We originally bought this as playpen – a safe area for her to play in. Our baby is not the the type to lay down and do nothing so until she could stand up in the playpen it was not really working for her. Now that she can pull herself up and sit up when she falls down – she tolerates the playpen much better.

The play pen has a thin mattress – but since the playpen is off the ground it is still pretty safe (I did not verify this – but i would guess that it is probably safer than falling on a carpet or wooden floors). It forms a 38″ x 38″ square (not a narrow rectangle like most other playpens) which gives plenty of play area.

The main reason for the playpen to be on the must-have list is for its use in travel. The playpen folds into a nice carrying bag of 38 inches long by 10 inches square. It is probably too heavy for taking on a plane (24 pounds) but for car trips we find it to be very useful. Since our baby is now too big for the mini co-sleeper this is a good substitute for travel. In hotels, we hate letting her crawl on the floor so instead we put her in the playpen. She recognizes the playpen as a piece of home away from home and it is big enough to give her some space to play. She loves it now and we love it too.