I have 4 kids so have had a few different Nannies, gone on tons of playdates, seen photos from toms w/ the nanny, etc. I have never heard of someone using a giant playpen like they had a litter of puppies. Just do the minimal childproofing (knobs on range, outlet plugs, Knick knacks/junk out or up), anti-tip on top heavy or tall furniture, corner protectors on a few things and gates at the bottom and top of straight staircases). Otherwise let your child explore and teach him what is safe and what’s not. I can’t tell you the number of kids we’ve had over and they’ve been so over protected that they didn’t know how to safely use stairs, etc. Also you need ti look at the bigger picture. Something dumb like a playpen would have such a short shelf life that it would make no sense.

Both. We've hosted a nanny share at our house 50% of the time since our kid was 5 months. You definitely need the gates and other babyproofing because, of course, the kids can't spend all of the time in the playpen and, more importantly, eventually they won't spend any time in the playpen, but you'll still need to keep them somewhat contained and safe. The gates will be helpful at least until your kid is 2.5 (our child is 2.5 and we're just now starting to leave the gates down, but they're still very useful when we want to contain him to an area). However, we found having a very large playpen (like 6 feet by 5.5 feet) in our family room very useful for times when the nanny (or we) needed to use the restroom, needed to prepare lunch, etc. Even with the babyproofing, I did not want my child wandering around out of site until he was closer to 2. I think with a nanny share, it is even more integral that there is a small super safe space, as the nanny cannot always be with both children (e.g., our nanny would leave one child in there while she put the other down for nap, etc.). We actually used the playpen in our family room until my son was nearly 2. It was a massive pain because it was huge, but its usefulness outweighed its ugliness. Towards the end, it was largely just used to contain the toys, but we really relied on it from the age of about 6 months until 1.5.

Both, you as a parent want a place to plop your kid safely when you have to do something same with nanny. Then as they get older they get faster so you want the childproof already in place. I read somewhere put it up before you need it because then it becomes part of the environment. Held true for us as the kid got older he closed the gate as we forgot

A playpen will only be helpful for a few months. These kids will quickly move from easily contained new crawlers to speed crawlers, walkers, runners, and climbers. You’ll need to baby proof everything eventually so don’t waste money on a playpen and just start baby proofing early. Gates make sense.

Why would you not go ahead and babyproof at least a portion of your house for the sake of your own child, who I assume actually lives there?

Gates.
This is a no brainer. Gates for top of stairs. Gate off rooms you don’t want them in unattended.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You can't have the kids spend all day in a playpen. They won't develop normally if you pen them up.

Never said that was the case, but the limited time they are inside I want a solution.

Are you planning on the nanny being outside with children 90% of the day? I don't want to say that you're crazy but I question your sanity.

You need to baby proof the room/floor where the children will be staying and likely your entire house as you are a parent. A gate is needed to keep them out of other areas. Children don't stat in facts very long keeping plants and knickknacks at arms reach is not practical.

Baby proof the whole house!! We have a fireplace gate that we found a way to latch securely. There are so many different types of cabinet locks, outlet covers, and baby gates. We used one that was a mesh thing nailed into the wall on both sides, we had them top and bottom and stairs and to separate a couple areas on the mail floor. You can’t keep two kids locked into one room indefinitely, you need to do the whole house anyway for your kid.

Identify problematic areas like the fireplace, and fence them off. There should be open play area with 2 safe spaces if nanny needs to leave the room. In our case, they were pack n play and the exersaucer. The play area grew with the kids. An experienced nanny will point out any safety concerns to you, and how she wants the room for herself and the babies

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:When we hosted a nanny share, I had a company come baby proof all the areas of our house (which was also a townhouse) that the babies would potentially be in. I didn’t want our nanny to have to even think about those issues so that she could focus on other things.

So yes, get a gate.

Thanks new to this.

So did the babies use the entire house? First time parent and unclear how best to make the house safe but not loose our lifestyle.. have a big backyard, park near by etc

Np and my kids used the entire house. You can baby proof with out majorly changing your lifestyle and layout.

You might be able to get away with a playpen for a couple of months but beyond that, you have to baby proof your house— move the knick knacks, put up gates, etc.
Good luck!