Going places with 14 month old is a nightmare!

[FayeTea]

Sorry, sure this is probably a common issue but I need some reassurance! DS is 14 months. He’s only just about walking, but not very far and not very well! He loves it though. His motor skills are nowhere near good enough for a push along bike or scooter or anything like that. He absolutely HATES the buggy at the moment and will whinge and cry in it the whole time he is strapped in, despite bribes with snacks etc. He’s a little better on our backs in either the sling or the backpack, but not hugely so.

Going out has become such a nightmare! I used to love just chucking him in the car and then the buggy or the sling and going places but I feel so trapped at the moment going anywhere further than the park near us. If we drive anywhere it’s either we don’t leave the car park because DS wants to walk, or we leave the car park with him restrained and have to listen to him complaining the whole time 🙈 we do soft play and stuff like that, which he likes, but I’m just dreaming of going to a nice big gardens with a big play area or something like that!!

I’m sure it’s just a case of time for him to get good enough at walking to go further, or tire himself out enough to accept the buggy, but am I missing anything? Thank you!

You could try a push along trike. He doesn't need any motor skills, just strap him in and push him where you need to do.

Or, just put up with the whining in the buggy. He will eventually get the message and stop. Do you tell him where you're going? Make sure he knows that it's somewhere fun and he can get out and run around when you get there.

Also, take him for regular walks just around the block/in the park to build up his stamina/speed/ability to actually get somewhere.

He's at the age where you have to start doing a bit of what they want. You might want to go to the playground, he might want to walk round the carpark looking at every stone/twig/leaf so do a bit of that too. Just go for a walk and enjoy it through his eyes, don't have an end goal in mind that you need to rush to get to.

Thank you for your response! You are so right about being more in the moment and enjoying things through his eyes, even if it’s quite slow 😂It’s hard to not want to jump to the next stage!

I’d seen those trikes and thought they looked good! DH was against the idea as I think he’s sick of getting stuff on the off chance it’ll work (he’s still a bit scarred from all the newborn stuff we bought to try and stop the colic - if anyone needs a rocker I have one going spare 😂😬) but I might just crack on and get on from FB marketplace!

I think I need to get a bit better with his whinging as well to be honest. I find it really triggering and after a long 4 days at work I tend to opt for the easy life so I don’t have to hear it. That’s probably not going either of us any favours though.

Thanks again x

I remember that stage well. It is quite tricky.

Choose your battles. When you NEED to get somewhere quickly, accept the whinging and do your best to ignore it. Have something on hand to distract them. When it's just a day out, accept you will be doing something mind numbingly boring that they are enjoying. I pretty much lived in soft play at this stage with both of mine. They were both also late walkers. So this stage lasted a good 6 months

It's a really difficult age. When dd1 was between 14 months to 3 years, it was difficult getting out and about as she wanted to explore and be unrestrained, which is not always practical. We don't have a car, and at least on public transport we could try and entertain her (or chase her up and down the carriage ). Dd2 is 4 months old and I'm dreading that age again.

When it was absolutely necessary, like if we were trying to get somewhere in a rush, I'd give her my phone to watch nursery rhymes on YouTube. Not get parenting I know, but needs must.

Park, Park & Park where he can run freely first and wear himself out. Then do the things you want to do like a little browse through the shops.

We also have an shopping centre nerby that is relatively safe for a toddler to walk around (smal & a bit run down) I used to go there to let them explore and by age 2 -2.5, I teach them how Important it is to stay with me. Always finised off with a big shop in the attached supermarket.