We are hitting up the zoo tomorrow and Sophia does well strolling in the stroller while outside so I'm not worried about her acting up. But, I'm curious if I let her walk on her own at some point, will I regret it?
Have you guys let your LO walk at the zoo? If so, how did they do?
I was thinking about letting her walk the last half hour before we leave.
At your LO's age, I would have had him in the stroller as much as possible because he was a runner. Now I take him and let him walk. He gets tired but he'd rather walk than be in the stroller and he stays close to me.
When DS1 was about 18 months we went to the zoo. He lasted in the stroller for about 5 minutes and then wanted to walk. It was fine and he had fun but I was a nervous wreck.
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At your LO's age, I would have had him in the stroller as much as possible because he was a runner. Now I take him and let him walk. He gets tired but he'd rather walk than be in the stroller and he stays close to me.
How old is he? I forget what age Ds was when he was able to walk and stayed close or held my hand.
At your LO's age, I would have had him in the stroller as much as possible because he was a runner. Now I take him and let him walk. He gets tired but he'd rather walk than be in the stroller and he stays close to me.
How old is he? I forget what age Ds was when he was able to walk and stayed close or held my hand.
He's 2.5 now. By 2 he was holding my hand and walking with me, though. Before that, forget it. I hated taking him out in public.
At your LO's age, I would have had him in the stroller as much as possible because he was a runner. Now I take him and let him walk. He gets tired but he'd rather walk than be in the stroller and he stays close to me.
How old is he? I forget what age Ds was when he was able to walk and stayed close or held my hand.
He's 2.5 now. By 2 he was holding my hand and walking with me, though. Before that, forget it. I hated taking him out in public.
Okay, so it looks like I may still have some time. :::waits impatiently:::
My DD is high maintenance and doesn't like to mind even at 4.5. I would put her in a stroller now if I could lol. However if your LO minds well and doesn't take off I don't see anything with letting her walk a little.
We let the kids get in/out of the stroller as they wish, unless it gets to be every 5 minutes. We went to the zoo for DD2's 1st birthday, and at that point she already preferred to walk and hold my hand over the stroller. We went again last week and now at 21 months she was wanting to walk even more. She is a pro hand holder, not a runner at all. DD1 was a runner and we strictly enforced "if you can't hold my hand, you will go in the stroller" with her.
Mama to two sweet girls DD1 Feb 2010 DD2 Sept 2011
I let DS walk at the zoo, but he's never really been a runner. I think she will be fine for a while, but I wouldn't offer it too early or she might not want to get back in the stroller.
DD is almost 17 months. When we went to the zoo recently we'd let her get out of the stroller and walk some when we were in a relatively enclosed area that wasn't too crowded, like on this big ramp that had solid half walls instead of just railings. Cute as it is, I can't take walking half bent over holding her hand through big crowds for very long! She did ride on DH's shoulders for a bit so that was a fun break from the stroller for a bit.
My daughter went to the zoo last summer---about 14 months. She didn't like the stroller and just wanted to walk.
My daughter luckily isn't a runner--she doesn't like being out of eye sight from me. But she isn't a fan of the stroller--she wants to run with me holding her hands, or walk with us. Her favorite expression is "walk hands"---walk and hold hands.
Definitely bring the stroller and see how long she will willingly stay in it.
I think I'm going to let her run free the last half of the zoo trip. She hasn't ever really been able to run amok so I'm kinda excited to be able to do that for her.
I would let her walk as much as possible. We take DS to the zoo frequently and he almost always walks the whole time. When he was your daughter's age, he loved to push/pull the wagon himself. He also liked to wander and explore...but not necessarily the animals. Just go with the realization that the zoo trip might not be exactly what you pictured. We spent a lot of time jumping in puddles, looking at statues, climbing on rocks, following the free roaming peacocks, etc.
Also, I am not sure what your zoo is like, but my zoo has fences that are right at eye level for the stroller. Anytime we wanted to actually look at animals, I would have to take him out of the stroller, lift him up, and put him back in the stroller. Since he was not much of a stroller kid, every time back into the stroller was a huge struggle. It was more of a PITA than it was worth and we were all much happier with him walking.
At 2, I don't even bring the stroller. He walks the whole time. It 21 months, I probably would have brought the stroller, but encouraged him to walk for most of the way. But he stopped napping at 15 months, so I do whatever I can to encourage tireness.
So long as the zoo isn't super crowded I've always let my DD walk as much as she wanted since she's been able to walk. We went two weekends ago and she walked for at least 2 of the four hours we were there.
i figure the more energy she burns the better. When she was younger she was always on the move, so I had to constantly watch her. Now she makes sure she doesn't get to far from us. We still mostly let her decide where we walk, with us guiding her when need be.
Re: XP: Zoo question
He's 2.5 now. By 2 he was holding my hand and walking with me, though. Before that, forget it. I hated taking him out in public.
We let the kids get in/out of the stroller as they wish, unless it gets to be every 5 minutes. We went to the zoo for DD2's 1st birthday, and at that point she already preferred to walk and hold my hand over the stroller. We went again last week and now at 21 months she was wanting to walk even more. She is a pro hand holder, not a runner at all. DD1 was a runner and we strictly enforced "if you can't hold my hand, you will go in the stroller" with her.
DD1 Feb 2010
DD2 Sept 2011
Try it and see how she does. If she strays too much then put her back in the stroller.
I like to let DS walk at the zoo so it tires him out.
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My daughter went to the zoo last summer---about 14 months. She didn't like the stroller and just wanted to walk.
My daughter luckily isn't a runner--she doesn't like being out of eye sight from me. But she isn't a fan of the stroller--she wants to run with me holding her hands, or walk with us. Her favorite expression is "walk hands"---walk and hold hands.
Definitely bring the stroller and see how long she will willingly stay in it.
Wish us luck!
I would let her walk as much as possible. We take DS to the zoo frequently and he almost always walks the whole time. When he was your daughter's age, he loved to push/pull the wagon himself. He also liked to wander and explore...but not necessarily the animals. Just go with the realization that the zoo trip might not be exactly what you pictured. We spent a lot of time jumping in puddles, looking at statues, climbing on rocks, following the free roaming peacocks, etc.
Also, I am not sure what your zoo is like, but my zoo has fences that are right at eye level for the stroller. Anytime we wanted to actually look at animals, I would have to take him out of the stroller, lift him up, and put him back in the stroller. Since he was not much of a stroller kid, every time back into the stroller was a huge struggle. It was more of a PITA than it was worth and we were all much happier with him walking.
So long as the zoo isn't super crowded I've always let my DD walk as much as she wanted since she's been able to walk. We went two weekends ago and she walked for at least 2 of the four hours we were there.
i figure the more energy she burns the better. When she was younger she was always on the move, so I had to constantly watch her. Now she makes sure she doesn't get to far from us. We still mostly let her decide where we walk, with us guiding her when need be.