Trapped Toddler Parents of Winter 2020/21 Support Thread - Puddlesuits at the ready!

[ReallySpicyCurry]

Are you the parent of a small child who doesn't yet sit still for more than five minutes? Do local lockdowns mean there are no baby and toddler groups for miles? Are you sick of walking the same three routes every day since March? Then come and join our support thread! I have started this after some of us had a good moan on a thread in AIBU ("To be worried about staying sane stuck inside all winter with a 2 year old?") because I thought it might be nice to share ideas/activities/general moans and concerns, over what is probably going to be a tricky winter for those of us with babies and toddlers.

Don't forget the answer to all your prayers though... The ever reliable puddlesuit. Puddlesuits are absolutely mandatory this year, and you are expected to wrestle your child into one and make them jump in puddles daily. If your child goes blue with cold, administer a swift dose of hot chocolate and hope your local Amazon delivery driver gets move on with your latest order of kinetic sand/playdough/ball pit/stickers. Failing all else, Peppa Pig is omniscient, omnipotent, and omnipresent, in October as in March.

@PolarBearStrength needs absolutely must. I wish someone would feed me chocolate buttons in Asda car park. I fell asleep face down on the sofa this afternoon after driving miles to WWT place where the puddles are no better than our own.

Re: puddles I saw that in WWT Slimbridge they have a puddle jumping competition and from the poster it looks like they jump in a tuff tray.

Re: toddlers and knives.
Can I just confirm that it's this set in the picture that everyone describes as a game changer?

Won't load for me, but if they look like dogs then that's them

Yes a pair of dogs!

Cute! I bought DS1 these to help me in the kitchen with (he's 4.5)

DH is a bit sad today, not sure how I can help - my family and friends are mostly local (tier 1) and his are in London (tier 2).

We're in tier 2. Parents visiting in the garden tomorrow. Thinking of getting a couple of those fishing shelters for outside to sit in.... Going to be a long, cold wet winter!

Go for it. I've developed a method of saving even more time - DD chops veg for soup while I make dinner for that day, then I quickly make soup with the wonky chopped veg and put it in the fridge for the next day.

Some more things I thought of today

-Tesco own brand sponge mix (the blue Stockwell and Co packet) is only 36p and works just as well as those expensive character themed cupcake kits. I used to know someone who worked on the production line at Tesco and they said the value sponge mix was exactly the same as the fancier stuff, as were the chopped tomatoes and cornflakes. You can bulk buy rainbow sprinkles or edible character themed cupcake toppers off ebay, and have the equivalent of one of those kits for a fraction of the price. They're also good with dried fruit mixed through and cinnamon sugar on top

• Mud and Bloom. Nature craft monthly subscription box. We've had a few and I really rate them. They're about £12 delivered, and there are four crafts plus nature spotting/scavenger hunt cards. The nice thing is that you have everything you need for each craft in the box, and the cards etc are good quality. Even though I've got quite a bit of crafty stuff at home I've found them useful because sometimes you don't want to have to think or plan, you just want to distract the bored toddler right now, nor do you want to buy a million lolly pop sticks or canvas bags off Baker Ross when you only need three, plus the crafts arw usually linked into another activity eg.collect leaves on a walk to make a leaf mask at home. They are pricey but you can order individual boxes and they're about what we'd pay monthly on the now defunct Church playgroups, so I'm ordering a few for over winter.

Fishing shelters. Now there's an idea. Are they pop up ones?

I make my DH peppered pork chops when he's sad. Not sure how helpful it is.

It's just so shit isn't it? I mean there's nothing much else we can do except keep on pushing forward and getting ever more creative with toddlers and pom poms, but realistically it's just papering over the fact that we can't properly see friends and family, we can't maintain relationships the normal way, we can't engage with our communities, support networks have been stripped away to the point of non existence, and it's hard to ensure our kids don't miss out. I really feel it during the holidays - my village is pretty good at (sightly Wickerman style) seasonal festivities, and "virtual pumpkin trails" don't really cut it. I think Christmas will be hard.

It's so tough for everyone isn't it. I was so happy and content in the first lockdown but now in Wales this one is making me struggle, mainly because of the weather and we are pretty hardy but this is much harder than I expected and we are only on day 5.

Anyway, can anyone here talk to me about WATER BEADS?

Tier 3 here and I'm starting to find it difficult. Looking like lockdown is going to last 'longer than the first one' according to the news.
Me and my little one pre lockdown were at some sort of class/group everyday, library twice a week, museums twice a week, swimming as well, two playgrounds a couple of minutes walk away, then all of a sudden everything was stopped and closed! It's been so hard on the children. It really frustrated me when restaurants and pubs all opened back up but playgrounds were still closed. My two local ones took another few weeks to open up after they were officially meant to be open again, it took many phone calls to the council.
Anyway sorry to moan, I'm just having a hard time with no one to talk to. Got alot going on with the little one also, appointments delayed etc.

@ReallySpicyCurry thanks for the mud& bloom recommendation! How old is your little one? I see they’re recommended for age 3-8. My DS is 2.5 - stuff aimed at 3 year olds not beyond him but 8 year olds would be! What do you think?

Re lockdown - saw an article today about the disproportionate effect on toddlers from
poorer families, especially those without access to outdoor space. It’s so hard. At first I felt like DS wasn’t affected as he was too young to have friends and just wanted to be with us all the time (22 months at start of lockdown), but now he’s 2.5 and I think really missing out on socialisation opportunities. He’s never been to nursery and I don’t want to start him there in winter with a newborn but might look into it in spring.

I had to go into the children's centre the other day (early help paperwork) and the staff were saying that they've really noticed a difference in behaviour with all of the children. It's so sad :(

We’re now on our 4th day of muddy puddle walks in the pissing rain. I’m sure people who gaily tell people with young kids to just put puddlesuits on and go out for lovely splashy walks together have probably:
A - got a nice big porch to dump all the muddy sopping wet clothes upon re entering the house
B - have a tumble dryer/ money is no object with regards multiple loads of washing to clean all the muddy clothes
C- have multiple shoes and coats for the kids and themselves.
There are wet outdoor clothes drying everywhere, the kids wellies are still wet from 3 days ago, all pairs of trainers are now wet through from either being in the washing machine or jumping in aforementioned puddles. Same for coats really. The dog has started hiding when it’s time for our daily walk, it’s too much even for her

I can’t face another day of wholesome splashy making memories puddle walks, might be time to crack open the craft sets

I make my DH peppered pork chops when he's sad. Not sure how helpful it is.

That sounds sweet. I might make DH birthday strawberry cheesecake even though its not his birthday - added bonus I have a pack of stale digestives DS1 will enjoy whacking!

Water beads are great, they used to use them at DS1s nursery - DS2 would just try to eat them. He tried to eat the wooden toy basket today.

Much sympathy everyone! What age do the craft sets kick in? Ds is just 2 and doesn't seem interested, not sure whether its age or personality.

Ds loves shopping and likes to chat all the way round, the supermarkets are deathly quiet these days. So if you hear a toddler shouting Green! Pasta! Tins! Etc
across the place then it will be us taking as long as we can so I don't have to think of any other activity.

Tomorrow we will also be Going Through the Car Wash and then going home and likely taking all of his toy cars through his toy car wash.

Tomorrow we will also be Going Through the Car Wash and then going home and likely taking all of his toy cars through his toy car wash.

My car looks horrendous, this is a great idea! Must be able to fashion a blue Peter style car wash out of junk...

It’s all been rather getting to me too - I’m normally a fan of winter but right now it just seems to be stretching in to the future with very little to look forward to.

@FolkSongSweet I was going to have DS1 (2.5) off with me, and was a bit freaked out about Covid + newborn, but I ended up starting him at preschool when DS2 was five weeks old and it was absolutely the best decision for all of us.

@WeSearchedHereWeSearchedThere it’s more the other winter bugs going around than covid. He’s never been in a childcare setting (had a nanny after I went back to work and pre-lockdown) so I expect he’d be totally run down with colds etc for the first few months if those were over winter, and it’s really those that I don’t want to pass on to me/the baby, plus the general disruption of being off sick a lot/potentially having to self isolate in case it is Covid when we’d be paying for it. He’s also a very shy child so think it will take a bit of settling time, plus I would hate for him to associate nursery with the baby’s arrival so for all those reasons I’m thinking spring might be better, even though I’d love the break! When did you start your son?

Anyone with younger toddlers/babies, a cheap packet of baby wipes from pound shop left tantalisingly open on the floor will buy you some peace in which to drink your coffee.
Incredibly wasteful yes I know. Use sparingly.

@FolkSongSweet DD only turned 2 back at midsummer and she's old enough for most of the m&b stuff. The bits that are beyond her, my teenager tends to slope over and "help" at. There's no activity she's been completely unable to participate in, even the one where we had to tie dye with blackberry juice. Some of the scavenger hunt type cards are beyond her but I've saved them in a plastic folder in our craft drawer. What articles was it you saw? I'd be interested in reading it myself. There has been little said on the impact on very small children, even though EYFS types have been shouting into the void since March.

@PinkDaydreams the same thing happened to our playground too and I was ripping mad. I was very close to getting FILs wire cutters and I think if they tie up the gates again, I will. I'm sorry about tier 3. We haven't got tiers yet (NI) but I'm sure we will have them after this circuit breaker is over. Actually got a text from our children's centre today for the first time in months, about foodbanks. What joy.

@Blownaway1 I know exactly what you mean re waterproofs. It's hard enough for me to dry my washing in winter. We do have small covered outdoor area at our back door and DH has run a few hooks in so we can leave wet things outside to drip.

@Camomila cheesecake is always a win, and look at you turning it into a fine motor toddler activity and all

I've ordered the Five Minute Mum book, when it comes I'll absolutely definitely not screenshot pages, because that would be copyright wouldn't it, but I will put some of the activities into my own words and relay them to you lot, yes?

Some good news- DD slept all last night in her new bed, in her room, woke up twice but settled quickly, and went to bed like a dream tonight. I'm pinning all my hopes on the Gro Clock to help stop the night waking. Bloody Amazon delivered it at 9pm so we can't use it til tomorrow. If I can iron out DD's sleep and get my evenings back I might just survive winter.

Thought of another activity because were doing it tomorrow and it's DD's favourite - cheapo spring bulbs (daffs, crocus, whatever- £7 for 50 in lidl) and either plant them in the ground or pot them up.

Actually I'd say that planting a few bulbs is a necessity this year, because I have a feeling that we'll all be incredibly relieved to see them pop through next February/March. Nothing like seeing the first flowers coming up

@FolkSongSweet that’s fair enough on the bugs point- DS has been in since first week of September and has had two tummy bugs already. Luckily for the moment he’s in with DH while I’m in with baby at night, so DH has borne the brunt of it...He hasn’t associated it with the baby’s arrival though, more like he was delighted to get out of the house!

@PinkDaydreams it's incredibly hard isn't it. What's tier three like? Can you have play dates at a park?

@Blownaway1 I hear you. We have a tiny house, no porch, no tumble dryer and I try and avoid tv except for weekend mornings to give us some sort of lie in feeling to distinguish the weekend from the week days.
But yesterday after I'd set up a beautiful autumn themed tuff tray with lentils and tipping and pouring etc etc the heavens opened with hail and rain, the toddler ditched my offerings and said " it would be fun if you did the ironing mum". What she meant was she knows I put the tv on whilst I iron as a little treat to me! So iron and tv went out on and tuff spot was abandoned.

@StrawScarecrow mine didn't like craft or paint or playdough or stickers until after two. Now she loves it.

@ReallySpicyCurry great news about the sleeping. Prepare for gro clock failure at first. But now it's a god send to us.

We too are having a glimmer of hope with sleep. Since the wretched clock change my toddler has been getting up at 4:30. But today I went in and said it was the middle of the night and she must've woken up as she was cold. I tucked her in and left and she went straight back off and is still asleep now even though the gro clock comes on at 6 and it's ten past now so it hasn't woken her.

@FolkSongSweet We're exactly the same! Nanny before, now don't want DD to feel that we're shoving her out in favour of DS, also don't want DS to get all the bugs while he's still a newborn and the COVID settling in procedures are tough too- at our local it's just leave them at the gates and pick them up later. Don't think I could do it.

We made Halloween spiders using black handprints, string and googly eyes.

Thanks @Spudlet. Does it come past the waist when it's on? Looks like it's designed to be quite short. I do like the product description, 'swashbuckling rain' .

Mine comes down right over my bum - and I’m 5’10. And it’s an XS! Unless they’ve changed the design (mine is about 10 years old now), it’s definitely generous in size.

@reallyspicycurry

www.google.com/amp/s/amp.theguardian.com/society/2020/oct/27/covid-toddlers-from-uks-poorest-families-hit-hardest-by-lockdown