Just Curious

Exactly how many times does it take an 11 month old boy to figure out that he's not supposed to climb on the fireplace considering we're at 15 times here and counting, and everytime I take him away and yell "no" he just laughs harder.

Um, help?

Comments

[Tracy]

Oh, I need the answer to this too. Our fireplace has a raised hearth and my 9 month old climbs onto and stands up. I am about to pull my hair out.

And how about advice for getting a 9 mo to stop biting his 2 yo brother? Thats mine's newest trick. Arrrgggghhhhhh.....

[Jaelithe]

I'm with the gate it off crowd. Although it might not make sense to buy a gate right now given you're about to move.

I had pretty good success teaching my own son not to touch the stove at that age by touching it myself and saying, "OW! Hot!" in a very serious tone (seriousness is key so the kid does not think you are playing a game) and doing it over and over again. Same technique also worked with knives and electrical outlets. I got him so well trained doing by this that by the time he was two he was saying things like, "Mommy, careful with that knife. It's sharp!"

Of course, my son is rather timid, whereas it seems like your son lives for danger (and paper eating) so I'm not sure this will work. But it's worth a shot.

[Damselfly]

Yeah, we basically fenced our fireplace in with a baby gate.

And I'd like to know how to keep a child from throwing food off the highchair tray after telling him "NO" for two months.

[Michelle]

I was one of "those parents" who hated the idea of screaming "no" at my kids all the time, because the more they hear it, the more they tune it out.

So I baby-proofed my house, but would still either pick up the child or move her and say "that's not for Abby" while doing it. "Not for Abby" also worked. This was at 9 months.

Defiance wasn't an issue with that one, but it sure was for #3. I would say the same thing while giving her a stern look that let her know I was serious. She would start to get insulted by my scrunched eyebrows and the "stink eye".

And then we would go to another room and do something else. Honestly, if they hear you scream "no" at them often, they will think it's funny. Besides, they will either not care what you say later on, or they will develop that "what did I do now" complex.

Besides, expecting them not to touch stuff at that age is like expecting men to not stare at big tits. Put it away, cover it up, or gate it.

[Suebob]

...and if you wanted him to go in there, he would never go.

Someone already mentioned duct tape, so I got nothin'

[mom2four]

I bought this fireplace gate when my twins were small. http://pediatrics.about.com/od/safety/ss/childproofing_9.htm It worked great, and I didn't have to run after them for climbing into the fireplace. No, it probably didn't teach them anything, but since we used the fireplace / gas log for heat and they were crawling at 6 months, it kept my sanity intact.

[mothergoosemouse]

Let me know when you figure it out. I've got another kid on the way who's destined to crack his head on the damn slate tile in the bathroom.

[the new girl]

I got nothing.

Except, you know, my old stand-by.

Good thing he's so goshdarn cute.

[FishyGirl]

SuperYard XT. Honestly, that's what we had to do. For us it doubles as a great place for the big kids to go to play with their choking hazards, or after they are done we put Nemo in there to keep him out of the fireplace, from climbing the gate to the kitchen, playing with the DVD player that we can't move out of reach, that sort of thing. I don't know if they EVER stop doing what you tell them not to do. That seems to make it more enticing to them, I think. At least, that's how it works here.

[witchypoo]

I was going to suggest Benadryl, but I really liked the visual I got with the duct tape suggestion.

[Kate]

Let me know when you find out. We're at 16 months and counting. So, that would be about 9,243 times (a rough estimate).

[Amy]

Try putting nutritious food in the fireplace. It seems to repel my kids (unless it is covered with Parmesan cheese, in which case all bets are off).

[Sandra]

Let's hope 16 ... gawd I wish I could help but I suck.

Either way happy belated New Year to you and your climber and budding artiste.

[ImpostorMom]

I have the same issue with a certain drawer in our house. (it won't accommodate a child lock) I'm about to take everything out of it just so he'll stop bringing me stuff and just open and shut the drawer.

[Kelly]

As many times as it takes me to yell for our 13mo to stop ripping his brother's glasses off his face and chewing on them. Except we also smack his hand and he *knows* it's bad. The instant we start walking toward him he knows exactly what he's done wrong (he tries to drop the glasses and pretend ignorance) and he knows prior to the crime since when he's about to do it he glances over to see if we're watching or not (veering away when he sees us looking, going in for the snatch when he doesn't know we can see).

I wish I could give more positive advice than to just keep on keepin' on.

[christie]

1000 times -- No advice here!

[heather]

Remove him, and distract him. Blocking the fireplace sounds good, too, but eventually he's going to be exposed to an "unprotected" fireplace.
If that doesn't work, try time out in a portable crib - when you catch him at the fireplace, scoop him up and put him in the portable crib for a minute. Ignore his crying the whole time. He probably won't laugh at being put in time out the same way he laughs at "no".
This worked with my son, who is now 6 and is quite familiar with time out, aka being benched.
If time out doesn't work, do like my own mother and threaten him with a wooden spoon! (just kidding)

[b]

How long until my 7 month old stops biting my nipple with her new teeth? One time I screamed "NO!" accidentally, (the pain made me scream) and she laughed so hard she got the hiccups. Now she bites and looks at me with a grin.

[mandy]

I totally missread awesome mom's comment as: He listened after he spent time in the garage. I laughed, does that make me a terrible mother?

My Drew is 10 months and he loves the computer cord. Same issue. He just laughs because I startle him when I say no. Every single thing he gets into, every cabinet, every cord, every rug he turns over and tries to eat the rubber backing of...my 2 year old did it at his age. She doesn't anymore. So uh, 2 years?

[Mom101]

Oh Kristen, you know duct tape is the answer to all the great parenting questions.

[Awesome Mom]

WE just remove or block the areas that I do not want climbed on. Harry kept treating certain toys as ladders, so until he would listen to us better they spent time in the garage. Our lame ass fireplace is blocked off with some cardboard and shelving area with toy bins. That has kept the boys off pretty well although Harry likes to try and peek in there now and then.

[Amy H]

just ignore it (or at least look like you are ignoring it). That worked for us.

[Lisel Stone]

We have the same problem with my 16 month old. She climbs on everything. I have to retrieve her from the table at least 4 times a day. She also pinches when she's mad. She got timeout yesterday at total of 10 times for pinching her older brother. It's funny when she does it because she screams at the the top of her lungs runs over and reaches at and pinches him. I guess I should look in to anger management for toddlers.

[Heather]

Oh gosh. My son is 3 1/2 and still will do whatever I tell him not to do, thirty seconds after I told him not to do it.

Fun isn't it?

[Bitchy Mom]

Distraction.

Bring him in a different room of the house, get him playing with something else. Completely distract him long enough for him to forget about the fireplace.

Then when he remembers the fireplace and goes to do it again, implement a new plan.

Super Nanny would probably make it boring. Say nothing, move him away from the stove, hand him a toy, and wait. He does it again, move him again, hand him a different toy, and wait.

Let us know what works!

[Wendy]

About a million or 18 months, whichever comes first. At one point, I stopped stopping him. I figure what was the point and once he busted his head I could laugh and say I told you so. Then I went out and got the bumpers, because as much as I appear mean I am really just wanting not to go to the ER.

[Submommy]

Well, my almost 14 month old, as soon as he could reach, started pushing buttons on the stereo. (not in a good spot to move it, either.)

After about 3 months of "uh oh, hands off!" And then actually removing his hands he's starting to catch a clue. (so, 3 months worth? To answer your question?

My advice? Pick him up and move him. No words, no yelling NO! just walk over, pick him up, say "stay off" or whatever, and he'll get bored.

Any advice for screaming at the top of his lungs? Ear splitting screaming? That's my son's latest game. HTH.

[Liza]

That is EXACTLY why we ended up buying a rectangle of plexiglass and double-sided-taping it into the frame of our fireplace. Perhaps the thing will be usable one day. Or by the next family who lives in our house.

[Mrs. Chicken]

How many times can you tell a three-year-old she's going in the naughty chair, and how many times will you get the giggling reply, "that's a fact, Jack!"

Sorry. I'm no help. If you find that help, please send it my way when you're done with it.

[Stacey]

I have been saying "No climbing on the desk" continuously since September 2003. I am just now experiencing the occasional day where I do not say it to DS1. I still say several times a day to DS2, who has never known a day in his life where he has not heard that phrase uttered. It's almost like telling them not to breathe. They just can't not climb.

[Angie in Texas]

how many times will the mom of an 11 month old engage in his new "game"?

(i agree with margaret: he thinks it's a game now - i hated this part of babyhood . . . )

[Christina]

Yep, it's officially a game. The only way he'll stop now is to make it boring.

Of course, as hard as I try to make my hair boring, it has yet to bore Mira enough to stop trying to pull it out.

[margaret]

More than three years? At least for Moe, thats how long it takes her to listen to things like that.

It's a game now for him!