House with stairs for babies

[Eshaar]

Hi all,

We have been living in flat for 5 years in London. But now being new parents (7 months old baby) needed a bigger space and quiet environment so moving to a terraced house in Maidenhead.

I am still not sure whether we made the right decision. My neighbour said its going to be difficult in a house with baby.

Any tips for easy moving would be helpful? Is that difficult to raise a baby in a house? The only thing i can think of as a difficulty is the stairs. Is there anything else?

That's weird. Stairs are just a feature to learn how to navigate. Stair gates are good while their are small

@isadora2007 maybe teaching them to go down backwards is feasible if your babies are late crawlers. DD was crawling just before 7m. There was no teaching her anything, she just kamikazed off the edge of beds/sofas/stairs at every opportunity and had to be watched like a hawk. The stairgate meant that i could let her play independently and sit and supervise rather than having to chase her around like a helicopter lunatic.

You just teach them how to climb and descend the stairs safely. And watch them! I've got two young children and have never had a gate up

@GlamGloria

You just teach them how to climb and descend the stairs safely. And watch them! I've got two young children and have never had a gate up

How do you teach them to go down backwards? Dd was crawling before 7m and she just went headlong for the edge every single time, we spent ages turning her round and showing her how to go backwards but she didn't get it til about 11m. It was a nightmare!

@Ohalrightthen backwards!!

[quote GlamGloria]@Ohalrightthen backwards!! [/quote]
Yes obviously, but how do you teach a 6m old to do that? I showed her a thousand times and she just kept going headfirst. She didn't eventually get her head round going backwards til she was about 10m.

The age they start moving must make a difference. My 7 month old has been crawling since 5 months. As much as I move him away from stuff and say no, he doesn’t understand yet. Maybe at 9/10/11 months he will, but you can’t explain to a 5 month old how to go backwards down the stairs.

You will see I have a similar thread about how mine found the cat food today, and how to stop him.

On topic: What a bizarre thing for your neighbour to say. Lots, possibly most, babies are raised in houses. Not sure what makes it harder than in a flat.

Off topic: I'm another one with a stair gate at the top of the stairs, but not at the bottom. The idiot previous owners of my house removed the bannisters from the stairs, so I can't install a gate at the bottom. Fortunately DD doesn't seem too interested in climbing them.

@Caspianberg

The age they start moving must make a difference. My 7 month old has been crawling since 5 months. As much as I move him away from stuff and say no, he doesn’t understand yet. Maybe at 9/10/11 months he will, but you can’t explain to a 5 month old how to go backwards down the stairs.

You will see I have a similar thread about how mine found the cat food today, and how to stop him.

Exactly this!

Your neighbour is weird.

You've managed to get your baby to 7 months without breaking them, I'm sure you'll manage in a house.

There is nothing inherently difficult about bringing up a baby in a house

Stairs - stair gate top & bottom- properly fitted, NOT pressure fit but also teach them
how to go up & down, don't carry them all the time

Yes you can get by without, but why would you when it's far less stressful if they can freely crawl around while you potter.

Possibly a stair gate for the back door, but that depends on steps etc & probably not needed now until the summer!!

The other things are applicable whether you're in a flat or a house

• don't forget, as a priority, to sort out any cords on blinds & safety catches on cupboards etc. You're more likely to have a crawling baby out of your eye-line in a house than a flat

It's FAR easier to have enough changing stuff/spare clothes downstairs rather than traipsing up & down (but if you're young & fit you might see it as good for you!! But it's when accidents often happen when you leave the baby downstairs while you just nip
up for something!)

If you regret moving out of London, it won't be because you have stairs 😂

Thanks all.

Hopefully it will be fine. May be stairs will help my pregnancy tummy back to normal. Baby not crawling yet. Yes, for sure, will buy stair gates. Will update once we gets settled there.