Trying to occupy a toddler
My nausea is still kicking around, but I’m at least feeling like I have more life in me – I haven’t felt like I needed to be permanently attached to the couch this week. Some food stays down, some food comes up. Hopefully it improves.
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Kate has been very bored lately. We realized that she had all the same toys in the living room as she’s had pretty much since her birthday. She’d play with something for 5 seconds, then toss it to the side and whine. She’s been demanding TV all the time recently, which does NOT make me happy. I have been turning on her shows more often lately, just because I’ve felt so sick…. and I feel bad enough about that. But then to have her yanking on my hand and yelling because she wants more? Umm. No. So today I cleaned out the living room, storing most of the toys in the basement for a month or two until they are “new” again. I picked her up a few new things that she didn’t have, like a xylophone.
One of the things I got today is one of those inflatable bouncie horses. I’d been debating getting one for a while and I saw one at BRU for $15. Can’t beat that. Unfortunately Kate is apparently scared of it. She practiced some cow[horse]-tipping, but that was it. Later Den sat her on it and bounced her gently, saying, “Wheeee!” She lost her balance and tipped forward, touching its head and ears. She freaked out crying. FAIL. WTF?
Tonight the three of us had a lot of fun playing with a ball. And reading books. And playing peek-a-boo with old hats and scarves. I’d like to find/make more things for her to play with, but I’m at a loss. She still eats things, so crayons/coloring is out, same with beans/sensory tubs. I am definitely not bringing a water table inside. She likes to climb, but other than the couch there’s not much else that’s safe, as judged by the large bump she has on her cheek from falling off of our end table yesterday.
I’ve been trying my best to take her out places. There’s a local gymnastics place that does drop-in open play for toddlers – basically just turning them loose on all the mats, bars, trampoline and ropes. She’s not an extremely adventurous kid, but she does enjoy herself, and it’s one place she’s allowed to climb everything! Thursday morning there’s a local place that has a drop-in open swim, and I may be brave enough to try that tomorrow, if I’m not feeling too sick….. although the thought makes me shiver. (Even indoor pools… getting out is cold!) I think the library does a toddler reading time, I need to put that on my calendar as well. I’d take her outside, but in the front yard she wants to run for the road, and in the (fenced) backyard she runs to the door and just stands there. I do NOT understand that. We have fun toys, a slide, a HUGE yard… and she whines at the door. WTF. There are local parks, but I must say how exhausting it is to constantly be grabbing your toddler as they try to tackle things that are too much for them. Most playgrounds are not made for 1 year olds.
Trying to keep her occupied and engaged is definitely tiring!
We have girls that love to climb here too. My parents bought a Step 2 Kangaroo Climber for my son’s first birthday and it’s been a huge hit in our house. We keep it in our family room. The kids love to climb on it, play in it, slide down it. If you’re interested you might find one on craigslist? If you have hardwood floors foam mats underneath may work?
http://blog.step2.com/2011/01/alternatives-to-the-discontinued-kangaroo-climber.cfm
Good luck! I can only imagine trying to entertain a toddler and deal with morning sickness. Feel better soon!
Congrats! Wishing you all the best!
:) Heather
In the non-summer months, we fill our baby pool with bounce-house balls (bought on eBay), and let the kiddo dive around in those. She loves it. Around Kate’s age, she also loved climbing in and out of and putting things in and taking them out of laundry baskets and cardboard boxes. (Actually, she still does.) Other indoor things she loved were her ride-on car, baby dolls, hats and shoes and clothes she could try to put on, blankets she could play peekaboo under, a little play tent, her play kitchen, play food and play dishes… ummm, a toy purse full of goodies (hair brush, mirror, bracelet, keys)… maybe there’s an idea somewhere in there for you. :o) Oh, and also, I would hide away a batch of her toys every week or so and trade them out for a previously hidden batch. It was like new toys every other week! (I still do this with her toys and books, and she still falls for it at 25 months.)
If she likes to color/draw, you might try an Aquadoodle. It is a big mat that they can color on with a special pen that has water in it. It is awesome because they can’t eat the pen, and if they draw on the couch it is totally fine because it is water. Good luck!
Ahhh….this is tough. Not sure how much space you have…but I broke down and bought a small indoor trampoline for my son and we put it in the playroom. It is netted so I just zip him in and he bounces and loves it. He also just likes to play in there and often takes toys in with him.
http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product.do?product_id=10982839&findingMethod=rr
We also have a very small play structure (a little tikes plastic one) that has a slide and a door and is small enough for a living room. Our son played like mad on this thing starting at about Kate’s age and now we are using it for our 11 month old daughter who is also the mighty climber. It breaks down easy so you can move it outside for the nice months too.
http://www.toysrus.com/product/index.jsp?productId=10942714
I hope you feel well enough this week to attend some of the activities you mentioned. Even with a lot of things to do at home…nothing compares to just getting out of the house for awhile on a little adventure.
Karaleen
play area at the mall…? lots to climb on and your inside, warm, and you can chill on the bench :)
Things we’ve found entertaining this week (that haven’t been mentioned.. boxes are always awesome). A long piece of yarn (knotted every few inches to keep from unraveling) with loops/beads made of cut up toilet paper rolls to string on the yarn. A piece of cardboard with a hole cut in it (HUGE hole) and hung to throw balls through… and the all time favorite, which we played with elsewhere and I need to recreate: A magnet board. I guess you can make your own by getting one of those oil drain pans and hanging it on the wall. A package of magnets from walmart, a glue gun, and some felt and I think that’ll be a winner. He spent nearly an hour moving magnets around and sticking unsticking and throwing them, at a friends house. Good luck! We’re at a rough age and there’s nothing more annoying than bored toddlers lol
Ahhhh, thank you all!!! I need to take another trip to Walmart.
Though sadly our local mall does not have a play area…. I have to go to a different one, and it’s not very close. And it doesn’t have a food court or many stores. Grrrr.
When my kids were small, we had a little tykes slide that we kept in the house. It was great for physical activity when the weather was crappy. They would slide for hours.
Empty boxes are great for building, but especially for knocking down. Cereal boxes, shoe boxes, oatmeal boxes, etc. Pringles cans are great for bowling. A few cans and a small ball are all you need. My grandma always had a box of 8 or 10 cans for my kids to play with at her house.
My kids have all loved a doll umbrella stroller. I just got a new one for my youngest this week from target. She pushes her babies around non stop. Our local library also has a great story time for toddlers.
I’m sorry you’re so sick — it is definitely hard keeping up with nausea and a toddler….oiy!
I don’t know if any of these will work for you and/or Kate, but here they are:
-Stickers
-Food coloring in yogurt, then let her “finger paint” in the bathtub (not sure how well this would go with nausea…)
-“Toy swap” with another mom/friend
-Balloon toss
-Make a tent/tunnel with blankets and pillows on the couch or table – let her play with books, dolls, toys inside, or if you’re brave – a picnic under it! :)
-What about things she can “fill and dump” — cotton balls into an empty tupperware, pipe cleaners into an oatmeal container, clothespins, twist ties, felts pieces, ribbons (anything you have, pretty much) – good for sorting, and making a mess that *she* can clean up…?
Our entire family has been sick this week, so we have watched a ton of tv and movies, and although I wish we could be doing something else, I realize that it’s what’s best for all of us to do to get well and ‘survive this time’.
Hang in there!
That adedessrs several of my concerns actually.