Electricity?
Automobiles?
Internet?
Smart phones?
Coffee?
Spanx?
While there can be great arguments for any of these listed above, this list does not include THE best invention.
No, my friends. The 'best invention ever' is the Baby Cage, er, I mean Pack-N-Play. Wait! No seriously!
What? You disagree? Then you are obviously 1. Not a parent. or 2. Your kids did not like the Pac-N-Play.
If you are in the first category, if you ever have children, you will undeniably come to know the awesomeness of the Pac-N-Play. If you are in the second category, then my heart goes out to you. Quelle horror?! (Pausing for a moment of silence....)
J in Pack-N-Play Two Years Ago (He's got a little bump on his head. Poor guy!)
When you bring that sweet little baby home, all you want to do is hold your baby, cuddle with your baby, and be near your baby. Then, after two weeks of no sleep, you realize you have to put the baby down for just a few minutes to accomplish X, Y or Z.
This is where the Pack-N-Play comes in! You can put the baby in the Pack-N-Play where they can nap there while you eat dinner or watch the mobile while you load the dishwasher. Genius!
Then, when they can sit up by themselves, you can put them in there with a few toys, and Voila! They can entertain themselves for a few minutes while you take a shower! Brilliant!
Then when they get older, you can encourage them to want to go into the Pack-N-Play by saying, "Look! It's a lion cage! Looks at the baby lions! Are you hungry baby lions? Let's get you some food!" (Hubby and I tried this once and BOTH boys love it!)
J (who is now 3 1/2) will say, "Mama, can I go into the Pack-N-Play and pretend to be a baby lion?" (I know. You hate me a little right now.) So both boys will go into the Baby Cage, er, Pack-N-Play to play 'baby lions' where we feed them 'lion food' (i.e. Goldfish). We pretend to be scared while feeding the baby lions and they laugh like it's the funniest thing ever. Too. Stinking. Cute.
Now, before you go hating, I will say that while this is wonderful when they are playing in the Pack-N-Play, it does not happen very often these days. Nor, when they would actually stay in there would we leave them in there for hours at a time.
Today, the boys would rather be running around the house like the tiny tornadoes that they are, but they do occasionally request to go in there. (Side note: L climbed out of the Pack-N-Play this weekend. I was in the bathroom, heard the Pack-N-Play move, then the pitter patter of little feet. Scared the crap out of me!)
Bottom Line: The Pack-N-Play keeps your baby safely contained while you get some work done (at least until they climb out). Ahem.
I rest my case! This is why the Baby Cage, er, Pack-N-Play is the 'Best Invention Ever'.
Pack-N-Play, I salute you!
