Backyard Life with a 9 Month Old

Dear J.,
There probably is nothing in the backyard that wouldn't be okay for your child to put in the mouth - grass.dirt,etc. (unless you use garden chemicals) Your child will soon learn what belongs in the mouth and what does not. But a little dirt and grass doesn't hurt anyone. It would probably be ideal if you simply play with the younger child while the older is in the sandbox and save the weeding for a time when you can be out there by yourself!
Best thoughts.
J. Birns
Waldorf educator/consultant (and mother of 2)

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Hello,
I know you must be concerned with all dirty things that sand can hold, but when my children were young, I would put them in the sand to play with toys for a limited time, and rush them into the shower and bath with a good anti-bacterial soap. It must be hard on your 9 month old watching your 4 year old having something that is forbidden to her. You get what I am saying? She is inquisitive and wants to know what it's all about. On the other hand, one of my children had been so afraid of the sand, we couldn't even visit the beach.

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I have used a stationary entertainer and swing for this type of situation. It's better than the playpen because they won't feel penned in.

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Put out a large blanket on the grass near you with toys to explore or let her explore the yard and you are within reach to keep her from eating too many "no no's" It is good for our little ones to be able to explore, and eating a little bit of sand or grass that is not treated with pesticides is just fine. Or do you have a porch over hang in your yard?- I just bought a baby swing from toys-r-us for $20 which may entertain your little one outside- my son loves his outdoor swing- even whne he is just sitting in it and not swinging
good uck

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bring her out on a large blanket or sheet, give her a bunch of plastic containers, spoons, measuring cups (I went to K-mart and bought the cheapest stuff I could find for my kids to use and kept their stuff in a bottom drawer in the kitchen that they could get to when they were crawling and wanted to "help" mom when she cooked). I'd also fill a large plastic container (not big enough for your little one to get into) with some water and a drop or two of different colored food coloring. My boys enjoyed pouring the water with the cups and spoons. If she drinks the water it won't hurt her. When a little older I gave them various plastic bowls with colored water and a couple of cheap paint brushes and they "painted" the outdoor furniture, house, plants, etc. When they could handle them, I gave them some cheap squirt bottle with the same. They had a blast, were outside and having clean (but wet) fun. The food coloring didn't hurt anything either.

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Hi J.!
I have a 15 month old who LOVES to explore outside, and that is what you have to let them do. My son has been running around outside since he was 10 months, and the best thing you can do is just stay with your little one and help her explore. Play with rocks and leaves and even mud with her and she will be very happy! I have found that yard work with a baby is impossible, so if you can, do your weeding when someone else can help watch baby. Spend the outside time you have with her teaching her and letting her see and feel the great outdoors.

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I used to bring my sons exersaucer out or his Johnny Jumper. It keeps them busy and lets them and you enjoy the nice weather. Good Luck!

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What about putting a large quilt or blanket down, and then putting one of those enclosures for babies(I forget what they're called, but they can be used with 4 - 8 panels about 30" high that you connect to form an enclosure for either inside or outside) on top? Then put lots of interesting toys on the quilt for the baby. This would allow the baby more space to crawl around than a pack n play, but still keep her safe. We used this type of thing quite a bit when my boys were babies.

Try a baby sling so that your baby is with you. I had to do this when my son was younger, and it helped a lot. That or lay a blanket out, and sit with her while your four year old plays. Another suggestion would be do yard work or allow your four year old to play outside while baby is taking a nap.

M. *~

Hi J.,

My boys didn't like grass touching their bodies when they were crawling babies. But, I wanted them to have "fresh air". I used to put a large Sheet down on the grass near where I'd be weeding. I had to use nails to hammer in the corners, though, otherwise I had to go straighten the sheet every other minute :o) My boys would start to "crawl off" the sheet, then change their mind because they didn't like the feel of the grass. The sheet was like their little "island"...it was funny.

Anyway, most little crawlers don't like the feel of grass when they crawl, so you might want to try it for your son. Grap a sheet, and a few toys and go....

Happy weeding :o)

N.

HI J.,
I have 9 month old, who also wants to put everything in her mouth, and I really can't leave her side because of it. What I do sometimes is put her in her swing for a while, than I will put her in her walker for a few minutes (she is very impatient). Than what works the best is going outside about 30-45 minutes before nap time, put her in her stroller with some cheerios (I think the dog eats most of them), she will relax and as soon as she starts to dose off, I move her to her crib. We spend about 1-2 hours outside on all the nice days. I don't get much done, but it works out!
C.

Hi J.,

Eventually, the baby will stop crying. I would put her in a playpen for her own safety so you can enjoy gardening and big sister can enjoy playing. Maybe buy her something new to play with and move the playpen either next to you where you are gardening or big sister is playing. Good luck and happy gardening!

I used a walker for our third while the older two were playing outside. It wouldn't be safe on a deck or anything that wasn't level, but we have a large, flat patio, so it worked well.

Doesn't work well on the grass either. It's too hard to move, so he would get frustrated.

J., That does sound frustrating! You may have to give up the weeding and play with your 9 month old while you are out back. What worked for us is for me to play with them for a few minutes before starting to do my own thing. Some days I would have to play the whole time and other times I could get things done alternating with playing. Now my kids are 4.5 and almost 2 and they play together, play independently and rarely fuss. Hope that helps! C.

I used to put my daughter in the exersaucer or I would move our swing outside. She loved it and would watch the other kids play to. I was able to get my yard work done as long as she stayed close and I took time every 20 minutes to talk to her. Hope it works out.

Hello J.;
Have you tried a baby backpack? This will allow you to do most everything that you need to do while giving your 4 year old some fun time. Perhaps you could move the playpen closer to where you are weeding as well. Put her in the backpack for 10-15 minutes and then in the playpen for 10-15 minutes.

One other idea is to have your have your older child blow bubbles (the ones in the bottles) to entertain the baby when she is frustrated.

Best of luck to you with this issue.

when my twins were that small i would put them in a bumbo seat on a blanket with toys around them or a bouncey seat on a blanket. just a few more ideas. hugz!

Hi J.,

Put her on a large blanket with lots of toys-- kitchen containers, lids, teethers etc are all great for outside and to get her interested in playing there. Also, if she has a swing, exersaucer or jumperoo-- bring it outside. You can play peek-a-boo with her if you are trying to weed. Good luck to you!

M.

Our little boy liked to eat sand at first too, but as time went by, he stopped. We just stayed with him and played with him in the sand, watched him and stopped him when he started eating it and took the sand out when we missed. He loves the sandbox now!

I agree with Brandy. 9 months is old enough to go outside and play in the sand or whatever. Just watch her. At 4, your son doesn't need you to watch his every move, so you should be able to pay attention to the baby easily enough.

This is my life described here. I have a 2-1/2-year-old and an 11-month-old and we've been enjoying the playground since the baby was born. She just crawls around on the cement half the time - for some reason, she likes that better than grass or sand. She also likes the wood chips. But, I'm always with her and if the toddler needs me, I scoop up the baby and go tend to the toddler. We probably spend 2+ hours a day outside in this manner. I've also befriended other parents and they're usually happy to help out with one or the other in a pinch. So, hit a playground with them when you get a chance. Babies that age often love swings.

Have fun!

Maybe put her in a sling or infant carrier.

Do you have an exersaucer? My daughter loved to be in hers outside. She was almost walking at 9 months so once she started walking she didn't want to be in it anymore, but she loved it up until that point. It allowed my son to go outside to play and me to be able to take turns with both of them. Also, we have a trampoline with an enclosure, and I would throw a bunch of her toys up there and zip her in. It was like a giant play pen, but she was high up and seemed to enjoy it, plus I wasn't worried about her getting hurt. That worked well after she started walking and no longer wanted to be confined to the saucer. You can also try spreading a huge blanket on the lawn with a few favorite toys. Try to get her involved with some of her toys before you attempt to walk away. You probably won't be able to get much done still, especially if she won't stay on the blanket, but at least you will have your hands free to engage with your older child a little bit. If all else fails, wait until her nap time and grab a baby monitor and head outside with your older child. Also, do you have a baby swing? A few pushes in the swing can depending on the length of the rope can give her a nice ride and new perspective and give you some hands free time too. I spend so much time outside with my two kids since they enjoy it so much. Keep trying until you find something that works for you. It won't be long until she is mobile and it will be so much easier.

Hi J.. I had the same problem w/my son who is now 3 1/2. I happen to put him in a little car that actually was designed for his age and up which moved around and he loved it. He wanted to be where the action was (still does). I would just park the thing right next to me and include him in what I was doing somehow. Another option if your back can handle it is I used a carrier (that you wear) to cart around my 2nd baby - it was cool because she was right there and I was hands free!

I had the same problem with my daughter when she was about the same age. What worked for us was a backpack. It allowed her to be close to me and after a while my movements would rock her to sleep. It becomes a great workout for your legs, especially when you are getting up a lot, but I found after 5-10 minutes my daughter would be asleep, and I could take the backpack off, and she would stay asleep for a long time.

During the times that I needed to be outside but wanted my son to be "contained", I rolled out the high chair. I was pleasantly surprised how much he enjoyed it - at least for a good 15 or 20 minute chunk of time. I was able to wash the car, or clean off the porch or do some planting - all with him in the high chair. I think it was better than the exersaucer (which I tried - failed), because of how high up he was. He could see other neigbors if they were outside as well. I agree that you should spend the majority of your time outdoors WITH your little one as they explore & get to know the world around them - it definitely helped slow me down - in a good way! But for the one or two times a season that you need your baby contained, I recommend the high chair or a baby backpack.

I have a similar situation but my older is 2 1/2 years old and I also have a 9 month old. She also wants to play in the sandbox and i didn't know what to do with the baby. So I got a small swingset so they can both swing, or he can swing while she plays on the slide or in the sandbox. I got the small step 2 (http://www.step2.com/product.cfm?product_id=1335). They both love it!

I have an almost 7 mo old - I put a blanket down w/ a bunch of toys that she can mouth.
If your baby can crawl, I can see that you wouldn't be able to weed, you would have to sit there and play w/ her.

Something that I find works wonders... Get yourself a good baby carrier. And wear your baby. I work as a "handyman" of all things and I am constantly on the go. So I put my 10 month old baby on my back in a carrier and he is totally content, falls asleep, watches all that I do & he's a happy boy.(if you get the carrier that goes on your back it's a breeze to work in your garden and flower beds) If I carry him for a good part of the day then I can set him in his playpen and he plays just fine. Wearing my baby is the best thing I've done with my little guy. I don't know how I managed with my other two boys, I wish I had discovered the sling/carrier thing years ago.

When my son started crawling, I started putting him on the back porch one or two times a day with a bowl or pot of water and a few toys. Usually the water would end up getting dumped out, and he would splash in the puddle it made until there was no more water to splash in. It always meant changing his clothes when he came in (and leaving a stack of towels by the back porch door), but he loved it, and it was the easiest way for me to get anything done. Sometimes I also put him and the pot of water in one of those little kiddie pools (with no water in it).

Hi J. - !

I have 4 kids, 3 of which were less than 2 years apart. I spent a LOT of time doing things with a baby in a backpack designed for babies or a front pack. I'd be out gardening or hiking up a mountain or just making dinner with a baby attached to me somehow. I enjoyed the closeness, and now that my kids are older, I miss it.

Wear her. There are lots of fabulous carriers out on the market right now and there is a class listed through birthways that should allow you the chance to try on different ones and learn how they work with no pressure to purchase.

You need a back carrier. Keeps your 9mo happy, out of trouble, and close to mommy while your hands are free for dealing withy our 4yo.

I have a 4yo and a 14mo and I can't imagine life without my carriers.

Try the Pikkolo:
http://www.theportablebaby.com/pikkolo.html

or the Beco Butterfly:
http://www.theportablebaby.com/becobabycarriers.html