Drop-side cribs banned!

[justhat]

Though I addressed this on another thread, I'll say it here too. The fixed side cribs have a lowest setting that is much lower than the lowest setting of a convertible crib. It isn't touching the ground, but since many of those fixed side cribs convert to toddler beds, they are obviously quite low to the ground. So since the mattress height is so low, the rail can be that much lower too, making it easier for shorter people to get their babies in/out of the crib when they are asleep.

Here's an example of a Simmons affordably priced fixed side crib that converts to a toddler bed, then a full size bed.

As a crib, showing the rail height.

As a toddler bed, showing how low to the ground the mattress is.


I realize not all cribs convert like this, but if you have a problem with height, then I guess it's best to look for one with this style.

PrincessMom29 - You keep saying you never left your baby in the crib awake, but didn't you post on another thread that you had to do CIO with your child? So I assume she was awake and alone in the crib then? I see you posted earlier that every time you put her in the crib awake, you sat and watched till she fell asleep, but I really find that hard to believe. My 10 month old goes down awake every nap and bedtime and sometimes she plays with her crib toys for 20 minutes before she falls asleep. She loves to sleep so she's never crying in there (and when she is, I know that means she isn't ready to nap, cause she practically dives into the crib normally), but she is awake. If I were sitting in her room watching her, she'd just cry for me to take her out and never fall asleep.

But even if you did, anyone who has more than 1 child could never sit and stare at just one kid while they fell asleep. My other 2 would be left alone for potentially 30+ minutes every night, and who knows what they could get into in that time.

 

[princessmom29]

Though I addressed this on another thread, I'll say it here too. The fixed side cribs have a lowest setting that is much lower than the lowest setting of a convertible crib. It isn't touching the ground, but since many of those fixed side cribs convert to toddler beds, they are obviously quite low to the ground. So since the mattress height is so low, the rail can be that much lower too, making it easier for shorter people to get their babies in/out of the crib when they are asleep.

Here's an example of a Simmons affordably priced fixed side crib that converts to a toddler bed, then a full size bed.

As a crib, showing the rail height.

As a toddler bed, showing how low to the ground the mattress is.


I realize not all cribs convert like this, but if you have a problem with height, then I guess it's best to look for one with this style.

PrincessMom29 - You keep saying you never left your baby in the crib awake, but didn't you post on another thread that you had to do CIO with your child? So I assume she was awake and alone in the crib then? I see you posted earlier that every time you put her in the crib awake, you sat and watched till she fell asleep, but I really find that hard to believe. My 10 month old goes down awake every nap and bedtime and sometimes she plays with her crib toys for 20 minutes before she falls asleep. She loves to sleep so she's never crying in there (and when she is, I know that means she isn't ready to nap, cause she practically dives into the crib normally), but she is awake. If I were sitting in her room watching her, she'd just cry for me to take her out and never fall asleep.

But even if you did, anyone who has more than 1 child could never sit and stare at just one kid while they fell asleep. My other 2 would be left alone for potentially 30+ minutes every night, and who knows what they could get into in that time.

By leaving her alone I mean out of earshot, and not checking on her. I ALWAYS monitiored what she was doing and if she stood up and started running or jumping, I went in. NO running, jumping ect allowed and she always came out when she awoke. Yes, we did CIO, but I was right there the whole time, just out of the room and listening on the monitor. I checked on her quite frequently as well without entering the room or letting her know I was looking. Laying there crying it out, and running around the crib are 2 different things. One is safe, the other most certianly is not. I don't see how it is that hard to monitor what a child is doing in acrib with a good monitor, or why having more than one child should change that. I have had my child and someone else's and still managed it. I don't recall saying I sat and stared at her, just that I monitored the situation. I make have said I watched her, and by that i meant I monitiored the situation.

My dropside looked exactly like that converted into a toddler bed. It had basically the same setup with the lower front rail, but that rail dropped another six inches. Without it I couldn't have gotten her in on the lowest setting.

 

[CLR4321]

It really isn't a surprise after all of the stuff in the media about babies being killed by the drop side cribs that they have been outlawed.

I personally never owned a crib for my DS. He slept with me until he was 2 and a half (being a single parent this was a lot more doable than for a couple), then I bought him a regular twin sized bed. He never once fell out of bed when he was young - he only ever has once, when he was 4 years old (must have been moving around a lot in bed that night). When he was a baby I had him sleep in the Halo Sleep Sacks and did not put my blankets over him at all unless I was awake and cuddling up with or nursing him.

To the PP who mentioned Johnny Jumpers - they are still being made, with the good old fashioned doorway clamps, although they are called Johnny Jump Ups (some have always called them jumpers). You can also buy them with the swing style stand for people who don't have doorways that it could be clamped onto.

There are other options out there, such as cradles or bassinets for smaller babies who are not old enough to sit or pull themselves up on their own, then simply transitioning into a toddler bed at that point. If the parent needed to "contain" the baby, like a lot of people do with cribs, you could get a pack n play for this purpose. Other people may opt for the route that worked for me, although it would be criticized by some people.

 

[CandleontheWater]

I guess I'm the only one who would rather be safe than sorry. my ILs have a drop-side crib, and I will not put DS in there. Yes, the chances of him dying in the crib are small, but so are the chances we will get in a car accident driving the two blocks to thier house, but that doesn't mean that I won't put DS in his carseat. If anything did happen to DS in that crib, how would I ever forgive myself.

I have a stationary side crib, and I've had no problem getting DS in and out of the crib. We have the mattress on the lowest setting and its going to take some doing for DS to climb out. Its not like he can just lean over and fall out, the sides are much to high for that.

 

[SweetMissy]

I think it's kind of ridiculous to ban them. Yes, they CAN be dangerous but so can carseats when not used properly and many other products. It's called common sense. I find it pathetic that such cribs are now banned but circumstraints are perfectly legal. I don't get it!

 

[justhat]

By leaving her alone I mean out of earshot, and not checking on her. I ALWAYS monitiored what she was doing and if she stood up and started running or jumping, I went in. NO running, jumping ect allowed and she always came out when she awoke. Yes, we did CIO, but I was right there the whole time, just out of the room and listening on the monitor. I checked on her quite frequently as well without entering the room or letting her know I was looking. Laying there crying it out, and running around the crib are 2 different things. One is safe, the other most certianly is not. I don't see how it is that hard to monitor what a child is doing in acrib
d\]\with a good monitor, or why having more than one child should change that. I have had my child and someone else's and still managed it. I don't recall saying I sat and stared at her, just that I monitored the situation. I make have said I watched her, and by that i meant I monitiored the situation.

I think the majority of parents do that, but if your baby is crying in the crib, how do you know if they are standing? Yes, there are video monitors, we have one, but not everyone does. If you use a regular monitor, how would you know if the baby is standing and hanging on the rail? The video monitors are pricey, so odds are if you can't afford then, you can't afford a pricier crib either. I know I have not heard a sound on our monitor while my daughter is playing in her crib before she falls asleep, but when I look at the screen, she's standing up, dropping toys over the edge, trying to look around out of the window (we're doing massive landscaping so she hears a lot of noise). So if she were crying, how would I know if she were standing and hanging on the rail, or laying down? Or when they're older and might protest bedtime, if they're still in a crib (which mine weren't, one was out at 14 months, the other at 20 months), they could be laying in the crib, kicking their feet on the mattress, or standing and shaking the rail. On a monitor, how different would that sound?



My dropside looked exactly like that converted into a toddler bed. It had basically the same setup with the lower front rail, but that rail dropped another six inches. Without it I couldn't have gotten her in on the lowest setting.

But look at the crib pictures again. There's no way that crib rail could possibly drop 6 inches, it is too close to the ground. So that rail must have a shorter height than your drop side crib.

 

[herdtoDisney]

I guess I'm the only one who would rather be safe than sorry. my ILs have a drop-side crib, and I will not put DS in there. .

Only certain kinds of drop-side cribs are unsafe. It's those with the plastic bracket assemblies. The kind with the metal rails and assembly, that the drop-side runs on, can't fail in the dangerous way the other ones have done. But, they have all been banned for sale.

You should do whatever you're most comfortable with. But, you're not the only one being safe than sorry.

 

[squirrel]

My mom still has (I think) a Jolly Jumper that doesn't even have a clamp. You had to screw a large hook into the doorway or ceiling. You don't just place the baby into it either, you have to snap and tie the child in.

I can claim to be the one that made it impossible almost 36 yrs ago for any parents to take their child in a backpack carrier. My mom took me to Australia when I was about 8months. It was a very long trip from Vancouver, BC and took a long time with lots of layovers. Being the first child, I never touched the airport floor. By the time we landed in New Zealand, I had managed to wriggle out of the backpack and fell on the airport floor. We missed the flight to Australia and had to catch the next one after I was checked at the airport by a nurse. About 2 months later, my mom tried to bring me back in the backpack carrier (which she rigged with some kind of strap) and she was told that she had to check the carrier as some lady let her kid fall out of one.

 

[princessmom29]

But look at the crib pictures again. There's no way that crib rail could possibly drop 6 inches, it is too close to the ground. So that rail must have a shorter height than your drop side crib.

you are vastly over complicating a really simple concept. You put baby to bed. You listen on the monitor, and go in to check every 5 min or so. If she starts protesting more, you go in more frequently, to make sure she is not getting up. If she strats trying to get up, you stay in the room to correct that. Same aplies if thaey are standing and not crying. IF they are messing with the crib rail you SHOULD hear that. We never really had the problem with her getting up, becuase by the time she could pull up she knew the drill and no longer cried going down unless sometyhing unusual was going on, like she was sick. It is yet another advantage of early sleep training. You eliminate the danger of ababy standing at the rail shaking it because they don't know how to get themselves to sleep. I knew about how long she would sleep, and got her up as soon as I heard any movement, and YES you will hear them wake up and move around with the monitor properly set up, and someone listening to it.

My crib was likely a little taller, but not a whole lot. The rail was about a half inch from the ground when lowered. IT was a Simmons drop side purchased about 7 years ago, and had an arched back rail rather than the flat one shown, but was VERY similar in design. All of the fixed sides I have looked at with my sis have had a lower front side than the one you showed appears to have,and she still cannot reach the mattress on the lowest setting. She is 4' 11"and we are having real trouble finding something she can use. I am 5' 2" and it is an issue for me as well. My arms are on the shorter sisde, and while on a few I can reach if I really stretch, I don't think I could safely do that holding a child, and I couldn't reach a child that had scooted into a corner on any of them.

 

[justhat]

I must have exceedingly long limbs, since I am 5'3" and never lower the drop side of our crib and can always get my baby out when she's sleeping from anywhere in the crib. And I have to do this daily to get my older kids from school during her afternoon nap.


Your above point is where I just can't agree. I just don't believe that everyone can sit and stare at a baby in a crib, and lay them back down everytime they stand up. My daughter has always been put down awake and always loved her sleep, so she never had to CIO or be sleep trained in anyway. However, at 10 months old, she routinely stands up in her crib. Why would I lay her down everytime she stands up if she's not crying or in some distress? That's a lot of micromanagement on my part about how she relaxes and goes to sleep. Unlike my oldest who never slept more than 5 times in the crib, my youngest loves her alone time when she's tired and looks forward to going into her crib. She does not, however, usually just shut her eyes as soon as she goes into the crib. I lay her down when I put her in there (again, not an issue with my height), but she generally rolls right over, sits up, plays with some toys, stands up, looks around, sits down, plays more, stands again, etc. She's content and that's how she unwinds before her naps (sometimes at bedtime too, but she sometimes falls asleep before I put her in the crib then). And I am sure she is not the only baby who does that.

Like I said, I have a video monitor, but unless I am staring at it, I usually can't tell when she first wakes up. Unlike my son who cracked his eyes open and immediately popped up talking and yelling, my daughter wakes up slowly, grabs a stuffed animal and stares at it, looks at the soft books, then sits up, continues that, then stands and eventually starts talking. The monitor is silent until that point as she really is silent herself.

And while I'm fine with continuing to use our drop side crib till we move her into a toddler bed (likely at 15 months), and ours was never recalled, I would like the peace of mind to know that my baby is safe standing in her crib. So if I were in the crib market today, I would really want to know that the crib I am buying is as safe as possible, and allows my baby to do more than just lay flat.

 

[nchulka]

Here is the thing that really bugs me. Look at American kids compared to the rest of the world. I'm sure parents in 3rd world countries whose kids are sleeping in dirt near open fires would love to have any type of crib, with a mattress no less, they would be considered royalty. And yet here is America we look at the same bed as a death trap. Get some perspective, 30 or so kids out of millions of American babies in 10 years. Most were probably put together wrong. Any product can kill, it doesn't make the product dangerous, it just means that if enough (millions) of babies come in contact with it, sooner or later a few will die in freak accidents. I'm sure you could probably find some story out there about a baby that died in an incident with a rubber ducky, or a sippy cup. Get enough of anything in circulation and someone somewhere will be killed by it. In the meantime put your kid in whatever you want to for them to sleep and 99.9% of the time they will be just fine. By the way, not sure what the deal is with drop side anyway, I had one and never dropped the side. I'm only 5'1 and had no trouble bending down, of course by the time the mattress was lowered to where I could not reach anymore, they were standing and much easier to pick up.

 

[princessmom29]

I must have exceedingly long limbs, since I am 5'3" and never lower the drop side of our crib and can always get my baby out when she's sleeping from anywhere in the crib. And I have to do this daily to get my older kids from school during her afternoon nap.


Your above point is where I just can't agree. I just don't believe that everyone can sit and stare at a baby in a crib, and lay them back down everytime they stand up. My daughter has always been put down awake and always loved her sleep, so she never had to CIO or be sleep trained in anyway. However, at 10 months old, she routinely stands up in her crib. Why would I lay her down everytime she stands up if she's not crying or in some distress? That's a lot of micromanagement on my part about how she relaxes and goes to sleep. Unlike my oldest who never slept more than 5 times in the crib, my youngest loves her alone time when she's tired and looks forward to going into her crib. She does not, however, usually just shut her eyes as soon as she goes into the crib. I lay her down when I put her in there (again, not an issue with my height), but she generally rolls right over, sits up, plays with some toys, stands up, looks around, sits down, plays more, stands again, etc. She's content and that's how she unwinds before her naps (sometimes at bedtime too, but she sometimes falls asleep before I put her in the crib then). And I am sure she is not the only baby who does that.

Like I said, I have a video monitor, but unless I am staring at it, I usually can't tell when she first wakes up. Unlike my son who cracked his eyes open and immediately popped up talking and yelling, my daughter wakes up slowly, grabs a stuffed animal and stares at it, looks at the soft books, then sits up, continues that, then stands and eventually starts talking. The monitor is silent until that point as she really is silent herself.

And while I'm fine with continuing to use our drop side crib till we move her into a toddler bed (likely at 15 months), and ours was never recalled, I would like the peace of mind to know that my baby is safe standing in her crib. So if I were in the crib market today, I would really want to know that the crib I am buying is as safe as possible, and allows my baby to do more than just lay flat.

I guess we just have a difference of opinion then, becuase I don't feel it is safe for a child to be allowed to stand up and walk around in thier crib unattended. It scares me. To each his own on that one I guess.
Agian, my arms ARE short and that does make a difference. You remember the "your shorts must touch your fingertips" rule from school? Lets just say I could wear Daisy Dukes to school under that rule. Literally it meant a 1 inch inseam was ok. Neither I nor my sister would have any hope of reaching a child without using the drop side.

 

[iheartdisney]

Here is the thing that really bugs me. Look at American kids compared to the rest of the world. I'm sure parents in 3rd world countries whose kids are sleeping in dirt near open fires would love to have any type of crib, with a mattress no less, they would be considered royalty. And yet here is America we look at the same bed as a death trap. Get some perspective, 30 or so kids out of millions of American babies in 10 years. Most were probably put together wrong. Any product can kill, it doesn't make the product dangerous, it just means that if enough (millions) of babies come in contact with it, sooner or later a few will die in freak accidents. I'm sure you could probably find some story out there about a baby that died in an incident with a rubber ducky, or a sippy cup. Get enough of anything in circulation and someone somewhere will be killed by it. In the meantime put your kid in whatever you want to for them to sleep and 99.9% of the time they will be just fine. By the way, not sure what the deal is with drop side anyway, I had one and never dropped the side. I'm only 5'1 and had no trouble bending down, of course by the time the mattress was lowered to where I could not reach anymore, they were standing and much easier to pick up.

All of this talk of plastic vs metal parts made me remember the last time we put our crib together. It did have metal pieces. But i had accidentally one of the rails on backwards. The drop side was in the up position and wouldn't lower. I muttered under my breath, but unscrewed the entire drop side, and and put it together right. How many parents did something similar but left it because it was "good enough"? Surely not any parent on the DIS, we are all perfect. But it does happen!
I think the problem of should be addressed at the manufacturing level. Remove the Murphy's Law component- design things that cannot be dome wrong so easily- from cribs to carseats to toys. Remember the Cabbage Patch doll that could chew? They had to recall it because children's hair was getting caught in the gears. This wasn't a "bad parenting" choice, but a design flaw that should have been discovered in production.
If cribs were designed to only go together ONE way, with QUALITY parts, it would spare us alot of government intervention.
But face it, the almighty dollar still calls the shots. Many parents want the cheapest option out there. So manufacturers will produce the cheapest product they can.

 

[arielrebornxoxo]

I just wish instead of banning them, they'd just force the manufacturers to make QUALITY cribs with solid metal hardware like they used to. THe problem is the PLASTIC hardware on these things.... It's a big pain in the neck to change crib sheets with the sides up or lay down a sleeping toddler, who has to have the mattress at the lowest setting.

I agree

 

[justhat]

I guess we just have a difference of opinion then, becuase I don't feel it is safe for a child to be allowed to stand up and walk around in thier crib unattended. It scares me. To each his own on that one I guess.
Agian, my arms ARE short and that does make a difference. You remember the "your shorts must touch your fingertips" rule from school? Lets just say I could wear Daisy Dukes to school under that rule. Literally it meant a 1 inch inseam was ok. Neither I nor my sister would have any hope of reaching a child without using the drop side.

I know I am belaboring the point, but really, your child never walked in the crib? She just always laid down and went right to sleep? None of mine did that every time they were put in the crib. My son would at bedtime, just roll over and go to sleep, but never at naps. He'd often fall asleep crouched over a toy he was playing with. And my baby does that too. I can't imagine laying them down every time they sat or stood up if they were eventually falling asleep on their own. It would really be forcing sleep on them, not allowing them to crash out naturally. And I can't imagine they'd be particularly happy about it, cause once they get to the mobile stage they do NOT like being laid down over and over.

But I guess I don't get it either because what is the difference in them walking in a crib vs a pack n' play? If you used the pack 'n play while you showered, then surely your child must have stood up in it. Don't you feel that they should be just as safe in the crib as the pack n' play? I want to know that if I am sleeping or showering or playing outside with my other kids, that my baby will be safe if she wakes up and starts walking around the crib before I can get her out.

 

[princessmom29]

I know I am belaboring the point, but really, your child never walked in the crib? She just always laid down and went right to sleep? None of mine did that every time they were put in the crib. My son would at bedtime, just roll over and go to sleep, but never at naps. He'd often fall asleep crouched over a toy he was playing with. And my baby does that too. I can't imagine laying them down every time they sat or stood up if they were eventually falling asleep on their own. It would really be forcing sleep on them, not allowing them to crash out naturally. And I can't imagine they'd be particularly happy about it, cause once they get to the mobile stage they do NOT like being laid down over and over.

But I guess I don't get it either because what is the difference in them walking in a crib vs a pack n' play? If you used the pack 'n play while you showered, then surely your child must have stood up in it. Don't you feel that they should be just as safe in the crib as the pack n' play? I want to know that if I am sleeping or showering or playing outside with my other kids, that my baby will be safe if she wakes up and starts walking around the crib before I can get her out.

No, she really didn't. Of course she tried a couple of times, but got the message after being sat back down. She wasn't really a challenger of rules even as a small one. Of course she did it agian after that on rare occasions, but my point is that I did everything I could to minimize that. It helped to only put her in the crib when SHE was ready to sleep. That way she was more interested in laying down than playing. Sitting in her crib was perfectly safe and she did do that some as well, but I tried to instill that the crib was a place for sleep, NOT play. I never put toys in the crib. I was told that was a BIG no,no. My pack and play was a LOT taller than the the crib sides. It was one of the old school square "playpen" type ones with the hinged sides, but the hinges were enclosed so no squished fingers. I was confident that she couldn't get out of there because the sides were net and she couldn't climb them. Her head didn't clear the sides at a year old. When it got to the point that there was areal chance she could get out, I stopped using when I couldn't see her. After that I just put her in the bvathroom floor and gave her a few toys. We had toilet and cabinet locks by then so she was safe.

 

[rparmfamily]

http://cn1.kaboodle.com/hi/img/2/0/0/41/8/AAAAArBST40AAAAAAEGEMw.jpg?v=1176768105000

This is the crib I have (Jardine Olympia Natural fixed side crib) which was over $200 at BRU. It's shown at it's lowest setting. The I can't reach down into the crib to get my baby out. I wouldn't buy this crib again. She's nearly 19 mo so I'm not getting a new crib (it will turn into a toddler bed eventually but is still high off the ground.)

I picked this one because my first crib (I forget the name...white sleigh crib, solid wood) was also recalled and BRU only gave me $200 for it (I didn't have a receipt) so I just picked out a equally priced crib. I didn't even think about if I could reach the bottom when I bought it. Wish I had!

I'm 5'3" BTW.

 

[justhat]

No, she really didn't. Of course she tried a couple of times, but got the message after being sat back down. She wasn't really a challenger of rules even as a small one. Of course she did it agian after that on rare occasions, but my point is that I did everything I could to minimize that. It helped to only put her in the crib when SHE was ready to sleep. That way she was more interested in laying down than playing. Sitting in her crib was perfectly safe and she did do that some as well, but I tried to instill that the crib was a place for sleep, NOT play. I never put toys in the crib. I was told that was a BIG no,no. My pack and play was a LOT taller than the the crib sides. It was one of the old school square "playpen" type ones with the hinged sides, but the hinges were enclosed so no squished fingers. I was confident that she couldn't get out of there because the sides were net and she couldn't climb them. Her head didn't clear the sides at a year old. When it got to the point that there was areal chance she could get out, I stopped using when I couldn't see her. After that I just put her in the bvathroom floor and gave her a few toys. We had toilet and cabinet locks by then so she was safe.

Why would toys in a crib be a "BIG no no"? I can't figure that out at all. My kids were all in beds by 1.5yo so they were free to move around their rooms all they wanted, therefore play with toys, so why not when they're in cribs too? I mean, past the age where it would be a danger of suffocation that is. I don't see it as being any different than my 6yo reading in bed before she falls asleep, or my 4yo looking at books or writing in his notebook in his bed before he falls asleep. I also read before falling asleep and my husband watches tv, so it just wouldn't occur to me to not allow the baby to do her thing before falling asleep too.

And we just got the video monitor with my 3rd kid, and only because our house is much larger than where we used to live and I can't hear her AT ALL from my room if she's in her room. I can barely even hear her from the family room and it's next to her bedroom. So with my 1st 2 kids we just listened for them to make noise, cry, talk, whatever. In that case, or if I had a regular sound monitor, I'd have no idea if my kids were standing in the crib or not.

I have always put my kids down when I thought they were tired, and they usually are and go to sleep within 20 minutes, but sometimes they end up staying up and I take them back out and try again later. My youngest is very predictable, but still always plays in the crib before falling asleep for naps. Just her thing I guess.

You're very lucky that you don't have a child who challenges, but I think she's probably in the minority. My son just loved his sleep at bedtime, and would roll right over and shut his eyes, but my neither daughter has really done that. And my 1st, wow, she took ages to fall asleep!

We don't own a pack 'n play so I can't say where my daughter would be height wise in that vs the crib. I just never had a need for a pack 'n play, so after only using it to change diapers for the 1st 2, I gave it away before I had my 3rd.



The big issue I have though, that makes me think the ban is a good thing, is that no matter how vigilant you are as a parent (and clearly I am not!), if your child is in daycare, they likely do NOT have the pricey, well made cribs, and I can guarantee they are not keeping babies from standing in the cribs. I worked in a daycare in graduate school, and though I was in the toddler classroom, we shared a glass wall with the infant room, and the babies would often take awhile to go to sleep, as there were 6 of them in one room. A lot of them protested sleep and stood up, shook the rails, moved around a ton in the crib, etc. So if changing the way the cribs are made can prevent danger in a situation like that, then I'm all for it.

 

[princessmom29]

Why would toys in a crib be a "BIG no no"? I can't figure that out at all. My kids were all in beds by 1.5yo so they were free to move around their rooms all they wanted, therefore play with toys, so why not when they're in cribs too? I mean, past the age where it would be a danger of suffocation that is. I don't see it as being any different than my 6yo reading in bed before she falls asleep, or my 4yo looking at books or writing in his notebook in his bed before he falls asleep. I also read before falling asleep and my husband watches tv, so it just wouldn't occur to me to not allow the baby to do her thing before falling asleep too.
tpys on the crib are a big no no it the beginning because of the sids danger and after that because they still pose a risk of injury of suffocation while baby is sleepin. Have you never had a doctor tell you not to put ANYTHING in a crib with an infant? I was told even no blankets unless they were swaddling blankets until baby can roll over. A four year old is obviously COMPLETELY different than a newborn!
And we just got the video monitor with my 3rd kid, and only because our house is much larger than where we used to live and I can't hear her AT ALL from my room if she's in her room. I can barely even hear her from the family room and it's next to her bedroom. So with my 1st 2 kids we just listened for them to make noise, cry, talk, whatever. In that case, or if I had a regular sound monitor, I'd have no idea if my kids were standing in the crib or not.
I just couldn't do that. I feel like there is too much that can happen. I need to know she is safely asleep.
I have always put my kids down when I thought they were tired, and they usually are and go to sleep within 20 minutes, but sometimes they end up staying up and I take them back out and try again later. My youngest is very predictable, but still always plays in the crib before falling asleep for naps. Just her thing I guess.
I eliminated that by not putting anything to play with in the crib.

You're very lucky that you don't have a child who challenges, but I think she's probably in the minority. My son just loved his sleep at bedtime, and would roll right over and shut his eyes, but my neither daughter has really done that. And my 1st, wow, she took ages to fall asleep!
I know, believe me I know. I have worked in daycare and dealt with kids that have vrey different personalities. It is more of a fight with some than other, but with enough consistancy they eventually figure out that they have to do what is asked.

We don't own a pack 'n play so I can't say where my daughter would be height wise in that vs the crib. I just never had a need for a pack 'n play, so after only using it to change diapers for the 1st 2, I gave it away before I had my 3rd.



The big issue I have though, that makes me think the ban is a good thing, is that no matter how vigilant you are as a parent (and clearly I am not!), if your child is in daycare, they likely do NOT have the pricey, well made cribs, and I can guarantee they are not keeping babies from standing in the cribs. I worked in a daycare in graduate school, and though I was in the toddler classroom, we shared a glass wall with the infant room, and the babies would often take awhile to go to sleep, as there were 6 of them in one room. A lot of them protested sleep and stood up, shook the rails, moved around a ton in the crib, etc. So if changing the way the cribs are made can prevent danger in a situation like that, then I'm all for it.

Daycare is a completely different enviornment. I worked daycare for years as well. Caregivers are ALWAYS supposed to be IN THE ROOM with infants, at least according to our state regulations. They can NEVER be left alone, and you are not supposed to allow any blankets or toys in the crib. The shared glass wall bit would not fly here. Someone MUST be IN THE ROOM with the children at all times. WE are also not allowed to have standard cribs. Regs require the metal cribs with a door in the side b/c you can sanitize those. NO more wooden cribs can be purchased by state regulated daycares. The metal cribs have very tall sides, and very few children are taller than the rail at a year. If they are it is only by an inch or 2. At one they are moved to a toddler room, and they nap on a cot about 2 inches off the floor. Yes, they learn very quickly that they are not allowed off the cot during nap time. If anything daycares are MORE limited than parents as to what they can allow.

 

[nchulka]

I know this is way off the subject of the crib recall but there seems to be a debate raging about weather cribs should only be used for sleeping or if older babies should be able to play with toys and stand in them. I have to say that I think the crib is a wonderful way to teach older babies/young children about having quiet alone time. Where else can you leave your baby alone and expect them to be relatively safe. I always put my children down in their cribs and got them back up on a strict time schedule weather they played with toys or slept was their choice. The younger they were the more they slept the older they got the time became more mixed until eventually they never took naps anymore but were happy to have a couple of hours of quiet play time. As newborns they had no toys (wouldn't know what to do with them anyway), but by a few months old there were a couple of rattles, and eventually other toys. I changed them out frequently so they had new things to look at. It was wonderful not to have morning wake up time and nap time duration decided by how tired my child was that particular day, it was set by the clock. I got both my kids up at 9:00 every morning regardless of weather they woke up at 7:30 or 8:45. I did this consistently everyday beginning at about 6 weeks and they both had the hang of it by between 2 and 3 months and never fussed to get up. Nap time was the same, 2 hours in the morning, 2 hours in the afternoon. As they grew and got to a year and a half of so it changed to one 2 hour nap, which eventually became room time as they moved from cribs to beds. They continued to have room time until kindergarten. They both have wonderful imaginations and play the most creative games both individually and together. Learning how to occupy yourself is a great thing and the crib can be a wonderful place to do, but only if you start early. If you wait till they are older they will fight it. Oh, I did have a monitor but only a sound one, not video.