How do I discipline toddler while BF newborn?
Hi all!
Just looking for any and all tips on disciplining my 17 month old while I am in the middle of breastfeeding my newborn.
My toddler is usually a very easy baby but she must be going through a phase with the new baby being home because many times when I am in the middle of breastfeeding she will do something that requires some sort of discipline (ie: pinching her big brother, getting into the garbage, standing on a coffee table). I can't physically go to her to redirect her because I am in the midst of breastfeeding the baby (and since I'm still struggling with that in general, I can't physically do both).
Do you just pop the newborn off the breast and go deal with the toddler? My verbal requests to stop or a firm "No" are getting me nowhere. I never dealt with this with my older son and my toddler because he was over 3 when she was born and I could just tell him to go to time out. I can't do that with the toddler yet.
What do I do? Thanks so much in advance.
Re: How do I discipline toddler while BF newborn?
I am dealing with this same problem. My son is a week old, and my DD is 17 months!
She is a very active toddler, loves to play and sort through every single one of her toys. I hate discipling her, really, and I find myself losing my cool and yelling louder than I'd like to be yelling at someone so small that really doesn't understand me, then end up feeling bad.
So far, I've found inviting her to snuggle next to me on the couch or giving her my cell phone helpful - but only for really short periods of time, going to need better solutions soon.
I have tried to get DD1 interested in something before BFing DD2 but that doesn't work very well for us. DD1 is much more interested in me and the baby than in anything else. If I can get her in the high chair with a snack (often, I admit, with the TV on), that helps. Otherwise, yeah, I'd pop the baby off the boob if she was doing something really bad. But my definition of "really bad" has definitely changed since having 2u2. Going into the garbage is gross and messy, but not nearly as "really bad" as playing with the wires behind the TV.
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DS was 13.5 months when DD was born. I baby proofed our living/dining room/kitchen as much as I could. I baby gated anywhere else. I had the remote next to me if I needed to break out a cartoon to entertain him. We had a spare crib mattress in front of the sofa..since his major game at that point was climbing up on the couch and diving off
I kept books near me and toys or other items (paper towel roll, etc) that I could bring out as a "new" fun thing to do.
I only stopped breastfeeding if he was in danger of hurting himself. I don't want to be a barking mom...not that he would have listened to a "No!" anyway. It's a tough transition for all...so I didn't want to make each nursing session an issue for him.
If the coffee table is a huge issue...I'd put it in the basement for a few weeks...remove any items that can be a danger. As far as pinching...not sure what to do about that...excpet maybe ask your oldest child to remove him/herself from the situation and give them a reward for helping you.
GL!!