WEBVTT 1 00:00:03.120 --> 00:00:07.120 Welcome to the Parenting Roundabout podcast for the week of June twenty six, twenty 2 00:00:07.200 --> 00:00:12.599 twenty three. I'm Catherine Aleko and I'm here with Nicole Ridicts, Hello and 3 00:00:12.880 --> 00:00:17.120 Terry Morrow. Hello. Every week we chat about what parents are talking, 4 00:00:17.199 --> 00:00:21.719 complaining, and obsessing about right now. This week we're complaining about people asking 5 00:00:21.760 --> 00:00:26.120 for money, and we're obsessing about family obligations. We also take a couple 6 00:00:26.120 --> 00:00:31.120 of breaks for an entertainment discussion and a recommendation roundup. Today we're talking about 7 00:00:31.280 --> 00:00:37.759 entertaining an energetic toddler, something that we haven't done in a while. Oh, 8 00:00:37.840 --> 00:00:40.479 I was very glad we don't have to do that anymore. Please glab 9 00:00:40.520 --> 00:00:46.320 your aunts. Yeah. So, our favorite listener, our most loyal listener, 10 00:00:46.399 --> 00:00:50.600 Mike asked us for some advice for a friend. He says, I 11 00:00:50.679 --> 00:00:54.679 have an online friend with a two year old who seems to have boundless energy. 12 00:00:55.240 --> 00:00:58.640 Needless to say, my friend doesn't have that any advice on how to 13 00:00:58.679 --> 00:01:04.439 either calm her otherly adorable child down or keep her own energy up. Oh, 14 00:01:04.519 --> 00:01:10.319 this is hard. It makes me tired just hearing that. Man. 15 00:01:10.680 --> 00:01:15.040 I remember when my daughter was a baby, like younger than two, but 16 00:01:15.599 --> 00:01:21.439 so like but probably walking. So like between one and two. She used 17 00:01:21.480 --> 00:01:26.319 to get up so early, and like there was nothing we could do to 18 00:01:26.239 --> 00:01:30.000 you know, you try putting them to bed earlier, you try putting them 19 00:01:30.040 --> 00:01:33.519 to bed later, you try changing the nap, but nothing worked. She 20 00:01:33.560 --> 00:01:38.439 would always get up at like five, and we, you know, we 21 00:01:38.480 --> 00:01:46.319 didn't need to be up, so we sort of created a safe place in 22 00:01:46.359 --> 00:01:51.439 the living room, like where we we gave using like furniture and gates and 23 00:01:51.560 --> 00:02:00.680 whatever, we enabled a play space and then one of us adults would like 24 00:02:00.920 --> 00:02:06.239 doze on the couch. Yeah, she was just like trundling around in this 25 00:02:06.439 --> 00:02:09.759 in this space, and and yes, we would have the TV on to 26 00:02:09.879 --> 00:02:15.000 whatever was showing on on BBS kids, you know, and we'd be like, 27 00:02:15.800 --> 00:02:20.479 well, I don't remember seeing Bear in the Big Blue House, so 28 00:02:20.520 --> 00:02:24.840 I must have been asleep for that half hour. Like that's how we would 29 00:02:24.879 --> 00:02:30.599 like keep track of time. So that that was one thing that worked for 30 00:02:30.639 --> 00:02:38.000 a specific like situation, you know, Yeah, that's a good idea. 31 00:02:38.120 --> 00:02:44.800 And I also think like any anytime you can get a kid outdoors, uh 32 00:02:44.919 --> 00:02:47.400 huh usually helps, right, you know, yeah, Like and you got 33 00:02:47.400 --> 00:02:52.120 to watch him twice as hard though, well, this is true, but 34 00:02:52.479 --> 00:02:57.400 hopefully they'll use up twice the energy. My son ran around our backyard and 35 00:02:57.479 --> 00:03:00.120 ran right in front of where his sister was swinging and got a foot in 36 00:03:00.120 --> 00:03:02.879 the face. So cool. You can't have to spit that or you you 37 00:03:02.960 --> 00:03:06.919 just you see it happening, and it's like, no, too late, 38 00:03:07.560 --> 00:03:14.120 yea, honey, stop gravity so that you don't swing down when your brother's 39 00:03:14.159 --> 00:03:19.159 passing in front, will you? Oh man, you just can't do anything 40 00:03:19.159 --> 00:03:23.759 but watch that happen. Yeah. Right. And as much as I as 41 00:03:23.840 --> 00:03:29.479 much as I did not like swimming lessons, you knew the kids were going 42 00:03:29.560 --> 00:03:32.840 to sleep well, oh, or going back to day, going to the 43 00:03:34.360 --> 00:03:39.039 Yeah, but is it worth it? I don't know. Not the beach, 44 00:03:39.159 --> 00:03:47.280 maybe the pool, not the beach, yeah, sand everywhere. We 45 00:03:47.360 --> 00:03:59.280 would just use videos back in the day or coloring or but does that that 46 00:03:59.319 --> 00:04:01.800 doesn't work? And the kid is like bouncing off the wall. That's like 47 00:04:02.319 --> 00:04:09.840 any physical Yeah, you know a little trampoline can yeah, land trampoline, 48 00:04:10.479 --> 00:04:15.759 taking them to like an indoor place base, like a children's museum or you 49 00:04:15.840 --> 00:04:20.279 know the mall. Yeah, I mean arm all had one of those like 50 00:04:21.319 --> 00:04:30.279 things with like that weirdly like soft like climbing structures. What they mean, 51 00:04:30.319 --> 00:04:35.120 they have like a big clear of like boone on them and just don't think 52 00:04:35.240 --> 00:04:42.759 too much about how many other people have touched it and just just scrub their 53 00:04:42.800 --> 00:04:49.639 hands after. Like the ball pit at the McDonald's play space. Yes, 54 00:04:50.480 --> 00:04:54.959 I think I've mentioned here before that I used to go to places with ball 55 00:04:55.000 --> 00:04:57.879 pits and just sit there for a few hours of the book and a single 56 00:04:57.920 --> 00:05:01.879 soda and let my son pla and the ballpit. Ye, and Chuck E 57 00:05:02.000 --> 00:05:04.639 Cheese was another place. You have chucky cheese everywhere? Do you guys have 58 00:05:04.720 --> 00:05:09.079 chuck e Cheese? Yeah? Yeah, yeah, So we would go there 59 00:05:09.120 --> 00:05:11.360 and I would I don't know if I would even have lunch or if I 60 00:05:11.399 --> 00:05:14.800 would just buy a cup of coffee and let my son just play in the 61 00:05:14.839 --> 00:05:16.319 pits and stuff. If you go off times, I don't think they care, 62 00:05:18.319 --> 00:05:20.240 just because that was the way he could burn a lot of stuff. 63 00:05:20.240 --> 00:05:25.480 And we did finally have a ball pit at home for a while, so 64 00:05:25.519 --> 00:05:28.160 that was that was good. But yeah, you don't want to think, 65 00:05:28.199 --> 00:05:30.399 even if you'd only have one kid using it, if it's a kid of 66 00:05:30.480 --> 00:05:33.160 diapers, you don't want to think too hard about it. No, don't, 67 00:05:33.680 --> 00:05:38.399 definitely don't think about it. Yeah, but you know we did. 68 00:05:38.519 --> 00:05:41.000 We would have we had the ballpit in a space that had a couch in 69 00:05:41.040 --> 00:05:43.920 a TV and we would do as you did. He could play in the 70 00:05:43.959 --> 00:05:47.399 ballpit and I would watch something or catch a nap. Yeah, but you 71 00:05:47.480 --> 00:05:53.560 do definitely have to have some containment, yeah, yeah, as any way 72 00:05:53.639 --> 00:05:59.040 to like whether it's a single room or a part of a room or a 73 00:05:59.199 --> 00:06:05.720 part of outdoors or whatever where you can kind of let them have some freedom, 74 00:06:05.800 --> 00:06:09.639 right so that, you know, if they're a climber, like, 75 00:06:10.120 --> 00:06:14.759 can you have a little kid size climbing structure or whatever so that so that 76 00:06:14.800 --> 00:06:18.639 they can do the thing that their body needs to do right, but just 77 00:06:18.800 --> 00:06:24.480 provide like a safe place for them to do it, um where you don't 78 00:06:24.480 --> 00:06:30.000 have to be on top of it at all times. Yeah, yeah, 79 00:06:30.040 --> 00:06:36.639 that's it's easy. I kind of just though too to also, um, 80 00:06:38.720 --> 00:06:44.360 like what kinds of activities would like, say, if you were exhausted yourself 81 00:06:44.439 --> 00:06:48.639 and your child, you know, bouncing off the walls, what kind of 82 00:06:48.720 --> 00:06:55.600 calming down right like I you know, yeah, running around and playing would 83 00:06:55.600 --> 00:07:01.600 definitely do that, but right, like kind of immediate strategy, could you 84 00:07:01.720 --> 00:07:08.600 use to kind of right the horizontal parenting strategy? Drugging them would be bad, 85 00:07:08.680 --> 00:07:15.639 right, Yes, on a regular basis, once in a while we 86 00:07:15.720 --> 00:07:23.120 can bring out the benadryl, but screens often do that though. The hypnotic 87 00:07:23.160 --> 00:07:26.639 effect of screens. We spent a lot of time when my kids were a 88 00:07:26.680 --> 00:07:31.800 little on our bed in my husband's and eye bedroom, my bedroom and just 89 00:07:31.839 --> 00:07:36.560 watching videos and holding onto them to various degrees that they would allow themselves to 90 00:07:36.560 --> 00:07:42.600 behold while we all just sort of lulled into a semiconscious state right in front 91 00:07:42.600 --> 00:07:46.600 of Barney um. And I'm probably supposed to be judging myself for that, 92 00:07:46.639 --> 00:07:50.800 but I do not. We needed it, Yeah, we needed the bonding, 93 00:07:50.839 --> 00:07:55.800 and we needed the downtime. And if I had to hypnotize them with 94 00:07:55.879 --> 00:08:01.920 audio visual um items, I was going to do that. Yeah, right, 95 00:08:03.079 --> 00:08:07.759 So don't be ashamed. If you need the screen, use the screen. 96 00:08:07.160 --> 00:08:18.160 Yeah, not twenty four seven, but as needed for mom to be 97 00:08:18.240 --> 00:08:24.839 able to keep going right. And also, I speaking of places you can 98 00:08:24.879 --> 00:08:30.560 take the kids, your library. You know, it's way more than books. 99 00:08:30.600 --> 00:08:35.799 There's tons of you know, most libraries, most children's departments have lots 100 00:08:35.799 --> 00:08:41.480 and lots of toys, and they do have like audio books and videos that 101 00:08:41.559 --> 00:08:46.279 you can take out. They have like play kits where it's toys that kind 102 00:08:46.279 --> 00:08:50.960 of go with the book. Like I saw one yesterday that was so cute. 103 00:08:50.960 --> 00:08:58.200 It was a children's book about popsicles, and it came with three different 104 00:08:58.480 --> 00:09:05.000 sets of like learning toys that went with it. Like there was popsicle matching 105 00:09:05.440 --> 00:09:09.919 cards. There were, um, you know how you have those those popsicles 106 00:09:09.919 --> 00:09:13.720 that are like you break them in half and there's two sticks. So they 107 00:09:13.759 --> 00:09:18.679 had those plastic like you know, plastic ones where it had the capital letter 108 00:09:18.720 --> 00:09:22.720 on one half and the lowercase letter on the other half, so you could 109 00:09:22.720 --> 00:09:28.480 match them and match, you know, and the colors match too, so 110 00:09:30.080 --> 00:09:33.879 you were, you know, you didn't have to know the kid didn't have 111 00:09:33.960 --> 00:09:37.960 to know the letter to figure it out. And then there was numbers one 112 00:09:39.039 --> 00:09:43.240 where you had like a popsicle and then it had like a like a coating, 113 00:09:43.480 --> 00:09:48.440 like a sleeve kind of that went on top of it, like picture 114 00:09:48.519 --> 00:09:52.159 like a dipped popsicle, right, And so then you had to match the 115 00:09:52.240 --> 00:09:56.159 numbers. So the inside piece had a number one, and then there was 116 00:09:56.200 --> 00:10:01.679 one outside that had a number one and anyway, a long story show. 117 00:10:03.320 --> 00:10:07.639 This is available at my local library. So check that out, just in 118 00:10:07.720 --> 00:10:11.159 terms of a place to go with your kid. Plus you can check that 119 00:10:11.200 --> 00:10:15.799 stuff out and bring it home and then it's new and exciting for your child. 120 00:10:16.879 --> 00:10:24.440 Yeah, definitely hit up that library. And also then they have like 121 00:10:26.080 --> 00:10:30.279 you know, sing alongs and all that kind of stuff where the kid can 122 00:10:30.279 --> 00:10:37.159 be doing that while you're sitting in a chair taking a little break. I 123 00:10:37.279 --> 00:10:43.519 had this one friend and she was so against taking her kid to the library 124 00:10:43.559 --> 00:10:48.159 because she didn't like them touching all the germs on the books. And I 125 00:10:48.360 --> 00:10:54.080 just put such a damper on Like after she told me that, I was 126 00:10:54.360 --> 00:10:58.240 I didn't stop going, but I was, why did you have to tell 127 00:10:58.240 --> 00:11:05.000 me that, because you know it just was like yeah, yeah, like 128 00:11:05.159 --> 00:11:09.120 you knew it, but you hadn't stopped to really think about it to put 129 00:11:09.159 --> 00:11:13.639 it in your brain. Yeah yeah, I was like, oh man, 130 00:11:16.000 --> 00:11:22.039 right, I took my kids there a lot there. Yeah, yeah, 131 00:11:24.159 --> 00:11:28.679 I mean, other than keeping your kid at home, how do you keep 132 00:11:28.679 --> 00:11:31.120 them from going out and touching Germany things? And really even in my home 133 00:11:31.720 --> 00:11:37.679 probably the library is less Germany. So you know this is what makes gets 134 00:11:37.679 --> 00:11:41.000 strong, right, This is what helps them build up good immunity, exposure 135 00:11:41.039 --> 00:11:45.600 to a lot of different coins of Jerts. Go on, honey, go 136 00:11:45.679 --> 00:11:50.720 put that book in your mouth. It'll be fine. Yeah, it was 137 00:11:52.799 --> 00:12:01.720 strange finding a young person if there are no siblings. If there's like a 138 00:12:01.720 --> 00:12:05.360 teenager or something who wants some money and does have closer to boundless energy, 139 00:12:05.480 --> 00:12:11.200 that's a great idea. Yeah, that's sometimes a good way to just you 140 00:12:11.279 --> 00:12:18.759 know, pay them whatever they want. Run your child into exhaustion, or 141 00:12:18.799 --> 00:12:24.320 a play group so that yes, kids can play and the moms can commiserate 142 00:12:24.559 --> 00:12:26.960 and her the parents. It doesn't have to be a mom. One of 143 00:12:26.000 --> 00:12:31.960 the towns I lived in at one point they had a big waiting pool, 144 00:12:31.519 --> 00:12:37.360 so the child didn't you know, you didn't actually have to get in with 145 00:12:37.399 --> 00:12:41.559 your kids like a splash Yeah, it was, well, it was it 146 00:12:41.600 --> 00:12:45.759 was more than a splash pad. It was actually okay, yeah, it 147 00:12:45.840 --> 00:12:52.159 was probably like a foot deep and then um and then I mean we would 148 00:12:52.200 --> 00:12:54.799 take the kids up there and we would just all the mums of meat up 149 00:12:54.840 --> 00:13:01.879 there and that was guaranteed. That was a guaranteed like three hour nap day 150 00:13:03.320 --> 00:13:11.840 had events I think if I had had an iPad back then, things, 151 00:13:13.360 --> 00:13:20.840 Yeah, as we have discussed and in this place, any long taking project 152 00:13:22.080 --> 00:13:24.679 or hobby that your child enjoys. I mean two years old is maybe too 153 00:13:24.720 --> 00:13:33.080 young, but legos or beads or I mean my son lined up cars a 154 00:13:33.120 --> 00:13:39.159 lot, which means something completely different, but still that it was an active 155 00:13:39.200 --> 00:13:41.840 little guy. But he could lay down in his room on his rug and 156 00:13:41.879 --> 00:13:46.799 line up cars for quite some time. So you know, look around for 157 00:13:46.879 --> 00:13:48.519 things that your kid likes to do and see if you can find a way 158 00:13:48.559 --> 00:13:54.799 to allow them to do it in a contained space. And you know, 159 00:13:54.879 --> 00:13:58.720 they may be happy doing the same thing for a long period of time if 160 00:13:58.720 --> 00:14:03.080 it's something they're sort of into. What I've seen a lot lately on just 161 00:14:03.320 --> 00:14:09.720 you know, online social media, our mums making like these sensory boards or 162 00:14:09.799 --> 00:14:13.879 sensory bags. Have you seen those, Yeah, where they like, you'll 163 00:14:13.879 --> 00:14:18.039 get a pegboard and they'll put all kinds of well that's cool there for the 164 00:14:18.159 --> 00:14:26.840 child to like bang and yeah, turn key like locks and um, those 165 00:14:26.879 --> 00:14:31.159 are idea, it's a very cool idea. I would have told you could 166 00:14:31.200 --> 00:14:37.279 easily make one, yeah, and a bin you know, yeah, Well 167 00:14:37.440 --> 00:14:39.919 the bin. When I in my day, the thing to do was a 168 00:14:41.039 --> 00:14:43.399 rice bin and you make a big bin or rice and you parry things in 169 00:14:43.480 --> 00:14:46.919 it and the kid will dig down to get the things, and you know 170 00:14:46.960 --> 00:14:52.320 what you end up afterwards is over the floor epen rice and you can never 171 00:14:52.440 --> 00:14:56.399 get It's like beach sand. Yeah, it just gets into everything. So 172 00:14:56.480 --> 00:15:01.320 I tried that one, and I thought, this is a really bad idea. 173 00:15:01.519 --> 00:15:07.600 This is the other one. This is going straight in the trash. 174 00:15:07.679 --> 00:15:11.559 Zip blocked backs and you make like a I don't know, you put some 175 00:15:11.639 --> 00:15:13.320 kind of liquid in it. I'm not sure what it is. Oh boy, 176 00:15:13.320 --> 00:15:16.720 you better be sure your kid doesn't know how to open a zip blocked 177 00:15:16.720 --> 00:15:20.480 back because it blocked back with some duct table. I know what I was 178 00:15:20.519 --> 00:15:22.879 thinking. Yes, okay, so there's that. But the other one I 179 00:15:22.879 --> 00:15:26.519 recently thought, which I thought was so which I thought was genius, was 180 00:15:26.559 --> 00:15:31.440 that the mom put some of the kid's favorite little toys in a bowl of 181 00:15:31.519 --> 00:15:37.759 water. Week. Yeah, yeah, we talked about this, did you. 182 00:15:37.879 --> 00:15:39.080 That's what we talked about last week? You heard about it from me? 183 00:15:39.559 --> 00:15:45.240 Yeah, But then I saw the videos somewhere, Yeah, because I 184 00:15:45.279 --> 00:15:50.559 posted it on our chat. Oh my god. Okay, well, it 185 00:15:50.639 --> 00:15:54.720 is a good idea to our past episode. That is a very good idea 186 00:15:54.799 --> 00:15:58.519 for occupying a child for a long time, and the only nest will be 187 00:15:58.679 --> 00:16:03.000 water yea, So we'll put them on the pit away from something. Yeah, 188 00:16:04.159 --> 00:16:10.679 gosh, I cannot believe I totally forgot about that. There you go, 189 00:16:10.799 --> 00:16:17.720 folks. Well maybe we all need to go take a nap like that, 190 00:16:17.759 --> 00:16:21.960 poor mall, I think I need to. So let's say. That's 191 00:16:22.000 --> 00:16:25.639 in for today's Round one. Tune in tomorrow for our entertainment themed Round two 192 00:16:25.679 --> 00:16:27.759 and later in the week to find out what we're complaining about, obsessing about, 193 00:16:27.799 --> 00:16:32.320 and recommending right now. We're always interested in what you have to say, 194 00:16:32.639 --> 00:16:34.559 so drop us a comment on our website, our Facebook page, or 195 00:16:34.559 --> 00:16:37.559 Twitter, where you'll find us at roundabout Chat.