AIBU?
to make ds play on his own at this time in the morning?
roundthehouses · 22/05/2011 07:12
ds (4) is a real "play with me play with me play with me" kinda kid. I HATE imaginative games (his current favourite) and his refrain starts the minute he gets up. AIBU to tell him it is far too early and he MUST play by himself until it is a more sociable hour? He also has cartoons on by the way, he just doesn´t watch them!
handsoffmycake · 22/05/2011 07:24
Mine is the same - he is 3. I am happy to play with him - just not first thing in the morning generally.
We are now in a routine where he knows mornings are for Mummy to wake up MN and I will play with him later.
What cartoons are on? My DS loves scooby doo. We have loads recorded on the sky plus and he will happily watch those. He isnt bothered about anything else on the tv. He watches scooby for a bit and I give him lots of paper to draw with as well. He loves drawing.
I never got played with as a child but it didnt bother me tbh it gave me a good imagination and the ability to entertain myself. I think these are things that are important but maybe lacking a bit nowadays.
IThinkTooMuch · 22/05/2011 07:32
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IThinkTooMuch · 22/05/2011 07:34
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GrownUpNow · 22/05/2011 07:40
I always encourage independent play. In the day time, I set up the toys, and I spend a few minutes with the kids. I'll make a few suggestions as to what they might play, then I leave them to it and just check in. I'm not really into "playing" with them, I prefer to read to them to be honest, so that's what I do.
What has worked for me is having a stair gate on the door of their rooms. They have access to all of their toys and so after the inevitable "Mum I need a wee wee", back they go to play until I am ready for them. DS is five now and does this without a stair gate on his door.
This hour doesn't feel early for me though, I've been waking at 5am most days, this morning it was about half past. But I've still set up toys - a Little People zoo and box of animals - and named the horse Winifred and the giraffe George, and then wandered off to come have a sit down.
roundthehouses · 22/05/2011 07:48
i can cope in short bursts and i do try to make sure he gets time dedicated just to him, problem is I feel like I spend about 23 hours of the day telling him not now and about 1hr actually playing with him. bearing in mind all the other things that we get done in a day i don´t think that´s too bad but it is never enough. I really think i could play with him all day non stop and the minute i walked away he´d want me to play more.
a bit too young to get his own brekkie yet i think (just 4) but definitely something to aim for, i know by 6 my older sister was sorting both of us out in the morning.
peppa pig is currently almost the only thing that he will stop playing to watch and its almost always on somewhere on Sky but our own sanity limits how much we can watch in a day 
we do insist that if we play we get to switch cartoons off and music on, that is non negotiable!
ithinktoomuch and grownupnow, it really helps to hear other people do the same, i do feel like a rubbish mum always making excuses to get away but in lots of other ways i think i´m a pretty good mum and i am always offering to draw or do puzzles or read or play lay doh or go out and about instead, its just imaginative games that feel like torture.
GrownUpNow · 22/05/2011 07:56
Not rubbish at all, I remember playing as a child on my own and having an absolutely fantastic time. I used to disappear for hours to the woods and play with leaves and sticks. I firmly believe that providing my children with toys and some guidance is more than enough. After all, they have friends who they play with, I read to them daily, we sit and talk at the dinner table, I am happy to chatter away to them, I take DD on activities during the week while DS is at school and I am always there to provide hugs and kisses. I don't think they miss out at all.
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