Can a 2 year old really play all by themselves - Page 2

[tracyamber]

gotta get the sparkle stories too

[skycheattraffic]

Oh gosh I haven't had much privacy in the bathroom in 2 years lol

I happened on something and want to share in case it may help. We very recently decluttered the family room (rest of the house is in progress) and pared down the toys immediately accessible to DD. to my amazement, she now pulls out a bin, plays with the puzzles/blocks/whatever for 10-20 minutes, puts most of them BACK, then pulls out a different bin and starts over. She might need me here or there for a few seconds but generally will entertain herself without issues for a while. Before our declutter, she would bounce between toys, pull lots of stuff out and run away. I don't know how much stuff is accessible to your DC but it may be worth considering if you think he may feel overwhelmed with all the toys. Hth

[2pedals2wheels]

Have to laugh when you say you peed with company.  This is a regular occurrence at our house!  Yes, my 2 yr old DS has what we call "mommy-itis"; he has to be near me all day long.  There are short periods (sometimes up to 10 mins!) where he'll disappear into his room and sit and look at picture books, but pretty much the rest of the time, he's within reach of me.  When I do dishes (we don't have a dishwasher...sigh...) I always put on Pandora toddler radio or other internet free song sites.  I also get children's CDs from the library.  I dance while doing dishes so as to encourage him to dance, too----it works EVERY time!  My son is quite a dancer now :)   I also allow him to empty out some things from a specified low cabinet.  Measuring spoons, cups and recyclables really stimulate his "organizing' nature.  Standing things up or putting things in a row/line is his time-consuming activity at present.  Giving him things that fit into one another (cups, empty cottage cheese containers, empty yogurt cups) keep him busy, too.  When supplied with a bucket, he will spend time on his own collecting things from around the house (mostly toys, shoes and recyclables). These things in the bucket can later be a teaching lesson with the two of you, such as "Which shoe is red?", "Which cereal box is the biggest?", "How many yogurt cups are there?". We then make a little game about putting things away that have been collected in the bucket.  

If I'm on the computer, I can forget trying to make him play with ANYthing.  He just wants to watch the computer and whine for my attention.  This is why I don't spend much time at the computer. ;)  

Our cat is another source of entertainment.  DS will play for a good 8-10 minutes chasing the cat.  He's not afraid of getting scratched and the cat is good about not scratching him unless my son actually does something mean to him.  They have a fun relationship where they love to torture each other without too much blood :)  I'm guessing a dog could be used for the same purpose.  It's seriously fun to watch!  I realize that most cats are not amiable to a toddler playing with them...lol.   

We don't have television, but we occasionally watch short things on Youtube, such as Donald Duck or Thomas Train.  There are many educational short videos, too.  

Something that I didn't expect to fascinate him for multiple minutes is a magazine of ANY kind.  He will just sit and turn the pages by himself and attempt to say what it is that he sees.  It's fun for me to try to guess what he's saying, too!  

We have magnets on the fridge that he loves to play with, and that way he can be near me while I am cooking.  Unfortunately that makes him sit right in the way of the refrigerator door...I just say excuse me every time I need in the fridge; he doesn't seem to mind being moved.

I could seriously keep going on and on because I'm trying to pass on what works for me :) .  I hope other moms do too, because it's great to hear about the little things that others do on a day-to-day basis to keep the little ones (and mom) happy.

[Ola_]

First, I don't think his personality has anything to do with babywearing or anything you did, it's just very individual I think. My DD just turned 2 and she has periods throughout the day when she plays by herself. We do have "play areas" in different parts of the house as someone else mentioned and I bet that helps because she gets bored in just one area with the same toys. We have a couple of low shelves in the kitchen with her "stuff" (mostly books and a few toys), a whole big bin in the living room, toys on a small shelf in her bedroom, and a play kitchen in the spare bedroom (it just kind of landed there...). She likes to move between the different areas to play after a while, and if everything else fails she enjoys pulling my colourful socks from the drawer and arranging them on our bed. 

Another favourite activity is moving a set of several toys around the house and arranging them (don't ask me how she came up with that) or pulling clothes from her drawers. We have one of those wooden IKEA wagons that she often uses to pack up, wheel around, and unpack. She also likes to pick out a book and flip through it, then put it back and get another, and do that for a few minutes. I mostly keep board books there that are safe for her to have on her own as she's not always great with paper ones. Her "play by herself" spurts are not necessarily when I want them to be so I try to take advantage when they do happen. It's never when I want to cook dinner for example so she sometimes spends time with DH's iPad in an Otter case (pretty much baby proof). She has some videos she can watch there and is actually getting pretty good at starting different apps and navigating around so I try and tell myself that it's somewhat educational at least.

[Alenushka]

Yes, mine loved LEGOs and would amuse himself for 30 mins

[luckiest]

Originally Posted by skycheattraffic 


I happened on something and want to share in case it may help. We very recently decluttered the family room (rest of the house is in progress) and pared down the toys immediately accessible to DD. to my amazement, she now pulls out a bin, plays with the puzzles/blocks/whatever for 10-20 minutes, puts most of them BACK, then pulls out a different bin and starts over. She might need me here or there for a few seconds but generally will entertain herself without issues for a while. Before our declutter, she would bounce between toys, pull lots of stuff out and run away. I don't know how much stuff is accessible to your DC but it may be worth considering if you think he may feel overwhelmed with all the toys. Hth

This too!! Having an extremely limited and very organized toy collection makes a huge difference in whether he'll actually play with them. Too much and he won't play. I do mean VERY limited - right now he has a bead maze, a set of wooden blocks, a basket of river rocks, four books, and a basket of balls. Oh, and a set of animal figurines. That's it! But he plays with them all daily and puts them back where they belong.

[tracyamber]

my house is sooooooooo organized it's crazy so that said my son is not overwhelmed by toys or anything..and we do route his toys on a regular basis. his birthday in in 9 hours so we might be cluttered for a second. lol he's getting a chunky abc puzzle and a wooden peg number box by tag...which seems pretty cool. thanks for the support. i feel better today. my son gave me about 5 minutes about 4 times today already and as i write this post......shhhh,he's playing with his bricks. nice! and i am drinking a cup of peppermint tea....... okay "mama" being said

[leighton2]

I think all children are different. My son plays pretty well independently. He is 2.5. I also rotate toys which I think helps a lot to keep things new and interesting. My daughter is 15 months and likes to have me with her constantly. Sometimes I will get 5 minutes here or there, but not much. I need to look into this Learning Tower!

[ckny]

Ha ha!  I was just complaining to my cousin and husband that I NEVER get to pee alone anymore!

Like luckiest, my son also plays for 10-15 minutes by himself occasionally throughout the day (of course dinner prep time has been the most needed time but doesn't always happen), and I cannot expect that he'll do it on command.  Sometimes I try to discuss it with him before the time that I need my space (i.e., cooking dinner), and sometimes that works.  But if he's super-needy, like when he's sick or teething, or when we've been practically locked up indoors because of the darn winter weather, then it's HELL for us both!

I also have a problem that he really wants to read at least 6 books a day, sometimes all in one sitting, sometimes dispersed throughout the day, which is so nice in so many ways, but exhausting to my throat!  I absolutely love the cuddle time and don't want it to end, but then can't understand why he still whines for my attention afterwards.

Play-doh and Legos are sometimes helpful (though not when he dumps the Legos in front of the oven to try to get my attention).  His kitchen/food-related toys are also helpful because he can engage in pretend play, which doesn't frustrate him as much.  Will need to look of Learning Tower.  Hope it helps you!

[GeriVN]

I tried a lot of thing and they all did  very well but recently i found a new entertainment for my toddler. I know that TV isn't the best idea but this tutitu channel on youtube is really doing it's job. Marty is enjoying it while i do my cleaning washing etc. Hope it's useful for you.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=91zkw-UvqiI

[Pepper44]

I also agree it depends on personality, and sibling status.  If you have an older sibling then it's easier for sure.  First/only child is much harder, especially if they are "needy" and not independent!  

My 2 year old DD (almost 3) just spent an hour playing on the floor with jars, and a muffin tin, large yogurt containers with holes cut in the lids, dry pinto beans, little puff balls from the dollar store,  and a mix of beads.  She has to keep everything on the towel she's sitting on.  But she does prefer for me to be in her sight because she likes to talk to me constantly, and she does follow me to the bathroom most of the time.  

She also enjoys pouring water in various containers, using medicine droppers and little plastic toys with the water, and stirring it using pots and spoons.  Again, sitting on a big towel in the kitchen floor with a few rags if she spills it off the towel. We have a sand and water table out on the back porch for nice weather where she will go out and play with the window open so we can hear each other.  (If spring ever arrives here!)  It was a big hit last summer.  She also enjoys coloring and water color painting.  For the water with the paints I put a small plastic cup half full of water sitting in an empty heavy ceramic shallow bowel to reduce major spills.  

My next baby is a boy and people keep telling me I'm in for a shock after my two focused little girls. 

[vegrunr]

My son started playing for short sports independently around 2 years old but we were still nearby. He seems to do better if we are still in his sight and he also likes to narrate to us about what he's doing. Activities that keep his attention are his barn with animals, construction trucks and blocks to build/ knock down, rice or beans in a bin with cups, spoons, small treasures to hide/ find, stamps, cutting strips of paper, play doh, and we love our learning tower. We cook a lot so it is totally worth it for us. Sometimes he helps me - smells spices, stirs ingredients, etc but other times we just give home some flour or cornmeal and utensils to play with and he cooks on his own. I am just now able to go to the bathroom sometimes by myself and he is 2 1/2 but not always.

[tracyamber]

learning tower came in the mail today..YES!

i will let you all know how this one piece of furniture will solve all our problems ..lol

[sassyfirechick]

LOL, what is this peeing alone people speak of?  Even pre-child I have 2 cats and 2 dogs who barge in - even if I close the door!  So to make pee time productive we just use it as an opportunity to learn about the potty and she can either sit there in her clothes or if she'd like I strip her down and DD gets to try using her potty as well.  I'm budgeting for a leaning tower as well although in the mean time we push a chair to the counter and she does fine with that for now :-)