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iwik posted:Yay, I felt kind of well, neglectful, because I was leaving him in there and walking away. But he has fun playing with his various little bits and pieces. If he's happy, safe and not yelling for you then I'd say go for it.
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Mar 14, 2013 14:29
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iwik posted:How young is too young for 'independent play'? Not a thing wrong with this! It's how they learn to amuse themselves for short periods, and also not to flip the gently caress out when you're not there. (They save that for later when separation anxiety hits! Liam is the worst right now.  ) If he's happy, and not upset, then go do whatever for a few minutes!
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Mar 14, 2013 14:34
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Mnemosyne posted:On a side note, babysteals makes me irritated; it seems like a ton of the stuff is only for girls. Where's all the cool baby boy stuff? I got the Zutano tights on there the other day for my son. There are a lot of gender neutral and "boy" things.  Look at how cool those tights are.  Tights are the best.
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Mar 14, 2013 14:57
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Those tights are pretty neat. I saw the size is 0-12 months, are they super stretchy?
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Mar 14, 2013 23:22
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iwik posted:How young is too young for 'independent play'? Our daughter is nine months, and we let her independently play a lot. She can entertain herself for 15-30 minutes just by fiddling with toys and exploring the house. We generally don't follow her around, though we listen if she's out of our sight--though she generally comes back pretty soon, because she likes being with mommy and daddy. Basically, my advice mirrors what everyone else has said: if he's content playing without interacting with you, it's fine. That's not to say you should do that all the time--he needs interaction with you and other older people--but if it means you get a much-needed mental break, don't feel guilty.
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Mar 15, 2013 01:09
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iwik posted:Those tights are pretty neat. I saw the size is 0-12 months, are they super stretchy? Yup. I got 1 in 0-12 and 1 in 12-24 as he's in 12 month clothes now. They fit really well (perfect). I'd say they are true to size and they're soft and very easy to put on and take off. Tights are awesome for winter if you don't want to constantly put your kid into footed PJs but want an extra layer. They're also nice for cloth diapering. Re: independent play - I let my son play on his own if I need to do things like use the bathroom, cook, or do chores around the house. He's 7.5 months old. Most of the time that means he'll either be sitting up with a toy and a mirror, or he'll be rolling/pushing himself along the floor exploring things like toys that are within reach. bamzilla fucked around with this message at 02:20 on Mar 15, 2013 |
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Mar 15, 2013 02:17
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With regard to showering, I found that setting our video baby monitor up so that I could see him made me feel a lot more at ease. 
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Mar 15, 2013 02:58
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I wouldn't be brave enough to take a shower without a baby monitor so I could hear every peep- I always just waited for the first nap of the day. But yeah, don't feel guilty about giving them some alone play time, it's when they're playing by themselves that they work everything out that they've learned. Plus, it pays to set a schedule of playing on their own in the morning, I love that Chris bombs around the house after breakfast and gives me a chance to finish my tea and wake up.
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Mar 15, 2013 15:30
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skeetied posted:With regard to showering, I found that setting our video baby monitor up so that I could see him made me feel a lot more at ease. I just closed the bathroom door and left her on the floor with a puzzle. I wear glasses so I couldn't see her real well, but the puzzle pieces were clacky enough that I could hear that she was playing with them somehow. And if she got quiet or I heard a cabinet door open, I could pop out, redirect, and then finish up.
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Mar 15, 2013 17:45
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My daughter is 9 months old and she plays independently a lot. In fairness I have encouraged that from very early on, letting her lay on her playmat before she was able to move around. Now she likes crawling around and playing with her toys, and also loves her Fisherprice Jumperoo. However once they are mobile they get into everything  My daughter only learned to crawl about 10 days ago, but she's already using the furniture and, her favourite, the stairgate to stand up and try to walk. Unfortunately this also means a lot of falling over and bashing herself. I figure that's fairly normal (and my parents assure me that I survived it relatively okay  ) but it does mean that I can't really let her out of my sight for more than a few seconds. Today I went to take clothes out the dryer... came back and she was having a bath in the dog water bowl!!For showers until now I've put her in her baby swing in the bathroom and she will sit there happily for 10 minutes listening to the music and playing with a toy while she swings. Unfortunately she's now 11.5kg and the maximum weight for the swing is 11kg, so lately I've had to get my husband to mind her while I shower. I start back at work in 3 days, and my mother is minding her while I'm at work, and she will go crazy trying to watch her while she gets things done, so I bought her a baby playpen. It seems to have good reviews, and it means my daughter will be able to entertain herself with toys for a few minutes without any risk of her poking around at things that she shouldn't be, or falling off the furniture.
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Mar 16, 2013 00:07
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My husband and I want to go on bike rides this summer with our little one who is 12 months old right now. Does anyone have any good suggestions of bike trailers or seats that go on a rack on the back wheel? What about helmets?
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Mar 16, 2013 03:55
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I never used one but my dad said he got a bike seat to go on the back of his bike for me when I was a baby and he only used it once because it was the most terrifying bike ride of his life.
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Mar 16, 2013 04:16
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Yeah I had one of those behind the bike seat bike seats that I used a couple times with my first kid and I will never use it again. It's terrible. Just makes things weird and unwieldily. We bought a trailer type dealie and its much easier on all of us. As for helmets just get something that fits well right?
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Mar 16, 2013 04:30
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The ones that go in the front seem safer http://www.amazon.com/iBert-Safe-T-Front-Mounted-Bicycle/dp/B000H4E7EO Make sure the baby wears a helmet. Go to a bike shop and get them fitted for one. Our pediatrician's office actually fits them and sells them so we buy ours there.
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Mar 16, 2013 04:41
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car dance posted:My husband and I want to go on bike rides this summer with our little one who is 12 months old right now. Does anyone have any good suggestions of bike trailers or seats that go on a rack on the back wheel? What about helmets? Check out the WeeRide or similar kid seats. They go in front of you, right behind the handlebars. I've never used one, but more than a few people I know have given them very good reviews. They say it's a million times better than the seat behind you.  Front mount just seems so much more natural and easy to balance, plus you can see your kid the entire time. As for trailers, about the only thing I hear recommended is get something with a pivot mount, so your bike can fall over without affecting the trailer. For both, the standard 5 point harness like you'd have in a stroller or carseat is recommended. And as for age, they usually say around 12 months is when they can hold their head+helmet.
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Mar 16, 2013 04:47
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I remember visiting Tokyo and seeing kids balanced on the front and back of bicycles. That must take some serious balancing skills! 
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Mar 16, 2013 07:51
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I've used all 3 and the front mounted seat is the way to go. If you ride your bike a lot, it's very irritating and scary for the first 15-20 minutes, but then you'll get used to it and it just means a better workout for you. I really, really did not like the bike trailer. People in cars are dicks and I was insanely paranoid the entire time that someone was going to smash into the trailer. If you have an open track with good line of sight I think the trailer would work fine. My dad used to ride me in one of those rear mounted seats because that's what you did in the 80s. That stopped when I was 3 and we got chased by a pitbull that ended up taking a chunk out of my heel. My Dad said it was one of the most terrifying experiences of his life, trying to outrun that dog going uphill with me in the back.
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Mar 16, 2013 12:14
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We've used the seat mounted at the back and after one ride I was used to it and it was fine. We started using it when he was a year.
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Mar 16, 2013 12:44
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How have people here tackled teeth brushing in young ‘uns? Amelia’s 15 months now, but she’s been pretty resistant to it ever since she’s had teeth. She normally tries to eat the toothpaste, then protests as we try to actually do some brushing. This seems to be getting worse, if anything. Obviously we can get firm and do it anyway, but we’re both worried about her ending up with a complex about it, and it’s not nice forcing her to do something that ends up with her crying. I imagine this isn’t too uncommon, so was wondering what tactics people might have employed to make the whole process easier.
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Mar 17, 2013 12:51
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We always brush our teeth together, even if I don't need to! We let Cilly have a go first, which normally ends in him sucking the toothpaste off and chewing on the bristle. Then once I've finished my brushing I do 5 goes with his teeth. I count to 5 v.e.r.y slowly so really he's getting quite a good brush! How have other parents gone about teaching their kids to spit out the toothpaste?
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Mar 17, 2013 14:21
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OneSizeFitsAll posted:How have people here tackled teeth brushing in young ‘uns? Amelia’s 15 months now, but she’s been pretty resistant to it ever since she’s had teeth. She normally tries to eat the toothpaste, then protests as we try to actually do some brushing. This seems to be getting worse, if anything. Obviously we can get firm and do it anyway, but we’re both worried about her ending up with a complex about it, and it’s not nice forcing her to do something that ends up with her crying. Alex is now 9 months and went through a phase of hating having his teeth cleaned, we've found it helps if one of us holds him on their lap while the other does the actual cleaning. We just had to persevere through the month or so of yelling when he decided he didn't like it at all. It does help that he's still only got his front bottom teeth - although I think some more are on the way judging by his general chewiness and crankiness.
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Mar 17, 2013 14:43
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OneSizeFitsAll posted:How have people here tackled teeth brushing in young ‘uns? Amelia’s 15 months now, but she’s been pretty resistant to it ever since she’s had teeth. She normally tries to eat the toothpaste, then protests as we try to actually do some brushing. This seems to be getting worse, if anything. Obviously we can get firm and do it anyway, but we’re both worried about her ending up with a complex about it, and it’s not nice forcing her to do something that ends up with her crying. Electric toothbrush, maybe? That at least will do a better job in the limited amount of time you have before they lose their poo poo. Also, let them pick out the toothpaste. Though this is frought with it's own risks, I'd rather brush my teeth with hemorrhoid cream than bubblegum toothpaste, but early morning, not paying attention, I've ended up with wild berry or bubblegum, or whatever other horrible thing the kids like more than a few times.
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Mar 17, 2013 15:02
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Any recommendations on T.V. shows that won't drive the parents crazy for ~1 year old. Bonus points for show that have some educational content. Conversely, recommendations on what to avoid? So far, we've been mainly sticking to PBS. Seasame street, Pocoyo, Peep & the Big Wide World have been decent so far.
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Mar 17, 2013 15:10
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Thanks for the replies so far. The lap thing could work, though it wouldn't help when there's only one of us around at bed time. Might be worth trying. I could see an electric toothbrush freaking her out a bit, but will bear it mind. Brushing our teeth with her sounds like a good idea for the obvious reason that she learns it's something that all people, including her parents, do rather than some sort of nasty thing we're inflicting on her for no reason. We do normally eat shortly after her bed time though, which isn't ideal. It could be a good way of making it seem fun for her, though, which would go a long way towards making her accept us doing it.
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Mar 17, 2013 15:41
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Gounads posted:Any recommendations on T.V. shows that won't drive the parents crazy for ~1 year old. Bonus points for show that have some educational content. Conversely, recommendations on what to avoid? Isn't 1 a little young for TV? You might want to check and see if you have Baby First channel. It's really good.
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Mar 17, 2013 16:15
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OneSizeFitsAll posted:How have people here tackled teeth brushing in young ‘uns? For the first 12 months of his life, we used a plastic brush that fits over a fingertip. We did it every night and we changed the Winnie the Pooh song to "brushing those teeth" to make it more interesting. We then moved on to a child-sized toothbrush and brush his teeth after giving him his nightly Poly-Vi-Sol (a liquid vitamin supplement). We don't use anything more than the brush and some water. His pediatric dentist said most kids under the age of 2 don't need toothpaste, and the stuff that is ok to swallow is mostly garbage anyway. He said that, until my kid learns how to controllably spit, a plain brush and fluoridated tap water is fine. Gounads posted:Any recommendations on T.V. shows that won't drive the parents crazy for ~1 year old. Yeah, having a one-year old watch a lot of TV sounds like a bad idea. If we are stuck for entertainment, or I have to do a chore while leaving the kids in front of the TV, I usually put on a music channel. Now that my oldest is 2 1/2, he gets Looney Tunes as a treat but I try to avoid more than 30 minutes at a time.
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Mar 17, 2013 19:14
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OneSizeFitsAll posted:How have people here tackled teeth brushing in young ‘uns? Amelia’s 15 months now, but she’s been pretty resistant to it ever since she’s had teeth. She normally tries to eat the toothpaste, then protests as we try to actually do some brushing. This seems to be getting worse, if anything. Obviously we can get firm and do it anyway, but we’re both worried about her ending up with a complex about it, and it’s not nice forcing her to do something that ends up with her crying. Our ped told us not to worry about toothpaste until Kosta figures out how to spit, so we just do water! We always sing the same song: "Brush, brush, brush your teeth, brush them every day! Brush them up and brush them down, brush the plaque away. Brush, brush, brush your teeth, brush them all day long, brush them up and brush them down, so they grow in strooooooong" to the tune of Row, Row, Row Your Boat. :3 It's really silly, but he knows the brushing lasts as long as the song (which we stretch out as needed). Sometimes he's a squirmer and hates it. If he's having a rough day, giving him a second toothbrush to hold helps a lot. When he's teething, I just wipe with a wet washcloth, because he gets super sensitive to the bristles. For TV, I get that sometimes you may feel like you'll go nuts without a break. I've put on Sesame Street now and then when I feel like the day will never end, even though K is way too young for it. I think it's important to know that we're doing it for ourselves and that it's not ideal for the kids. Ben Davis fucked around with this message at 21:43 on Mar 17, 2013 |
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Mar 17, 2013 21:39
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Ditto on the TV front, we just bung on CBeebies every now and again when we really really (really!) need a 30 minute break from baby-pocalypse. I'd guess that Alex maybe hits maybe an hour a month TV time wise and it's normally just on in the background while he uses a toy brick to clobber the shite out of a teddy or something. He does like having Classic FM on as well though, when possible we'll put that on instead when he gets a bit fractious. TV that he likes: Chuggington, Everything's Rosie, Mike the Knight, Bob the Builder, Postman Pat, Timmy Time, Tilly and Friends & Dipdap. TV that hasn't held his attention: Chuggington, Everything's Rosie, Mike the Knight, Bob the Builder, Postman Pat, Timmy Time, Tilly and Friends & Dipdap. (You didn't see this coming at all, did you?)
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Mar 17, 2013 22:15
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Mr Darcy posted:Ditto on the TV front, we just bung on CBeebies every now and again when we really really (really!) need a 30 minute break from baby-pocalypse. I'd guess that Alex maybe hits maybe an hour a month TV time wise and it's normally just on in the background while he uses a toy brick to clobber the shite out of a teddy or something. Mike the Knight is the worst, if I was his mum I would take his sword away and tell him to stop being such a horrible little poo poo. But apart from that Connor is the same, he likes Pocoyo but apart from that TV doesn't hold much interest for him at all. He does like watching music videos on youtube so when we need 3.05 minutes of calm we'll put on the Elephant Song. On a different topic, how do people handle haircuts? Tried to cut Connors hair tonight and it was a nightmare - he seemed determined to get the scissors in his eyes. When he was younger it wasn't so bad and he would sit relatively still but not now.
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Mar 17, 2013 23:06
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VorpalBunny posted:For the first 12 months of his life, we used a plastic brush that fits over a fingertip. We did it every night and we changed the Winnie the Pooh song to "brushing those teeth" to make it more interesting. We then moved on to a child-sized toothbrush and brush his teeth after giving him his nightly Poly-Vi-Sol (a liquid vitamin supplement). We don't use anything more than the brush and some water. His pediatric dentist said most kids under the age of 2 don't need toothpaste, and the stuff that is ok to swallow is mostly garbage anyway. He said that, until my kid learns how to controllably spit, a plain brush and fluoridated tap water is fine. Ben Davis posted:Our ped told us not to worry about toothpaste until Kosta figures out how to spit, so we just do water! We always sing the same song: "Brush, brush, brush your teeth, brush them every day! Brush them up and brush them down, brush the plaque away. Brush, brush, brush your teeth, brush them all day long, brush them up and brush them down, so they grow in strooooooong" to the tune of Row, Row, Row Your Boat. :3 It's really silly, but he knows the brushing lasts as long as the song (which we stretch out as needed). Sometimes he's a squirmer and hates it. If he's having a rough day, giving him a second toothbrush to hold helps a lot. When he's teething, I just wipe with a wet washcloth, because he gets super sensitive to the bristles. I've never tried it, but my wife did the song thing for a while and it worked swimmingly, until suddenly... it didn't. Think it's worth trying again though, by both of us this time. She loves Row Your Boat, so I might actually have to nick that one. I've also discussed the electric toothbrush idea a bit more with my wife. Might be a good way to get her to do it herself more. She's a bit old for the finger brush thing now, though I'm surprised I never thought of it in the past, given I used to use one on the dog when he was younger. Lots of good comments, thanks.
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Mar 18, 2013 00:22
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OneSizeFitsAll posted:I've also discussed the electric toothbrush idea a bit more with my wife. Might be a good way to get her to do it herself more. She's a bit old for the finger brush thing now, though I'm surprised I never thought of it in the past, given I used to use one on the dog when he was younger. The finger brush went away when Chris started chomping down on my finger. Even with no teeth that kid had a strong jaw. Now that he has a full set of teeth I brush as long as he tolerates and then just hand him the brush to chew on, no way am I sticking my finger in there. Definitely brushing with them helps, especially now that he's at the age that he loves mimicking everything Mom and Dad does. And try different flavors of toothpaste, Chris likes the apple/banana so he tolerates it a lot longer than when I tried a berry one.
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Mar 18, 2013 01:12
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New mom question here, related to the discussion. At what age am I supposed to be wiping her gums? She's 4 months, has no teeth yet. Should I have been doing this already?
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Mar 18, 2013 11:52
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We didn't start until Alex's first teeth came out.
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Mar 18, 2013 11:55
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We started wiping gums when we started introducing solids because we wanted to get David used to it from the get go. We still use a washcloth but we'll be switching to a toothbrush now that he's 12 months old/has enough teeth for it to be worthwhile.
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Mar 18, 2013 14:49
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For teeth, our pediatrician told us to wipe them with a washcloth every time we gave him a bath, but not to worry to much otherwise until he starts getting close to a full set of teeth.
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Mar 18, 2013 15:06
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Gounads posted:Any recommendations on T.V. shows that won't drive the parents crazy for ~1 year old. Bonus points for show that have some educational content. Conversely, recommendations on what to avoid? Now then, if you have access to Netflix there are a ton of shows made for babies. If not, I'd recommend getting the Baby Signing Time DVDs. It's basically just a string of music videos with a bunch of kids signing and the host lady singing. The music is pretty non-offensive as far as children-oriented pop goes and my daughter learned a lot from it. Now we basically just watch animal videos downloaded from Youtube (lots of zoos put up good videos) and music videos so she can dance. As for brushing teeth, my life got much easier once we got my daughter an electric toothbrush and starting using that. I find I can be more gentle on her teeth while still feeling like she's getting the gunk cleared off.
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Mar 18, 2013 21:32
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Ariza posted:Now then, if you have access to Netflix there are a ton of shows made for babies. If not, I'd recommend getting the Baby Signing Time DVDs. It's basically just a string of music videos with a bunch of kids signing and the host lady singing. The music is pretty non-offensive as far as children-oriented pop goes and my daughter learned a lot from it. Now we basically just watch animal videos downloaded from Youtube (lots of zoos put up good videos) and music videos so she can dance. Hmmm, I feel my complete David Attenborough DVD collection coming on. Cheers!
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Mar 18, 2013 22:11
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E is 14 months now and shows no interest in speaking. He only says one word ("hi") and doesn't even use baby-words for things. He will occasionally babble late at night before bed, but otherwise he is quiet most of the day (except for saying/grunting "Oooh-Oooh" when he wants something). Everything I read/hear from the doctor about speech development and milestones say he is behind; but my husband and his two siblings were all late talkers (with no speech problems) and I have noticed that nearly all of the boys in our playgroup are in a similar situation (14-16 months and not talking). I wasn't worried about it because E can definitely hear us fine (he follows directions well), he is picking up sign language pretty well (so he understands the concept of communication), and he was an early walker (and isn't the general idea that kids are either early walkers or early talkers?). I had assumed that doctors would ask about it all the time because they don't want to miss any possible marker of a kid "falling behind" but after a few months of inundation with "he doesn't speak yet?" from people, info on the web, and his 15 month check up coming up (I know the ped will focus it on since she wasn't happy with his only saying one word at a year) I am starting to worry a bit. I shouldn't really worry for a few more months, right?
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Mar 19, 2013 06:21
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Crazy Old Clarice posted:
Probably nothing to worry about. Do you talk to him? Not just about him and his concerns, but like all the time. It helps to narrate your day while you are doing stuff together. Sounds stupid when you are prattling on in public, but telling the kid about every step of the laundry, what colors things are, or macaroni and cheese process, or where you are going and why helps develop language. Chat his little ear off, tell him the names and uses for everything you get at the grocer and hardware store, regardless of content or relevance to the concerns of 1 year olds, more sticks than you'd expect and it helps. Also, if you are me, your kid will pick up some unexpected vocabulary and trot it out for strangers to their considerable amusement. Slo-Tek fucked around with this message at 06:47 on Mar 19, 2013 |
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Mar 19, 2013 06:44
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Crazy Old Clarice posted:I shouldn't really worry for a few more months, right? My kid is 28 months old and still mostly babbles. He is discovering random words all the time (he loves words with a "ch" sound, like couch and sandwich), but has yet to start talking in sentences. Our pediatrician isn't concerned, since he is hitting all other milestones and communicates very well non-verbally. He's just a little slower on the vocal language stuff than other kids. Actually, most toddlers I've known have been on the same track, not really talking until nearly 2-years old and even then it's usually single words and nonsense. We read to him all the time (he loves the word "again"), talk to him, converse with other adults around him, and he spends time with other kids who have more advanced language skills. My kid is very physical and adventurous, so I chalk it up to kids developing different skills first. 
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Mar 19, 2013 08:26
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