does your toddler get entertained all the time?

[Gingerspice]

Do you always do things with them all the time? Do you decide what activities you're going to do the night before etc? I'm feeling bad right now is LO is ratings a snack and watching Tele and I'm on my phone internet browsing having a qiet day. i feel guilty though that I shoyld make sure we 'do' something each day.....

 

[loverguts]

I take my LO out for a long walk at least once a day as he loves to collect leaves and twigs etc, hehe, and i do make an effort to try and entertain him, for example.. we do painting/drawing/go to toddler group/go to park etc. I do think its important to let your LO amuse themselves for a while too though.
My LO isn't interested in TV and as bad as it sounds, i can't wait till he's at an age where i can just pop a DVD in for him and have a little break!
I don't plan anything the night before (unless its a pre-arranged day out somewhere) but i do like to make sure we at least do some stuff, otherwise my LO would drive me completely mad by being bored all day, plus if he has a busy day he tires himself out and there is no fuss at bedtime

 

[minnie83]

We tend to just take each day as it comes, unless we've got something specific planned i.e. a big day out somewhere. We usually pop to the shops and go through the park on the way back to feed the ducks and go on the swings. We do try and get out every day if we can. If it's raining then we just decide what to play with as and when! We don't plan anything the night before, just take take each day as it comes

 

[Odd Socks]

i don't usually plan things to do with bella all the time, but we go out pretty much every day, whether it's to splash in puddles, go to the park, soft play, meet friends. bella's like me in that she's not keen on being inside all day, so a trip outside helps
xx

 

[rosie272]

I think it's impossible to entertain constantly! I always go to the park if it's a nice morning so we've already been this morning and fed the ducks and played on the swings, now we're back home and Charlie is playing with his cars and watching Mr Tumble - I feel he likes his chill out time as well

 

[Hellodoris]

I dont entertain her constantly, but then she thoroughly enjoys "reading" by herself or making a cup of tea or drawing. She also lives certain tv shows which I record and let her watch. To be honest she's actually quite good at playing by herself. Especially since I've go pregnant again and have had less motivation to do anything. I am such a bad mum

 

[hivechild]

No. I believe independent play is very important and Ronan enjoys it. He will happily putter around doinghis own thing and I don't feel guilty when he does. If he wants to do something with me, he lets me know and we play or do an activity together. I take him outside to play, and put things out for crafts and stuff, we go to play groups etc. but if he is content to entertain himself playing, I feel no need to interfere with that out of some misplaced expectation that I should be entertaining and doing things with him when he would rather do is own thing...and trust me, he makes it very clear when he wants me involved in what he is doing!

 

[babyjiva]

like the others have said, entertain her constantly? no. i don't think anyone entertains their LO constantly, but I do make sure that she is constantly entertained. There's a difference. I encourage her independent play or watching educational videos when I need to get something done or running around outside while I just sit back and watch her. Having said that, she will let me know if she is not entertained at which point I will jump in and play with her.
On the average day she will get bored easily unless i make sure to do the following:
take her out for a long stretch, play with her in her room with toys, play with her more like songs and puppets etc, give her a bath with toys, have a snack and education dvd session. and i kind of just talk and am playful with her all day. aside from these things, i expect and hope on most days that she'll just kind of run around the house content.

 

[NuKe]

We try to do an activity every day, but some days she's happy to read books or watch a dvd while I relax. I don't feel guilty at all. I haven't got the bloody energy to entertain her constantly!

 

[anna matronic]

I know during the week Evan does lots of activities at the childminder, such as reading, singing, painting, going to the park etc so I feel less worried that I have to do specific things with him. So we chill!! I work long hours so by the weekend I want to relax. So we play together, read, sit together watch TV, he plays by himself some of the time, we go out to town/park/for a walk etc etc xx

 

[Gingerspice]

thanks all. I was feeling a bit of a failure of a mother as got the impression I should be with LO all day and making sure she has constant attention. I remember reading some article about how mums spend too much daytime on the internet (whch clearly i was on the internet to post) and not paying ttention to their children

 

[sun]

My LO doesn't play on his own so I am always entertaining or playing with him. This includes if the TV is on - he won't watch anything unless I'm watching with him. Makes it difficult to get anything done!

 

[PepsiChic]

Barry has time with me, then time with hubby,t hen "independant play" my husband catches up on emails plays a video game etc, then they have lunch together, play then Barry goes for a nap, when Barry gets up he tends to like to play by himself, then before dinner plays with his daddy again, then i finish work and make him dinner, bath, quick play and then bed.

I think its good for them to have independant play, and Barry certainly seems to enjoy it. my hsubands office is office/playroom, so barry will sit and do his puzzle boards, or play with his farm toys happily by himself.

 

[Mum2b_Claire]

Ruby isn't massively keen on entertaining herself it must be said. We go out usually twice a day on my days off. Not hugely exciting places, but at least somewhere.

I am not always fully involved in her play, sometimes I'm doing something else as well, but I can't really say we spend much time with her playing independently while I sit and go on internet or whatever. We watch a bit of telly in the mornings and I go on then but not much otherwise. Most of my internet activity is at work haha!

I would absolutely be happy if she did like independent play though and would let her do it lots, I believe it is great for them if they are happy to do it, but you can't force them!

 

[polaris]

Ruby isn't massively keen on entertaining herself it must be said. We go out usually twice a day on my days off. Not hugely exciting places, but at least somewhere.

I am not always fully involved in her play, sometimes I'm doing something else as well, but I can't really say we spend much time with her playing independently while I sit and go on internet or whatever. We watch a bit of telly in the mornings and I go on then but not much otherwise. Most of my internet activity is at work haha!

I would absolutely be happy if she did like independent play though and would let her do it lots, I believe it is great for them if they are happy to do it, but you can't force them!

I also have a child who is not very keen on independent play. He will sometimes play on his own for a bit which I really try to encourage. But normally he wants me to sit on the floor and watch him even if I'm not actively involved. We get out of the house every day even if it's only to go shopping. I wouldn't worry about not entertaining them enough, I think they make it pretty clear if they feel that they are not getting enough attention, in my experience anyway!

 

[Jchihuahua]

We always make sure we do one big planned activity a day with her, whether it is a toddler group/ the park/ feeding ducks/ painting/ soft play etc. Daisy is very good at entertaining herself and actually prefers to play and read her books without us. She can entertain herself for as long as we need her too but we always make sure that she has a good balance of independent play and adult interaction.

 

[JakesMummy]

Jakes the kinda kid that would go insane being in all day so I tale him to the park most days, soft play, read books , he brushes my hair and attempts to put make up on me lol!! He does need his own time though. Sometimes he wanders into his bedroom and shuts his door. I always worry what he's up to, so I peek around the corner, and he's playing with his cars making broom broom noises. He must get sick of my voice LOl!

 

[clarsair]

I work full-time and have difficulty walking, so I don't do outdoor activities like I wish I could. DH takes her out for walks at the weekend and she does lots of different things at nursery so at the weekend I play with her indoors but it does get pretty repetitive - I'm looking forward to when she's a bit older and we can do crafty things!

But entertaining her constantly? No way, anyway learning to amuse themselves is important I think.

 

[TattiesMum]

No. I believe independent play is very important and Ronan enjoys it. He will happily putter around doinghis own thing and I don't feel guilty when he does. If he wants to do something with me, he lets me know and we play or do an activity together. I take him outside to play, and put things out for crafts and stuff, we go to play groups etc. but if he is content to entertain himself playing, I feel no need to interfere with that out of some misplaced expectation that I should be entertaining and doing things with him when he would rather do is own thing...and trust me, he makes it very clear when he wants me involved in what he is doing!

I couldn't agree more ... children need to learn to play by themselves rather than being entertained all of the time If they don't then they grow up being entirely dependent on other people for amusement, which can leave them vulnerable to feeling lonely or that they need others to validate them.

 

[AimeeM]

I think it is pretty much impossible to entertain them all the time. I think they need to learn to entertain themselves anyway. It is important for them to make their own way in the world and independence from a young age helps