****Toddler Mama Check In*****

MrsARC1105

Hi Toddler Mamas.

How to handle taking your multiples to the park or other fun places? Do you attempt it by yourself? 

pea-kay

i have, it just has to be the "right" park. fenced in, of course. i've taken them to the children's museum by myself too. there's a separate, contained toddler area that they can run around in.

ImRonBurgundy?

We try to go someplace every day, so I've attempted most places on my own.  I take them to lots of parks around town (with exception to two of them that are either close to a busy street or are just built in such a way that they make it hard to track 2 kids going in opposite directions)  I also take them to the Zoo by myself, but I time it on a non-busy day and in the early morning when it opens and before the crowds arrive.  We have a few indoor play places around here that are fenced in and so if I lose sight of one for a few minutes, I don't have to panic.

The only places I truly avoid taking them by myself are shopping malls during busy hours, as well as special events/festivals that are packed with people.  I do a fair share of running around tracking them both at parks, but it's getting easier now that they are older and listen to me more.

 We've also adopted a rule that if they continue to run away from me after I ask them to come back (I give them 3 seconds, called out loud), they have a 2-minute stroller time-out.  Instituting that punishment has really, really helped.  

 I will say that even though I take them almost everywhere, I rarely get to socialize with friends who I meet there because I'm running after my very wild girls most of the time.  I really love my MOMs group because we all have to do the same thing, and so no one feels rude about cutting off a conversation mid-sentence because you have to rescue your wandering kid from walking into the street.  And since we're all pros at watching 2 or more kids at once, we watch out for each others kids too.  I really love hanging around them - singleton Moms just don't get how hard it is.

 I have had one major panic, call-the-cops moment, when I lost Anna in our Zoo's playground.  I couldn't find her for 5 minutes, and so I was running around carrying Margaret and screaming Anna's name hysterically (and looking like a crazy person).  Luckily I found her but was pretty close to reporting her missing.  So scary.

We MoMs have a tough job!   

Katie 

Brusher

Mine are 2.5 now and I take them to a fenced in playground in our development. I have also recently taken them to a playground that was far away from the road but not fenced in and we were the only ones there. They stayed climbing on the jungle gym and didn't run off. If they had, we would have left immediately. They are getting it now, that they have to stay with me. I recently learned of another fenced in park not too far away but I am going to check that one out.

 

I have never attempted a children's museum by myself but would love to!

tripletmom

I take mine to the gym all the time, and they can play in the day care. We go to the store a least once a week. I try to get them out the the house as much as possible. I find now that they are getting older, it is a times getting harder to leave the house, by myself, they do not want to sit in the stroller, and they are so independent with wanting to try to put on their own shoes and coat, it takes forever to get anyware.

TripMomma

I have taken them places by myself a few times, and every time I swear never again LOL I really try not too, it's just no fun!

Dsugaree

My girls are almost 3.5 now and I take them everywhere on my own. They do still sit in the stroller without any trouble. On the rare occassion we go without the stroller I make them hold my hand and if they don't want to we stop and wait until my hands are held again. They listen pretty well these days, we have our moments but mostly when they are tired or hungry. If I avoid those 2 then we are good to go!

Sally J

My two are virtual twins, but singleton mamas don't get it so I feel like I relate to twin mamas better.

I take them to three local parks that are fenced in on 3 sides and away from any busy streets.  I also take them to the zoo and let them roam over by the petting zoo because they can't escape anywhere.  It's a tiny zoo that's never too busy, so perfect for me.

To keep them near me I let them wander a bit and always ask where they're going.  I ask them to come back and play.  If I don't the easiest trick is to get them to chase me (they love tag these days) or to ask where the other one is.  Almost always they will turn around and go find each other.  I can also ask where the dog is (which I usually have with me) and since they LOVE her, they automatically look for her and go pet her.

I'm afraid to do any children's museums alone without keeping them in the stroller, which isn't much fun for them.