Pack n play vs crib

marikkita12

one of my aunts is in town and gifted us a pack n play. We have a registry on Amazon and one at babies r us. We decided we are buying a crib from ikea. However, now that we have the pack n play, we are considering using that as baby's crib. We live in a small one bedroom apartment so we are trying to avoid adding giant furniture pieces. im
also shorter and the height of the pack n play is great for me. Anyone have any advice or suggestions as to why we shouldn't just go with this? We will most likely end up buying an actual mattress if we decide to skip the crib. 

Thanks all!!

Brilanea

I'm 5'2 & loved having both. The pack and play is great but baby will outgrow it. We have a convertible crib from 1st child that has been perfect. I used the pack & play when she was little for changing diapers on the top section. Never wasted money/space on a changing table or pad.

KimmySchmidt

I mean, I guess there's no real reason you couldn't go that route. If you buy an actual mattress that's going to effectively lower the rail height and make it possible for your child to escape sooner, and it's also smaller, so they might outgrow it earlier than a crib anyway. You may find yourself with a child who isn't quite ready for a bed, but has outgrown the pack n play. The pack n play is GREAT as a portable crib, but I wouldn't call it a giant furniture piece when it's collapsed. I don't think it's a big deal to throw it in a closet, even in a small home.  But of course, it does take up less floor space than a traditional crib when it's set up.

Certainly you could skate by on a pack n play for a long while. I don't think there's any harm in holding off on the crib. You can always buy it later if you change your mind.

CRich15

I agree with PP and if you go the convertible crib route you could use it for a lot longer than the pack n play and have a good solid piece of furniture for your little one.  Not to mention the cute bedding you'd be giving up on! 

beachmama14

I agree with the other ladies. There was a time and place for us that the pack and play was useful, but I wouldn't want to use it full time as a crib substitute. They pack and play folds up so small I wouldn't consider it something that will be a space hog when not in use. I think your little will outgrow the pack and play before being ready for a toddler bed or full size bed. If you just want to delay buying a crib, you could use it for a few months but I don't think it can be an ultimate replacement. And I think cribs with the hard sides are much safer for babies then a soft sided pack n play when it's comes to SIDS risks. 

LeahKnits

marikkita12 said:

one of my aunts is in town and gifted us a pack n play. We have a registry on Amazon and one at babies r us. We decided we are buying a crib from ikea. However, now that we have the pack n play, we are considering using that as baby's crib. We live in a small one bedroom apartment so we are trying to avoid adding giant furniture pieces. im
also shorter and the height of the pack n play is great for me. Anyone have any advice or suggestions as to why we shouldn't just go with this? We will most likely end up buying an actual mattress if we decide to skip the crib. 

Thanks all!!

My first daughter slept in a pack n play for the first 6 months of her life. For us, it was because we were between places a lot and there often wasn't room for a crib. We didn't have a mattress for the pack n play, but I did get a mattress pad and some sheets. Once she got a little older I put a folded up blanket underneath the pad and sheets. Thinking about it now, that probably wasn't wise. Baby mattresses are rather firm to reduce the SIDS risk. Have you been able to find a crib mattress that fits it?

I think you should go for it. At least to start with. If you decide that you'd rather have her in a crib then you can buy her a crib and put the pack n play away. 

I disagree with pp about convertible cribs. I don't like them. They're usually very big, and I don't like the way the beds look once they've been converted. 

I totally referred to your baby as a girl. This is because I only have girls and when I talk about babies, they're always girls in my mind.  

edit: I should add that the only reason we got a crib when she was 6 months, is because DH's cousin offered to buy us one. If that hadn't happened, she probably would have slept in the pack n play until she was ready for a real bed. 

khrystynw

My DD slept in a pack in play until she was one years old. It worked for me, I lived in a small apartment and didn't have room for a crib. It came with the pack in play pad and she loved it. 

jln27

I'm glad this was posted. I was also thinking about only doing a pack n play to save money and space, and I couldn't find anything before now supporting getting a crib as well (only bassinet vs crib arguments, and I am not interested in bassinets at all.) I didn't think about how the baby would outgrow the pack n play just like a bassinet. Plus cribs that convert to toddler beds are really cute to me.

marajay6

I really don't think you will be able to use the pack n play until the kid is ready for a real bed.  My 16 month old has pretty much outgrown the pack n play but he is not ready for toddler bed.

JennM205

I think PPs have pretty much summed up both sides of the argument in terms of PNP vs. crib but I will add one thing - cribs are generally wood or some other kind of non-porous material.  The PNP is covered in cloth/fabric that cannot be removed to be washed.  The few times DD has vomited in her bed (I'm not talking baby spit-up here), it got EVERYWHERE.  It was so nice to just pull of her sheets to wash them and wipe down the crib and know that we got everything.  With the PNP, I'd think there's never a way to truly wash it/clean it (other than on the surface).  For the most part, that won't be a huge issue.  But I've heard stories about kids who've wiped their poop all over their cribs/walls/etc...  If it was a wooden crib, gross - but no big deal.  A cloth PNP?  Good luck getting the stink out of that, haha!

LeahKnits

marajay6 said:

I really don't think you will be able to use the pack n play until the kid is ready for a real bed.  My 16 month old has pretty much outgrown the pack n play but he is not ready for toddler bed.

There are other options than a toddler bed. When my oldest was 14 or so months she slept on a floor bed. Basically just a crib mattress directly on the floor. 

newsense

We're likely going to go the pack and play route. We're in a small one bedroom and are challenged  with space. By the time we get a bigger apartment we hope we can just transition then- it's all playing it by ear at this point.

hey_clever_girl

JennM205 said:

I think PPs have pretty much summed up both sides of the argument in terms of PNP vs. crib but I will add one thing - cribs are generally wood or some other kind of non-porous material.  The PNP is covered in cloth/fabric that cannot be removed to be washed.  The few times DD has vomited in her bed (I'm not talking baby spit-up here), it got EVERYWHERE.  It was so nice to just pull of her sheets to wash them and wipe down the crib and know that we got everything.  With the PNP, I'd think there's never a way to truly wash it/clean it (other than on the surface).  For the most part, that won't be a huge issue.  But I've heard stories about kids who've wiped their poop all over their cribs/walls/etc...  If it was a wooden crib, gross - but no big deal.  A cloth PNP?  Good luck getting the stink out of that, haha!

Ooooo. Super good point.

SuperFudge00

Imo, the PNP isn't very sturdy. I wouldn't rely on that for a crib. There are mini cribs available if space is an issue.

fiorip

@JennM205 what a great point, never even thought about that. 

haboobjob

::Lurking from Aug 16::

I loved having our PNP for the first couple months. I was recovering from a c-section with DD and we were using the RNP bassinet next to the bed. Our baby hated touching the sides and started freaking out 3 weeks in. We moved her to the PNP (next to the bed) and she slept in there until we transitioned her at 3 months. Plus is was super easy to take along if we were hanging out at my ILs or a friends house. I personally wouldn't use it long term but I know lots of people that have used it past a year. 

618mom22boys

We will be using a PNP.  For us we don't have room for a crib.   We live in a 3 bedroom house with 3 boys.  I am getting the mini one that can fit in between doorways.  That way it can be in our bedroom or the living room.  I plan on sleeping in the living room for a while though so we don't wake DH up when it is time to nurse. And if we haven't moved by the time to convert we will be doing the crib mattress on the floor in our room. 

frogdog06

This is our first, so we plan on getting a Babyletto crib for the nursery. For a more portable option, we're debating between the BabyHome Air Bassinet and the Nuna Sena Mini. If any of you have experience with the latter two brands, please let me know your opinions.  

mom2adoodle

Which Pack N Play do you all recommend? I currently have the one with the cuddle cove rocking seat. Necessary?

camichael84

@mom2adoodle We bought a Graco PnP with a diaper changer and napper. We never used the napper and only used the changer once or twice. For us, the only necessary part was the PnP itself.

SarahDarah333

I was struggling with the pack'n'play versus crib issue too- we live in a one bedroom apartment and can't move for a while- and I found mini-cribs on Babies-R-Us!! I think we will go with one of those for our room (we are making half our room the baby's room for now), and have a pack'n'play in our living room so we have options. Luckily we have a living room and a front room, so we have some options if we need to rearrange in the future.

KimmySchmidt

@mom2adoodle we had the PNP with the bassinet, which just raises the platform up. I would recommend it. We didn't have any of the other bells and whistles and it I didn't feel like I was missing anything.