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Babies: 9 - 12 Months
AMYfromKY
member
I fear he's watching too much TV
AMYfromKY
member
Now that I'm EPing I find it hard to entertain H without the use of his Baby Einstein video. I pump 5 times a day and he only takes 2 naps so majority of my pumps are when he is awake. If I sit him on the floor with toys he ends up in the other room. If I put him in his exersaucer without his video on he cries. He also doesn't like taking him bottle without something entertaining him so if he flat out refuses we will turn on the TV for the 5 minutes he eats.
He's probably watching TV for about an hour a day. I feel so bad, but I don't know what to do. I have to pump and if I have to hear him screaming I don't pump very much at all because it makes me sad.
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Re: I fear he's watching too much TV
I see nothing wrong with an hour of TV a day. My only concern would be that he seems to need it. Hopefully he can learn to play alone for a little bit. Can you put up a gate so that he doesn't end up in the other room?
I can see why that would be hard. If I were pumping, I am sure DS would be on me trying to yank the tubes out.
The funny thing is that he will play by himself for a long time while I'm not pumping. It's like when I turn the pump on he knows it's time to throw a fit. haha
When you all let your LOs "watch" TV, do they really watch it? I've thought about putting on the TV to buy myself 5-10 minutes before but DS is not at all interested. We usually have it on during the evenings but he never even looks at the screen.
In some ways I wish he would show a little more interest so that for car trips and plane rides, he would be entertained somewhat by the portable DVD player, but so far, no interest.
Just curious as to what you mean by "watching TV."
I put him in his jumper so he'll watch it for a couple of minutes, then turn around and chew on his sun, jump a little, watch a little more, repeat until I turn it off.
It's not ideal but I don't think it's going to do any lasting harm. We nebulize my son twice a day (about 10 minutes each time) and I always put the TV on. I feel a little guilty but it keeps him from ripping his mask off or screaming, so we do what we have to do. He squeals when he sees Dora and he LOVES the Wonder Pets songs. Go figure.
If I were you, I might try to eliminate the TV during the bottle time but if you have to use it, you have to use it. It sounds like he gets plenty of other stimulation, so I'm sure he'll be fine.
If I remember correctly, we have pretty similar views on babies watching TV so I've been trying to think of some ideas for you.
Do you have a pack 'n play or can you buy one of those yard gates that go in a circle to keep them safe? Then, when it's pumping time, can you give him a new toy, or one of his favorites that you save for only that time? Hopefully then he will associate your pumping time with fun toys for him. I feel your pain as Madison hated the sound of the pump too, so it was a struggle for a bit when I had to do it more than nursing.
Honestly, and only because you asked, an hour of tv a day at 8 months sounds like a lot to me. Can you go in a room with a closed door, like his bedroom and let him crawl around while you pump and can interact with him?
When I'm getting ready in the morning, I put DD in her pack and play with some toys she doesn't get at any other time and I turn on an internet radio station while I shower. Sometimes she'll cry when I first put her in, but she calms down and gets playing pretty quickly. Oh, she also really likes if I give her a magazine while she's in the pack and play. She'll turn the pages and tear them. Easily occupies her for 10-15 minutes.