to wonder why playpens seem so unpopular

[Housewife2010]

Why do playpens seem so unfashionable? We have one & I wouldn't be without it. I have somewhere completely safe in which to put my 18 month old while I answer the door or do a few jobs. He's never left in there for long. I seem to be in a minority though as so few of the other parents I know use them. How do you manage without one?

Loved my playpen! Perfect if you live somewhere fairly open plan. When dd was crawling and the playpen came down form the loft ds used to love it too, he could sit and play happily int he playpen while his little sister crawled around the house

My house is pretty small, but living room, kitchen and dining room are open plan, with an arch open to the hall - and because it's a mews said hall is at the top of a long flight of stairs..

playpen will probably take up most of the living room - not much choice though

I loved mine, ds was/is a climber who I often found crawling across the fireguard

We had one of those Graco mesh ones that collapses down really easily, so I used to put it up as I needed it. Agree it;s not always possible to babyproof enough (if you want furniture!) to make rooms completely safe for a baby on their own. Before DS was born my gran kept offering to buy one, I kept saying I didn;t need it as the house was small. But as soon as he was crawling I changed my mind - she'd saved the money because she knew I'd crack!
I loved it, no idea why some people are so against them (unless children are being left in them all day and ignored)

We never used one. We had nowhere to put one and DS could never be left anyway (would scream the place down - separation anxiety). Also, the place was pretty well baby-proofed and he was never one to fiddle with things he shouldn't.

I don't disagree with them though. I think, like reins, they suit some children/families but not others.

They are great, and when your kids are older they can use it to make a tent!

I have a Graco one which has a detachable top to it. My DS loves it during the summer as he feels he has a play tent to hide in!

We used playpen a lot when ds's were little. Dh used to refer to it as babyjail tho

What is wrong with talking your child with you to answer the door?

I would not put my dog in a cage unless it was absolutely necessary, let alone my children. I cannot think of a single situation where it would be necessary or even useful. Why not just keep the child with you?

NormalityBites - you think I should have picked up my two children to go answer the door. I would then have had no arms to take in a delivery or sign something. Or I could of put them down and nudged them back with my legs?

A playpen isn't a cage. Idiot.

It's not a cage. It's a safe environment,where you can put your child while you do things that you don't want your child underfoot for, like dishing up dinner etc. It's full of toys, so hardly a cage

Oh good grief! It's not a cage!

I thought OP only had one child? The question was directed at her. Regardless, surely if you have two + children capable of movement the elder(s) will be capable of being left in an adjacent room for the few seconds it takes you to answer the door? I never mentioned picking up your child or holding them in arms?

The definition of cage is:

"A box or enclosed structure made of wires, bars, etc, any openwork structure or frame'

So it is a cage. It's just not marketed as such (understandably)

I would ask again, why not just keep the child with you?

I have a travel cot we use as a cot/playpen/somewhere safe to put DS, being a fourth born it's nice to put him somewhere safe away from his sisters.

This thread has actually inspired me to get a playpen

I think that it's one of those things some people object to when there's nothing actually wrong with it, if used in the right way. Other possible examples being: spoon feeding, cots, push chairs, plastic toys, reins, calpol, dummys...

I'll stop there before I get REALLY contraversial

Like reins this is a piece of baby equipment I cant get myself riled up about. Either you use them or you dont.
I didnt have enough room in my living room when DS was a baby plus we were in a flat so being vigilant about closing doors and having a gate between kitchen and living room sufficed.
I tried using DD's travel cot as a playpen whilst we sorted my parents attic out. She was not happy about it!
But if I had the room and my children enjoyed them then I would of used them.

I did put my dog in a cage when she was younger and we had the space though. She loved it, her own little area where nobody would bother her. She also knew how to open and close the door to it herself. I bet she misses it actually.

Controversial

NormalityBites - my children have two minutes of age between them - not sure the elder should have been left responsible for the younger.

Tbh, I don't care what you call a playpen. I found them brilliant, as did my children.

I honestly thought that they were a very outdated device, I did not know they were still made or in use, let alone in fashion, and expected many people's views to line up with mine. I stand corrected: blatantly people still are using them (though I've never ever seen one in someone's home)

They are different from a cot in that a baby is placed in a cot when asleep, lifted out when they wake and the function of the bars there is to prevent them from falling out, not to prevent them from exploring/playing/ being with you.

I would not agree with a wakeful baby being placed in a cot either.

Never had one, but that was because of lack of space and our house was reasonably easy to child-proof, luckily my two were not great climbers. I was able to leave them for long enough to go to the toilet etc without worrying, although when DC2 came along I used to take care not to leave newborn and 2 yo in a room together for more than a few seconds.

Used to be quite of their use in friends houses for toy containment.

I didn't have a playpen with bars NormalityBites. And a child doesn't need it's mother to explore or play. Are you one of those attachment parenting types?

I'm not any kind of type. As I said above, I was honestly shocked that playpens were still in use, having never seen one in a shop, or someone's house, nor heard of a child that had been put in one, and expected most here to be the same. And again, I stand corrected, my perception of their usage is obviously way off.

I do not think any child will be harmed from using them but I still cannot understand why someone would choose to use them, and I would not do so unless it was absolutely necessary.

Normality - I'm talking about somewhere to put a small baby safely away from a rampaging older brother who isn't going to be old enough to know that he mustn't try and feed the baby his grapes/use it as a hoover etc while I go to the loo or spend 10 minutes doing necessary jobs. Not as a prison to keep it locked up