The emptying cupboards stage!

[beanstalk]

My DD (10mo) absolutley loves emptying the contents of every drawer, cupboard and shelf in the house. I know this is hardly a major problem but just wondered if anyone who has been through this can give me any ideas on how I can get her to play with other things, I am trying to distract her as much as possible but it rarely works. Please tell me it won't last long as it's bloody exhausting!

Just assign her a cupboard she is allowed to empty and put safe things in there. It lasts a few months.

My DS did this at around the same age. He was 'allowed' to play in the tupperware cupboard and we eventually put locks on all the other cupboards. It is 'just a phase' and she will soon get bored.

I agree with wmoc. Also try giving her a big box full of things she can empty and refill again. Par for the course with a 10mo.

Have tried that but one is not enough. She's like a little person possessed!!

Beanstalk, I do sympathise. My ds also 10 months, is just starting this too. Also fascination with toilet and toilet brush so we are having to hide things in cupboards he cannot open!

So many toys and so little interest in them.....

Thanks for your replies, I know it's to be expected and it's just exploring and curiosity. Will try a box too, variety will definitely help!

TheApprentice - absolutley, I'm thinking of telling grandparents not to buy her toys for Christmas, just give her saucepan lids!

Ds2 used to have an obssesion with taking all the books off the bookcase, he would stand on teh back of the sofa to get the ones on the top shelf. He grew out of it - when he was about 5!

I just them them get on with it. It didn't make any difference to me if I had to put toys away afterwards or saucepans!

Although showing them how things worked helped slow them down e.g. look this lid goes on the saucepan! Look you can put a spoon inside and then put the lid on! Look you can bang the saucepan with a whisk and it makes a good noise! etc

oh my god saltire...my daughter too. She's 12 mo and I spend my entire life picking up books and putting them back on the shelf. She crawls over huge numbers of toys to get to the bookshelf - in fact she stands on a pile of toys (which she never plays with) to get to the bookshelf.

She's allowed the tupperware cupboard too but by god it's boring putting that stuff back 700x per day.

same here! ds is 9 1/2 months, and constantly empties the cupboards, and pulls things odd the sides, and off the clothes horse. I don't mind, but he also has a big pile of toys he doesnt play with (unless I put them on the side, when he pulls them off... )

saltire - 5!!! DD has a tendency to rip my books, I'll have none left if she goes on that long!

My two are thankfully past this stage.

There was a thread a month or so ago about baskets, filled with stuff. What were they called again? Perhaps that would be an option to keep them out of the cupboards.

We resorted to keeping the kitchen door locked. They only emptied the cupboards in the living room then.

heuristic play

Sadly by the time I read this thread, DS was already too big for a wanky basket.

I love heursitic play!!

I did this at my nursery one morning - we had 10 1 year olds and I put all the oys away art from a wooden noahs ark on the table - I put out 2 huge sheets on the floor and put about 50 objects on there and my normally "awful lot!" who wouldn't play with anything for long played "properly" with the toys for an hour - ot was fab!

Thanks kinder, great link which has inspired me! I have a kitchen cupboard that has wooden place mats, napkins, and 'safe' stuff for DD to explore like wooden spoons, but the ideas on your link are great to expand this and hopefully keep her from tearing my book collection to pieces! I hadn't consciously thought about the natural textures vs plastic thing so am now off to find suitable objects!