My one year old is entertained by throwing a ball or x toy off his high chair table. Over. and. over. and. over. again to see where it goes. They are just figuring out cause and effect concepts... like how sad he was when he threw his egg over and our dog ate it, he cried. then did it again.
@amak All I say is, yes, but I ain't rushing it! Just as there's a time to vote, time to do taxes and time to learn how to drive, the time when I will no longer be needed will come. If I can delay the broken finger or the hit head or that contagious disease (aside from a few selected ones perhaps) I will choose this, since as older they handle everything better. Same for stuff like sleeing independence. If you tell (and proceed to do so) a 2 year old you will leave them alone in a room till they fall asleep, the impact will be very different than if you told a newborn. Age and maturity help with a myriad of things!
@amak Omg I can’t even handle thinking about extended trips to non-babyproofed spaces. Especially not houses that I then have to babyproof while trying to watch the toddler.
@andreea777 Baby carrier and waking to tend to her are totally fine. At 10 months, I’m not sure there’s really a need to track all that though. Might be more stress than good? Is there a purpose? Are you worried she’s not eating enough or producing enough diapers? Sleep hours vary so much, too. Also, I think there’s a difference between caring for their safety and keeping them in a playpen so they avoid learning while supervised? We are constantly watching our baby at 10.5 months because he’s starting to walk and does put everything in his mouth. But this kid is never in a playpen. He’s safe because we’ve baby proofed and because he’s supervised.
“She explores when I can watch her” - I guess seems strange to me. Is a baby at that age not always being watched?
@richardwinn Just by the time I go pee my daughter could go grab the cat food. I really struggle in figuring out a way to baby proof everything.
I am always near of course, but with the litter box and our rabbit that has her mat outside of the cage, right now our big play pen, that takes more than half our living room, was the best short term solution.
I am taking her out more and more. But our small appartment doesn't allow me to have a big living room completely baby proofed with a baby gate to prevent LO from going in the kitchen for example.
We are looking for a house and if it's not soon we will probably move in another appt in between so her living space can be bigger and very totally baby proofed.
@andreea777 The time is coming soon where she will escape or insist on being free from the pen. My 16 month old has hated pens since he started walking at 10 months. I’ve been working for months to try to get rooms fully baby proofed. It’s really exhausting, but once you have a safe open space it’s so nice for them to be part of normal lounging around in the living room.
@christbrah Of course I knew the time would come! But since she falls often I want to be near her because there are wall corners everywhere. She is more and more stable now so I bring her with me more often and I plan to take down the play pen soon. But if I do laundry, she still can see me in her play pen and I know she won't fall and hurt herself on the corner of a wall
The thing is we need a bigger place and we will need to take a decision very soon. The biggest area to walk is her playpen and she is safe and content in it in the moment If I installed a gate for the living room she would have the same space I bring her with me as often as I can though as she gets more stable and curious!
@andreea777 Wish you luck with the move! People have to work with what they have!
My mom had me (3rd surprise kid) and we were 3 under 3 in a still 1,5 room appartment. Their other deals kept falling (they had to simultaneously sell and buy at that time). Yes it was not optimal, but they made it work somehow and soon enough got an even better place for them than they had hoped and they still live in it!
Sarah Therese on YT has a few cute videos of her old house where their bedroom was instead of the pantry room, and their youngest baby used to have their bed in a walk in closet/ storage room (which was quiet from the older kids) was very relatable.
@andreea777 Your baby stays in the playpen and people complain??? That is insane, I would have killed for my baby staying in the playpen even for 5 minutes! You are doing great mama, don't explain and don't apologize. They know what you do and why, it's their issue to deal with that they still don't understand (or choose not to understand).
@ponygals Thank you The playpen is literally the biggest area of our appartment, I know we lack space and we need to move. I plan on taking the play pen down and baby proof everything and I know I'll need to do it sooner or later. The thing is she would have the same space with a baby gate
@andreea777 You sound like a wonderfully loving and attentive mother.
They shouldn’t feel bad, but it might be hard for your mom and grandma to see you give so much. It might remind them of their shortcomings. It shouldn’t make them feel that way, if anything they should be proud that they raised an amazing mom. But people can be disproportionately defensive when they feel afraid they did something wrong, especially things in the past that they can’t go back and change.
Anyway that’s my mini analysis of the situation. Just keep doing you and don’t worry about the noise. You can always give a concise “we’re good!” With a smile on your face if you don’t feel like doing the whole song and dance.
@andreea777 Nobody gets to tell you how to raise your child! Sounds like you're doing great. The only thing I wonder about is sleeping in the carrier. Doesn't that put babies at risk of positional asphyxiation?
@andreea777 I love it when they fall asleep like that! It's so sweet. You should check out the subreddit Attachment Parenting. I think you would find some good support there.
If I installed a gate for the living room she would have the same space 
I bring her with me as often as I can though as she gets more stable and curious!
The playpen is literally the biggest area of our appartment, I know we lack space and we need to move. I plan on taking the play pen down and baby proof everything and I know I'll need to do it sooner or later. The thing is she would have the same space with a baby gate 
