Hate being suck indoors with 1 year old. Need ideas.

[charlottexox]

I have a 17 month old and we live in a small village with minimal public transport and she's getting bored quickly and easily. There is no mum and baby groups where I live and I don't drive also. It's really getting the both of us down being stuck in all the time. Can someone give me some ideas of things we could do? If it helps, I live in Truro in Cornwall.

I'm in the same boat. A every active one year old and we are stuck indoors all day. Me and DH only have one car that he takes to work leaving us stuck in the middle of nowhere. We go on lots of walks! Watching for more ideas but you aren't alone.

How many days a week are you by yourself with your 17month old? It's hard isn't it - I sympathise.
Longer term solutions would be to move house and/or learn to drive. But appreciate neither of these might be possible for you right now. Are there any other people with babies/toddlers in your village? If so, seek them out and invite them over for tea/play.
Do you live with a partner or family who drive? Can they drop you in Truro on their way to work? I imagine there is lots going on in Truro. You just need to find a way of getting there.
Hope you manage to find a solution.

BooBoo-could you drive your dh to work do you can have the car during the day?

Could you get a bike with a seat for your daughter? If you’re only a few miles from town this might provide a way to get in and out. I sympathise, I’m not allowed to drive at the moment and I live rurally in Cumbria! My almost one year old is climbing the walls sometimes.

Things we do: go for a walk, look at the ducks, watch the birds on the feeder in the garden. Pinterest is pretty good for indoor activities - painting, play dough, treasure baskets, obstacle course, dens, baking and cooking, reading books, dancing, get them to find you a specific colour of thing from each room, get the pots and pans out and have a bash, water play, get in the bath with no water but loads of shaving foam, coloured bath gel and bath crayons, watch a film, have a nap together.

I try and structure the day so we get up, breakfast, play, nap and shower for us both takes until 9.30/10ish. Then a snack and Activity One, whatever that is, for an hour before some quietish time reading or watching something

Lunchtime, nap then Activity Two.

Snack, if I’m extremely lucky another half hour nap and then lots of energetic play/dancing/ being silly until Daddy gets home.

It’s hard. It really bloody is. Getting out even for a half hour walk helps. Sorry that was such an epic post!

Thanks ladies.
BooBooBoots it's good to know I'm not alone and hope we can both find something for our little ones very soon.

Enidblyton1 thanks for sympathising, but I actually just moved here on Boxing Day so won't be able to even put in for a mutual exchange until a years time. As for driving, I was taking driving lessons but it turned out far too expensive for me. I am with my LO 5 days a week - so every day during the week day. I currently don't have a job, but my partner has weekends off from work so we try and do bits and pieces on weekends.
There is hardly anything to do in Truro really, there's a couple of shops but that's all and nothing for babies or toddlers

You could start a baby group! I’m not very well but I’m considering it for when I get a bit better

Sorry to keep posting, do you think you might just not have tapped in to the baby groups and stuff yet? I know it took me a while to find anything. Facebook is good, as is having a trail of church halls and the like because the groups aren’t always that well publicised.

It’s a shame a thing such as virtual baby & toddler groups don’t exist. Online meeting software like GoToMeeting could be used, to help connect people with transport issues or little in their area.

You could have multiple “rooms” or different schedules eg mums chatting, all singing songs, learning numbers together etc.

Badgerthebodger I have had a google but there isn't much in the village and the ones that are on around me are only for an hour at a time and personally I don't think that's long enough
It's just getting tedious at the minute and bless her, she's climbing the walls.

An hour’s better than nothing, surely? And probably long enough if it’s a specific activity?

An hour is plenty. For a start, it's not an hour but probably more like two by the time you have got ready, got yourself there, then pack up and head home. It's also an opportunity to meet people with the potential to offer more activities. And at that age, an hour will probably tire LO out. We had a 90 minute playgroup near us but for ages only took dd for an hour as she got too tired and cranky with anything longer.

I assume you are not actually in Truro itself - there must be lots of activities there.
Could you try and get a bus into town once a week and go swimming, visit the library, visit the park, soft play etc. One activity i nteh morning have lunch somewhere and something else in the afternoon?
Is there a church in your village - there might be some activities there that you could join in with (they won't necessarily be religious if that's not your thing).
Could you ask at your GPs and/or Health Visitor to see if they know of any activities?
Remember at that age all things are exciting so even a walk to the village shop, trip to the local park/pond etc. Is there a mobile library? A walk to a nearby field with horses/cows etc?

Do you have local shops?
Can you not walk with her to buy a paper or a pint of milk every day?
I used to let ds walk everywhere from 12 months
We lived on a RAF base and there literally was nowhere to go
Walking to the naafi was the highlight of our day
I also used to walk to the park and the visit other mums with babies

I would definitely go to something for an hour, anything at all to get out of the house is a good thing! Plus you might be able to go for a coffee with someone after. Lots of opportunities could come from meeting people, it’s so worth a go.

A quick google brought up this list of kids activities in Truro.

totsabout.co.uk/clubs-classes/whats-on-clubs-and-classes-in-truro-surrounding-areas/

I appreciate they might not all be appropriate or accessible ( I don't know the area at all), but maybe something you could manage to get to once a week?

In my experience church run play groups are excellent for that age.

At home my dd's absolute fave thing to do is jump on the bed. I let her crack on, entertaining and helps wear her out!