We have a pretty serious anti-TV stance in our house. We actually don't even have a TV and we rarely download movies. Until I went on bedrest, we even had a rule about turning off our computers at 6:30pm and leaving them off completely on Sundays. But the possibility of the baby coming early put me into a state of desperation to get extra work done each day, which has meant 12-14 hour work days 6 days a week for the past 15 weeks. All while taking care of Max.
The underemployed mister has been around a lot to help and sometimes even takes Max along to jobs, but there is still a lot of need for him to play independently especially when it's just he and I. He has millions of educational toys, 2 indoor tricycles, books, and about 12 montessori trays, but he prefers our participation with almost everything and living the city life with no yard in sight...well you can imagine. Enter "The Screen". At first it was just Little Pim and Sesame Street podcasts, but like every addiction it grew. Next was Caillou, then Olivia...and just yesterday I realized Yo Gabba Gabba has taken over our lives. I know all of the words to every song in the second season.
So the mister and I decided it was time for an intervention. We unplugged mid-episode and listened to the screams. Today I faced a full day of work with a 2 year old by my side and no digital distraction and I wanted to share one of my secret weapons:
Random Waterplay! [distraction time = 1-2 hours]:
Fill a huge container with luke warm water and random objects. Squishy things, shiny things, things that are good for pouring, etc. The more random the better. You can also add a second container for transferring water back and forth, and tongs to practice object transferring. Place it on a trash bag on top of an old sheet on the floor. Or if you have a girl (ah, those civilized creatures!) you can probably get away with placing it on a kid size table or high chair tray.
