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.

Welcome to the next few years of your life.

Thanks I already know this as DH is an electrician.

I have to keep him away from cables as if he pulls on them whatever they’re plugged into will fall on top of him though!

Playpen. Let him whinge for a while because stuff needs to be done.

My son was happy in his travel cot with lots of toys and would just doze off after playing a while. He was a good sleeper though so generally easy to get stuff done. Never really got to propper crawling, was more combat style on his elbows so not a fast mover.

Mine is 7 months and on the move. I have several 'boxes of shit' as a previous poster mentioned (treasure baskets for heuristic play as I like to call them when I'm feeling posh) dotted about. I also have a laundry basket that I sit him in with loads of scarves and scraps of material tied to the slots. He'll sit in that and eat/pull at those for 15 minutes at a time. I also put him in front of dancing fruit when I need to clean the kitchen after his tea. 20 minutes screen time > living in squalor.

We used a jumperoo or highchair and some books for quick jobs like washing up, making lunch etc and things like changing the bed just shut them in the bedroom with u and involve them and make it a game. It takes longer but they think it's hilarious which is cute. My little boy is now getting a dab hand at handing me clothes from the maiden for me to fold and put in the laundry basket. But if I'm not quick enough he 'helps' and takes them out the basket again lol

Ah see now your Grandma will have just strapped your Mum in the big pram with a doll for pretty much the whole day while she cracked on doing the weekly deep clean. She turned out OK didn't she🤣🤣🤣

I used a baby walker but they are very frowned upon nowadays.

I would put them in a carrier and do what I needed to most of the time. If I was in the kitchen or dining room and it was near meal times I’d put them in the high chair that clips to the kitchen units like a crab claw and give them their food to occupy them, obviously that gave me a decent 20 minutes 2-3 times a day as they ate and I could do things. I had one cupboard in each room they could safely empty and explore so they’d do that regularly and I’d sling everything back in after.

But it was nearly always baby or toddler into the carrier or I’m not sure how I’d have cooked, hung the washing out, trimmed the hedges, mown the lawn, swept the leaves, taken the bins out, vaccuumed and mopped, cleaned out the pet cages, walked the dogs, cleaned windows etc, all of which were very much carrier jobs every time until they were old enough to “help” and even then it wasn’t always safe or practical for them to do so.

I didn’t have a playpen or a jumperoo or a baby gate but I did use the TV too and they liked that, no regrets.

My boys were both small - we stacked a couple of 'jigsaw' foam mats under their feet for a little boost and it worked perfectly. The same type you might use as floor for the playpen.

How much you get done depends on the child. My eldest would sit in his chair and watch me do chores. For my second he wasn’t as laid back. So got more done when he roamed the floors looking for mischief so baby proofed the main living areas. Even removed lamps so he couldn’t pull it down on top of himself. He would entertain himself with what ever he found. The third was the trickiest would escalate straight away to screaming his head off when put into a chair, playpen. I can ignore moaning and whinging but can’t ignore screaming so got very little done once he was crawling.
Youngest is nearly two now and it’s gotten much easier to get things done. It’s not forever

@IdaClair you’ve just given me flashbacks of singing “in and out the dusty bluebells” and weaving through the laundry on the line with DD in the carrier. The neighbours must have thought I lost the plot!

OP, I found it helpful to break jobs down into stages. So rather than “I need to empty the washing machine and hang the laundry” it was 1) put laundry in a big heap 2) sort into tumble/not tumble, 3) let DD pull all the tumble stuff out of the basket whilst I scoop up the other pile and dump it on a table, 4) put tumble stuff in tumble dryer and turn on, 5) during nap time, hang up the pile of wet laundry on the table. I used to get lots of half jobs done and then use nap time to do the bits of jobs that needed both hands and/or full attention, eg chopping food.

Im derailing here a bit, but I didn't know that about the pop ins. What should you buy so?

You create a ‘yes’ zone- and area that’s baby proofed and baby can go anywhere within that zone. For some people it’s a room, for some it’s buying those huge (as in length) gates and gate out an area of a room.

@Ella31 don't buy anything. They're already safe.

You baby proof a room so they can be unsupervised for short amounts of time. Cables behind furniture, rugs on fireplace, foam protectors on sharp corners etc. Don't need socket covers though as some get clever and use them upside down which is unsafe. Babies can't get their fingers in the holes anyway.

This is life now until they get to about 2-2.5. Enjoy.

Because the top pin being pushed in is what makes the sockets live, so they’re perfectly safe as they are. The push in plug covers therefore make the socket live - so if a child is fiddling with them there fiddling with a now live socket.

surely there isn’t that much needing doing on a day to day basis? Where is the child’s father and how much of his time is being spent cleaning?

(mine worked away 5.5 days a week. I did pretty much no housework during that time and we split it between us when he was home. Don’t fall into the trap of doing all of the housework now. It will pay dividends in years to come. Your job is childcare, not housekeeper.)

I totally agree. Used one for my children and then grandchildren and it was the safest option. Don't let the little darling control your day but show him who the adult is in the situation. Play with him, entertain him then put him in the playpen while you do your chores or have a coffee or go to the loo. Yes, he'll whinge, but he'll be safe which is what matters.

Playpen facing the tv with cocomelon playing to distract them? Jumperoo facing tv? Basically something to restrict and distract. Only to be used for short periods of time ofcourse.

Use one kitchen cupboard which he can open and put safe kitchen things there for him (Tupperware, wooden spoon etc ). It might give you enough time to at least do something!

Don't let the little darling control your day but show him who the adult is in the situation.

Yes because a 6 month old has a perfect understanding of hierarchy rather than just the basic need for attachment to a secure figure. Don’t get me wrong mine have had to cry at times but it wasn’t to “teach them a lesson” or to show I was boss.

What should be used instead?

Nothing - they’re safe as they are. You can get some that are covers if you desperately want to.

amzn.eu/d/0Szp0aC

Showing him who the adult is shows him who he can trust to set the boundaries to keep him safe.