Someone recently asked me to talk about when one parent wants a toddler to be able to explore around the house freely and the other wants the baby confined to a play pen more… So, here goes: Toddlers are such “heady creatures.”  They are so excited about the world. They want to learn. They see something and it sparks their imagination. It is a time their brains are firing off connections at an incredible rate.  To optimize your child’s development you want to encourage social interactions, your baby’s creativity, and your baby’s desires to learn and explore. The key is the environment needs to be safe, so you need to make sure your home is “child-proofed” so your child can’t get into things that could hurt her. You also need to make sure you have the energy to follow her and interact with her explaining things her feet take her to. There can be a balance of quieter exploration with toys in a smaller environment and exploring around the house in a safe way at other times.  You want to nurture your child’s natural curiosity so your child’s brain can develop to its fullest capacity.  Did you notice I didn’t say who was right and therefore who was wrong? That is not a useful paradigm here. Talk with your spouse about his ideas and yours, read this answer together and see how you two can use your creativity to come up with a solution that works for both of you.