Finnish babies sleep in cardboard boxes.

[Peas n carrots]

This is such a cool idea. As others have said, I wish the US would do this but likely there would be complaints of "gubberment indoctrination of babies" or that "mothers should pick themselves up by their bootstraps and pay for it themselves."

When I was a kid in the 80's/early 90's I was allowed to basically play and roam outside in the backyard by myself around the age of 4. My Grandma's kitchen window overlooked the yard, and my grandpa had a giant garden so there was some supervision but not constant. However, I grew up in a small town in a rural area in the age before 24 hour news networks....so it was a different world. Now as a grown person living in Chicago, I hate hearing people say they are taking their kids to play groups...it just doesn't sound very organic and too structured. If I do have kids, I hope I can find a best of both worlds scenario where I can live in a place where my kid can roam free but not a zillion miles from civilization :D

[LurkerOverThePond]

A cardboard box and outside sleeping baby here I survived the Finnish childhood and state funded healthcare and education system.

I was just in Helsinki, and met up with an FJer who lives there. I loved Helsinki, and the FJer was a very dear person.

Thank you, it was great to meet you, too! Hope you got back home safely.

I had the sweetest blessing to tell gustava that Smuggar got his job in DC (she didn't know about it yet). We had a sweet time of fellowshipping - discussed the Duggars, the Maxhells and pretty much everything FJ, which was a neat blessing. Sweet! I also told about our horribly government policy of giving every child the same chances for education and about our universal healthcare. We toasted for the Duggars (not kool aid but local beer) which was a sweet blessing too. Gustava blessed me even more by offering to guide me through DC if I ever travel there. The whole meeting was a sweet sweet blessing beacuse I never thought I would meet a fellow FreeJingerite!

By the way, here are pictures of those card board boxes. Scroll down to see the pimped up boxes. http://www.iltasanomat.fi/asuminen/art- ... 19741.html

[Hane]

So adorable and clever!

[Val78]

Oh, and when I was a baby my "crib" was a dresser drawer.

When we've traveled with our kids as babies we always skipped hauling the pack n play and just used dresser drawer :) much easier and total containment;)

[Arete]

So adorable and clever!

I love, love, LOVE the boxes in that link LurkerOverThePond left enough to wish I could make one for the next kid dropped by family or friends. But I never learned to sew beyond hemming a skirt and putting on a button, and those look like they need some skills. They are wonderful. :)

[Val78]

Those are super cute!

Similar to the Moses baskets, but without handles, I guess?

[dawbs]

When we've traveled with our kids as babies we always skipped hauling the pack n play and just used dresser drawer :) much easier and total containment;)

For a while, mine was 2 overstuffed chairs pushed together...like this, but probably more death-trap-like:

http://lyndseynadeau.files.wordpress.co ... g_4258.jpg

[I live off the state]

My 3 year old is outside playing naked on his own at the moment - not in a fenced private garden but in our common playground (4 apartment blocks arranged in a rectangle with a playground, a basketball/volleball court, grill area and garden in the space in the middle)

I am going to miss Finland - I am moving away next month and I am really starting to wonder why.

[OnceModestTwiceShy]

I never fully realized just how much I had absorbed America's culture of fear until last summer, when Partner and I were in Germany visiting his family. They live in a small city/big town type place. I remember being absolutely horrified at seeing young children - under 10 - walking around by themselves, home from school or to the store or whatever. I was all "But they'll get kidnapped! They'll get hurt!" and Partner was all "It's a safe town, middle of the day, they are walking near main streets, etc." And I just went on and on about "abduction! rape! ARMAGEDDON!" :lol:

[LurkerOverThePond]

I am going to miss Finland - I am moving away next month and I am really starting to wonder why.

The insane prices of pretty much everything? ;) (yes, I know, it's horribly expensive here because of even more insane taxes that finance this whole system)

[gustava]

A cardboard box and outside sleeping baby here I survived the Finnish childhood and state funded healthcare and education system.

Thank you, it was great to meet you, too! Hope you got back home safely.

I had the sweetest blessing to tell gustava that Smuggar got his job in DC (she didn't know about it yet). We had a sweet time of fellowshipping - discussed the Duggars, the Maxhells and pretty much everything FJ, which was a neat blessing. Sweet! I also told about our horribly government policy of giving every child the same chances for education and about our universal healthcare. We toasted for the Duggars (not kool aid but local beer) which was a sweet blessing too. Gustava blessed me even more by offering to guide me through DC if I ever travel there. The whole meeting was a sweet sweet blessing beacuse I never thought I would meet a fellow FreeJingerite!

By the way, here are pictures of those card board boxes. Scroll down to see the pimped up boxes. http://www.iltasanomat.fi/asuminen/art- ... 19741.html

Ah, such sweet fellowship :wink-kitty: