I think even considering using a box instead of a crib in the states may get you a visit from child protective services, or at least looks of disgust from your family or in-laws. Does anyone have experience trying this out?
There's a widespread legend that poor parents in the US would put a dresser drawer on the floor. Sometimes the baby came before all of the preparations had been made. Sometimes folks were just poor, or smart, or both.
I slept in dresser drawers frequently as an infant, or so I've been told. It was convenient when staying with family out of town and the like apparently.
Well, you just moved the goalposts from "what prompts a visit", past "what gets your kids taken away", all the way to "what gets your kids taken away on a whim".
I agree that CPS is extraordinarily unlikely to take your kids away "on a whim". And yet, that doesn't mean that innocent folks have nothing to fear from a CPS visit.
The first article clearly shows that CPS will visit for any report at all, no matter how bogus or bizarre. There are controls in place to thwart repeated harassment, but for a first report, they will definitely investigate because they are legally obligated to do so.
And since the original issue was whether you might get a visit for putting your kid in a cardboard box, the answer is plainly "yes".
The follow-on question is whether that visit, investigating a stupid, bogus report, might get your kids taken away. That is going to depend on the judgment of the CPS investigator. And the second article illustrates that those judgements are not always going to be evenhanded.
What people "take it as", and what facts are, are sometimes 2 very different things.
The baby box is a blessing for many families, and it's also much more than the box (which btw. is not a cheap piece of cardboard but comes complete with an insulated mattress and bedding made of high quality materials): there are clothes, diapers, hygienic goods, etc.
And last but not least, it's also a strong symbolic gesture: Society saying: "Don't worry, we got your back. You're not alone, we are all in this together, and we help each other."
