What now? Twins starting to crawl.

[abowin]

So my twin girls are 7 1/2 months (adjusted) and are almost crawling.  I'm wondering how you ladies handled your babies at this stage.  My main concern is what's a safe place to put one baby while I'm changing or moving the other to another floor of the house.  Until now they were safe in a bouncy seat or on a play mat for a couple minutes.  We haven't used a playpen or exersaucer because I don't think they're healthy but maybe they're necessary with twins if only for a couple minutes here and there?

[artekah]

Hi, I don't have twins but I do have 2 close in age. I recommend baby proofing certain rooms in your house completely--I mean completely, so there is nothing in that room to worry you at all. Then block off that room or rooms with baby gates. Then it's like a playpen, but it's a whole room or area of the house so they're free to explore--then you could pop one of them over the baby gate while you take care of the other.

[~Adorkable~]

that is the trick completely! at this point, actually sadly a bit later after being really stressed caring for them, i padded and totally redid my living room into a baby heaven. it was great, it still is, it has grown with them and is a wonderful place for the family. it lets me work around the house and give them time to explore and interact with each other freely, they love it. 

heck it now has a slide that goes into a ball bit in it and piano among the other more normal things and they will run there after eating (attached dining room is now in their zone as well) and spend a hour ignoring me, while they make each other giggle and build little worlds for themselves. i think this time they have on their own is amazing and has made them so creative and quick to take initiative.

i sit and read a book or clean in the next room over and they can come get me at the gate anytime they please. giving them a zone is never about ditching them someplace, please dont fee like it is, it is about giving them a safe place. there will always be times you need to take one for some reason, or need to fix or clean up the food for instance. baby zones are your best friend!

[abowin]

Thanks.  That'll be nice when they can amuse each other for an hour.  People keep asking me if my girls play together yet.  My response is that they steal toys away from each other and pull each other's hair.  Not sure if that's "playing."  :)

I wish you could see my house and give me some ideas. We spend most of our time in the kitchen and in the family room which is in the basement.  I'm thinking we'll have a play area in the family room.  I'm not sure what to do about the kitchen though.  Even if I baby proof all 36 cabinets/drawers there are still 9 chairs.  I just don't see that area ever being safe enough to leave them in there without supervision unless there was a blocked off area.  There is a small room across from the kitchen that we currently use for storage that I could convert into a play area but there isn't really a direct line of sight in there and I don't think they'd like not being able to see me.  Oh well, I guess these are things we'll just figure out when we have to.  One of our girls figured out she can move across the room today by rolling.  It was so funny to see her rolling half-way across the room.  :)

[GirlBoyGirl]

We gated off our entire living room (it was mostly empty anyway as we used the family room) and filled it with toys. It was great!!!!

[~Adorkable~]

Quote:

There is a small room across from the kitchen that we currently use for storage that I could convert into a play area but there isn't really a direct line of sight in there and I don't think they'd like not being able to see me.  Oh well, I guess these are things we'll just figure out when we have to.  One of our girls figured out she can move across the room today by rolling.

can you put up the gates so that they can come down a hall from that room and look at you in the kitchen?  you might be surprised that once they know they CAN see you, they become less about NEEDing to and just check in from time to time and then roll off again.  i think set ups like this are the very best of both worlds, it lets then gain independent imaginations and initiative while also knowing that you are always there for them.

[abowin]

There is a foyer between the rooms with two down staircases, one up and a bathroom.  Was planning on blocking off the foyer so that I wouldn't have to put up gates at each stairway.  Maybe I'm being overprotective but don't I need to have them in my line of sight?  Even in a "babyproof" room things can go wrong.  

[~Adorkable~]

can you stick you head out of the kitchen and see in there?

i think as long as you can easily look in, it does not have to be line of sight all the time.

i did find it good to be able to look easily, both to see things fast (see who is causing what, triage right away if you need to run in or just walk over) and to save myself the needless trips when talking to them really was all anyone needed.

i can certainly understand not wanting to block off that many stairs yet, though at some point you may have to, since toddlers will get past gates when you lease expect it and its good at that point to have a second gate on stairs. we are tackling that now too.

[QMtwins]

I was amazed at how much we took out of all our living spaces as the girls got older.  It really helped us de-clutter!  We got rid of shelves and all sorts of stuff that we realized we didn't really need or use that was serious, "danger baby," stuff.  Still know, that our girls now at 2 years and 4 months are crazy and climb as much as they can.  They can un-lock all the locks on the door knobs in and out of the house.  The gates do not stop them from getting where they want to go.  I wish I had the sort of kids parents talked about, "never getting into anything."  We did gate the kitchen as a no-no area.  But, of course, our bathroom is through it, so we're in it a lot, but they are never in it independantly.  We pretty much are "on," all the time! 

[mylilmonkeys]

Originally Posted by QMtwins 

I was amazed at how much we took out of all our living spaces as the girls got older.  It really helped us de-clutter!  We got rid of shelves and all sorts of stuff that we realized we didn't really need or use that was serious, "danger baby," stuff.  Still know, that our girls now at 2 years and 4 months are crazy and climb as much as they can.  They can un-lock all the locks on the door knobs in and out of the house.  The gates do not stop them from getting where they want to go.  I wish I had the sort of kids parents talked about, "never getting into anything."  We did gate the kitchen as a no-no area.  But, of course, our bathroom is through it, so we're in it a lot, but they are never in it independantly.  We pretty much are "on," all the time! 

Your twins sound like my kids.  I haven't met those sort who 'never get into anything' either.