor-do-you-think-it-was-worth-it#post-318994 Mon, 01 Oct 2012 11:51:09 +0000 mrsjyw 318994@https://boards.hellobee.com/ all my mama friends have told me that this is one must have registry item! my cousin gifted us a samsung wifi one... so i'm contemplating taking the moto one off the registry now... but it was a def must have for us! Mrs. Bee on "How often do you use your Video Monitor? Do you think it was worth it?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/how-often-do-you-use-your-video-monitor-do-you-think-it-was-worth-it#post-318956 Mon, 01 Oct 2012 11:34:45 +0000 Mrs. Bee 318956@https://boards.hellobee.com/ every single night for both kids. we bought a second camera when olive was born. couldn't live without it! shopaholic on "How often do you use your Video Monitor? Do you think it was worth it?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/how-often-do-you-use-your-video-monitor-do-you-think-it-was-worth-it#post-318947 Mon, 01 Oct 2012 11:30:22 +0000 shopaholic 318947@https://boards.hellobee.com/ @jholler25 - Maybe you can send him to hang out with a friend who does use one? My DH went to stay with his friend for a few days (he has a 1 y/o) and ended up coming home and telling ME why we need a video monitor that has a screen, night vision, speakers, etc. LOL! He also came home telling me what kind of car seat we should look for and why we should not start a baby on a pacifier! lol! That 2-3 days was a good experience for him I tell you! ;) prettylizy on "How often do you use your Video Monitor? Do you think it was worth it?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/how-often-do-you-use-your-video-monitor-do-you-think-it-was-worth-it#post-318919 Mon, 01 Oct 2012 11:18:50 +0000 prettylizy 318919@https://boards.hellobee.com/ Love the video monitor, it's awesome to check in without opening the door. You'll love it. chopsuey on "How often do you use your Video Monitor? Do you think it was worth it?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/how-often-do-you-use-your-video-monitor-do-you-think-it-was-worth-it#post-318909 Mon, 01 Oct 2012 11:13:26 +0000 chopsuey 318909@https://boards.hellobee.com/ Every day! Totally worth it lemondrop on "How often do you use your Video Monitor? Do you think it was worth it?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/how-often-do-you-use-your-video-monitor-do-you-think-it-was-worth-it#post-318908 Mon, 01 Oct 2012 11:13:00 +0000 lemondrop 318908@https://boards.hellobee.com/ We use an $80 audio only monitor, we don't sleep train, so not necessary at all for us. loveisstrange on "How often do you use your Video Monitor? Do you think it was worth it?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/how-often-do-you-use-your-video-monitor-do-you-think-it-was-worth-it#post-318905 Mon, 01 Oct 2012 11:10:26 +0000 loveisstrange 318905@https://boards.hellobee.com/ Well, I'll be the odd one out and say we have lived without one and have done just fine. Are there times it would have been useful? Yes. Was it essential? No. We have an audio only monitor that stays in the living room. At night, we don't even need that because i'm so tuned in to her that I wake up when she does with no problem. PrincessBaby on "How often do you use your Video Monitor? Do you think it was worth it?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/how-often-do-you-use-your-video-monitor-do-you-think-it-was-worth-it#post-318880 Mon, 01 Oct 2012 11:05:37 +0000 PrincessBaby 318880@https://boards.hellobee.com/ Aaaahh!!!!! Thanks everyone!!! I'm just going to send him this link...After I edit my original post just a smidge;) VERY HELPFUL!!!! Thank you all so much!!! Freckles on "How often do you use your Video Monitor? Do you think it was worth it?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/how-often-do-you-use-your-video-monitor-do-you-think-it-was-worth-it#post-318874 Mon, 01 Oct 2012 11:04:16 +0000 Freckles 318874@https://boards.hellobee.com/ DH also was against the video monitor, thinking that an audio monitor was enough. Well, like @babyboecksmom said, it changes once you start sleep training. LO was such a bad sleeper, and every time she cried/yelped we would run to her. With the monitor you can wait and see (without worrying if she stopped breathing or got stuck somewhere) before going into the room and waking her up in the process. We were also able to soothe her over the monitor ("shush shush") during the early months. DH is super cheap, and even he agrees this was the BEST baby purchase ever. KEEP IT! (So, not to be on his side and have you hate me, but maybe you can compromise on other baby stuff, like the baby gym? I borrowed a lot of baby gear, because they seriously only use it for a couple of months at most.) Mrs. Pen on "How often do you use your Video Monitor? Do you think it was worth it?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/how-often-do-you-use-your-video-monitor-do-you-think-it-was-worth-it#post-318859 Mon, 01 Oct 2012 10:58:39 +0000 Mrs. Pen 318859@https://boards.hellobee.com/ OMG. You need to have him read my response. I swear it is hands-down the BEST baby purchase we made. No joke. Even DH agrees. There are many times we just watch him or check in on him, because as new parents you really need that peace of mind; especially if you're a compulsive worrier like me! When he was a nb I had severe anxiety about him taking naps on his own and I would always run in to check on him and make sure he was still breathing. I was deathly afraid of SIDS or suffocation or whatever. When we got the monitor, I could see his chest rise and fall with each breath and it gave me a lot of peace. I still check him for breathing on the monitor. He also grunts, squawks and squeals in his sleep. Often it sounds similar to his waking sounds. If I were to go in during those transitional stages of sleep, it would definitely arouse him and his naps would be cut short. I like to watch on the monitor to see if he's actually waking, or if he's just transitioning sleep stages. Generally it's the later, and it's nice to have dodged many bullets of short-naps. He started rolling over around 4.5 months and since he was still swaddled it was imperative to me that I had my eye on him his whole nap. He often woke up and would be silent; no crying, no talking etc. He likes to have a quiet wake up time (don't we all!), but would then roll over. It is very dangerous for them to roll over while swaddled because then they can't lift their heads with their arms. If I had only a baby monitor, I would have NO idea he was even awake, because he was always so quiet. But the moment I saw him roll over, I was able to run to him. Even if he hadn't been swaddled, a newly rolling baby is still a hazard because they haven't mastered rolling and supporting their heads. Without his swaddle, he still had a hard time learning to turn his face to the side. Rolling is a serious suffocation hazard and I needed to be able to see when he rolled and if he got stuck (which happens often when they start rolling). Then, at 6 months, we started sleep training and it was VITAL to be able to see him. He would roll and scoot and thrash about his crib - and sometime he hit his head on the crib or would get stuck in the slats, which you always can't hear on an audio monitor. I always knew when I had to go to him, or when I could let him be. I always liked to know when he actually fell asleep. Now, I can put him in his bed and often he doesn't cry to sleep anymore, he just lays there or rolls around for 10 minutes before falling asleep. But sometimes he is quietly awake for up to 30-45 minutes and because he's on a schedule and I need to know how long his naps are, it's important that I know the time he falls asleep. Even at 7 months old my video monitor gives me more peace of mind than anything!!! I am sure it will continue to do so even throughout the toddler years. I think it was Mrs. Yoyo... or was it Mrs. Wagon - I can't remember - said that they watching their son on the monitor when he went through the phase of trying to climb out of his crib!! That would definitely be something I would need it for as well. Good luck convincing your DH! Tell him to join the dads board and ask my DH how he personally feels about the video monitor- seriously- DH loves it so much. Maybe more than I do! Mrs. Cowgirl on "How often do you use your Video Monitor? Do you think it was worth it?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/how-often-do-you-use-your-video-monitor-do-you-think-it-was-worth-it#post-318854 Mon, 01 Oct 2012 10:57:02 +0000 Mrs. Cowgirl 318854@https://boards.hellobee.com/ every single night. even at 3! our place is small enough where we can hear him cry/make noise without the monitor. we usually keep the sound off the monitor and check the video screen when we hear lil' CB make noise. it's great to see whether he's crying and just rolling around and is likely to fall back asleep in seconds or if he's sitting up and genuinely distressed. lil' CB came home to us when he was 15 months, so we didn't have him when he was an infant, but i imagine we still would have used it all the time even then! twinmama on "How often do you use your Video Monitor? Do you think it was worth it?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/how-often-do-you-use-your-video-monitor-do-you-think-it-was-worth-it#post-318846 Mon, 01 Oct 2012 10:54:40 +0000 twinmama 318846@https://boards.hellobee.com/ We moved our babes to their own room upstairs at just shy of 2 months old and started using the video monitor then. Sure, when they're full on crying, we just run up there. But more often, they are just fussing, and it's super helpful to see how much they are squirming and if their eyes are open or not. I had no idea babies could be so noisy in their sleep. Plenty of times we've all just been able to go back to sleep, whereas without it, we'd be getting up to 'comfort' them all the time when they weren't even awake! ETA: like babybruins, we talk through it too....but mostly just to say, the other baby just woke up....i need back up, now! :) pinkcupcake on "How often do you use your Video Monitor? Do you think it was worth it?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/how-often-do-you-use-your-video-monitor-do-you-think-it-was-worth-it#post-318844 Mon, 01 Oct 2012 10:54:21 +0000 pinkcupcake 318844@https://boards.hellobee.com/ At first, I was considering buying an audio only monitor to save some $$. So happy I didn't and I splurged on a video monitor!! We use it ALL the time. Our baby wakes up several times during the night (it's gotten worse lately). Instead of running in to check on her each time we hear her, we can watch to see if she can put herself back to sleep (50-50 chance that she'll fall back asleep on her own). Also, there were times when she was sleeping for a looong time. I was so afraid that something happened to her! It was great to be able to check on the monitor and reassure myself that she was alive :) LivsMama on "How often do you use your Video Monitor? Do you think it was worth it?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/how-often-do-you-use-your-video-monitor-do-you-think-it-was-worth-it#post-318830 Mon, 01 Oct 2012 10:50:33 +0000 LivsMama 318830@https://boards.hellobee.com/ For us its an absolute necessity. Liv wakes up several times during the night. Most times she sits up, looks around, and flops back down to go to sleep, others she turns on her aquarium and goes back to sleep. Sometimes when she cries she needs us. I can tell by watching her if shes really needing us. Standing up = GET ME NOW. Sometimes she throws her lovey oiut of the crib and is hysterical over it. Also, like pp said, it was vital for sleep training. When she was younger, I caught her rolled over on her tummy a few times, and also saw some hands and feet through the slats. Its just invalvuable. I can peek at it anytime just to see whats happening. Otherwise Id drive myself crazy with wanting to peek in there once an hour just to see whats going on. BabyBruins on "How often do you use your Video Monitor? Do you think it was worth it?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/how-often-do-you-use-your-video-monitor-do-you-think-it-was-worth-it#post-318823 Mon, 01 Oct 2012 10:48:14 +0000 BabyBruins 318823@https://boards.hellobee.com/ @jholler25: We have that one and we use it all the time, first in our 2 floor townhome and now our single level house. There was one morning that I could hear he was awake, but just talking to himself in his crib and when I looked at the monitor he was totally playing with the lid of his diaper pail. You probably won't use it right away when she is born, but once you move her into her own room, I think you will get use out of it. Your husband will get over it. And he will appreciate it when he is "on duty" and can go outside to grill and take the monitor with him. And finally, its hilarious to watch what the babies do when they are "alone". ETA: I just read the other responses and hubs and I totally talk to each other through it! He used to go in to put the pacifier back in and would be feeling around the crib in the dark and I could see bc of the night-vision and tell him "Its under his left shoulder". Mrsbells on "How often do you use your Video Monitor? Do you think it was worth it?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/how-often-do-you-use-your-video-monitor-do-you-think-it-was-worth-it#post-318820 Mon, 01 Oct 2012 10:47:08 +0000 Mrsbells 318820@https://boards.hellobee.com/ we received ours as a gift, I didnt think it was necessary since we live in a one bedroom apartment, but I use it so much and plan to use it even more when LO moves to her own room. Its great to be able to just look at the screen and see that she is ok and I can talk to her through the monito too since it is a two way. It saves me from running up and down. from the kitchen, dining or living room to the bedroom. BabyBoecksMom on "How often do you use your Video Monitor? Do you think it was worth it?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/how-often-do-you-use-your-video-monitor-do-you-think-it-was-worth-it#post-318789 Mon, 01 Oct 2012 10:38:01 +0000 BabyBoecksMom 318789@https://boards.hellobee.com/ I went 6 months without one and thought "pffft! If I haven't used it yet, then I won't need it!". Ummmm that was BEFORE sleep training. All I can say is how wonderful it's been to be able to take a peek at her on the monitor instead of chancing that she'll catch me opening the door to check on her (because if she does see me, the whole thing starts alllllll over again). PrincessBaby on "How often do you use your Video Monitor? Do you think it was worth it?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/how-often-do-you-use-your-video-monitor-do-you-think-it-was-worth-it#post-318776 Mon, 01 Oct 2012 10:35:02 +0000 PrincessBaby 318776@https://boards.hellobee.com/ I just bought the Motorola video monitor with my Amazon mom discount, and DH is questioning if we really need it. His argument is that we will hear her cry and we will not just sit and watch her on the monitor, we will get up and go take care of her. I explained to him that we'll want to check on her without waking her up, that we'll want to make sure once she's moving around that she hasn't rolled on her tummy, or gotten her arm caught in a slat. What are the other things you use your video monitor for? How often do you use it?