Newly Mobile 14 Month Old is OFF THE HOOK

[Pestle]

Man, I could just put this in the venting thread, but I do have one actual question. When you have a child old enough and strong enough to physically smash your gates open/tip the cribs over/pull the sheet off of the crib mattress no matter how tight and secure it is and no matter what type of crib you are using, are there any products out there to make things more secure? I know I just have to wait this out, but I'm also discovering that nothing in my environment is functional as intended.

The vent: they are super excited to locomote. Really really excited. All they want to do is run at gates and barriers and shove them along (including the rigid plastic ones that suction cup to the floor), cram their fingers into hinges, pull the hair of other children, and beat me around the legs in rage when I stop them from doing something they want to do. It's been three weeks and I know it's going to be longer. This kid has got a set of lungs and they are spending most of their time howling in fury. I can't keep them out of the activities the other kids are doing, because none of the gates are working and they are dismantling all the cribs. They rock the cribs so hard that locks on the wheels and a squishy workout mat under the legs won't prevent the cribs from jolting across the room. This is a brute force baby and their only directive is to GO GO GO.

[Pestle]

"There's a whole big world out there and if I body-slam it hard enough something good will surely happen"

[flyingjewels]

Yikes. This is extreme behavior IMO and a liability. I may term for that. Not worth risk of this kid getting hurt or hurting someone else and you taking the entire fall out for it. Also since it’s extreme, it could be a sensory seeking that is a cause of something else that you’ll have to deal with later and may not even be equipped to deal with later or want to.

[Blackcat31]

Can you give him something to spend his energy on? For example, I have a Little Tikes cube climber in my playroom. Kids on the go are directed to that. It helps them burn off those zoomies and makes a huge difference in my day simply because it's self-explanatory as to how to use it and it keeps them occupied and busy.

Other than that, I have no advice except to rinse and repeat the same rules we all have regarding his behaviors.

Oh and for the sheet issue, I saw a while back that there is such a thing as a fully enclosed sheet you can put on the mattress. If you can't find one, I'd just buy one of those matress protectors that zips fully around the entire mattress....just get one that is padded and soft on the top side so that it's comfy to sleep on.

[GirlMomma]

Not sure if licensing will allow this or not… but I have seen these clips (they look like suspenders) that help hold the fitted sheet in place on Amazon.

[Annalee]

I wonder if this child is confined most of the time at home so he is like a bull in a china shop when he gets out.....if so, when he realizes he has freedom, he might settle down without running so much trying to get it all in before he is confined again?? Just my opinion!

[Pestle]

I wonder if this child is confined most of the time at home so he is like a bull in a china shop when he gets out.....if so, when he realizes he has freedom, he might settle down without running so much trying to get it all in before he is confined again?? Just my opinion!

He is held a lot at home. So my hope is that he will get it out of his system once he gets comfortable with this new ability to go places.

[flyingjewels]

Are they rocking the cribs while in them? If they flip that crib while in it, it could result in a significant injury. I’d definitely document all of this and let the parents know (I assume you have already done all of that tho) to CYA. That would be my biggest concern.