I bought a cage to put my grandson in....
 

Not really! It's a play yard super yard...it's really just a bunch of panels like baby gates that connect into a circle and it contains him in that space. Away from anything dangerous like the fireplace, tv, stairs, cords. He has been crawling for about 2 weeks, and is also pulling himself up to standing and trying to walk along the table ,couch etc. He is into EVERYTHING! so this will give us a respite and him a safe place to play close to us when we are too exhausted to chase after him.

I really have to figure out how to upload pictures and show you folks my projects and GS and stuff.

My daughter bought one of those too. My husband hated it and kept telling to get him out of the cage and watch him like she's supposed too. I thought it was a good idea. What's the difference in that and a much smaller playpen that we put our kids in? I'm sure he'll have fun in there. All the Rugrat's did and my daughter loved that show!

I agree, better for him to be safe. Young parents don't realize or care that it is hard for their parents to watch young kids. My Grands are too old now. Great Grands, don't live close.

I think a safe place for baby to be is an excellent idea!

I keep my 13 month old grandson during the day and he is climbing and running everywhere. There is no way I can watch him like 'I'm suppose to' every minute. The cage has saved him from falling off chairs, tables, and the sofa. DH made a comment that it was like a dog pen and he didn't like it. I said I don't care if you like it or not and I don't need your comments about something you know nothing about. He apologized after he had to watch the baby for a few hours by himself!

You are lucky your DGS will stay in it. I had a twin sized play pen for my daughter for times I needed her to not be hanging off my legs. (Cooking, running upstairs to get something I needed- why am I even explaining? It's the 'supposed to' thing- boy I would be annoyed at that comment!!)

She cried every time I put her in it- even though it was full of her favourite toys. I ended up climbing in with her sometimes, which made me look and feel a fool!

It became a much appreciated gift for someone else. You enjoy yours!

is this so different from the playpens of yesteryear? I say yesteryear as I haven't seen one around anywhere in quite some time. They were wonderful....and "dd", I wonder if your husband and most other husbands could get daily household chores finished and watch baby 24/7 as "we" are supposed to do. LOLOLOLOL
Rather be safe than sorry...........

When my eldest GD was a little one we had a dachsund that slept in a cage. The door was always open in case the dog wanted ro go in to rest. Our GD used to crawl part way in. It was the funniest thing.

In addition to the playpen keeping the children safe, after they got a bit older,we used the playpen to protect our Christmas tree from the little tykes during the holidays!!!!!!

I had two sets of panels and made a play yard twice as big for my twins when they were babies. the play yard panels were brightly colored had a gate and toys build in.They took over the whole room but were happy for hours on end. It was so big we could go in there too. We also gated off the porch and put special netting in between the porch rails. This made the whole porch safe. All their big toys, ride on, activity table, would be in there also.

Hmmm I did that with my older ones.

Hahahahaha Caretakers need to use the bathroom and do other things too like cook. Parameters are not a bad thing.

Go for it. When mine were toddlers I even bought a harness. One in my arms and one on a leash. I was surprised even 30 years ago what nasty looks I received from total strangers.
MaryKatherine

I would have killed for a harness when my son was little. I took my eyes off him for a few minutes while I stopped to talk to a girlfriend and the next thing I knew he was out in the middle of the street with a truck coming towards him. That was 52 years ago and I still remember that day. It's one of the two times he got his butt smacked. The other was a few years later when he was sitting out in the yard playing with a book of matches and a pile of paper.

I have pack and play and when I first put my granddaugher in it with her toys my husband said take her out of that cage...but as soon as he saw how much fun so was having and she was right next to us and when we have her for the day not just a few hour...its so much safer then just letting her have the run of the place. He now likes it...

I loved using the harness....so much safer that trying to hold their hands. Some kids like holding hands but others don't I also always used a harness at the beach...and yes I was with him the whole time...but he could play next to me...and not having to fear the tides pulling him out or slippery hands, and with back issues...did not have to bend the whole time.

I, too, needed a harness for my oldest son. The comments at the mall went from admiring to snarky. What business is it of anyone else? What's important is that the child is safe!

That Sounds like a great idea! Gives him more room than the old playpens.

I agree they are no different than a crib or the pack n play/play pens. just bigger. as long as they are not used all day long they can be a big help to the mom who needs to keep them safe while she runs to change over a load of wash or run to the bathroom.

My neighbor has one that she lets her son play in out in the yard. With the play pen he has room to play and not feel totally caged. Wish I'd had one when my kids were little.

I had my boys in playpens and it was a Godsend. About 1 month was all they lasted though. They learned how to climb out. My oldest son was in a twin bed at 11months because he was climbing out of his crib. When the youngest was 13 months he was in the crib getting ready to climb out and it collapsed around him. The youngest was the 3rd to use that crib. My niece used it and she used to rock it across the floor and push the lock on the bedroom door. Took the lock off and put her into a twin. She was about 14 months.

My son was super active.Traveling with him was an adventure. Mom had a great big Ford station wagon. Kiddo would go from front - middle - back make a U-turn and start all over again. So my Dad made a fence that separated the back from the rest of the car. Kiddo was put in through the back window with toys and driving was less dangerous after that. You can imagine the looks we got. And a few Mom's actually wanted to know where we bought this wonderful gate. P.S. This was before the invention of seat belts and car seats.

Sounds like something I could have used when my were little. Safe kids are happy kids and so are their parents.

I used this play yard for my Gkids. I had it in the living room,it actually took up the entire room. One big giant playpen.
I could do my work and not worry about then getting in trouble or hurt.

My girlfriend ,at first thought it was too big until her DD had a baby. She bought mine and loved it.

I was born in the 50's. A playpen was part of the culture. Absolutely nothing wrong with it. Gives Mom and Dad a few minutes respite and the baby is contained and safe. Also baby learns to entertain herself/himself a bit within the safe confines.

My son had one 20 years ago & it was awesome. Went thru 4 grandkids & now we use it to corral puppies. Easier to carry than a playpen. My new granddaughter has one & they are made so much better than the 1st ones.

I have one in my living room for my 13 month old granddaughter. It's funny that she will go into it for me...but if either of her parents put her in there....screaming. I guess she doesn't want to lose the battle with her grandma.

The playpen that my son and his wife have is just a huge toybox. They put her stuff in there for storage. I'd prefer that they just take it down and use the toybox that I bought them to put her stuff away in....but, I'm just the grandma and it is just my family room that they are stuffing with all of their stuff. ( they had to move in with us)

I used a harness for my granddaughter, she is 16 now, so it was unheard of then in this town to use a leash for a child. My DD insisted I use it as granddaughter was a runner if given the chance up to age 3. The nasty comments I got from others I replied her safety means more to me then any ignorant opinions and gave a big smile and walked away. Don't ever let anyone get away with making you feel less.

What is the name this product?

I used a harness for my youngest until she was 3.5 years old. She loved the freedom it gave her, I loved that I didn't have to have my eyes glued on her every second she was outside. It was especially useful when we went to local carnivals, into the city, etc. where there are crowds of people to get lost in or heavy traffic. I highly recommend the harnesses!

Yeah, I heard comments about treating her like a dog. My response was "Most people treat their dogs better than they do their kids." I knew my darling daughter was safe, that she was happy with the arrangement. That's all that mattered to me and my DH.

We did, too!

All of my children were raised in a playpen, the cat loved to join them when they were in it. He even got in it when they started walking to get away from them.

Our fraternal twins were born in 1980 when the older boy was four years old. I had two harnesses and they helped me bring my children places safely. One Sunday afternoon, the local Mother of Twins Club was having a family picnic at the County Zoo just a few miles from Green Bay, WI. We were out walking on a paved path when a woman (not a lady) came up to me and said using the harnesses was like treating my children as if they were dogs. I was alone with my three children at the time. The woman was with a younger mother and they were guiding two children. Sometimes, you just do want you need to to keep children safe! By the way, we L-O-V-E our dogs.....

i'm of the group that used harness/leash, "safety lines" wrist-to wrist, and playpens with the kids. the leash/harness gives the toddlers the illusion of freedom, while we still know exactly where they are. we used the safety line with our youngest when we were at disney world--we called it her "lifeline"--and she was free to wander as far as it went; she had the confidence that we were nearby. the playpen did the same thing--the little ones had the freedom to play as long as they wanted to and could just crash and sleep when they needed to. it was all designed to keep them safe, and us sane. it was so much easier to fix dinner or clean when they were in sight, but safe from any harm around them. it never meant we turned our backs on them--it just gave us back our hands. neither we nor the kidlets had to freak out about danger. different world, back then, i guess. but, i do the same "lifeline" thing with the 6 year old granddaughter--she is extremely motivated to learn and explore, but loves the safety of knowing where we are. too many dangers to the little ones out there, for us to relax at any time. being an interested, participating parent should not be dictated by how "free" the kids are. it should be an integral part of who we are as parents in the first place. and safety should be our first concern.

I used a playpen for my children born in the late 50s and early 60s. My second baby was born when my son was 11 months old. Baby girl was a cryer. cried all the time. First baby loved the playpen. He would play, drink his bottle and sleep there. Wake up and play some more. Sounds awful but it helped me through those first few months. Remember the old saying, "Better to be safe than sorry!" So true for us grand and great grandparents. My step daughter once told me that most children's accidents happen at their grandparents house. Nice! It didn't stop her from leaving her son with us for 5 or 6 weeks at the cabin. LOL. We need all the help we can get. Children and grandchildren and great grandchildren are such a blessing and having a safe place is such a comfort. My new great granddaughter is 5 months old and she already wants to jump out of my arms. Gonna be fun!!!

Can't be too careful with those little ones...They are speedy....

I know what you are talking about. You can take them outside also. So handy when you can't watch them all the time. Back in the 60"s we had what was called a play pen. Sounds funny but it came in real handy when you had to run down to the basement to take clothes from washer and put in the dryer. We had a pot belly stove in the basement that kept the house warn all winter. I never would have been able to put him down for fear of him burning himself. I also had a gate that I would put in the kitchen door way. He could walk around and play with pots and pans while I did dishes and cooked. Better to be safe then sorry.

my youngest is now 50 and we live along the coast. One day at the beach, i mentioned to a close friend (also our family doctor) that i would like to get a harness as this one was a wanderer and he promptly informed me that he would have to report me...
It was even a "no-no" back then around these parts.

I agree with you, it would have made life a lot easier and i do believe, a lot safer....but one can't fight city hall !!!!!!!!!!!!

Our two year old grandchildren, fraternal twins, stay at our home and RV frequently. For long periods of time. They are much too agile to contain in the enclosure anymore. Woe is me!!! We do use the leash system with the stuffed animal backpacks for our sanity and their safety when walking near the river or at Disney. I am 66 years older then them. They have the advantage when it comes to running! Sometimes we have to infringe on their freedom a little bit to protect them. Some people out in the world always have to criticize. We love these little persons way to much to not prevent them from harm. Two year olds are walking accidents anyway!!! Thank goodness they bring their mom or both parents most of the time!

The twins are only 7 but they used their harnesses till they out grew them. Just recently when going to the fair they asked if they could wear them. they don't fit them any more but I think it brought back good memories.They loved their freedom in it. Many people use these harnesses on their children. Now they look like little back packs, we had a doggie and a monkey back pack from Target. They snap over the front and the tail is the leash. I see them all over especially at the fair etc. Most people comment on how cute the back packs are and do not really notice the leash. If they do the comments were positive overall. I'll be washing them up for my soon to be 1 year old grand daughter. My SIL and DD asked if I still had the monkey harness.