Crawling!

[firstimemamma]

Hi ftm here, 10 month old ds.

Does anyone have any words of wisdom on how to cope with babies who have become active? Ds has just started crawling and I'm struggling to get anything done. If I take my eye off him for a second he's always heading for something he shouldn't e.g plugs. We have childproofed so there are plug covers but i obviously ideally don't want him playing with anything plug-related or electrical.

We currently don't have the money for a jumperoo or similar as we're spending £250 getting spindles put in upstairs so that he can't fall through the gap in our landing and down the stairs.

My fiancé works long hours and it's often just me and the baby. Going to the toilet or doing anything is proving tricky! I sometimes pop him in his cot with a couple of toys for something quick e.g. toilet trip but if I do that too many times he gets fed up so I can't rely on the cot all the time.

Sorry for the ramble. Even if there's no solution it just feels good to get it off my chest!

Please google about plug covers, they’re not safe.

Maybe get a playpen?

We live in a flat so I put mine in her pushchair and wheel her around with me everywhere I go including to the toilet, she finds it hilarious for some reason. Maybe you could do that just on the ground floor?

A second hand travel cot would be a cheaper alternative to a play pen and could come in handy at some point as a travel cot if you ever need one.

This is what my MIL did when she looked after DD 2 days a week, was also a good place to store the toys when DD wasn't there.

Other than containing in something like a play pen it really is just a case of keeping an eye on what they are getting up to until they can occupy themselves more and get over exploring

I know what you mean. They do seem to always want things they aren't allowed 🙈 I tend to have a toy rotation thing going on so I can bring out a couple of exciting musical toys that he hasn't played with that day while I pop to the loo or kitchen.

I will also admit (uhoh be prepared for the flaming) to sitting him in front of his favourite nursery rhymes on YouTube if I really need to be sure he isn't getting up to any trouble as I know he will sit there and watch. Whatever works is good in my book!

Yep plug covers aren't recommended with uk plugs. I'd fully baby proof one room. For me that was putting a stair gate on the living room door, making sure that anything they could pull themselves up on couldn't topple/knock something onto them (side tables etc), no heavy objects/ glass/sharp objects within reach (or even just out of reach!), strapping the tv to the wall. Once all of those were done I was fairly confident I could leave them in the room for a minute or two without imminent death. I wouldn't bother with a jumperoo now, ime once they're mobile they don't want anything that contains them!

I'd get a secondhand playpen from FB Marketplace or Gumtree (in my area they go for £20 - £30). Our jumperoo was also secondhand and cost a fraction of the price of a new one (£20).

Do you have a sling? I often carry DS in the sling when I need to do lots of 'little' jobs around the house.

Playpen was a godsend until my DS was strong enough to push it round! Mine used to sit in the bath while I nipped the toilet, though now he's usual unwinding the toilet roll or trying to open the door!

We got a second hand jumperoo for £20. People sell them on all the time as they're massive and take up loads of room! Check Facebook marketplace.

Suppose it depends on layout of your house,
I either get up showered and dressed while Ds sleeps or if we are on earlys ( It's been 6am this week) he sits in the bathroom reading magazine=playing with toothbrush /empty loo roll while i shower

I get him ready downstairs and put him in high chair while I make breakfast (usually give him something to start on like a few cheerios). If he's had cereal and I have eaten I give him fruit while I wash up and do anything else i can (CBeebies if desperate).

We also have a travel cot, currently a ball pit if i need 5 mins.

Also utilise nap time I do things in the rest if the house while asleep. I do living room and kitchen things when he is with me.

Also let them join in if you are cooking in kitchen give him a pan and spoon to bang if folding laundry give him the basket etc

It does get easier you will get to know where they like to go and have a sense if its gone quiet they are Up to something

Yep plug covers aren't recommended with uk plugs

What's the best way to make them safe? All ours are low down on the walls

Thank you for the replies everyone!

He's too big for his sling (and he's heavy so even if there was one that he can fit into - which I'm sure there is - I still don't think I'd want to baby-wear!) and it was interesting to learn that he may not be keen to go on a jumperoo now that he's active.

Play pen or travel cot seems to be the way forward.

I knew I'd get criticism over the plug covers. What is a safe alternative? I did some research before I bought them and from what I understand they only pose a danger if the baby manages to insert something long and thin around the cover and into the plug (which seems incredibly unlikely!). More than happy to be corrected though, keen to learn.

Thanks again to you all.

www.google.com/amp/s/www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/greater-manchester-news/electrical-plug-sockets-dangerous-children-13933725.amp

'In reality they can easily be removed by children and when they mess with them near the sockets - they effectively have a tool to activate the plug socket with.
Steve said: "I did the video to show that when kids mess with them, as my son demonstrates, they can easily be put in upside down with just the one plastic bit inside the top hole.

"It only needs that top pin to be pushed in for the bottom conductors to be exposed and that's where the danger comes in'

How about a door bouncer? Cheaper and smaller to store than a jumperoo.

I was told by an electrician who came to do work to take them out. My DS is plug obsessed, it's hard work!