How to keep baby safe in garden

[cambourne7]

Hi All,

Question for you i want to get in and get the back garden closed down for the winter up to now I have been doing the gardening when the MIL has been here to keep Harriet entertained. But i need to get out this week and no mother in law. So the question is whats safe?

I was thinking i can pop her into her buggy and some toys tied to the pram and pop the radio on on the patio but i cant see that being a long term solution.

What do you do in this weather?

[cambourne7]

[gwynnethmary]

How old is she?  If she can sit up/move around under her own steam, she could be warmly dressed and have toys to play with in a playpen.  You could put an old duvet on the floor to pad it.  They're probably old-fashioned these days, but they can even be useful even for an older child -to play with fiddly things out of the way of inquisitive toddlers. 

[cambourne7]

shes 71/2 months now yep able to crawl around and pull herself up on things :) Garden has got some standing water and is half finished so at the moment not able to leave her to her own devices. But your right once the weather is a bit dryer her playpen might be a plan :)

[Deb P]

I used to cart mine around in a backpack sling...it even had a plastic hood so they were kept dry if it rained! The baby keeps you toasty warm too, they are entertained while you bend and potter around, and then they mostly get bored and drop off to sleep....bliss! ;D

[chriscross1966]

Before ACE gets here and claims my idea for his own....

Stout pole, wrapped in a gym crash mat, harness from baby bouncer, piece of bungee, fascinating things placed at appropriate distance.... all day long you will be able to hear "Spoiiiiing.....doooof!"  to let you know the little darling still doesn't have concussion.....

from the chriscross1966 baby manual entitled "They've got to learn sometime....."

chrisc

[betula]

See if you can find an old fashioned pram.......one with space in it..not these awful modern things.

My babies sat and played with toys or lay down comfy and cozy for a sleep.

Used to love putting the new babies in the pram with the lovely covers....and canopy for sunny days.

Everybody seems to go everywhere in the car these days.   :)

[jennym]

Just an aside about those bungee type things that babies bounce in - do make sure that baby is wearing shoes. Just 10 minutes of use, with me and mum supervising, on a smooth wooden floor, and one little lad I love dearly got blisters on his little feet. Did feel so guilty. Just a thought.

[galina]

Mine sensed that I wanted to get on with things and got demanding - always.  But the baby rucksack with all the bending dpwn and carrying things was too uncomfortable for any length of time, so the playpen it was.  For safety.  With frequent interruptions and several sets of toys, rusks etc, because the first lot got thrown out and muddy.  

I found it quite difficult to do more than a few minutes at a time.  Progress was slow.  One of the problems are the greater distances in the garden.  In the house it is much easier to quickly see to the baby and carry on with the job you are doing.  In the garden/lottie you will be at the other end taking runnerbean sticks apart, when she starts howling and you feel you have to do something or everybody will look at you as if you were neglecting her.

Don't expect too much would be my first bit of advice.  If you really want to blitz the garden jobs, you need help with Harriet, unless she is exceptionally happy playing on her own or asleep.  

When baby number two arrived, it got easier, mainly because my daughter was always fascinated by her baby brother and was very happy to keep him amused for a while.  But we are still only talking a quarter of an hour at a time, not enough for sustained gardening clear-up jobs.  Obviously my daughter wanted to spend time with me as well.

Enjoy Harriet and do the garden jobs when you can.

[vicki.m]

My youngest is 11 months, I take her to the lotty almost everyday, she sits in the push chair next to wherever I'm working, she has a few toys on the bar of the pushchair but I sing and dance and interact with her while I am working and she loves it. When she was younger she used to lie in the big pram and snooze the day away.

It's half term this week so I have my 4 year old comes too, which is much more of a challenge despite the fact he has his own patch of earth to dig and play in.

[Digeroo]

My daughter would sit in a pushchair while I did things but not my son he preferred being an total destruction unit.   I think it depends on the character of the child.  I used to do the 5 am shift in the garden in the summer and evenings.  But much too dark at cold for that at the moment.   I would suggest a good busy morning and then a good lunch and perhaps your daughter will be ready for a few moments of ZZZ.   Perhaps you could also team up with a friend.  We each had each others child for a couple of hours a couple of times a week so we could get a few things done.  The babies also enjoyed each others company.

[artichoke]

I saw a photo on this site of hay/straw bales arranged like a playpen. You can put a tarpaulin and blanket on the ground, and a bucket of sand to play with. I have helped my daughter over the years on her allotment with her 3 children, at the moment 5 years, 3 years and 4 months. We didn't have the bales, but we have always had small hand tools, blankets, and a sandpit with a lid on it, plus snacks and drinks.


It's not perfect, and can be frustrating, but we got quite a lot done together.