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Behaviour/development

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How does your 15mth old spend their day?

20 replies

Doozie · 15/03/2010 15:38

Help! I need some inspiration! I just do the same unimaginative things with my DD day after day. I think she is getting bored too.

I am totally lacking when it comes to fun play ideas and don't know where to start with craft. I'm clueless what sort of developmental play she would be doing at this age.

What does your toddler like doing?
What are their favourite games and toys?

Thanks!

OP posts:
Are your children’s vaccines up to date?
jkklpu · 15/03/2010 18:25

Get out and about toddling in the park, feed the ducks, look up for planes/kites/helicopters, go spotting building sites to watch the large machines at work, go to the shops - all these things that seem mundane to us are fascinating to wee ones.

bulby · 15/03/2010 18:33

Couldn't agree more! I used to exhaust myself thinking of exciting things to do and then realised that a walk to the top of the road was the toddler equivelent of the best fun ever.

Flum · 15/03/2010 18:42

My 15 month old who is nearly 16 months and is my 3rd baby but 1st boy spends his day like this>>>.

Wakes up about 6.30 ignored by mother until 7.30 as he is safer in his cot. He sort of chatters and chucks all his toys out and is generally happy.

Then after I have got up in peace and started the girls on drinks and getting dressed I get him up give him a bottle and gtet him dressed straight away he then:

pulls all books off the book shelves
throws anything he can get his hands on in the loo
gets into girls rooms and takes everything out of cupboards and empties dolls house.

then breakfast - keep him in high chair as long as possible to minimise the mess he makes.

then he comes on school run bit of walking anb bit in buggy, then we sometimes feed ducks or play ground on way back.

Then we go home and I do washing, tidying making beds while he makes a big mess in my wake. When I can't bear it anymore I give him a snack and a bottle and put him to bed usually around 11am. He sleeps til about 2pm. Get him up give him some lunch. Then off for school run again then he comes along to what ever we are doing after school and potters around, throwing stuff about.

Then I put him to bed at 6.30pm too early really but can't have any quiet reading or telly time with the older girls with him around.

He is bloody gorgeous but what a handful. He spends a lot of time in the loo chucking things int it. My girls just used to sit and look at books!

Weather is better now so he spends a lot of time in the garden eating sand and mud now.

I don't really do any 'activities' with him except a music with mummy on a Friday which is fun.

crumpetsolo · 15/03/2010 18:47

We try and go out at least once - his new favourite pastime is digging in the garden and trying to eat pebbles. We go swimming at least once a week, I've tried 'craft' but he is just not interested, he consumes crayons, which I think can't be too good. We spend twenty minutes reading books - he turns the pages, sometimes three at a time. I try and do something active every day to wear him out, but he's also happy mooching with his toys for a bit. We go to soft play so he can hare about, and to the zoo usually once a week with his buddies. Even just going out for a walk in the pram is quite good, he seems to be exhausted afterwards from all the fresh air. It's tough if it's rotten weather trying to entertain him indoors all day, but getting out and about is the secret I think.

TheProvincialLady · 15/03/2010 18:53

Craft for a 15m - are you crazy?! She is a baby you loon You are overthinking this. Basically, just go for a walk in the park/to the shops once a day (mainly for your own sanity), sing to her a bit and play with her, and encourage her to play with her toys. Let her bang saucepans while you make lunch. Take her swimming if you enjoy it, ditto tumbletots, M&T etc. Meet up with friends.

She just needs and wants to be where you are, showing her the world. Don't put so much pressure on yourself, you are doing a fine job.

BertieBotts · 15/03/2010 18:58

DS is 17 months but it hasn't changed hugely in the last 2 months except the weather has got better.

Typical day:

8 - wake up, get dressed
9 - go to mum + toddler group at children's centre (usually have breakfast here, depending what time we get up as they do toast)
10.30 - snack of fruit at group
11.30 - leave group, walk home, DS has a sleep
1-2pm - DS wakes up, we have lunch
*(Rest of afternoon)
5pm - start dinner
5.30-6pm eat dinner
6.30-7pm brush teeth, bath (not every day), bed

*Rest of afternoon, things we do (going out)
Walk to the park
Feed the ducks
Just go for a walk and let DS go wherever he wants and look at whatever he wants (barring obvious things like roads, dog poo etc!)
Go to other park where there are loads of pigeons unfazed by people
Look around the shops - always include ELC or other place he can try things out, even just a bank with a bead table - will also look in charity shops for new books and DS looks at his books while I look at "boring stuff" in other shops.
Go to the library
Go to other toddler groups
Go to see friends/family
Go out for lunch, somewhere cheap, occasionally. Maybe with a friend or just me and DS.
Go to other park which is just a big open space - will usually take a ball or something
Go swimming
Go for a walk and see the horses in the field

If staying in:
Put music on and dance around
Do housework and let DS "help" - e.g. putting dirty washing in a basket, or in the machine, letting him "sweep" the floor when I have done it, washing up, I scoop some of the bubbles off the top and give him them to play with in a plastic tub with a spare washing up brush. He also likes my handheld hoover and gets upset when the batteries run out and he can't do any more hoovering!
Playing physical games like hiding behind a door and jumping out saying "boo" or letting him close the door and open it, or running along the landing at me, chasing him around on all fours, tickling, short piggyback rides, etc.
Let him run around in the garden (tiny concrete yard, but he just likes being outside) - it's enclosed so I can do things inside and see him out of the window and hear him when the door is open.
Pull all sofa cushions onto the floor and let him pile them up/climb over them/etc.
Give him a bath in the afternoon rather than at bedtime.
Invite friends/family over here.

Actual toys he likes (to play with alone or with me)
Balls or anything like them e.g. balloons
Stacking rings set
Stacking cups, blocks, skittles, anything to knock over
Wooden jigsaws with the little handles, especially if the pictures are repeated on the board (so he is matching pictures rather than just shapes and holes)
Shape sorter
Books - board books are good for being less destructible, but he loves at the moment big hardback children's books with sturdy paper pages, though he tends to wreck them if left to read them alone.
Bags and boxes - a big hit at the moment
Keys, supermarket cards, mobile phones, my shoes, wooden spoon - anything "real"
Bead table thing
Push along truck or doll's pushchair
Cars
Tea set
Mega blocks/duplo/sticklebricks
Little model animals like they sell in ELC
ELC whizz around mountain
Things which make flashy lights and tunes
Anything thomas the tank themed or ITNG themed (Obviously this depends on your child)
DVDs/CBeebies (!)

Craft:
Don't really do much craft with DS yet. I sometimes let him draw or colour but only in his highchair/booster chair sat to the table. An aquadraw thing is supposed to be good and I am probably going to get him one of those so he can "draw" when he wants to.

HTH

tryingtoleave · 16/03/2010 11:19

I have dd 15 months, but also a 3 yr old ds, which makes it a bit different. But, anyway...

7 ish, get up and try to get showered and dressed while dd clings to my leg.

8 breakfast

8.30 take ds to preschool

Then on monday meet a friend at museum with toddler section, on tuesday go to playgroup, wednesday stay home and try to do some housework, read books to dd and maybe do some shapesorting, thursday go to markets - I have coffee, dd has a babycino, we share a cake (bliss!) and then buy some fruit, friday go to paint and play or stay home depending on how I feel.

11.30 ish home for lunch and nap

2 ish DD up, quick snack and then go to pick up ds.

Then the rest of the day depends on whether ds has napped at school. If he hasn't, we go home, watch tv, play outside for a bit then dinner bath and bed by 7.30. If he has, we go to the park for as long as possible, then home for tv, dinner, bit of playing, bath, children jumping around like wild loons, then bed at nine ish (yuk!).

Can I just say that after looking after an older toddler and then a baby and toddler together all day this sort of lifestyle/routine is really lovely - so just try to enjoy it and especially enjoy things you like doing because all too soon your life will become more child centred and limited in that way.

rattie77 · 16/03/2010 11:56

Can I ask what is a babycinno - sounds interesting. This post has been really helpful as I have a 16 month old and have been feeling that what I do with him isn't stimulating enough etc, this discussion has made me realise I am doing ok - thanks everyone.

tryingtoleave · 16/03/2010 12:04

Just milk froth with a bit of chocolate sprinkle on top - like the top of a cappuccinno.

Doozie · 16/03/2010 14:19

Thanks everyone for your replies. Like rattie I'm feeling relieved I'm doing okay after all. A lot of the same stuff is going on in our place, although I'll be seeking out the babycinos in the future.

I think I was feeling a bit disheartened as I'd returned from a babygroup last week where there was some serious hot housing going on.

Loved TheProvincialLady's comment. Yes I am a loon for even thinking about it!

Back to hide and seek, harassing pigeons in the park and the repeat to fade reading of Dear Zoo.

OP posts:
rattie77 · 16/03/2010 21:36

Had to chuckle Doozie at the repeat to fade reading of Dear Zoo, I am the same but with Oh Dear (same author I think!), I can now repaet it in my sleep!!!.

CantSleepWontSleep · 16/03/2010 21:40

17 months here, but toddler group at least 3 mornings a week, then home for lunch then nap, then school run.

tryingtoleave · 17/03/2010 00:59

I felt bad afterwards about saying that it was going to get harder. That was just my experience with a difficult 2 yr old that couldn't be taken anywhere - it probably isn't true of all toddlers.

tortoiseonthehalfshell · 17/03/2010 01:09

My 15 month old is only just starting to walk, so that affects things a little bit, but:

We go to the park every day that the weather allows. I take her to one that's got loads of other kids, because she's not really big enough to go on the equipment on her own yet (baby swing and baby slide only, and I have to lift her up onto the slide each time) but she loves watching other kids run around. whole takeaway coffee in peace, it's great. Then we walk around with her in the stroller until she falls asleep, I can grab a coffee and read for a bit, then we go home.

We read a lot of stories.
We climb the stairs over and over.
Play with balloons.
Bake cupcakes - displayuntilbest convinced me to try this, and it's great. I put all the equipment on the floor and let her 'help' stir the dry mixture with a wooden spoon, dip her fingers (wash hands thoroughly first!) into the egg mix, place the paper muffin cases into the holes, etc.
Colour with/eat crayons.
Bathtime
Laundry - she will drape bits over the low wooden frame while I hang the big stuff out on the line.

Yours sounds like a handful, OP, but if it's any consolation I would kill for a child who napped for three hours in the middle of the day and went to bed at 6.30! Mine naps for about an hour, 1.5 hours if I'm lucky (and only then if we're in the car/stroller/on my lap, so no chance of getting much done around the house. And she doesn't go to bed before 8.30pm. There's not a lot of downtime around here.

lowrib · 17/03/2010 01:34

My 15 month old loves

  • "dancing" around with mummy to music - we listen to stuff especially for kids but my music too. He thinks mummy making a fool of herself dancing about - or even just twirling in circles is hilarious to watch too
  • practising his new fantastic new walking ability!
  • helping to load his laundry into the washing machine
  • being in the garden
  • being read to
  • playing with music instruments. We have a piano and child-sized guitar in the house, which he loves playing with. Also drums / percussion stuff sometimes too. I've got my eyes out for a cheap keyboard for him
  • going to the park / playpark
  • crayons / felt tips (we have felts especially for little ones)
  • putting things in things (blocks in walker / shapes in sorter / biscuits under sofa etc)
  • he enjoys riding on his little truck
  • playing with mobiles / phones when we let him
  • pressing buttons - on his toys, and on the TV / DVD / stereo etc
  • climbing
  • being rocked in the rocking chair / rocking himself in a small rocking toy we have (he can get on it himself - it's not big like a rocking horse)
  • peekaboo
  • cbeebies!

HTH

lowrib · 17/03/2010 01:38

Toddler groups are great too. He is starting to enjoy being around other kids more.

mummysgoingmad · 17/03/2010 01:50

tortoiseonthehalfshell i thought i must be the only parent who put their child to bed after 8.30pm, i was starting to feel a little

our day goes like this

9am - get up
10am get breakfast
10.30am -watch pocoyo, in the night garden etc.
lunch at 12pm
wreck the house until i decide to go out or he his nap at 2pm.
sleeps between 1-2.5 hours
give him some snacks
chase him around the house or play him with his toys.
tea when daddy come home at 6pm
bath at 8.30pm
bed at 9pm.

i still give my ds a bottle of milk in the morning, should i still be doing that at his age? its something that i never stopped not sure why though.

BitterAndTwistedChoreDodger · 17/03/2010 01:54

mgm, my dd still has a bottle last thing at night (14m). I tell myself it's a comfort thing, but I think on some level I'm trying to keep her a baby IYKWIM? I will probably not have anymore children and I want her to stay my baby!

tortoiseonthehalfshell · 17/03/2010 06:11

I do that too. I don't see the problem, but then we're not weaned yet so I'm not the best one to have an opinion on 'keeping them a baby'.

BertieBotts · 17/03/2010 10:22

Nah I think one, maybe two bottles a day is fine, especially if it's milk - the speech problems and teeth problems etc come from toddlers walking round with a bottle of juice constantly in their mouth.

And I used to put DS to bed later, but I was having real trouble getting him to sleep at all (he would end up overtired) so I found when I cut the afternoon nap and put him to bed earlier it worked better. Also I am on my own with him now so if he goes to bed early it means I get a break in the evenings, which is good.

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