How do you get ANYTHING done with a crawling baby?

[Pinkstuffs]

DS is 6 months old and has been crawling a couple of weeks ago. He is into EVERYTHING, he has lots of toys but ignores them all in favour of anything he sees that might be dangerous - doors, fireplaces, furniture, cables etc - so obviously needs constant supervision. He has a playpen but won’t tolerate it long, especially once he realises he can’t get out.

How do you get anything done? Before he could crawl I would put him on a playmat in whichever room I happened to be in and could clean etc as he’s quite an independent little guy and will happily play by himself. But now I obviously can’t do that unless each room is baby proofed which is difficult and even then, just when I think it’s safe he spots something I’ve missed!

So what do you do? Am I missing something obvious? Once he’s in bed I’m shattered and still have to wash bottles etc. He’s up at 6 so can’t get up any earlier to do jobs.

You don't it's really annoying

My daughter is exactly the same and I’ve basically just had to baby proof the whole house😂 it was a hassle but I’m now as confident as I can be that the rooms she is in are baby proofed!

You don't 😂
Do nothing and...............wait!

‘Box of shit’ or, better, a few ‘boxes of shit’. Dot boxes of age-appropriate things around the room he can dig around in and explore. Hairbrushes, a whisk, a spatula, a ball of wool – anything safe, interesting but is not a toy.

@Mrsttcno1 i remember you from the due in April thread! Pleased to see we’re in the same boat. How have you babyproofed things like plugs? He LOVES cables, he can spot them a mile off. In the living room I’ve had to block them with cushions but that’s kind of temporary.

You don't until they're old enough for a toddler tower then they watch you sort the kitchen out happily while playing with tongs and apples. At that age they're toddling about so can follow you and "help" as you clean, u less like my child they suddenly decide that their previous favourite Henry hoover is now the devil itself and scream when it's on. My sons 15 months and its been great being able to sort stuff during the day and not spend all evening doing it as I spent the day watching a crawling oaf get into mischief 😆

It’s annoying! We gave in with DC2 and bought an (admittedly gigantic) playpen so I could pop them in there when I needed the loo / wanted to make a cup of tea / take 15 minutes to get my sanity back! DC2 definitely tolerated it for a solid 6 months, it had toys and books and they enjoyed the “freedom” of moving around as they wished. After 6 months they cottoned on that they were being corralled and started to object!

You get a large playpen.

If you read I have got a playpen but DS has realised he’s stuck in there and only tolerated it for a few minutes. Plus I feel a bit guilty leaving him there too long!

Mine loves cables too. I chuck her the remote control/my hair brush/her brother’s toys etc! It sometimes works but I can’t get much cleaning done. She’s been commando crawling since 4 months and I’m soo jealous of the parents of later movers.

The guilt is real but I promise there’s a huge difference between popping them in there for 15-30 mins and leaving them in there all day. Also because I’m a scummy second time mum I did also sometimes put on a bit of Mr Tumble whilst they were in there which always was a winner (although seriously frowned upon by most mumsnetters!)

@pizzapizzadaddio the cable love is the worst, I can’t let him roam free in any room that has cables in. Even when I’m charging my phone it has to be in another room! I can’t imagine how I will do hoovering as he will be after the cable.

My standards on cleaning are already significantly lowered but some things have to get done!

@MummyJ36 yes I do feel guilty about this but Postman Pat allows me to have a shower every morning!

We used a playpen for DT’s literally from birth. Meant that they were use to it when they were older, kept them separate from the dog and cat and somewhere safe to put them when I wanted a shower, go the loo, make lunch etc.

Baby groups, soft play, swimming or rhyme time in the morning- home for a lunch and a good sleep, do you have one a clock clubs ? I know it's niche but we spent a lot of time in the science museum.

Stop feeling guilty
Give some toys and talk calmly he will keep screaming or not
But is not coming to harm

I used to sit DD in her highchair with some melty sticks and slices of cucumber to gnaw on whilst I did meal prep. Became a dab hand at washing bottles with her sitting wedged on the edge of the sink, one arm wrapped around her waist (safer than it sounds - sink was in the corner - but don’t recommend it you have a super wriggly child!). Other than that, almost nothing happened around the house. It’s so hard!

Metal cooking bowls and a series of small kitchen utensils (a mini whisk from Tiger was her fave) also bought me approximately 3 minutes of sitting still time - just enough to gulp down a cup of tea made five minutes earlier.

We get out as much as possible and he has a couple of good naps which buys me 1 or 2 hours a few days a week (there’s always days where he won’t go down or naps in the car)! It’s stuff like needing to put washing away/clean the kitchen/hoover that I’m struggling to fit in.

One word... Jumperoo

DHD has a huge playpen, big enough for several adults to get in too. She doesn’t object to it as there is so much space to move around. There is a corner for books with cushions

I would use the playpen but as much as possible do jobs in very short bursts so he's not in there upset for too long.

You could try a sling - I did that quite a lot with my second one - she was happy enough in there if I talked to her about what I was doing.

The playpen is as big as our living room allows tbh but maybe that’s the issue. I was going to buy a jumperoo but he’s actually too small it was more like a swing. He’s very small.

Baby proofing and playpen is the answer.

Wait until they start walking, then it really gets impossible!

Ahh lovely! I’ve basically reorganised things to minimise dangerous bits! So I’ve got those baby proof socket covers, and any cables have been hidden behind TV unit/sofa, I’ve moved the sofa closer to the wall so she can’t see/get behind it to where the cables are! X

But what does ‘not tolerate it’ mean? He’s a baby.
He’s not a 16 year old who’ll walk out slamming the door behind him.
15-30 minutes at a time in a safe space with some stuff to explore is nothing to feel guilty about. I want to know who decided that children should never be anything but 100% happy 100% of the time. As long as they are fed, clean, warm and safe then it is perfectly acceptable for them to be put in a playpen in your eyeline for a short amount of time.
Unless your child has a medical need or Sen then I just don’t understand why some parents make things so difficult for themselves.
At the end of the day, if you are uncomfortable with leaving him in the play pen then there isn’t really some magic solution. Parenting is all about compromise. Housework v baby.