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Parenting

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Original poster

Where do you put your babies when busy?

50 replies

hodgeypodgey · 10/02/2022 14:47

My DC is now crawling and getting up to mischief whenever I put him down. He's strong and heavy handed so will just pull himself up to almost standing but then has no balance and will fall over. I've resorted to lugging our high chair up and downstairs so I can keep him in my sights for when I want to get a shower/nip to the loo. Was considering getting a cheap high chair to keep upstairs but I wondered what everyone else does? I would put him in his cot but he hates it (whole other story) Any recommendations?

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welshweasel · 10/02/2022 21:18

You really can’t leave them in a high chair/toddler chair/activity centre type of thing unsupervised. It’s not safe! I showered in the evening once kids in bed and they tended to follow me to the loo. Playpen is a good call but really, you just have to accept they need to be in the same room as you at all times at this age. Have a bath and take him in with you? Or lock both of you in the bathroom and give him some toys to play with whilst you’re in the shower.

musicmadnessnumber57806 · 10/02/2022 21:21

When I had a shower I'd stick toddler in the (empty!) bath with a few toys.

Jellllybeeen · 11/02/2022 08:39

Thanks everyone. Just to clarify, when I said second high chair I would have him in it in the bathroom with me, that's what I've been doing when DH isn't in, it's just a pain to keep moving the one we've got up and down. I haven't left him on his own in his activity centre, it's just for when he is in the living room with me. I just wondered if anyone had any other good methods. I have sleep envy for those with good sleepers mind haha! I think we're just going to get up earlier and make sure me and DH can both get ready before DH leaves and make more use of his travel cot with some toy rotations if I have anything I need to do quickly where I can't keep an eye

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minipie · 11/02/2022 08:42

Yup. Shower before DH leaves the house.

Also try to work on his liking his cot … maybe have a special toy he only gets while in there ? Something with knobs and buttons to press and beeps and music…

Chely · 11/02/2022 08:53

Pop in cot upstairs, when older have a baby gate on door to keep them in 1 room. Downstairs we have a travel cot and rocker chair and highchair to use.

Travel cot has been great for all 6 of ours, eventually they climb out and we just use baby gates.

Shower when they sleep mostly.

seaborgium · 11/02/2022 12:50

I put DS in the bath tub when I’m in the bathroom. I also have a playpen, a cot and a travel cot.

Caspianberg · 11/02/2022 13:01

Tbh it’s just for a few more Months now they are 15 months, so I would just try and plan majority when your partner is home. Or just quick ones whilst they trash bathroom

Now 21 months, Ds is safe enough that I just leave bathroom door open and he just plays in his bedroom nearby and pops in and out to show me things. No stair gates as he just climbs over those.
I just try and only have speedy showers, so he can’t cause too much chaos in 5 mins.

110APiccadilly · 11/02/2022 13:07

Playpen. Also put a towel in the bath and let her play with the bath toys in there - this is particularly good for cleaning the bathroom. Obviously no water!

Goooglebox · 11/02/2022 13:09

I have a large play pen. It's like a very convenient small field.

Goooglebox · 11/02/2022 13:09

110APiccadilly

Very dangerous without tap locks.

Bluemamma · 11/02/2022 14:25

@GrendelsGrandma WTF? Busy with what? What sort of question is this? OP I’m sure has loads of other things to be busy with, maybe cleaning the house, washing, ironing? What a rude ridiculous comment.
OP - one answer for you: playpen! And a big one! Buy second hand, my son wasn’t walking thill 18 months but was rolling, crawling you name it! And we had to work from home with covid and the playpen saved us! It did however take all the dining room/play room as it was huge I think 3x2meters. If you have the space then buy second hand and then sell in a few months

Goooglebox · 11/02/2022 15:19

Did someone actually say busy with what.

They must have had a privileged life.

Cleaning bathroom, prepping tea, folding laundry, doing homework with other children, changing cat litter, pack lunches, filling dishwasher, getting stain out of carpet, phone calls for elderly parents... Busy with what.

Marblessolveeverything · 11/02/2022 15:22

Love the image that a parent can sit and watch a baby constantly all day - never eat, drink, shower, use a toilet or mind other kids!

To be fair before I had my first I was convinced I would just work around their naps! ah the innocence....

BertieBotts · 11/02/2022 15:47

I've never heard of a tap lock people have some strange ideas about risk.

FrazzledMCPremenopausalWoman · 11/02/2022 15:59

Mine used to sit in the shower tray with me while I showered, with a few bath toys.

Hellolittlestar · 11/02/2022 16:36

I took high chair + phone in the bathroom for shower times.

For a quick wee, I would put them in their cot.

Goooglebox · 11/02/2022 18:40

No Bertie it's not strange, you don't want to find the hot tap suddenly turned on do you. Just common sense.

Riverlee · 11/02/2022 18:55

Playpen

DockOTheBay · 11/02/2022 19:00

@Goooglebox

110APiccadilly

Very dangerous without tap locks.

"very dangerous" is relative.
My daughter would have to find the plug, plug it in and turn on the very stiff taps on high enough and long enough to get have a layer of water, without me noticing. Chances of that happening are pretty slim I would guess.

Goooglebox · 12/02/2022 15:50

Sure. Unless someone has only just turned the hot tap off and it just takes a nudge. Then you've got a stream of hot water for your baby to sit in. Having witnessed scalding at first hand, you do need to be super cautious. It happens so fast.

caranations · 12/02/2022 15:54

We had a good old-fashioned wooden playpen. You just need to make sure they can't pile any toys up on the inside to stand on and climb out.

BertieBotts · 12/02/2022 15:59

That is a very niche scenario! I don't see any situation where I would have just turned off the hot bath tap immediately before I had a poo. And if you mean somebody else in the house, well, if they are old enough to operate hot taps they can probably watch the baby for 10 minutes. (But our hot taps all run cold initially/separately anyway).

makinganavalon · 12/02/2022 16:03

Babyproofed, so I could put her down when i went to the loo, safe in the knowledge she couldn't get up to any mischief. When I had a shower every morning she went in the jumperoo and I put her in a sling while I cooked dinner, talking to her about all the ingredients etc. She got into the rhythm of it and loves cooking now and will happily play on her own while I'm in the shower but always comes with me to the toilet!!

Goooglebox · 12/02/2022 17:04

That is a very niche scenario!

Sigh. Accidents happen in scenarios where something is slightly different and if you consider the number of households with a bath, not so niche.

Babdoc · 12/02/2022 17:12

I used a big wooden playpen, which folded away for storage. It was so useful, my childminder asked me to bring it with my DDs to her house!
It’s also great for separating baby and toddler safely.

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