Lockdown Toddler Help Kit

I think it’s important for me to start this blog by saying I am not going to pretend to have all the answers. There are days where Sutton watches TV (YouTube songs) way longer than I would ever want him to. There are days where we face tantrum after tantrum, but I thought it would be a good idea to share some tips that have helped me, so hopefully, in turn, may help you.

1. Routine - Routine, routine, routine! I do know that setting a routine may be difficult right now. But I promise you, it’s not only beneficial for your little human but actually for you too. Wake up, have breakfast, get dressed, do chores and start your day. Your routine doesn’t need to be rigid. Just do the basics, or whatever you can. In saying this, have flexibility too but stick to some form of routine.

2. Change it up - every two days, I change Sutton’s toys. I set up two ‘work stations’. One has toys and a puzzle, and the other has books and animal sets. These are changed every two days. He gets so excited when he sees the new toys out, and this keeps him occupied for a period of time. Whether five or twenty minutes, this is valuable time for yourself.

1. Include new working spaces - We manipulate playdough in his bedroom, then we play hide & seek in his teepee in the garden. We usually incorporate these changes in the late morning or afternoon when the routine is more flexible.

1. Get outside and utilize all spaces - on a warm day, we like to find things to do in our garden. I have started doing pouring activities in the garden (it’s okay if everything gets wet outside). We also kick a ball in the garden or water the plants. We have utilized our spare parking area outside, which is made up of bricks only. We drew a hopscotch track in chalk, and he delights in us jumping on this.

1. Try using everyday objects as learning opportunities - I have taught Sutton how to spoon almond nuts from one bowl to another. This refines his fine motor skills. Sutton loves this activity and sneaks in a nut or two between the scoops.

2. Capture their creativity - we incorporate music into our routine by playing on a xylophone, banging on his small drum, playing on his tiny keyboard and having dance parties by streaming music. We also don’t have much creative art activities/stationery at home. We have made our own playdough and paint (thank you to our school for the recipes). We draw with pencils and chalk. He then paints with water and also cleans the chalkboard at the same time with the water.

1. Use your imagination - Sutton loves climbing in the car. We chat about where we are going (are we going to the beach, to the park, on safari, etc. - therefore also introducing different language to him). We do puppet shows and put on different voices, including facts in our shows.

These are just some tricks that help to keep our little busy body well...busy.

I know that this time is challenging. A few more tips that Damian and I have found to help ourselves is:

1. Discuss your schedule with your partner. Damian and I are both working, and both have meetings occurring almost every day. We schedule our meetings around one another (where we can) to ensure that someone is looking after our little love bug.

2. Set yourself a personal goal (or goals) during this time. I started a short course on our GenEx platform; I have organized my shoe cupboard, cleaned, wiped down the blinds. Small goals are still goals.

3. Get active! I am not an active person. I just don’t know how to find time in the day to get to the gym. But I have used my early mornings or evenings to do yoga or full-body exercises. For once I am doing something for myself.

4. Escape! We turn on WildEarth LIVE Safari every day. We just have it on in the background. It again opens up conversation, introducing new vocabulary to Sutton and gives us an opportunity to ‘escape’ our four walls.

As I said when I started this blog, I am not promising to have the answers. Juggling everything is hard. It really is. But hopefully, we can all find some good in each day when we go to bed at night.

Keep strong. Keep going.