I had a sore throat and a bit of a cold for part of this week, so on Wednesday we didn't even leave the house all day. To keep Kirsten from getting too bored and fussy, I tried a couple of ideas I found from Parents magazine. They're from the article '19 Ways To Make Your Baby Smile.' Most of them were geared towards babies a lot older than Kirsten because she wouldn't have understood them at all yet, but there were a few I thought could work.
I used Idea #13: Make a Play Gym. It says: "Make your boring old living room a fun indoor play space. Choose a cushioned, baby-proofed area with lots of crawling/walking space. Use your couch throw pillows to brighten up the area. Kids love playing with real things, so make the play space special by taking the batteries out of your phone or remote and letting your toddler play with them there."
I used Idea #13: Make a Play Gym. It says: "Make your boring old living room a fun indoor play space. Choose a cushioned, baby-proofed area with lots of crawling/walking space. Use your couch throw pillows to brighten up the area. Kids love playing with real things, so make the play space special by taking the batteries out of your phone or remote and letting your toddler play with them there."
Kirsten's reaction: She really didn't care that the pillows were there, and they didn't stop her at all from going around them and crawling up the stairs. What she did love was of course playing with the remote control and the phone. They're always her favorite toys, no matter what. I could have just put the phone and remote on the floor and she would have been happy, so creating the play space for her was a little pointless.
When she started getting bored and crawling away from the area, I held her attention for a little longer by giving her an old magazine I was going to throw away. She loved crumpling up the pages and playing with the paper, but of course I had to keep a close eye on her so she didn't eat the paper!
Idea #3: Pantry Discovery. This wasn't anything too new, because when Kirsten follows me into the kitchen I usually give her some plastic tupperware to play with on the floor. But I did throw in some boxes and containers that she could shake, and she liked that. 
We also used the idea about playing music and listening to fun songs together, but we have music on in the background frequently anyway. Some of my favorites for Kirsten to play to are Disney songs, Beach Boys, the Beatles, James Taylor, and a whole random mix of stuff!What are some of your favorite things to do when you're stuck inside the house?
When I am stuck inside, I usually just end up cleaning and Rachel loves exploring all the stuff that I pull out of wherever. Like if I am trying to organize the closet. She will play with our clothes. It is actually pretty cute. And she especially loves it when I am going through binders and throwing away things. She loves paper!
ReplyDeleteYou're a fun, creative mom! It's hard to come up with cool, indoor things for kids and that's awesome you found other resources to help with ideas.
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