Does anyone know what to do with a high-maintenance, hard to entertain toddler? I try all sorts of things so she can HOPEFULLY entertain herself so I can do some stuff....even if it's just sit and read or fold laundry without her hanging on my leg. I have yet to find THAT thing that will keep her entertained for more than 5 minutes...and I'm not exaggerating. She gets bored with most things after about 3 minutes (again, not hyperbole). Even TV has about a 30-45 minute time limit, most of which I use to take a shower and get ready in the morning.
True, she has the attention span of a toddler, but I've known for a long time that my daughter would much rather play with people than toys. And she prefers adults to other kids. Where does that leave me on normal days?! I try to get out of the house at least once a day even if it's just a trip to the Y so we get a break from each other, but this morning was BAD (she ATE MY DEODERANT!!!), so I decided we were not going out in public.
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| What she looked like after playing in the rain |
This also really got my goat, although it's not particularly related to this issue: she stuck her head in the toilet after she pooped (before she flushed)! I'm not kidding. She pooped in the potty (yay) and she wanted to see what she produced (as she often does), but then leaned her head so far in the toilet that her hair got in it before I could stop her. Booooo! So I had to throw her in the shower when we should've been walking out the door. AND then she knocked the water cup out of my hand so I got all wet, too. I lost it. We'll leave the description of my reaction at that.
Anyway, back to the topic at hand. The thing is, she got all sorts of new toys for her birthday and I was sooo hoping that she'd be able to entertain herself long enough for me to be able to concentrate on something, anything. I even bought her a cute Fisher Price doctor's kit, which she really enjoys (she likes giving shots the most), but I have to be right there with her for her to play with it even after I showed her how to use it on her stuffed animals. Even when I do play with her, no one activity lasts longer than 15 minutes. It's not that I don't want to play with her, I just want to have times where I don't HAVE to play with her or if I'm not playing with her she's not hanging on my leg. She always has to be RIGHT there doing what I'm doing or trying to get me to do what she wants to do. Or I'm trying to convince (or show her) how to play, which she only really wants to do when I'm RIGHT there. Doug even asked yesterday, "When do you think she will not need to be RIGHT there?" It makes for a really long day.Am I being selfish? Am I lazy? Am I enabling her too much? What can I do? These are the questions of pregnant, frustrated mother who cried twice today and is all out of ideas. I like to do fun things like go swimming, go to the park, go for walks, the petting zoo, mini-road trips, but we can't do those all the time and, frankly, I don't want to nor do I feel like I should have to. Help!
2 comments:
Well, I must say vivi has always had this personality. She will probably be really needy until she finds other children entertaining. And who knows when that will be. Some kids are like this. When I was a nanny, it was easy to deal with because I got paid to play. But you my friend have things to do! Being a mother, you are also a house cleaner, washing machine, chef and everything else in between. Especially now that you are pregnant, your fuse is growing shorter and the rainy days in Seattle probably aren't helping things. I will say that vivi was over the top today. Much more than I could stand! You are a great mom and deserve time to yourself. And even more, time that does not include housework and chores, but relaxing however you want! Hang in there. And when all else fails- start laughing. Especially when you have no control over the situation. I have found it's the only thing you can do to keep you from losing your mind.
I sincerely think that Vivi and Reagan could be twins, separated at birth.
From the time Reagan was 18 months, up until recently; I felt just as frustrated as you do.
Reagan won't even sit still for a meal. Most of the time I either have to put the food out for her to grab as she runs around.
Anyway, I do remember that the one movie she would pause (longer than normal) for, was Finding Nemo.
Also, (and BY FAR) the biggest help was when I got my iPhone.
At first it was fun for her, because she had to figure out how to use it.
Now she's an expert at navigating it, and as long as I make sure it always has new (free) apps she loves it.
For us first time Mom's, it seems to be "hit or miss" when it comes to figuring our our kids.
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