It’s just a different kind of bed — one without bars or a lot of bedding to wash. It doesn’t eliminate bonding any more than a standard crib does — in fact, it makes it bonding easier if the air crib is in a family living area, instead of put in a separate bedroom as most cribs are in the USA.

In our case, we had a lot MORE time for cuddling because there was very little laundry to do. That extra free time went directly to the baby.

Somebody once said that most of the opposition to the air crib came from people who just didn’t understand what it was. Case in point. For us, it was fantastic. For people who love putting babies behind bars, doing tons of laundry, and having babies out of sight and out of mind in a far bedroom, traditional cribs are the way to go. For the rest of us, it’s great to have such a baby-friendly alternative.

“Heir conditioner” is a great name. I’d forgotten about that one.

“In the first three months, tiny babies seldom sleep for more than four-hour stretches without needing a feeding. Tiny babies have tiny tummies. Yet, they usually sleep a total of 14-18 hours a day.”

Check it out here (tip no. 4): http://www.askdrsears.com/html/7/T070200.asp

That would translate out to spending most of their time sleeping. In the USA, most of that sleeping in done in a conventional crib or equivalent.most of that sleeping in done in a conventional crib

#14,#15, Some babies like, and even need, swaddling. Some babies hate it. Some don’t care one way or another. It’s really an individual thing. My baby hated it. An air crib was perfect for her.

#16 I didn’t mention mention SIDS myself, but since you bring it up, parents are now advised to make sure that babies who use cribs, bassinets, etc. sleep face up to reduce the chance of SIDS, which may be caused by gasses trapped in small pockets in bedding near a baby’s nose, or from bedding interfering with the baby’s breathing (or by other causes, too).

There aren’t any pockets in a mesh air crib, or any bedding to bunch up under the baby, so that’s not an issue for the Baby Box. Neither is getting tangled up in blankets or crib bumpers or pillows.

By the way, unless you strapped your baby to your body 24/7 (in which case, how did you sleep?), she probably did spend some time alone, at least when she slept. Which is when a baby would be in an air crib. Or any other crib, or crib-type bed. But it’s worth noting that using the Skinner Box meant that my own daughter was never more than a few feet away from me during babyhood, even when sleeping.

And that’s the point — it’s a bed, not a cage. It’s used just like a crib (which, by the way, does have bars like a cage). Feeding, cuddling, socializing are all done outside the baby box — unless you’re one sick puppy. Plenty of people who use conventional cribs find ways to neglect their children, but it’s not the crib that makes the difference, it’s the parent.

For those of you who are worried about my daughter’s well-being, she spent a tremendously enriched childhood, was home-schooled for most of it, and eventually graduated from a top-notch liberal arts college. Without ever once seeing a babysitter or the inside of any kind of day care. You couldn’t make any case that I used her Skinner Box to “shirk the responsibilities of parenthood” (that’s from comment #16). In fact, she had a Skinner Box precisely because I embraced those responsibilities!

If you click my link above, you’ll be able to see for yourself how neglected she looked in her Skinner Box. (The link’s in comment #9.) She is now gainfully employed, self-supporting, and embracing a fantastic adulthood. If something went wrong in her childhood, it’s safe to say it wasn’t her Skinner Box, nor is there much evidence that she’s the product of an insensitive, neglectful parent.

I’m kind of surprised that people who read a blog called “Modern Mechanix” are such rigid thinkers. Isn’t innovative thinking the core of of mechanics, and tinkering-type ways? Odd.

And SIDS has nothing to do with smothering. Or bedding. Find out what SIDS is before you start recommending a neglect-o-matic to prevent it.

Actually, a baby doesn’t need physical freedom to begin with, it actually makes them scared, because they are used to the confining space of the womb. In fact, you often have to roll them in blankets to make them feel safe and happy. The urge for physical freedom comes later, when they learn to move. And i think my son spend the most of the time in my lap and arms, not in a crib. Because they, we as humans, need lots and lots of physical contact.

EXACTLY. I know my daughter spent no time alone in the first several months of her life and she’s one of the most amazing people I know now.

Tight-hugs is common in Scandanavian countries. Some folk have more sensitivity to the newborn than others….

Maybe the babies in YOUR house, but not in MINE. Nor do I think you could say “most” and have that be accurate.

“It’s not surprising that a 3 month old would have spent most of his life in his — most babies that young spend most of their time in a standard crib.”

http://www.gearability.com/200.....-air-crib/

My siblings and I were raised in one, many, many decades ago, and so was my daughter, twenty-five years ago. Click here for some tips on how my daughter’s was built: <a href=”http://www.gearability.com/2007/04/22/building-a-skinner-air-crib/”.

There’s nothing barbaric about them at all. They’re used just like a standard crib, but without requiring suffocating blankets, laundry or forcing a baby to sleep face up. The baby can move freely in sleep or when awake. It’s not surprising that a 3 month old would have spent most of his life in his — most babies that young spend most of their time in a standard crib. Older babies, not so much.

The physical freedom for the baby is fantastic, and so is the reduced laundry load. Not to mention that you can have the baby box right in a room where you might work, or gather with the family. Pull the shade at bedtime, and you can keep using the room, baby close by, but undisturbed.

By the way, your average baby box isn’t any more germ-free than a baby’s bedroom. The only difference in that area is that a sick sibling could be in the same room with a baby in an air crib, right next to the crib, and the barrier would reduce somewhat the chances of the baby getting a bug, if the sibling stayed away otherwise.

http://daddytypes.com/2006/07/.....inabox.php

All that said, that’s pretty nice workmanship for a DIY.