Do parents still use playpens?

MessyMare

I have just lmao at this thread! We had a playpen for my niece when I babysat her at my mum's house as the house just wasn't babyproof, so if I needed to be out of the room I could just pop her in there; she wasn't usually bothered by this as she had toys and her favourite blankets in there.

rosevelvet

Why are those that are in favour of playpens so sarcastic to those that are not in favour of them?

Their is negative symbolism relating to reigns and playpens ie baby leashes, cages etc despite having obvious positives such as safety. Each parent's need and want for such constraints will be different, I wouldn't personally use them on a child but that's just me and I don't think that I would be a better or worse parent for feeling that way.

moomoomama27

ALIBOBSY wrote: »

I agree with this I hate them=cages for kids yuck.

Judgemental attitude= yuk!

MessyMare

rosevelvet wrote: »

Why are those that are in favour of playpens so sarcastic to those that are not in favour of them?

Their is negative symbolism relating to reigns and playpens ie baby leashes, cages etc despite having obvious positives such as safety. Each parent's need and want for such constraints will be different, I wouldn't personally use them on a child but that's just me and I don't think that I would be a better or worse parent for feeling that way.

To be fair the phrasing of those against them casts a pretty strong judgement about those who use them.

I imagine if someone said 'I personally don't use them, it makes me feel like I'm putting my baby in a cage' would probably be viewed in a better light than the way it has been put

moomoomama27

rosevelvet wrote: »

Why are those that are in favour of playpens so sarcastic to those that are not in favour of them?

Because of the superior attitude of some posters who have to go that step further than a simple ''I don't like them'', to it's like putting a baby in a cage, or chaining a child up! Or the insinuation that I have x amounts of children, and have not needed to us one, you must be a bad parent!

It's a choice like dummies, BF or FF, co sleeping or seperate rooms! One size does not fit all, and none of the choices are bad!

There's enough blooming guilt to being a parent without other parents having a superior atitude!

peachyprice

rosevelvet wrote: »

Why are those that are in favour of playpens so sarcastic to those that are not in favour of them?

Why are some of those against playpens so judgemental??

purplepardalis

I'm a pretty sensible person who likes to look at all sides of an argument. In this situation, I can see that a playpen has the potential to be over used simply for convenience and be a tool for lazy parenting. The same as kids tv, video games and reins - all those are useful for safety and development but overuse can be detrimental.

I would use a playpen complete with toys for the '

purplepardalis

Damn iPhone

'playing' part whilst I went to the loo/made a cuppa/got dinner together and I would not associate that with anything negative.

Kiddy is playing, is safe and will not remember the occasion through to adulthood.

Leaving the child in there 12 hours a day is a different discussion altogether and one where the 'against caging' contingent should rightly join in

Spendless

mikey72 wrote: »

I agree, but the cupboard under the stairs is just as good.
(It was a good day if I managed to get all of ours in within them escaping. Still, the chains slowed them down)

Unfortunatley, we turned our cupboard under the stairs into a downstairs loo, but we did get a summer-house to put them in instead. That has the added advantage of them being outside.

dreambirdie

My son is 11mnths and honsetly i dont think i could manage without his "cage" i pop him in it if i need to do something and he is happy as larry in there as long as he has a toy or something to entertain himself. it doesnt matter how baby-proofed my house is im sure he could find danger somewhere if i left him too it. when he is "un-caged" my attention has to be 100% on him. so there is noway i could do cooking etc without having him in his travel cot or high chair etc. he has a toddler chair which has a harness to keep him in but he has worked out how to lean forward so much as to flip it over :O