J is a busy kid.
Constantly moving and exploring.
We haven't really done much in the way of "kid proofing" our house. So, some of his favorite toys are DVD cases, picture frames, and unplugged cords.
I'm not really a "granola mom," but I'm also not a fan of toys with batteries, flashing lights, lots of noise. I don't want my kid to be dependent on that kind of simulation. (That being said, sometimes a Baby Einstein DVD is the only way I get a shower or a meal.) I want him to use his imagination and create! However, creation takes space.
We live in a 2 bedroom, 1 bathroom, 800 square foot apartment.
2 adults, 1 kid, 1 dog.
And I work from home - 30 students coming and going each week.
And my "studio" is also J's bedroom.
We are tight on space.
J has no space that is "his own" - granted, he's 1 and doesn't know any different. But still, all of his toys are kind of everywhere, all the time.
How can I create a space for him that encourages creative play and exploration while still being functional for our family?
Honestly, I don't know. And I would love any and all suggestions!
Here's what I've come up with so far:
This is the small storage system I've been able to put together for J. There are books in a basket on top. The drum is full of musical instruments. There are wooden blocks, a keyboard, dinosaurs, a shape sorter, a ring stacker, etc. in the baskets. None of these toys are "passive" toys, so they support thinking and problem solving. And then we have these bigger toys: the piano, his walker, his riding car, and his riding tractor. What do I do with those? Where do they go? And then directly behind is our table and chairs stuffed into a corner. Not super functional.
This is immediately opposite the toy bookshelf, The turtle is full of balls and the outside "shell" is all sorts of different fabric textures. I recently attached a magnetic cookie sheet and bought some letter magnets for J to play with. He likes all the different shapes and colors. You can see the gate blocking off our kitchen on the left. So this playing space is super small.
This is in our living room - two Ziploc bags filled with paint and taped to the window for J to "finger paint" with.
I'm trying to use the little space that I have available, but I feel like it's pretty disjointed and not super functional. And it doesn't give J a lot of space to crawl around.
Have you had to create a play space for your little one in small living quarters?
What did you do?
I think you're doing a great job so far with creating space for J. Our house is not much bigger (add a bedroom and probably a slightly bigger kitchen). Little E isn't quite at J's age yet so playtime is limited to laps or activity mat, but we are definitely feeling the cramped space. We also have two Labs. The swing usually stays out, but we do fold it up and move it to a bedroom when we have guests. As for toys, we tend to pull them out of the bedroom and move them to the living room for playtime. We also have a toybox that keeps most of her toys at the moment.
ReplyDeleteFrom what I've seen with daycares and preschools, they tend to keep the toys on a rotating system, so as not to have so many out at once and keep the interest of the child when they do see toys that have been away for a while. Soooo, you playspace you've created so far might just be the perfect amount. Enough to keep him interested, but not enough to throw him into sensory overload.