[email protected]

**And many of those things are tough for me to get involved in because
the baby is running amuck and I mean that seriously. She is just as
busy as he is, and twice as persistent. It's tough.**

Beg, borrow or rent an interested 10 -12 year old regularly. Many of them
LOVE chasing toddlers around and are pretty darn good at amusing them, and
they're usually large enough to be able to safely control a toddler running amuck.
The experience they get by toddler wrangling while you're still around but
involved with the older child will enable them to become pretty darn good sitters
in a few years if they're interested in that.

Deborah in IL

The Dyers

I'll be on the lookout. When my son was a toddler, we had two neighbors girls helping me out who ended up being like part of our family. We miss them. :-)

Patty


****Beg, borrow or rent an interested 10 -12 year old regularly. Many of them
LOVE chasing toddlers around and are pretty darn good at amusing them, and
they're usually large enough to be able to safely control a toddler running amuck.
The experience they get by toddler wrangling while you're still around but
involved with the older child will enable them to become pretty darn good sitters
in a few years if they're interested in that.



[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

[email protected]

In a message dated 5/30/03 1:00:35 AM, dacunefare@... writes:

<< Beg, borrow or rent an interested 10 -12 year old regularly. Many of them
LOVE chasing toddlers around and are pretty darn good at amusing them, and
they're usually large enough to be able to safely control a toddler running
amuck. >>

Holly would LOVE a situation like that. Every time she's around a baby or
toddler she just gushes about it for hours or days. She would go places with
another family absolutely free at this point just to get to be around and play
with and observe a baby.

We found that adding another child to the situation often makes much less
work for the mom. The kids' need for conversation can be supplied by the new
person, they sometimes act better for "having company," they're stimulated in new
ways by the new person's ideas and experiences, etc.

Sandra

Julie Bogart

--- In [email protected], dacunefare@a...
wrote:
> **And many of those things are tough for me to get involved in
because
> the baby is running amuck and I mean that seriously. She is
just as
> busy as he is, and twice as persistent. It's tough.**
>
> Beg, borrow or rent an interested 10 -12 year old regularly.
Many of them
> LOVE chasing toddlers around and are pretty darn good at
amusing them, and
> they're usually large enough to be able to safely control a
toddler running amuck.

I did this for two years every Wed. afternoon so I would work on
my writing. I was at home and the 10-11 year old would play with
the toddlers and youngers while the baby napped. It was
wonderful! (Plus, since you're home, you can pay a little less
than the going rate to a 13 year old who sits while you're away).

Julie B

[email protected]

In a message dated 5/30/03 11:27:14 AM Eastern Daylight Time,
SandraDodd@... writes:

> Holly would LOVE a situation like that. Every time she's around a baby or
> toddler she just gushes about it for hours or days. She would go places
> with
> another family absolutely free at this point just to get to be around and
> play
> with and observe a baby.
>

Yep, thats Anna too. I wonder if being the only girl in families of boys is
what triggers that maternal instinct so strongly?

Teresa


[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

[email protected]

In a message dated 5/30/03 11:09:31 AM, grlynbl@... writes:

<< Yep, thats Anna too. I wonder if being the only girl in families of boys
is
what triggers that maternal instinct so strongly? >>

I bet that's a factor.

Our mother's helper neighbor when Holly was little was the oldest of all
girls (two younger sisters) but she liked being at our house because it was the
same kind of work, only different surroundings and she got paid! I think she
enjoyed being around the boys, too, since she only had sisters.

Sandra

Pamela Sorooshian

On Friday, May 30, 2003, at 10:27 AM, SandraDodd@... wrote:

> << Yep, thats Anna too. I wonder if being the only girl in families
> of boys
> is
> what triggers that maternal instinct so strongly? >>
>
> I bet that's a factor.

Rosie too. And she's youngest of 3 girls.

-pam