I know I have mentioned in a previous post that parents of babies need to take advantage of confining toys and play pens, but I just wanted to stress this again. My son is a toddler and trust me when I say he is into everything. I thought it was bad when he crawled everywhere, but now that he is walking it is so much worse. Not only is he fast, but his curiosity level is at an all time high. He likes to grab items off of counters, sort through cabinets, rearrange furniture, take all my shoes out of their boxes stacked in my closet, push buttons on our appliances, smack at our golden retriever’s feet, crawl underneath beds, and climb on top of furniture.
One morning I thought my coffee mug was out of his reach and then I heard a splash and a whimper. Since I was constantly chasing after him that morning, my coffee was luke warm inside the mug and he was not burned. He was a little frightened from the ordeal, but never even shed a tear. He was actually entertained as I sweated bullets trying to blot the stain out of my carpet. Since I never told my husband of this incident, I’m sure he’s in shock reading this post. Yes honey, our son pulled my enormous coffee mug off of our dresser and it spilled all over our bedroom carpet. Needless to say, OxiClean Baby works miracles on beige carpet, you cannot even tell anything happened.
My son is starting to test me too. For instance, he knows my pantry is off limits yet he walks over and touches the door. He will then look at me to see if I’m going to say no. If he notices me glaring at him, he will give me the biggest smile as if to say, “Mommy, I’m too cute to say no to”. Where do kids learn this stuff? He makes me laugh so hard that I’m sure he’s getting mixed signals about whether it is acceptable to open the door or not. Also, today I caught him trying to stand on my bed with the book “Five Little Monkeys Jumping On The Bed” in his hand. I’m still wondering if the book was a coincidence or was he really trying to act out the story?
He used to nap twice per day which was a great way for me to get things done. As any parent of a toddler knows, it is difficult to do household chores while they are awake because of the constant supervision that is required. I used to clean, organize, exercise and/or blog during his naps but now I have to fit all that in during his one daily nap. Some days he’s really good to me and will nap for 4 hours, other days like today I only get 90 minutes to squeeze it all in. I have developed a really good system for cooking and cleaning the kitchen while he is eating in his high chair. Other than meals, I do not confine him much because he really enjoys being free. Also, I hope from all the running around he’ll wear himself out and beg for more naps!
I am starting to understand why parents transform perfectly nice dining rooms into play areas for their kids. It’s a safe haven for them to play and a sneaky way to keep them confined! Also, it would keep all his toys in one location instead of being spread throughout our home. I may have to give this play room concept some serious thought!
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