We have finally brought the Pak ‘n Play down from the bedroom and into the living room. I’m not sure why we didn’t do this sooner other than perhaps a.) we didn’t think he was ready, b) we weren’t ready, or c) we weren’t ready to give up that much floor space in a relatively small living room.
But we went ahead and did it recently and it’s looking like a bit of a game changer.
Goof asleep..
Regular readers will recall that on weekdays the boy and I are pretty much joined at the hip all day long. It puts a little crimp in my work schedule and my ability to do chores in the middle of the day, but the plus side is I hang out with my son all day–asleep or awake.
That said, I really do need some time to myself in the middle of the day for various little tasks. The exersaucer has been great in keeping him occupied for short bits of time–usually half an hour at most, though.
Enter the baby jail.
He has his toys (good lord, does he have his toys!) and a spot to lay down in if sleeping, and a place to sit up in if not sleepy, and he can’t go crawling off under the couch or wherever. I am free to set up a little table and the laptop in the living room nearby so I can do some work and keep an eye on him at the same time, but I’m also free to go into other parts of the house for short bits to start up on some chores with confidence that the kid ain’t goin’ nowheres.
Baby jail.
Goof awake…
It’s not a perfect system yet. Jack asleep and secure means getting some stuff done. While he was awake I set up a little table in the living room to work at, but he’s not a fan of me doing that yet. I think he’ll get over it.
The boy seems to enjoy the Pak ‘n Play. He’s able to move around at will (within the confines of the Pak ‘n Play) and practice crawling and so forth.
All is good.
Well, the dog isn’t as ecstatic. It does take up a bit of floor space, but we’ve got it arranged so there is still room for Max.
Every week it’s something new and different. This time it’s the Pak ‘n Play and how that’s going to impact the boy’s development. Looks promising.
Cheers!
–John
