Let me tell you, that level of cling makes for a very frustrating and unproductive day. Peeling her off only leads to tears and more frustration. What to do?!
Talk to a mom with twins! Wish I had thought of it sooner . . .
My dear friend Carrie had the suggestion of the year, and I am on day #3 of putting it into play. She asked if I used playpen time with Sophia.
Ummm. No. What is playpen time?
Playpen time is time in a playpen (or pack'n'play in our case) with toys to learn to play INDEPENDENTLY. What a great word, independent!!!
We started the next day, this past Monday. Sophia went in her pack'n'play with some toys and books for half an hour after breakfast. I was able to eat!, and wash dishes, and then sit down by myself for about 5 minutes and plan the day before play time was over. There wasn't even any crying, which I will tell you surprised me.
Yesterday we did the same deal, and I got to take a shower! I usually shower before the Snuggler gets up, but hadn't had a chance to as I went for my run later than usual. No fear, playtime is here!
And today?
When I sat down to write this post, there were 18 minutes left on the timer . . . there are now 9, time to finish up and go eat breakfast! I can hear Sophia talking to her little farm animals/people, and she seems to be having a grand old time. This afternoon we will start the second half hour of the day, for a total of an hour a day. The goal is to shift from pack'n'play to being able to tell Sophia that it is time for playtime in _______ room, and she will go play by herself.
Lesson learned . . . when frustrated by lack of time and clingy child, talk to the mom of twins!
3 comments:
Wish I'd heard about that, like, I don't know...31 years ago?!!!
Earlybirdmom
I meant to ask you this morning how it was going. I'm so glad it's working!!!
So something funny is that I have started doing this with Matt here and there, especially during dinner prep - it's been a great tool! I stashed the Pack & Play near the front door because the space created by the chair and the wall were the perfect shape for it... yesterday I walked in from shopping or something, and - well, imagine me coming in the door from anywhere with both boys. I want them both to stay on the tile, so Ben's wet shoes don't get everywhere, I want the coats and hats off first thing so we can hang them up, I don't want anyone running off while I try to do this with only two hands... you get the picture. Anyway, I popped Matt into the Pack & Play while I took care of Ben and my bags, and then I moved on to him! Voila! It's like having a third hand, sometimes! :)
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