Toddler Thursday: Hi! Hi! Hi! Hi! Hi!
Hello, all. This is Sarah K.K. from over in Reality Check land. A while ago, Kate and I had talked about me guest posting every so often about my return to work after maternity leave, but I was so overwhelmed by the transition, I couldn't quite manage it. But now that my little guy and I are in a little more of a groove, I volunteered to write about toddler-dom.
Let me back up a bit: My toddler in question is Isaac, and he's closing on 15 months old. (When do you stop with doing the ages in months and just start round off, anyway? I think that's a post for another day.) He started walking right around his first birthday, while his dad (my husband, Judah) was out of town for two weeks, unfortunately. Lately, he's upgraded to running, even though his balance isn't quite ready for that yet. And, hence the headline on this post, his favorite word in his limited vocabulary is "hi," which he likes to say a lot. (True to his mom's Southern roots, he manages to turn it multisyllabic.)
After that none-too-brief introduction, here's what I want to talk about today: In an attempt to distract your toddler, have you ever given them something to play with that you later regretted? ...
Isaac is obsessed with buttons -- the remote-control kind, not the clothing kind. He loves his toys with buttons, especially if music is involved, he tries to grab the phone away from us, and yes, of course, he wants to be in control of that remote. I can't count the number of times he's accidentally turned the television on or off or set the DVR to record some random program on channel 111.
Over the weekend, my husband thought he would be entertained by the remote for the fan and light fixture in our bedroom, and oh boy, was he right. Isaac thought it was the funniest thing he'd ever encountered, eyes going wide and face breaking into a grin every time the lights went out and cracking up when they came back on.
Then he started wandering around the house trying to accomplish the same thing in other rooms, and he was not amused when it didn't work. Whoops.
After the fact, too, I remembered that we've occasionally had the lights come on in the middle of the night or discovered the fan off when it had been on for days. We're thinking a neighbor might have some fixture running on a similar frequency.
I can only hope Isaac wasn't turning their lights on and off incessantly. If so, I bet they didn't find it nearly as amusing as he did.
(Pictured: Isaac gets his hands -- and mouth -- on Mom's iPhone. Thank goodness for that cover. Photo by Sarah Kelber.)
Comments
That is so cute. My son (who will be one in a week) goes crazy for the remotes and cell phones too. I gave him one of my old dead cell phones to play with, but of course he has no use for it. Once, while playing with my husband's phone, he managed to lock the keypad and then accidentally dial 911. At least, we think it was accidental... ;)
Posted by: Betsy | September 10, 2009 10:04 AM
Yes, Sarah, I've regretted giving my kid access to electronics many times. Once, she somehow managed to text my cousin in Rhode Island, "Let's meet." We figured out that it's one of those canned messages. She also likes the alarm clock next to our bed and puts it on sleep all the time. So hours after we've left our bedroom, the radio will start playing on its own, usually very loudly. What did kids play with before we had all these electronic devices in our lives?!?!
Sarah KK: Isaac loves boxes and paper and just about anything else he can get his hands on, too. (Hello, shredded toilet paper all over the bathroom!) So he'd probably amuse himself even without the electronics. But his first choice is usually something with buttons. In my house, *I'm* usually the one who messes up the clock radio and sets it off loudly hours later, so I'm glad I'm not alone on that. :)
Posted by: Margaret Bell | September 10, 2009 10:14 AM
...and yes, of course, he wants to be in control of that remote.
That part is just a gender-based trait. He may out-grow the light/fan thing, but controlling the remote is what we are, as men.
SKK: But he also has a TV blogger for a mom, so he might have a double-dose of remote drive. Yikes!
Posted by: Bucky | September 10, 2009 10:29 AM
Cute kid, SKK! I imagine that once he turns two you will drop the month by month accounting of his age.
This post makes me glad my kids were born back in the Dark Ages before cell phones, remote controls, etc.
Posted by: Dahlink | September 10, 2009 2:58 PM
Stumbled on this app for the iPhone. Maybe you can use it.
http://www.babycenter.com/phonyphone-mobile-iphone-application
SKK: Ha! Love it!
Posted by: Margaret Bell | September 11, 2009 5:08 PM
Our 15 mo old has discovered the handicapped door buttons and loves to press them and see the door open.
The button toy she is most enamored with is the one with the 5 pop up animals and various switches and buttons. She will not let the animals stayed popped up - it is somehow "wrong".
SKK: We're thinking of getting one of those after seeing how much our little guy enjoyed one at a friend's birthday party. You've convinced me!
Posted by: Michelle | September 12, 2009 5:15 PM
i blame my husband for my kids love for the untouchables!he thought it was so cool that our 20mo old learned to load dvds.
now,of course babies donot understand the word gentle so guess what happened to the dvd player?IF YOU CHERISH IT,PUT IT UP,why our men stubborn about their things that we all know has no right to be advertised,they never learn!
Posted by: tammy | September 15, 2009 12:38 PM
I remember that a former neighbor told me that her toddler informed her that he had messed up the VCR player (this was before DVDs) by pointing and saying "Uh oh, Mommy."
Posted by: Dahlink | September 15, 2009 5:54 PM