Creative climbing

No, because it encourages little bitty people to climb up objects which could fall over on them, like book shelves or dressers, and at some point enables them to see into iand gain access to interesting, but dangerous places like hot stovetops and knife drawers.

hmm..great point
i didnt consider that. in her mind, a little while ago, it WAS ok to climb on the chair... now, using it to get to the kitchen counter isnt
that would be confusing...

Do you have some sort of a play structure outside? That's where sozlet has done most of her climbing stuff. Can be had cheap from resale stores (Once Upon a Child et al) though then there's a risk of the safety being compromised somehow. Usually you can get a decent idea by rigorous shaking and inspection.

Seems like the inside/ outside rule helps in terms of understanding what kind of climbing is OK.

You know the five second rule for food dropped on the floor?

Youngest cub had a 5 second rule. That's about the amount of time one could take their eyes off of him before he could shimmy up the cabinets onto the kitchen counters and be perched on top of the fridge.

He was also tall and about Beans age when this started. His arms were so strong he could pull himself up. No need for footholds.

Imagine my face the first time it happened!

I agree with sozobe. Inside activities and outside activities make clear distinctions for what is acceptable including running, climbing, yelling, etc.

I'm another vote for establishing a demarcation line between indoor and outdoor activities.

Remember, she's right on the edge of really impressive physical accomplishments--like running and jumping and throwing things.
All of these are better outdoors than indoors.

oh yes, she has learned to run as well. Though, as little room as there is on the bottom floor to run ( due to baby gates anywhere and everywhere) so far that hasnt been an issue to address.

The thought of an outdoor playscape is a good one.
I have not considered that due to the high amount of mosquitos this area gets and how OFTEN there are reports of diseases that are spread by them.
Yes.. mommy paranoia..
But, to satisfy her climbing.. this will have to be tackled.
Next grocery store trip , I will begin looking for baby safe mosquito repellant.
Do most all baby product companies make playscapes?
Like gerber, playskool..etc?

We've talked about the paranoia a few times lately, believe me I know what you mean. What I tell myself when I get into that mode is what am I definitely giving up for the possibility of something bad happening? For example, playing outside has loads of benefits -- sunshine that provides important vitamins, incidental contact with the natural world ("look, a caterpillar! Look, a duck!") that has been shown to be vital over and over again, fresh air, and lots of opportunities for the kind of free, exuberant play that is central to healthy development.

So while there's an ___ (very small number) % chance of her getting bitten by a mosquito and contracting a disease, there's a 100% chance that if you don't let her play outside she won't get those benefits.

There are lots of mosquito repellants that are marketed as safe for kids, yep. Then there's always "Skin-so-soft."

I haven't seen the word "playscape" before but there are a ton of outdoor playsets out there. If you lived closer by, I'd give you ours as sozlet's about grown out of it. It's a combination of a 2-story house (often called a castle by sozlet) with doors and windows beneath, a ladder on one side and a slide on the other. It's made out of thick, sturdy plastic with rounded edges. The whole thing is probably about 4 feet wide by 5 feet deep by 5 feet tall. The slide is probably about 3.5 feet up.

We got it free from a friend so don't know how much it would cost new.

This is a similar idea, $90 at Amazon.



If this had just one slide, it would be more like the size of ours.



That one's cool but a lot more expensive, $260.

Anyway, again I see this sort of stuff at resale stores all the time.

Mosquitos bite after dark.

Just checked, one case of human West Nile in Travis County in 2005. (A total of 2 cases and no deaths in all of 2004.)

Site where I got that also has this info:



http://www.ci.austin.tx.us/health/default.htm

What about public playgrounds?

Ha, that too!!

Certainly cheaper, plus usually built-in playmates.

I like having a combination -- something right there for her to climb around on without the need to pack up and go, and then also get to playgrounds.

But yeah, plenty of great climbing stuff there.

We have age-specific play grounds around here. Some are geared to very young children and some to older kids. Very few have a wide spectrum of age-appropriate structures. Those are the worst - you can't keep younguns off the structures meant to be safe for the older kids.

That is funny soz.
No sooner then I posted about mosquitos, I read that site.
Little bean does get out to play, almost everyday in fact. There is just a small window of opportunity for it right now. Morning between 8-10, mosquito population has calmed down enough that she may only get one or two bites. She is just too active for them to catch up to her. Or ,Im standing 3 inches from her shooing them away..
The other issue is that here lately, by 11 am it is almost 100 degrees outside. We have also had almost 4 weeks of non stop rain.
Rain + cooler weather = mosquito population BOOM.
Now the mommy paranoia kicks in overdrive.


In venturing farther with that one site, I also read in a few places that deet was something to avoid for kids? Yet, quite a few products use it as an ingredient.. Kinda torn on that one. I read in one place.. " Its ok ", the next page says " avoid it like the plague"

We live about 6 blocks from a park. We go there as well. They have a HUGE playscape... that bean is too short and unsteady to use. Sadly enough.
It is geared more for the elementry school kids that attend class across the street. But , none the less ., those little legs hit the ground running at the park.

I did go to a few used baby stores today . Looking for playscapes. In both stores the managers and workers said they either dont take them () or, if they decide to, they sell with in the same day.
I guess I could play tag with the stores for a while and see what I can find.
I will give it a time frame. If I dont get somewhere with it, I guess it is off to toys r us I go to dump major bucks on one. >sigh<

Then.... i have to cover the backyard with foam
Sterilize all the sticks and stones
Clean the oxygen before she breathes it