Fun and entertaining things to do with a 14 mo?

[blessedmama59]

I don't know if this is a stupid question or not..but how do I play with my 14 mo daughter?? Before her I never really did much with kids or around kids this age, so I'm dumbfounded. I mean, she has WAY more toys than i think she needs and we play with them a little as long as she's interested. I read to her daily but she doesn't sit too long, so normally that lasts for 5 min or so lol If I'm cooking or doing something in the kitchen, I will give her spoons, spatulas etc to play with. We live in a townhome and there's not really much outdoor space for her to play. There's a park within walking distance, but when we go I feel like I'm doing nothing but chasing her the entire time. I will put her in the Ergo or stroller for a walk, but normally she wants out within a short period of time. I let her explore as much as she wants as long as I am right there, but I want to start doing more interactive playing with her. I kind of feel bad bc I feel like a mother should know and have things to do with her child, but it just seems at this age her attention span is so short that she just wants to go, go, go! Thanks for any much needed advice!

[HeliMom]

My DD is also 14 mo.

we like hide and go seek(modified) I dash away around a corner and "hide" she toddles around to come find me. Rinse repeat.

Push over/ super strength games. She pushes me over with one finger and I ham it up.

"I'm gonna get you you better run. I'm gonna get you here I COME!" complete with evil hunch and over the top "stalking" But OHNO you are too fast/ smart and have gotten out of my evil clutches!

A big tupperware water table out side that she helps pour into out of. (you can use rice for indoor play)

Dance party during cooking. I also have her help me pour things (pre measured) into the bowl or pot before cooking. Sometime I have her help me stir.

We also have a big newsprint pad and some markers so we can doodle. (Also good during cooking time.)

[blessedmama59]

We do all of that also! haha Well, I've never let her pour things or help me stir so I may try that. I think she'd get a kick out of it. We do "gymnastics" and yoga too..basically I'll do something and she tries her hardest to imitate me lol it's pretty funny. Thanks for the reply!!

[HeliMom]

Oh I forgot to mention she only helps me stir cool/ cold things not stuff on the stove. So like she helps me mix pancake batter, or mix up the ingredients for omelets, that sort of thing.

[handsandfeet]

My 15 mo/old DS is really into water these days, so if you're okay with a big mess, give him different size bowls of water on the kitchen floor to splash around with.

Bubbles are also a big hit.

Make/buy a tunnel to play in.

Sand box (if you have room), or rice/beans box.

Putting things in/out of drawers over and over and over...

[CookAMH]

This may not apply as much b/c my 14DS isn't walking yet and it sounds like yours is, but he loves for me to chase him. Just yesterday, he got REALLY into playing with magnets on the fridge and trying his darndest to get between the fridge and the wall and checking out what is in there. He loves the slide at the park and the swing, so it'll be different when he walks and I chase him. But he loves to hang out in this upper part of a small playset at the playground. He plays on his own well, too.

[claras_mom]

Originally Posted by handsandfeet

My 15 mo/old DS is really into water these days, so if you're okay with a big mess, give him different size bowls of water on the kitchen floor to splash around with.

Bubbles are also a big hit.

Make/buy a tunnel to play in.

Sand box (if you have room), or rice/beans box.

Putting things in/out of drawers over and over and over...

15 mo dd loves to "help" with just about anything. My feeling is that for kids this age, just about any interaction counts as play--play is the way they're learning their way around the world. Even if it seems like work to adults--loading the dryer, for example; or sorting the tupperware...

On the rare occasions dd and I are actually alone (without dd2 or dh), we really just hang out. I do stuff and she "helps" and we talk about it. Or rather, I talk and she makes happy noises that might turn into words one day soon.

[Comtessa]

I'm a little embarrassed to admit how little I actually *play* with my 14 mo DD. Mostly, I do what I need to do and she tags along. If I'm cooking dinner, she's usually in the kitchen pulling all the pots and pans out of the drawer. At the moment, I'm sitting at the dining room table typing this post and she's sitting at my feet making an unholy racket with a toy piano. Mostly, this is how our days go. It's not that I ignore her, but I'm not actively engaged with her every minute either. I think it's good for babies/toddlers to develop an independent sense of play -- I don't want her to grow up believing that she needs to be entertained all the time. Mostly I do my thing, and she does hers, and when she needs some attention or some momma time, I stop what I'm doing and focus on her for a few minutes, play peek a boo or tickles or chase her around the house a few times. But then I go back to whatever I was doing, and she heads off in the opposite direction to look at a book, or tear apart all the paper I've neatly stacked in the recycling bin, or pull all the cushions off the couch, or otherwise wreak havoc.

Ok, she's demanding mama time now, so I'm off.

[lolar2]

I always heard about "just hanging out" with my toddler, but really DS couldn't do that until he was nearly three. Before that, he needed engagement or else he'd destroy the entire house and then bolt out into traffic within 30 seconds.

So:

-playground (chasing is exhausting and exasperating, but it's interactive)
-Gymboree-type free play/ indoor playground (and/ or Gymboree-type classes if your child is into that kind of thing; mine was, some aren't)
-swimming pool
-sand box if you have a patio or something; we were in a townhouse and put a small plastic sandbox on the patio with a cover
-there's a book called "The Arts And Crafts Busy Book for Toddlers and Preschoolers," which I loooove
-do the walks, but with a kid leash and just carry along the Ergo in case you need it
-do the walks with a wagon instead of a stroller (DS went through a stage where he preferred that)

[blessedmama59]

Thanks for the suggestions, ladies. She does love to play in water also, but it normally ends up being dumped within minutes (sometimes seconds) of me getting it for her..lol I'm not sure about a sandbox. I know she would enjoy the texture with her hands, but I believe she would eat it. I feel better knowing that just having her follow me around while I do chores, cook, laundry etc. and letting her play alone some is okay. lolar2- I'm def going to check out that book! Thanks!

[sdbeachy]

Great suggestions all--my 15 month old loves many of these things. Also, anything with music/singing--do finger plays, play ring around the rosie, pat-a-cake, and so on.

I don't know if you have any opportunities to interact with animals, but my son LOVES our animal (we live on a farm) and likes to help feed, water, and pet them.

"Helping" with any activity is also a big hit. If I'm sweeping, I hand him the other broom. If I'm cooking, I give him an empty bowl and spoon, or the other cutting board and a table knife, or let him have a bit of bread dough to kneed, etc.

He also loves it if I make his doll talk to him or pretend to do things. Something I read that all children love: play whatever they're strugging with, but in a way that they have the power. If your toddler falls a lot while walking, play a game where YOU fall down. If she runs away when you try to dress her, play that her doll is running away from being dressed. It will probably make you crazy playing it over and over her way, but you'll know she loves it when she laughs and laughs (without being tickled, of course).

[blessedmama59]

Originally Posted by sdbeachy

Great suggestions all--my 15 month old loves many of these things. Also, anything with music/singing--do finger plays, play ring around the rosie, pat-a-cake, and so on.

I don't know if you have any opportunities to interact with animals, but my son LOVES our animal (we live on a farm) and likes to help feed, water, and pet them.

"Helping" with any activity is also a big hit. If I'm sweeping, I hand him the other broom. If I'm cooking, I give him an empty bowl and spoon, or the other cutting board and a table knife, or let him have a bit of bread dough to kneed, etc.

He also loves it if I make his doll talk to him or pretend to do things. Something I read that all children love: play whatever they're strugging with, but in a way that they have the power. If your toddler falls a lot while walking, play a game where YOU fall down. If she runs away when you try to dress her, play that her doll is running away from being dressed. It will probably make you crazy playing it over and over her way, but you'll know she loves it when she laughs and laughs (without being tickled, of course).

She LOVES music and we dance all the time. If I even act like I'm going to turn on the radio, she gets super excited. Hubby and I joke that she will be a musician. As for animals, we have a dog. He's a Welsh Corgi and has been a great dog (not too big or small for her). He was very protective at the beginning, but now that she's mobile and very curious, he's grown a little weary of her. If we're not watching she'll pinch and pull his fur and he growls and barks. Not sure how that will work out if he continues. She loves animals though, particularly deer..lol (hubby is a hunter)

[Comtessa]

I found a great post online the other day that speaks to this very issue.
Full post here.

Here's a snippet:

As modern day parents, we have been conditioned to believe our job is to stimulate/educate/entertain our kids every waking moment, whether that's via enrichment classes, museum trips, or using big words when we change their diapers. ("My, we're pungent today!") But the very best kind of stimulation, we've been told a million times, is the kind that involves us getting down on the carpet, playing horsie to our child's princess or cowboy or glue factory. (Depending on whether they've had a nap.)

'You must play with your kids' is so ingrained that we feel terrible when we're bored sick by the idea of pouring another imaginary cup of tea. But maybe, like most pain, that boredom is trying to tell us something: Kiddie games are for KIDS. They really don't need us!

In other countries, reports Utah State Anthropology Professor David Lancy, they already know that. When adults there hear that we play games with our kids, it's like hearing we go to work in feety pajamas. They laugh!

It's only in the so-called "Western, Educated, Industrialized, Rich and Democratic" [W.E.I.R.D.] countries that parents believe they must personally enrich each moment with love and learning. The rest of the world believes the parent's job is role model, not playmate.

This makes sense: Don't we want to raise kids who can figure out something to do when they're bored?

Besides whining, I mean?

[lolar2]

See, I totally felt that way, but it led to a trashed house.

Maybe it works for people who have yards.

[Bokonon]

Originally Posted by Comtessa

I found a great post online the other day that speaks to this very issue.
Full post here.

Here's a snippet:

My 14mo is sitting on the floor, flipping through a photo album filled with pics of Daddy and big brother. She lets me know when she's "bored" and wants me to play with her, but we have a lot of interaction so I don't always feel the need to get on the floor and play with her and her toys (unless I want to or she wants me to!).

We spend a lot of time at playgrounds and hanging out with friends her age, so she is not lacking in interactive playtime. My son was always very content to play by himself (he would actually stop playing with something if I tried to join him - he preferred solo play) when he was a baby/toddler, but really likes to play with me now that he's used to interactive play at school.

[blessedmama59]

Originally Posted by Comtessa

I found a great post online the other day that speaks to this very issue.
Full post here.

Here's a snippet:

That is somewhat true. I really like the acronym they used lol Thanks for the link! I like your signature, btw. I believe that probably applies to a lot of us here.

[lolar2]

Originally Posted by Bokonon

My 14mo is sitting on the floor, flipping through a photo album filled with pics of Daddy and big brother. She lets me know when she's "bored" and wants me to play with her, but we have a lot of interaction so I don't always feel the need to get on the floor and play with her and her toys (unless I want to or she wants me to!).

We spend a lot of time at playgrounds and hanging out with friends her age, so she is not lacking in interactive playtime. My son was always very content to play by himself (he would actually stop playing with something if I tried to join him - he preferred solo play) when he was a baby/toddler, but really likes to play with me now that he's used to interactive play at school.

Your 14 mo SITS?????? How do you get a 14 mo to do that?

[Bokonon]

Originally Posted by lolar2

Your 14 mo SITS?????? How do you get a 14 mo to do that?

LOL, she's not walking yet.

[BirthKathy]

My son is 14 mos. old.

I work at home, and I do a few work things with him. When I print checks, I let him pull them out of the printer and stamp the envelopes for me. Then we take them out to the mailbox. We open the mail together and I tell him what is in all the pictures. (pizza, lawnmowers, whatever) He's very attentive.

I also let him dial the fax machine. He has a little desk in my office and I gave him his own file folders and extra stickers and labels. He loves anything sticky.

I've been playing oldies for him lately - he loves to dance.