Polls and Tips for Baby and Toddler Years

Car ramp races were big with my son when he was a toddler. Take a length of cardboard, draw a couple of lanes and set it on an angle (the bottom of the stairs works well for this). Toddlers can release toy cars at the top of the lanes and watch them race down.

Take a bubble bath.

Make a town on your floor. Use painter's tape to create city streets, make buildings out of LEGOs to place around the different blocks, and drive hot wheels around the town.

Give your toddler an old house painting brush you're ready to retire and set them up in the driveway with a container of water. They can dip the brush and "paint" designs all over the driveway, the sidewalk, or the outside of the house.

Disposable toothbrush: a toothbrush I'm willing to use for a couple nights then throw away at the hospital before I return home.

A lightweight robe. Cozy and comfortable, presentable enough for wearing around the hospital, and easy nursing access.

Cozy socks

A book. Something quiet to keep me busy whenever baby was sleeping and I could not fall asleep with him!

Blankets, quilts. Used swaddling blankets only.

I bought peepee teepees and used one once. Receiving blankets. Used maybe once or twice. Baby nail file! As much as I have to admit it...just get clippers and suck up the fear of cutting their nails. The files don’t work very well.

Pee guards. I didn’t use these with my first boy but decided to give them a try with my second. Only used it the one time!! It totally got in the way when trying to change him and I needed to take it off to wipe him anyway. Better to just move as quickly as possible, and use the diaper itself as a guard if necessary, to avoid the pee in the face!

Wipe warmers

Consistency is a key factor !

Involve them however you can, so they have some choice in the process. For us, it is often picking the story we read, or the number of books we read (within reason), as well as which kid goes first to brush teeth or take their bath.

Give yourself plenty of time for the routine! I think starting an hour before we actually want the kids to be asleep has worked best for our family.

Special behind-the-scene museum/zoo/aquarium adventures or animal encounters. (E.g., shark feeding, penguin painting, etc.)

museum membership

Art class

AMC movie pass

Peeling and placing stickers. Sticker books are great for this - we like the "paint by sticker" series, though it may be a little challenging for some little ones. My 4-year-old is awesome at it, but my 6-year-old (whose fine motor skills definitely need work) struggles a bit. I also really like the Phidal line of reusable sticker books - the quality is such that they truly are reusable!

Dressing dolls, especially barbies. When my kids were really little this usually involved me sitting and playing/dressing dolls with them and then they gradually learned to do more and more on their own.

An OT told me this one: use small writing utensils such as golf pencils and broken crayons. This helps prevent children from grabbing the utensil with a fist and encourages the correct pencil grasp.

Placing letters on a letter board. I discovered this one by accident, but I love how it keeps my 4-year-old sitting quietly for long stretches of time while he tries to get the plastic letters to stay in my felt letter board.

Matchbox/Hot Wheels cars

Screentime while staying on the potty.

What helps Granddaughter is Jelly Beans. They are a favorite.

Stickers

I discovered that a heavyweight hairband looped around both door handles was just as effective (if not more!) at keeping my cabinet doors shut than those cabinet latches made specifically for baby proofing. Plus, they were way easier (and less annoying) for me to take on and off, making it more likely that I'd always keep it on. This only works on certain handles, though, like pull bars and knobs.

Sturdy stair guards at the top and bottom of the staircase are a must once baby starts moving around!

Corner guards have been pretty essential with all of my kids, especially once they begin moving around on their own. Unfortunately, I haven't found any that will stick super well (though some are better than others!), and have always had to reinforce with duct tape. Not pretty, but effective!

I am not a fan of the plastic plug in outlet protectors. Thankfully, most of our outlets were not accessible to our young kids (who also never showed any interest in them), but the plugs were pretty easy to remove and then posed a choking hazard once they were loose. I much preferred the outlet covers that go over the entire outlet, as it was still easy for adults to use the outlet while keeping the opening covered from curious little hands.

Edelweiss (The Sound of Music)

Amazing Grace

Everything will be alright bob marley, you are my sunshine,

You are so beautiful - Joe Cocker

I have a full set of cleaning supplies (sponges/cloths, gloves, cleaning solutions/products) - in each bathroom and the kitchen, so whenever I have five minutes I can quickly wipe down a sink, toilet, counter, etc without needing to hunt anything down.

I use bamboo "paper" towels to replace paper towels. After I use up my pile, I wash them and reuse them. A roll lasts for 6 months!

Robot vacuum! We have a Coredy robot and it gets plopped in various rooms almost daily. I’ll section off an area periodically and let it do all of the work for me. Our kids love picking up for it so they don’t have to sweep so it’s almost effortless for me and even has a mop option for our model. It’s not amazing but helps tremendously!

For sorting mail and other papers, I follow the OHIO method - Only Handle It Once. It either gets filed, recycled, shredded or if it is something I need to deal with (a bill or a follow up), it goes in the file folder on my desk so I don't forget.

Measuring cups of different sizes and shapes create ceaseless fun pouring and dumping; dumping and pouring for hours.

Robo Alive Fish. These life like “robot” fish swim and dive when submerged in water. Turn your water table, bathtub, or pool into an artificial aquarium. These fish are mesmerizing and fun for young and older children.

Frozen toys. Take small toys that will fit in an ice cube tray, fill it with water and freeze. Add these ice cube treasures to the water table for kids to uncover. They can use a spray bottle or dropper filled with water, dunk them or pour water all over them for the big reveal!

Play Sink or Float. This simple toddler science experiment is a favorite at our house! Collect items that can safely get wet (utensils, plastic toys, fruit, rocks, etc.), then take turns placing them in the water table to see if they will sink or float.