To get toddler to wear a crash helmet at all times?

[Applesauce29]

It's like he's hit a self destruct button lately - moving objects and climbing up on everything. He's had a few accidential knocks to the head (wood and tiled floor makes this worse), and worryingly has started calling the main oven his, and throwing his toy oven at us - have turned all kitchen appliances off at the mains.

Please tell me they grow out of the climbing phase quickly. Any tips on how to get him to stay at floor level, and generally be more calm?

Just buy the helmet. And knee and elbow pads. My DS2 is and was an accident waiting to happen he's spent more time in a&e at 5 than I have in 36 years

No don't buy a helmet. It's very normal for toddlers to climb and fall. You've just got to be there before they do the falling.

At 2 I would imagine you're generally in the same room as him anyway, what do you mean by "calling the main oven his" Why don't you get a baby gate to at least slow him down if he tries to go into the kitchen?

He will develop a brain and calm down. Over millions of years natural selection has weeded out humans who never develop a concept of safety. Hard work for the op in the mean time.

Yanbu! We ended up padding the edge of the living room door after dd1 fell head first into it three times in one week! She had a lumpy head bless her

We have a little step thing from IKEA that I got for DS. I couldn't stop him climbing so the step was a relatively safe way of helping him see/get a little higher so he'd leave more dangerous ways of doing it alone. It mostly worked along with putting dangerous things up very high and watching him constantly.

I feel your pain OP. Dd was a regular in A&E between the ages of 1-3, She always managed to land on her head too.

Glad I don't have the only crazy toddler!

I might try the helmet tomorrow, at least until I can get him to calm down. We have one for when he uses his scooter anyway.

Yes, I'm usually in the same room as him. We have an open plan kitchen diner so fencing for kitchen would be difficult. He's started to turn the oven on, and put the oven gloves on and put things in there (usually cereal packets). Hence why turned off at mains. I've been telling him "it's hot, don't touch" etc for the past year.

We have a little step near the sink so he can wash his hands, but recently he's started dragging his toy boxes / chairs etc over to the counters so he can get stuff that's been pushed further back - have told DH that he really had to baby proof all drawers now (but he seems reluctant / too lazy to do this, so might just have to empty them and move things to higher cupboards - tho really don't want to keep knives up there).

So frustrating when I constantly tell him to get down / stop climbing and he repeatedly ignores me!

How the hell is he able to reach and turn the oven on?

Oh is he using his box? Take it away from him then.

It really is exhausting OP but you just have to keep physically removing him...if he drags toy boxes, you take them away from him. If he persists, then put them in another room and lock the door or hide them.

If he climbs up drawers you take him down again over and over.

Bloody awful...been there.

Get a baby gate fence to separate your kitchen. I've seen quite a few families do this.

Put all the dangerous items in one or two cupboards with a child lock. All the stuff that could kill/ harm him if he found it whilst you were in the loo.

If he touches something he shouldn't immediately take him away. Say "it's hot" or whatever but also physically take him to the other side of the room straight away

You need one of there's room dividers: www.tesco.com/direct/lindam-safe-secure-metal-playpen/100-0305.prd?source=others

We used ours as a fire guard!

We have a clevamama oven door lock to stop our nearly-2 year old opening the oven door, and our oven has a child lock that disables the buttons.

I still repeat the "it's hot, stay back" mantra despite the locks, and I like to think it's slowly sinking in. One thing to try is changing your language - I don't think small people understand that the word "don't" changes the whole sentence. So when we say "don't touch the oven they really do hear "touch the oven". I try really hard to give directions he can follow rather than use the word "don't"; so I might say "come away from the oven" or "put the cereal packets in this cupboard".

I second pps comment about language. Keep it simple, and physically remove him to something more interesting- keep some interesting games/toys and move him to those when he heads for the oven.

With language, negatives are really tricky. You need to replace 'don't fall' with 'hold on tight', and 'don't spill it' with 'use two hands, hold carefully'.

Don't climb = come down.
Don't touch = let go

Games like Simon says are great because they teach children to listen and follow instructions. He's too young for Simon says, but asking him to 'clap hands, jump, stop!' - with an excited 'clever boy!' Each time he does it work well.

It's an exhausting time, but it will end!

He can reach the controls on the oven just standing beside it.

Thanks for all the advice. I will definitely try and change my language. In two minds about hate, as he'd prob find something to climb on the other side and launch himself over... will just have to keep on top of him, and lots of walks outside to tire him out!

We have two of those Playpens already, tho lent them to a neighbour. Fine when he's inside, tho is he has anything he can stand on he can get out. Need floor to ceiling one but then this place would look like a prison!

The playpen I linked to can be opened out to act as a room divider. It might not stop him, but will slow him down.