Stimulating toys = alone time?

Fish4Fun · May 2009

Yes, duh, babies need alone time too. However, it is my opinion that jumperoos and exersaucers are substitutes for human interaction. They have automated lights and sounds and movement. I am all for pots and pans, cardboard boxes, and other toys that stimulate imagination. I don't think "Baby Einstein"-type toys are preferred or necessary.

shari_rngleson · May 2009

they are only substitutes if you leave them in there all the time. ?can you possibly expect mom to entertain baby all day long?

madhatter2003 · May 2009

Nothing is necessary, but it sure is handy to have somewhere to put your baby who 1) wants to stand but can't and 2) gets bored on his back while you are wiping your potty training toddler's butt.

MamaMyers22 · May 2009

Didn't you pretty much cover this in the post below.

And like I said before they are great especially for second time Mom's that need to get something done or pay attention to their other children. You can't be in all places at once.

Think about that.

EastCoastBride · May 2009

Substitutes? No, not necessarily. The way I use our exersaucer:

1- for him to play and I sit down on the floor next to him and talk and play w/ the toys too.

2- To allow him to stand up. He can't sit yet and he gets frustrated lying on a playmat too long, and I can't hold him upright indefinitely, and in holding him upright, that's all I'm doing - I can't "play" w/ him other than lifting him up in the air. The exersaucer allows him to stand and play - both w/ and w/o me.

3- and yes, I also use it to entertain him while I make dinner, do laundry, etc - because when I'm home alone 4 out of 7 nights, it's the ONLY way I can get some stuff done.

Good toys also come in shapes, sizes, colors and textures that babies enjoy and are drawn too. When I sit DS down on his mat, he is always leaning and grabbing the bright toys we have near by.

ncbelle · May 2009

I'm with you on the "aren't necessary" bit. Are they bad? Not if used in moderation, of course not.

What I wonder is how did develop into a very independent kid without a jumparoo? How did my mother ever pee, wash dishes, clean house or tend to my younger brother with no exersaucer to put me in??

Stick out tongue (I kid!)

Agrippa · May 2009

Er, how long do you think that we have our kids in these things? DS never spent more than 15 minutes in the jumperoo. He got bored with it after that. 15 minutes is a perfect amount of time for loading/unloading the dishwasher, eating lunch, or straightening up the house.

Sunndraggon · May 2009

Why do you naturally assume that just because a childi s in an exersaucer, for example, that they are alone? What makes you assume the a parent is not right there playing with them and encouraging them to to reach for the things,spin things, make music,etc? because this is how it goesdown at our house a lotof the time. Hey, hows about we stop judging?!?!

nbjenni · May 2009

They don't = alone time for me. One baby is in the jumperoo, while the other is getting one on one time with me.

Fish4Fun · May 2009

MamaMyers22:
Didn't you pretty much cover this in the post below.
And like I said before they are great especially for second time Mom's that need to get something done or pay attention to their other children. You can't be in all places at once.
Think about that.

Oops, sorry. I didn't realize the horse was dead. No, I wouldn't expect this to be done all by one person. Like I've said before, the only reason why this sort of parenting is available to me is because I have such a large support group to take turns with.

MamaMyers22 · May 2009

ncbelle:
I'm with you on the "aren't necessary" bit. Are they bad? Not if used in moderation, of course not.
What I wonder is how did develop into a very independent kid without a jumparoo? How did my mother ever pee, wash dishes, clean house or tend to my younger brother with no exersaucer to put me in??
(I kid!)

Probably a playpen or a highchair. Way boring Wink

californiaclaire · May 2009

DS loves his Baby Einstein exersaucer. We play with him while he's in it. He's really impatient to sit, so he loves that he can be upright in it -- I can't hold him sitting upright & sing songs with hand gestures to him at the same time, which he loves. He just learned to push the buttons that make animal noises & spin the different colored wheels. My mom bought it for him - she's a professor of developmental psychology who presents her research at conferences all over the world & thinks it's a great developmental too for him.

toys & interaction aren't mutually exclusive

EastCoastBride · May 2009

Fish4Fun:
Like I've said before, the only reason why this sort of parenting is available to me is because I have such a large support group to take turns with.

And that's wonderful for you. But then why did you post this? You're judging people who use (and often NEED to use) toys like exersaucers. You say you don't need them because you have a support group - great. But why try to make it sound like your a BETTER parent than people who do use these toys? Because that's exactly how this is coming across - and how it came across the first time you brought this up but I gave you a benefit of a doubt that time.

Fish4Fun · May 2009

EastCoastBride:
Fish4Fun:
Like I've said before, the only reason why this sort of parenting is available to me is because I have such a large support group to take turns with.
And that's wonderful for you. But then why did you post this? You're judging people who use (and often NEED to use) toys like exersaucers. You say you don't need them because you have a support group - great. But why try to make it sound like your a BETTER parent than people who do use these toys? Because that's exactly how this is coming across - and how it came across the first time you brought this up but I gave you a benefit of a doubt that time.

Honestly I was just stirring the pot because it was a slow day. It is an interesting topic to me, but not something that requires a lot of debate. I'm sorry if it came across as me judging you. When I find something actually worth being judgmental about, I'll come across a lot stronger. I promise. Again, sorry if this was too exciting of a topic.

EastCoastBride · May 2009

Fish4Fun:

EastCoastBride:
Fish4Fun:
Like I've said before, the only reason why this sort of parenting is available to me is because I have such a large support group to take turns with.
And that's wonderful for you. But then why did you post this? You're judging people who use (and often NEED to use) toys like exersaucers. You say you don't need them because you have a support group - great. But why try to make it sound like your a BETTER parent than people who do use these toys? Because that's exactly how this is coming across - and how it came across the first time you brought this up but I gave you a benefit of a doubt that time.

Honestly I was just stirring the pot because it was a slow day. It is an interesting topic to me, but not something that requires a lot of debate. I'm sorry if it came across as me judging you. When I find something actually worth being judgmental about, I'll come across a lot stronger. I promise. Again, sorry if this was too exciting of a topic.

Eh- o.k. That I can roll w/... :-)

tmp-214118062502913 · May 2009

I ask you to revisit this when your child is a couple months older.

Wait until your child is four months old and wants to stand, gets annoyed when always in an adult's arms, is trying to force her independence and doesn't sleep all day.

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