Do you let your DC play in the kitchen?

TheMalleys

We have a couple of drawers in the kitchen that are really low. They have just a bunch of lids of my pots and pans and some trivets. DD likes to pull open the drawer, take the lids out, put them on the floor and then she puts them back in. Personally I think that its good for her to have a little drawer to play with and she learns to pu everything away and close it when she is done. DH doesn't let her play in the drawers at all. He thinks that it will teach her to start opening any drawer and start taking stuff out. So what do you do? Do you let your DC play in the kitchen or is it all off limits?

leslieanne1003@yahoo.com

i dont only because my floors are so messy!  but she will do it at my parents house and pull at the spices out of their pantry!  she loves it. 

beb4beb

As long as I'm not cooking with the stove I let her pull things out.  There are a couple of drawers that are off limits because of glass pans.  I think it's good for her--my kitchen ends of a mess because she doesn't put them away.  But I'm not worried.

livinitup

Oh sure, she plays in the kitchen.  Its her house, too.

MrsDR1015

She has a fridge farm, but we try to discourage her from playing in the drawers and cabinets. Even the ones that don't have anything dangerous in them, since we're worried that it will give the impression that it's okay to open any cabinet or drawer.

We also don't believe in putting locks or latches on the drawers and cabinets, because all that will do is stop her from being able to open them. They won't stop her from trying and my fear is that we would go to someone's house who doesn't have locks or latches and she would open a cabinet and get into something dangerous. We just tell her "no" when she opens any of our cabinets. She's a pretty good listener, and we usually only have to tell her once.

DarceyLivesinFL

Yes; I don't see anything wrong with it at all.  It's the only way I get any cooking done.

tiff16

She has one drawer she can play in and a fridge farm.  She also helps feed the kitty and unload the dishwasher.

jodynjames2005

I bring them into the kitchen and give them pots and pans and spoons and such to play with while I cook. I don't let them open any cupboards or drawers on their own, but they don't seem to have an interest in it, either. They love to be in there! They "helped" me make chili tonight

zoe_cat

I don't, mostly because that's where the cats' food dishes are and DD likes to eat cat food.  Also, she opens and closes drawers and has a tendency to get her fingers caught in the drawer.

stephensweetie

We have 3 cabinet doors that are not latched because we ran out of latches.  One set of cabinets has phone books and plastic cups and bowls.  The other has my mixer.  He likes to play with the plastic cups, and he likes to spin the bowls on my mixer.  I think it's fine if he's content and not crying or fussing!

abpdjs

yep, he has 3 drawers he is allowed in and the rest are off limits with no locks on them.  if he trys to open a drawer that is off limits i simply tell him no touch and show him the drawers he is allowed to play in.  so far so good!

lishalou

yes or I wouldn't get anything done. she has a magnet toy on the fridge and she has a drawer that's hers.  she also plays w/ my big spoons/spatulas etc... 

nbptbride

I let him play with the low drawers, too. They contain dish towels and other soft items. DH is against it because he, too thinks that it will teach DS bad habits. I let him do it because it's good for him to explore items other than his toys.

GardenGirl72

I do....I let him get into the pots and pans, and he has his own little drawer with things to play with...lids from various jars and containers, and some other odds and ends. He knows it is "his" drawer, and that is really the only one that his is allowed to play in. He stands there, throws all the stuff on the floor, then picks it up and puts it all away. It is very cute.

JenGK

We also have one cabinet that is DS's to play in, which has tupperware and cups.  If he opens a drawer that he is not allowed to play in, I say "No, close" and he closes the drawer.  Then I open his cabinet and he goes and plays in that.  I will also give him pots and a wooden spoon to play with.