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toddler friends getting into everything!

Beatrice - posted on 12/06/2012 ( 3 moms have responded )

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Hi!

I have hired a woman to watch my kids (4mo twins and a 2.5 yo) in my house and have agreed to let her bring her own children (6mo and 3 yo). My babysitter is fabulous and does a great job with the babies. However, the toddlers are too much! They get into EVERYTHING and are super quick. My in-laws are also here while she watches the babies and they STILL get into everything. I think they are feeding off of each other. Today my babysitter broke down because she says her daughter is acting terribly. Her daughter has a speech delay and is receiving therapy. She was also potty trained and is now having frequent accidents. My in-laws say she is the one who gets into everything. I don't want my daughter to develop bad habits and my daughter loves the baby sitters daughter. I do, too - they are just great friends.



I need ideas - what should I do? I can't hire anyone else - I'm basically paying her what I earn, which isn't much.



The other day they went into my closet and took down all the empty hangers and threw them on the floor...do you know how hard it is to clean those up? They all hook onto the others! lol.



Any ideas welcome.

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3 Comments

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Beatrice - posted on 12/09/2012

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I have a walk-in closet with a big chest that I use to store linens in and it sits under one section of the closet where I keep the un-used hangers. They climbed on top of that and just happily started taking things down. Baby-proofing seems so obvious! I even have extra stuff lying around. I just never had to use it before with my daughter because she has always respected boundaries. Now she is getting into more and more stuff.



Some how, she managed to reach the shelves in bathroom closet and pull everything down on the floor, including a tube of toothpaste, which she then proceeded to squirt out in dabs throughout the house. I'm still finding toothpaste in the most random places.



What drives me crazy is that I'm nursing and I can't be on top of her 24/7 but my husband and his parents are around and the adults outnumber the children so I'm a little annoyed that this stuff happens when I'm not around or can't get up because I'm nursing one or both of the babies.



What are your typical "off-limits" places?

Cleaver - posted on 12/07/2012

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i agree with baby proofing i learnt fast that its easier to put things i didnt want my son reaching where he couldnt reach its easier that way

Sarah - posted on 12/07/2012

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How did they reach the hangers? Anyway, for starters I would baby proof the house. It is one thing when it is your own children, but somewhere you have to draw the line. I would start with door knob covers. They door knob shaped covers that go over the knobs. There are 2 small indentions that you must squeeze to latch to the knob to be able to turn it. This will keep them out of rooms you don't want them into. Then I would go for the cabinet locks too. There are several different types available. If you decide to do this you will have to look at them and decide which one works for your cabinets. I use them on the dresser drawers at my house because my toddler likes to pull out all the clothes and play dress up. I have the kind I had to screw into the wood that have a little latch to push in. They have refrigerator locks, oven locks, really just about anything you can think of. Lock it all up. It will help out the sitter. As for not wanting your child to pick up on bad habits. I really don't know what to tell you. Unless your in-laws are there all the time and they can watch your children, then you will have to deal with a bit of picking up on bad habits. Anywhere you put your kids to be watched while you are at work will also have other kids unless you find someone who has no other kids of their own they want to bring. Good luck and get the locks on things.

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