Hellobee Boards

We don't co-sleep, but I typically think it's fine, safe, etc. That said, I really wouldn't with an air mattress. Even in the best models they deflate a bit over the course of the night (just as it gets cooler) and a soft, squishy surface would be really hard if not impossible to make safe to co-sleep. Could you ask your parents to just put a mattress on the ground in the basement?

Another option is for you to lay on an air mattress and get a Guava Lotus travel crib which has a side zip. So when LO woke up you could just unzip and be right next to him. http://www.guavafamily.com/products/lotus-everywhere-travel-crib

I love our Aerobed. Ours is from Costco. It sleeps like a real matress. We have had it for years. I know this sounds ridiculous but I got it for tent camping in the summers, girlfriend will tent camp, but only on a good matress- my point is it is as good as new and has held up perfect. We have used it when we need an extra guest bed. When baby gets here it will likely be our only guest bed. They are more expensive than traditional air matresses (about $150 for a queen) but hey, it's less expensive than staying in a hotel.

I know nothing about co sleeping so I can't speak to that.

We have the aerobed from costco! Love it!

Do you have a pack n play? I personally wouldn't Co sleep with an infant on a air mattress even if it doesn't deflate. The bed moves around a bit when you toss and turn and could potentially turn your baby.

We have slept on quite a few different brands and I think they're all about the same. Some are thicker than others in quality and mattress height but I don't think it makes a huge difference. I've slept on Aerobed, Coleman and other off brands.

If you foresee yourself spending a lot of nights there in the future I might ask if they mind you keeping a mattress there? If you buy a mattress bag it can be stored in the basement or under one of their beds.

@Leah: that sounds like a great plan! And Lol air mattress are find for a few nights but 5 will be rough!

Haha, I had to sleep on an air mattress for 2 weeks last year, while visiting my inlaws. It was torture.

I really like aerobeds, i find that the twin sized one that's only one "level" is the most like being in a normal bed for me.

We slept in father-in-law's bed once which turned out to be a cheap air mattress instead of a regular mattress on the floor (he's a semi driver and was between moves with stuff already in storage). What we found out he'd done was put two of those fluffy quilt-like mattress pads on before the sheet.
It was also a brand new air mattress, and he said if he had to roll it up, he did it with one of the pads. Air mattresses in my grandmas tidy single-person house last forever, but ours NEVER did, because of rough treatment while not inflated. It seemed his method, with the pad kept with it, helped protect the mattress skin too. He just had to get a bigger bag to keep it in.

You could try that along with a firmer high quality air mattress?

I slept very well on a queen with hubby, a Jack Russell Terrier, and a Beagle. Mr. Frog is more than double my weight, so his movements are significant on cheapo matttresses. Underinflated ones mean I'm ON him with no choice in the matter.

It was the best sleep I've ever gotten in a strange bed, period.