Portacot or playpen?

[paular]

My little one is about to become mobile and I really want to give her some quality playtime in a playpen.  Do I need to buy a dedicated one or use her portacot.  She sleeps in her portacot during the day, it has an extra foam matress to make it more comfortable.  She likes sleeping in it, I don't want her thinking it is play time when I put her down for a nap, neither that it is nap time when I put her in to play.  Has anyone had this problem?  Should I buy a dedicated playpen?  Can anyone give me any suggestions, or examples of what you have done?  Thanks

[Deb_in_oz]

i would think it woudl depend on how much time you plan on having her play in there.  for me i did occassionally put the girls in their cot (we did not use a portacot or playpen at home) with a few toys for tummy time or with a mobile for some other activity. it never interfered with them later sleeping in there, but it was only on odd occasions for a max of (i am guessing) 15 min at a time.

i had a friend with 3 kids and she often needed to use the portacot for playtime to keep him safe from the 2 older boys and i think she used a different cot for sleeping so she could keep a lot of toys in the portacot and have it set up for "play" at the drop of a hat.

not sure if that helped at all but 2 people's experience at least

[Katet]

I would think if you use the portacot for sleeping then I wouldn't use it for play. I was given a playpen  for my eldest & used it only once, I found that like Deb-in-oz if I needed him to be safe while I quickly did something he was ok in his cot or the highchair & the rest of the time he did really well.
the only 2 people I know who used playpens regularly actually had more trouble for longer with their children exploring & touching things etc, so I'd look at why you feel you need to give her (quality?) time in the playpen... personally I think it would actually be unquality time in terms of development though & yes I am the school of thought that playpens are "caging" a child for parental ease as they certainly don't benefit the child.

[Aly Mac]

I know a friend of mine used the porta cot (or pack and play as they call them in some countries) for when she wen to work (her bus and the type that she could do this). it was for play and sleep when she was tiny - so not tooo mobile.  She started to have problems when she got mobile and woulnd't sleep well.

I'm like pp, if I needed to do something and needed her safe, I would put in her cot, and now later her highchair.  but only while I had a quick shower or pop a load of washing on.

[paular]

Thank you for your advice.  I think a seperate playpen will be the go.  I do want to clarify though, it depends what you use a playpen for and how it is structured into their playtime to whether they harm or are of benefit.  If you use it as a 'holding pen' for 5-10mins or to 'cage them in'for extended times, they are of no benefit, I agree.  This is not my intention.  My intention is to create a personal space for my baby that will encourage creative thinking and problem solving skills, that she can explore for short periods of time.  I will definately keep in mind the tendacy to explore and touch things more.  Thanks.