Different age, same witching hour
When I had newborns, I dreaded the witching hour. Nearly every child had one, it seems. And they were almost always somewhere around 5-7pm. And while the 6:15 bedtime helped cut it short, there was still often a somewhat unpleasant time in the late afternoon and early evening.
And while nothing compares to the experience of two mysteriously screaming newborns, the witching hour has never really disappeared. Obviously, it’s a time of day when parental patience is running low. and restless kids are getting antsy. But at least, over the summer, we could just hit up a playground with some friends and the next thing we knew, it was time to go home for dinner and bed.
Screw you, November. And your little time change, too.
While I’m glad that my kids are fairly consistently napping until 3-3:30pm, that means that we often can’t get ourselves out the door until nearly 4. What time was sunset today? 4:19pm.
Aside from the occasional playgroups (which are lifesavers), afternoons kind of blow these days. Not enough daylight (or warmth) to hit the park. Barely enough time some days to even run an errand and get back at a reasonable hour to make dinner. An excursion to Starbucks for snacktime gets expensive and loses its novelty if we go too often. So we end up futzing around inside. The kids get on each other’s nerves and fight, they get on my nerves and I yell. We end up relying on a bit more TV than I’d like. It’s the toddler version of the witching hour.
What we need are good in-the-house activities to carry us through the dark winter months. Baking is my go-to activity, but I can only make so many batches of muffins and cookies in a week (and my weight-loss efforts do not approve). So, moms of the world, do you have any good suggestions for two-year-old activities that are relatively easy to do at home? I have a drop cloth and am asking for smocks for the holidays, so I don’t mind a little mess. Arts & crafts? Sensory stuff? It doesn’t have to take up the entire 2-3 hours between naptime and dinner, but a solid 15-30 minutes of interest would sure break up the day.
The biggest hit at the moment is one of my personal favorites from childhood – making a fort out of the couch cushions and a quilt. Daniel requests it all day, every day. It’s entertaining, and the couch is already pretty well trashed, so I’m not worried about doing further damage. But, I fear, this will get old, too. Help me shake it up, people!
November 19th, 2009 at 1:56 am
First thing that springs to mind is to let them “help” make dinner every night. I have tasks the boys help me with, like washing grapes and taking them off stems (or washing fruit), setting the table, etc.
I also enlist the boys in a lot of chores around the house – vacuuming, washing windows, wiping down counters, laundry, etc.
(I’m throwing out the non-crafty ideas since I am not crafty!)
Also have you considered some kind of computer? Or Hooked on Phonics? We try to get the boys some computer time since everyone in their generation will be using computers.
Not sure how comfortable you would feel with taking the kids out in the dark at all? I still take the boys for walks in the dark with flashlights if they’re particularly crazy.
LauraC´s last blog ..Is it my hearing or the boys’ speech?
November 19th, 2009 at 2:14 am
What about a sensory table or bucket filled with rice? If you have the room, you could put it on a huge sheet to hopefully help contain the mess.
I don’t know how developed their fine motor skills are, but I was thinking of things like macaroni necklaces and “sewing” cards.
I poked around a little online and found this site for making crafts that use cheap/stuff you already have.
http://www.enchantedlearning.com/crafts/toddler/
Build an obstacle course through your house? That would kill time making it, doing it, and then cleaning it up.
Along the same lines, have a parade around the house, with everyone playing an instrument.
Hide and seek.
Would they be interested in dyeing celery? You know, where you stick it in food coloring and it creeps up the stalk?
Hm, you’ve really got me thinking here!
Crista´s last blog ..Funny
November 19th, 2009 at 9:21 am
So, I suppose a trip over to my house—to break up our witching hour—isn’t what you’re looking for. But seriously, any time!
A big role of paper to unroll on the floor and paint/draw/sticker on? Stickers! Markers! Play-doh. A big puzzle that needs Mommy’s help–we have an ABC train one that goes on the floor. Help cooking dinner. Yesterday, we went upstairs to play for a while—they ran from room to room while I sorted winter clothing. A change of scenery like that is good.
Basically, winter sucks. And it doesn’t get better until March or April. Blah, blah, blah.
November 19th, 2009 at 12:17 pm
I was gonna offer up my house too
(As long as you bring no SWINE 
) Wednesdays and Fridays are days that my nanny leaves early, so we’re always looking for things to do too. Logan would love to have others his own age around!
Another thing that came to mind when I saw Daniel’s forts…do you have those big letter/number puzzle mats? we make castles and boats and tractors out of those – it’s just different enough from the couch cushions so they don’t equate the two, but still as much fun
I posted some pictures about a year ago here.
Nancy´s last blog ..Something’s Gotta Give
November 19th, 2009 at 1:54 pm
Play-Doh is a must. And butcher paper makes coloring much more fun. They can draw a picture together, side by side on the same paper, or you can trace their bodies on it and have them color themselves. Dance party is fun too; turn off the lights and let one have a flashlight to shine on the other while he/she dances, then switch. And we’re just starting to try out the computer; pbskids.org has some great learning games with all the characters they love. Good luck!
Tara´s last blog ..Happy Halloween!
November 19th, 2009 at 2:13 pm
I just picked up the book First Art Art Experiences for Toddlers and Twos by MaryAnn F. Kohl. So far the actives have been a hit for my Aug 07 little one. I’ve been putting material out during nap. After a snack she is ready to go. It is really open-ended so it is not like I have to sit and help with a final project. Might want to check it out!
November 19th, 2009 at 2:21 pm
I am not sure why is that not more popular in the US. This is the only place that I found that would ship this to the US, and I am planning on getting something similar for my almost two year old twins.
http://www.homegymforkids.com/ I think it is a little pricy, so may be my hubby can make something like this (not sure about this though) http://kidsdreamgym.com/indoor_jungle_gym.html
Why is this not more popular in the areas where the outside parks are only for 3-4 month of the year is beyond me. ( we live in Minnesota)
November 20th, 2009 at 11:18 pm
Yes, we sell those gyms and they become pretty popular in Canada and US. During those long winters our gyms help kids to keep in shape. See some funny videos from our site http://homegymforkids.com/video . Our kids shows exercises on different tools. Is anybody here already have some indoor equipment for kids? Tell us more about them…
Mila´s last blog ..Model DSK-2.05.04 ($249 CAD)
November 21st, 2009 at 12:45 am
Dancing. We dance to the radio. Fast songs, slow songs, commercials. We dance like fools. While it doesn’t necessarily work every time, it is a great group activity.
November 23rd, 2009 at 12:12 am
Oh, and another suggestion–make a costume box if you don’t already have one. Get a big plastic tub and gradually fill it with old Halloween costumes, costume jewelery, some old adult clothes, hats, and any random costumes you can find at second-hand stores. Ours is growing quickly before our very eyes, and Emilia absolutely loves pulling it out with her friends (or alone) and playing make-believe.
Tara´s last blog ..Happy Halloween!
November 25th, 2009 at 10:16 am
I have a roll of butcher paper that I tear parts off and cut out shapes. My 2 year old then colors on it and puts stickers on there, we love stickers. Sometimes I draw roads and he can drive his cars on it.
Emily´s last blog ..We’ve been busy
November 27th, 2009 at 9:22 am
I take a big container (like a laundry basket) and fill with shredded paper where you can hide things (like plastic animals). Lentils make an excellent in house substitute for sand.
cat@juggling act´s last blog ..Friday – 27 November
December 4th, 2009 at 2:53 pm
Hi again! I don’t know how that whole trackback thing works, but I referred this link to “Married to the Military” on this post:http://married2military.blogspot.com/2009/12/still-alive.html
Crista´s last blog ..Funny