Keeping babies busy so you can clean?

First off let me say that my twins are kind of heavy..18 & 19 lb! So it's not as if I can cart them off with me to different areas of the house to clean up. I need to be able to keep them busy long enough to clean up my house!
Now we all know 4 mth olds don't have the longest attention spans.

What I usually do is when one is asleep I get to clean the kitchen or do the laundry. They also don't sleep for long periods.. If they wake up in their cribs they scream blue murder! Ds will move himself all over the crib & stick his legs through the bars so I have to keep my eyes on him. He doesnt take much interest in toys or mobiles at all.

Another question is how does one keep your home organized? It would seem as soon as I clean up an area in the house (freeing it from baby things) the very next day it's flowing over with baby things...(make sense?)

Now given I don't have a HUGE house by any means...so it shouldnt be so difficult or impossible right? :icon_eek:

:rotflmbo:

 

Let me just add, I don't want to fee it from all baby things, just excess baby things..

 

I keep a nice large basket in every room of the house where we keep baby toys. That may help "declutter" some of the baby stuff. For me, I at least have a place to toss the toys at the end of the day and I don't have to lug them all to one spot.

Umm...yea...that whole time to clean house thing. Still haven't figured that one out. I try to clean the kitchen and bathrooms while they nap and I usually take off early one day a week so I can vacuum without any distractions. Sorry...that's no help.

 

QUOTE(snoopytwins @ Oct 24 2007, 12:25 PM) [snapback]465312[/snapback]
I keep a nice large basket in every room of the house where we keep baby toys. That may help "declutter" some of the baby stuff. For me, I at least have a place to toss the toys at the end of the day and I don't have to lug them all to one spot.

Umm...yea...that whole time to clean house thing. Still haven't figured that one out. I try to clean the kitchen and bathrooms while they nap and I usually take off early one day a week so I can vacuum without any distractions. Sorry...that's no help.


Thanks for the idea of the baskets! Have to get something like that!

 

My highchairs have wheels so I feed them fingerfoods - and wheel them around if I need to but usually they will sit and eat! I can see them from my living room and kitchen without moving the chairs ! as far as the bathrooms go I have to get DH or my older kids to hold them or clean them while the girls are sleeping!

 

Clean? What's that? I think I used to do something like that... :rotflmbo: Seriously though, the little that I do, I wait till they're in bed for the night or when DH can watch them (nights and weekends.) I've given up trying to do anything during the day! ardon:

 

Big babes!!!! At 4.5 mos. my girls had good neck/head control so I would put them in walkers (Iknow the dangers etc. - maybe you have exersaucers) I would put pillows under their feet so they weren't getting a massive wedgy and they couldn't move the walkers etc. - Baby Einstein videos were my friend! They have age appropriate ones and my girls loved them. I could get some cleaning done etc. As far as baby gear in the house. I don't have highchairs - I use the ones that attach to kitchen chairs - this reduces space. But I am constantly picking up toys etc. - I keep a big plastic "tub" - those $5 ones from walmart- in the living room as a toy box - everything goes in there when I need to vacuum etc. the girls love to take everything out of it anyway. Still, my house looks like a hurricane hit it everyday. It'll be never ending thing I'm thinking - until they're teenagers??? I also keep a full diaper bag in the living room so I can change diapers where ever I need to and have everything on hand - but togehter - and not have to go to the changing table all of the time. Maybe you can designate ONE room in your home as baby room? It's baby proofed, got the toys etc. in it. This way if clutter really bothers you, it's confined to one room? The thing with this is that babes like to see you - and if the room is away from everything - they may protest. If not now - they will in another 1-2 mos.!!! You may have to give in to the "impossible" of ever having baby stuff cleared away..... hope some of this helped!!! good luck!! - oh baby einstein videos can be PRICY - check out your library - they will probably have them there - and for free!!!!! My girls STILL watch them. -

 

I can't believe your little ones are that big! My two are 21lbs and 19lbs. Good Job Mama! I have no advice though, I just clean when they go down for thier 1st nap.

 

At that age my girls needed some down time each day, so I would put them in their bouncy seats in front of the tv. I realized it was a great time to get a few things done here and there.

 

QUOTE(pink and blue mom @ Oct 24 2007, 01:02 PM) [snapback]465372[/snapback]
I can't believe your little ones are that big! My two are 21lbs and 19lbs. Good Job Mama! I have no advice though, I just clean when they go down for thier 1st nap.


Yep! Believe it! They weighed quite a bit when they were born at 33 weeks. Dd weighed in at 6lb & ds 5.6lb.
Our pedi couldnt believe it either, they have always eaten every 3hrs. At first it was 2oz, now they are only up to 4oz. I have noticed though since I have started feeding them their rice cereal (only 2nd week now) they tend to want more. Dd absolutely LOVES her cereal, but can't say the same for ds. I won't push him though..

I did manage to do quite a bit of cleaning today, more so than usual. How did I do it? It seems today they just want to sleep! Must be the change of weather...?

 

I straighten up their toys (put them in a bin) and clean the kitchen after they go to bed. I also clean when they are napping... very rarely I'll clean when they are awake. When they were around 4 months I would put them in the bouncy or swing where they could see me and then I'd clean. I've put them in their cribs or pnps while vacuuming the room we are in (they think the vacuum is hillarious for some reason. DH thinks they are laughing at me because *I* work for them!).