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Thread: Playpens (baby)...

  1. #1
    Mrs-M
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    Playpens (baby)...

    Old moms, new moms, did you/do you use one?

    Buttermilksky's, thread (Frugality=Living like we did as kids) posted in the Consumerism & The Media Forum, made me think about many old-fashioned things, things that used to be the standard way back when, like playpens.

    I loved using a playpen! Being able to contain baby in the playpen when I was busy was so convenient and handy. Often, if I was cooking or baking and wanted baby close-by, into the playpen I'd put him/her, and it never failed to keep them happy and content, knowing they were right there with me, and of course the playpen ensured safety.

  2. #2
    Mrs-M
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    To add, isn't it ironic how people tend to push the most useful of things off to the side over time. Things that help make their lives simpler and easier... I say that, because I know playpens don't carry the same popularity today, as they did back in the 70's/80's.

  3. #3
    Moderator Float On's Avatar
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    I remember being in one. It felt like prison I always wanted the toy that was out of reach.
    I didn't use one with my kids, only because I never rec'd one as a gift.
    Float On: My "Happy Place" is on my little kayak in the coves of Table Rock Lake.

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    I have one that we use as a crib. We have a lot of areas of our house gated off, so T usually crawls around in the gated areas. We have 5 flights of stairs in our house, one of them open, so the gates are a must and even then they don't hold the monkeys for long. James had just turned 2 when he decided he'd be willing to go head first over the gate if it meant he could escape.

    The little booger (Travis) learned to climb up on furniture today. I turned around to find him standing on the toy chest, which was pulled up to Daddy's computer. He wanted to pound on the keyboard. It's only a matter of time now before he can climb out of the crib and then out of the gate. Little boy heads must be made of rock, or I'm pretty sure there'd be no such thing as grown men.
    My blog: www.sunnysideuplife.blogspot.com

    Guess why I smile? Because it's worth it. -Marcel the Shell with Shoes

  5. #5
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    I received one as a gift. I loved it for naps so I could keep the baby downstairs with me during the day. My kid would never play in it though. Every time I tried to set her in it, she screamed and screamed and screamed. She had to be either in my arms or where the action was.

  6. #6
    Senior Member ctg492's Avatar
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    I used one for my guys, but only for a second or two at a time to get something done. Now If I had only kept my one son in there till he was 25....

    But really play pens are not used anymore?

  7. #7
    Senior Member IshbelRobertson's Avatar
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    I had a 'lobster pot' for my children. NONE of them would accept being put into the thing!

  8. #8
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    Didn't use one, or gates, or anything.

    The Continuum Concept asserts that a baby has a self preservation instinct, and while we should be mindful, we needn't be over-protective. That we can teach when a situation that could be dangerous arises, rather than preventing the child from going near what would be dangerous.

    When DS was little (pre-crawler), I mostly wore him pretty much all the time. So, if I needed to do anything -- cook, clean, whatever -- I would simply put him in the wrap. He preferred to be held anyway.

    Once he got mobile, I prepped the space for him and taught him how to avoid dangers. For example, I had no problem with him going anywhere in the house while I was in the house -- I left nothing locked or gated or anything. I had no need to "pen" him into anything.

    when he learned to crawl, we taught him how to navigate the stairs. Anything in the lower cabinets of the kitchen were available for him to pull out and explore -- same with closets, under sink cabinets in the bathroom, etc.

    Normally, he was very close to me -- in the same room usually. Never more than 3-4 ft away at that point. Never had any problems really.

    And then, of course, we would go to parks and I would let him range -- crawl, climb, slide at playgrounds -- and then if we were in open fields, i'd just let him roam around as far as he wanted. He would probably go about 20-30 ft away. Yes, this is as a crawler -- so between 7 and 9 months old (when it was no longer winter outside, but spring). Most of the time, it was just us out there, but sometimes people would freak out about it. LOL Ah well.

    This is just a philosophical perspective.

    Now, do people use playpens?

    Yes, the "pak-n-play" is most popular. It folds up so you can travel, and it creates a play pen, crib/bassinette/changing table bit all in one. I felt like it was a needless object (based on my philosophy), so I wasn't worried about it.

  9. #9
    Moderator Float On's Avatar
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    There is a difference between keeping track of one baby in a smaller house with one set of stairs than two babies (or more) in a house with several sets of stairs. There is also a huge difference in playing outside with one baby compared to playing outside with two babies. I remember many times standing in the middle wondering which way to run to grab which baby first, the one 30ft into the woods or the one 30ft away towards the road. I tried and failed as a caregive to someone else's two toddlers while mine were the same age, don't know how those with multiple births do it.

    My babies were 11.5 mts apart. Now the thing I loved was the "walker". Weston loved being in that thing and followed me everywhere at the large church where I was youth pastor. He really rocked a concert one night in his walker; that baby was all over the place fast as could be. I was very thankful that he was happy in the walker because I was pregnant again so quickly and needed to be careful with lifting. I couldn't wear Weston in a sling very long. He was walking on his own at 9 mts. I think that walker really built his leg muscles. Alex didn't like the walker, he only wanted to be held. But he was an early walker as well, walking on his own at 10 mts.
    Float On: My "Happy Place" is on my little kayak in the coves of Table Rock Lake.

  10. #10
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    [QUOTE]
    There is a difference between keeping track of one baby in a smaller house with one set of stairs than two babies (or more) in a house with several sets of stairs.
    I would definitely agree with that. Two toddlers at once is a challenge.

    When I had my oldest we lived in a small one bedroom place on one level. Miss Charlotte is baby #5 in 8 years and babies #3 and #4 are 2.5 and almost 1. We live in a house with nothing but stairs. This is a whole different ballgame. I don't think gating the stairs is overprotective. My oldest was pretty calm, but the younger three have not had much in the way of self-preservation instinct. James in particular seems scientifically interested in all the ways one could injure their cranium. I love that boy. He's his Dad's kid. The dad who once got stuck by his head dangling off a railing at his farmhouse. I'm not into the padded-room safety stuff, but gates by the stairs seem reasonable to me.

    The sling has not been the saviour for me it seems to be for others. Baby #1 loved the sling. Baby #2 hated it with all her might. Baby #3 was OK with it until he could crawl and then wanted nothing in the least to do with it. Baby #4 was similar to baby #3. We shall see what Miss Lottie decides. I hope she likes the sling because I agree that is a nice way of getting stuff done. It's funny because their personalities are still like that. Cheyenne is 8 and a total snuggle bunny. Bella is 6 and likes her space. James and T alternate between snuggle fests and constant motion.
    My blog: www.sunnysideuplife.blogspot.com

    Guess why I smile? Because it's worth it. -Marcel the Shell with Shoes

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