Not-quite-bedrest with a 3.5 year old in the house?

[sarahsthreads]

Any tips?

My blood pressure at my appointment this morning was 116/94, and that bottom number has been trending up every week, so while my midwife didn't officially put me on bedrest yet she does want me to lay as low as possible until next week's appointment. (And nobody expects it to be any lower next week, we're just hoping it's not higher...)

Short of TV, what on earth do I do with DD1?!? I mean, books, coloring, etc. can only occupy so much of her day, and while she's usually great at playing independently, the less I get down on the floor to play with her the more of my attention she wants, kwim? I have friends who could take her for a few hours here or there for a playdate, but I can't impose on them for all the hours DH is at work - not to mention that it would be hard on DD1 to do that every day.

This sucks.

Sarah :(

[brittone2]

Books on CD. We love the Greathall stuff. If I need to get DD to sleep and DH isn't around and DS is bored, I'll pop in a Greathall CD for him.

There's also Story Nory:
http://storynory.com/

Kumon books (stuff like cutting)? Crafty stuff? Lacing cards/beads? Pasta jewelry? (make me a necklace...make grandma a necklace, etc.). DS really got into playdoh at that age. Play doh and some fun stuff to go with it if you don't have it (rolling pin, cookie cutters, extruder/pumper thingie?).

Can you buy or make an Ispy bag or jar for her? IF you make one, take a pic of each item before you put it in, and maybe make a little book of things she can look for in the jar? Pick up a few new toys and dole out a new one each day? Doctor kit so she can examine you while you are in bed or on the couch?

WHen I was really sick during my pgcy with DD and DS was about 2.5 he got obsessed w/ hunting for Easter eggs. I'd plop myself on the couch, take some Easter eggs, and roll them to different places in the room while he was hiding in the kitchen. I'd keep a count of how many I hid and would see if he could find them. You could literally do it from bed (trust me, I did!). He was young enough he didn't expect anything in them, so YMMV with whether you need to put anything in them. DS liked finding them. You could do this with tubes of little animals from Target or something like that instead of Easter eggs.

eta: Is there a place where she can play in the tub but you could rest? Maybe make a little nest where you can see the tub and supervise? I'd let her play in the tub with some of those bath crayons, bath toys, bubbles, etc. Obviously you'd need to be able to watch her, but you could probably do some reading or something while keeping an eye on her.

[Ceepa]

Make a nest on the living room floor for you and DD - blankets, pillows, blankets, and a basket of books, puzzles, pads of paper, some imaginative toys (like a tea set or dollies along with some gear for them).

Does DD enjoy any board games? Could you introduce some new ones to play with her this week?

Take a short break outside at some point during the day, maybe in the morning when it's cooler. You can sit and rest while DD chugs around and burns off some energy.

And at some low-energy points late in my pregnancy I would make a game out of having DS run around the house, "Go to the front door. Now skip to the refrigerator. Now come to the living room and hop on one foot." He thought it was fun, like a modified Simon Says.

[brittone2]

Just thinking of other ideas...

Not sure if you do computer time or not for DD, but I know a lot of people like and recommend the starfall site. We don't really do computer time for 4 year old DS yet, but if I was on bedrest, I'd consider something like starfall for him.

eta: more audio stories:
http://www.kiddierecords.com/
http://robertmunsch.com/storytime.cfm
http://www.bbc.co.uk/bbc7/kids/bigtoe/

[sarahsthreads]

Ah, now playdoh was something I hadn't thought about. A bit messy, but not quite as bad as paint! :)

DD also has *way* too many toys as it is, so I don't think I'll resort to doling out a new toy a day, but I like the idea of ispy and egg hunt sorts of things. I'll have to think on those for a bit.

Thanks!
Sarah :)

[sarahsthreads]

Those are all great ideas, thanks! I especially love the run around the house game.

I just got a lead on a possible mother's helper - a teenager who's done with school as of tomorrow - that might be able to come over and take DD outside or walk up with her to the school playground a couple of times a week. Maybe she'll even weed the front beds with DD if I slip her a few extra dollars...?

I still have to discuss this possibility with DH and figure out how on earth I'd keep my two-stinky-dog house clean enough for a non-family member to come over on a regular basis, but if this works out it could be a really great situation.

Sarah :)

[brittone2]

Those are all great ideas, thanks! I especially love the run around the house game.

I just got a lead on a possible mother's helper - a teenager who's done with school as of tomorrow - that might be able to come over and take DD outside or walk up with her to the school playground a couple of times a week. Maybe she'll even weed the front beds with DD if I slip her a few extra dollars...?

I still have to discuss this possibility with DH and figure out how on earth I'd keep my two-stinky-dog house clean enough for a non-family member to come over on a regular basis, but if this works out it could be a really great situation.

Sarah :)

Ack, I say don't sweat it! You are basically on bedrest. If there was ever an excuse (heck, it is a legit reason, not an excuse!) to have a house in some disarray, I'd say you have it.

I wouldn't worry.

I hope the next week goes as well as possible for you.

[brittone2]

Ah, now playdoh was something I hadn't thought about. A bit messy, but not quite as bad as paint! :)

DD also has *way* too many toys as it is, so I don't think I'll resort to doling out a new toy a day, but I like the idea of ispy and egg hunt sorts of things. I'll have to think on those for a bit.

Thanks!
Sarah :)


I hear you. I'm big on trays. If you can find a larger sized one, they work pretty well for containing a good bit of mess IME.

I've even heard of people using something like a small baby pool (indoors) and having DC do all of the messy stuff in there. She could do playdoh, etc. in there and then at the end of the day have your DH dump it outside, if she'll go for that.

We do stuff like transferring beans or cottonballs with tweezers or ice tongs etc. sometimes (a Montessori type of activity). (just moving the pieces from one container to another) The tray thing made me think of it because we always do it on a tray. You could also skim some of the Montessori catalogs for ideas...a lot of the activities can be done with things you have around the house. Maybe just some of those activities set up for her in shoe boxes with household items would keep her busy?