babies are like pets that you can't shut in their cages when they get obnoxious.

Sure you can, you just needa get a bigger cage. :-P

And yeah, I don't like shutting Gabe in her cage as a form of punishment or control or whatever. The closest I get is putting an extra layer over her cage cover if she wakes up before me and tries to talk to the sparrows at 4am. Otherwise I try to actually figure out what's bothering her and fix it. My friends have pointed out to me that she's got me trained and that I cater to her every whim. *grin* What can I say, it keeps her happy!