Toddler Tricks - 81: Get Out of the House

Problem: You have so much to do. So much. And at every turn, your toddlers stand in your way. You pick up the crayons, they splay the videos out on the floor. You wash the counters, they finger paint the walls. You vacuum, they spill sugar in the kitchen. And forget about doing any adult work that's not house cleaning. Your children insist that you will be paying all of your attention to them today, all day. Otherwise, you'll be sorry. But with all of their antics, your rate of progress is so slow that you can't stop to play with them. You can't go outside. You'll never finish your workload.

Solution: Yes, you will. Take them outside. Especially if you find yourself particularly annoyed by them, or they are insisting on ruining your home. The 30 minutes to an hour you spend with them out in the open, letting them run out a bit of energy will save you two to three hours in the long run. They'll come back in a little more calm. Their minds will be more centered and more amenable to organized activities. They'll be (if you have more than one) more tuned to playing with each other and may continue to do so once the party is moved inside. You will think you don't have time to take them out. The truth is, you don't have time to keep them in.


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