tips for my baby that climbs out of his playpen

♫ Shawnn ♪♫♫ - posted on 05/18/2016

“, but I just wanted to say sorry for those other parents being insensitive to individual need”~~No one is “being insensitive to individual need” in these responses. ALL who are taking the op to task for not being proactive are both experienced, multiple times, and have great common sense and BS meters.

“It is actually recommened to keep children in a crib until between the ages of between two and three”~~My aching ass, it’s recommended! What is RECOMMENDED is to remove the child from that situation as soon as they show the aptitude to crawl out, in order to promote safety! If you can give me a REAL source that you cite, I’ll be more than happy to review the details, but PLEASE. Stop with that BS.

“I have seven kids between the ages of 18 months and 9 years old and they are all disabled and special needs children”~~SPECIAL NEEDS, lady! Not a perfectly normal toddler! Get a friggin grip here!

“old I actually took the bottom off the crib and put the mattress on the floor and he still got out so I bunggied a baby gate to the top”~~Are you fucking serious????? Why not just make the effort to train him into a REAL bed? What, no time? Too lazy???

“Someone did call child protective services, but when they checked it out they said that it was a creative way to keep my child safe”~~~BS METER WORKING OVERTIME HERE. There is absolutely NO WAY that cps said this was an acceptable method. I know, because I, myself have turned in PLENTY of stupid parents for this type of shit, and they were all cited and re-visited.

“. I also had chain locks on every door including the interior doors to keep him out of rooms he shouldn't be in and to keep him in the house”~~Again, experience of me calling in others for this exact thing, them being cited and revisited to check compliance

“Point being is never let anyone tell you what is right or wrong for your child as no one knows them better than you.”~~I’m sorry, but there are plenty of experienced people with A LOT more knowledge than your average parent when it comes to child safety…That’s where a lot of the GOOD advice comes from. Clearly, at least ONE poster on this thread would benefit from a good parenting class or two…

Ev - posted on 05/16/2016

Shannon--I am the mother of a 26 year old and a 19 year old. I also have over 10 years experience as a child care provider with special needs children. I also know that when my son was 18 months old he was climbing out of the crib and so it had to go. I feel that if a child can climb out of a crib it is time for the next step: toddler bed. That is designed for children 18 months up. For the next 3 years or so, we were up and down all night with him not going to sleep until midnight. What a parent needs to do for a child that is climbing out of cribs or playpens is to quite using those and get another bed more fit to the situation for the child to sleep in. Once that is done you will spend several nights getting the child used to sleeping in the bed and staying there. It is a continued process of consistency of placing them back in the bed until they get the idea that is where they are to be. Same with naps. Now, in the case of special needs kids, you have to alter your plans to their needs to make things work. But a child that can climb out of cribs, playpens, or over other devices intended to keep them in an area safely needs another idea used for their safety.

NOTE: {{If you disagree, that probably says you spend to much time away from your children.}} IF this was directed at just Sarah E. or even me as well, how do you know we spend too much time from our kids. Sarah is a nurse and works in the school system and she has said this several times in other posts. She has a few of her own kids she does keep up with all the time. As for me, I said I have adult children and I took care of many other children for 10 plus years in a child care setting. So I do know what I am talking about and so does she. I agree parents know their kids best but sometimes experience is a good teacher too. I am also a grandmother with a 4 year old and 2 year old grandkids. I also have a 2 year old great nephew. I Know for a fact that my daughter uses the same techniques I used with her and her brother. And they do work. My daughter was 2 years old and in a twin bed (much too big for her) because her crib was old and rickety (long before they came out with guidelines about used baby furniture) and we had to put her in something else. My son was in the toddler bed from 18 months on to five. He got a twin at five. He outgrew all his things quickly which is also another reason he went to a toddler bed under 2 years. Also what you did at home to keep your one child in the crib and out of rooms would never have passed a fire inspection where I live.

Just - posted on 03/12/2016

Why are you being such a dick about it?

Ev - posted on 05/17/2016

AMEN!!!

Dove - posted on 05/17/2016

I was wondering why an almost 3 year old post was so active... I love it when trolls bring up OLD, dead posts to brag about what crazy things they do w/ their million kids....

My girls were out of their crib shortly after turning 2 because they would spend all day climbing in and out of their cribs for fun (thankfully they never did it at night). They went to mattresses on the floor and it took about a week of adjustment and consistency. Problem solved.

♫ Shawnn ♪♫♫ - posted on 05/17/2016

In a nutshell? Put your kid into a toddler bed, as recommended.

I haven't read much yet on this post, but already I'm seeing the usual "I'm right, Y'ALL ARE WRONG, and you're stupidly assuming about ME...and I"M RIGHT"!!!!!

If you think you are correct, and really DON'T WANT differing opinions, GREAT!!! Then why did you post here, if that's the case?

Now, I'll read the responses...

Sarah - posted on 05/17/2016

Child Protective Services is bound by law to abide by the advisement of the CDC and the AAP. Both agencies advise transition to a toddler bed when the child can climb out rather than using any sort of device to prevent the child from escaping the crib. Also, chain locks are not approved safe for anywhere but the entry to the house. Door knob covers on the side of the child is approved.

Jodi - posted on 05/17/2016

I agree with the other ladies - it is unsafe to leave a child in a crib if they are able to climb out of it. It is also unsafe just to rig up other solutions to the cot - there is a reason there are standards for cot manufacturing, and if it were appropriate to lock them in the cot, there would have been one of those that was manufactured to standard. However, safety protocols prevent this. I can't for the life of me believe that child protective services would advocate for this. If a child can't open baby gates, the sensible (and logical) solution would be to place the baby gate in the doorway of the room, not on top of the cot.

Ev - posted on 05/16/2016

No it is not off topic. I addressed the issue covering cribs, play pens and other places kids can climb out of or over. As did Sarah. In the preschool I worked in we were not allowed to use cribs for children under a year. They had cots that were either mats or floor level so they would not be hurt if they rolled out of them. And a two year old is obviously too old to be in a playpen anyway...

Shannon - posted on 05/16/2016

I understand everyone has their own perspective on things. All I said is that this is what happened with one of my seven children and that she should do what is best for her child. Again I appreciate your input to my comment but it is still off topic from the original post.

Shannon - posted on 05/16/2016

As I said, Child protective services did come and check out my home and the situation and they are the ones that stated that it is creative. If you feel as though they are wrong and that your way is the right way, please feel free to provide proof of your credentials to make that observation. The chain locks on the doors were actually provided by the investigator from child protective services. Really no one knows a child better than the parents. If you disagree, that probably says you spend to much time away from your children. Also, we're not saying to send a child out into the work force at a year old, we're discussing whether or not a child should be in a crib at almost 2 years old. But I do respect your opinion and your right to say it, but it seems as though your comments are indeed off topic from the original posting. Have a wonderful day.

Sarah - posted on 05/16/2016

I completely disagree to this statement:
"Point being is never let anyone tell you what is right or wrong for your child as no one knows them better than you."
of course there are people who know better, it is called experience. Why else would there be a million books with parenting advice? If a bungee cord baby gate on a crib? Creative? yes. Safe? not sure. There are reasons the AAP makes recommendations for each age. It is not just random ideas. I do know that a house with chain locks won't ever pass a safety inspection due to fire entrapment. This is why we ask for advice.

Shannon - posted on 05/16/2016

Hun,
I know that this is an older post, but I just wanted to say sorry for those other parents being insensitive to individual need. It is actually recommened to keep children in a crib until between the ages of between two and three. I have seven kids between the ages of 18 months and 9 years old and they are all disabled and special needs children. 3 of which are adopted. Beleive me when I say I feel your pain in this topic. Some of mine I had no issues with this some of them I did. My 5 year old was the worst. When he was 15 months old I actually took the bottom off the crib and put the mattress on the floor and he still got out so I bunggied a baby gate to the top because he also knew how to open doors. That being said, he would climb out of the crib in the middle of the night and head straight out the door. Someone did call child protective services, but when they checked it out they said that it was a creative way to keep my child safe. I also had chain locks on every door including the interior doors to keep him out of rooms he shouldn't be in and to keep him in the house. Point being is never let anyone tell you what is right or wrong for your child as no one knows them better than you.

Ev - posted on 10/12/2013

First, why is he at the age of two still in a playpen for any reason. Most playpens are for babies not toddlers at age two. Its a safety issue at this point because what if the playpen collapsed in on him? What if he got it tipped over and got hurt on something else on the climb out of it? Why is he not in a toddler bed already or a twin bed with a rail to help keep him from falling out of it? When my son was almost 18 months old he had to go to a toddler bed because he was too big for a crib and could climb out of it. My daughter was smaller than he was at even two so a crib/playpen would have been fine for her but she was in a twin bed at two!!! He should have been out of that playpen by a year old.