My daughter gets into EVERYTHING!?

Question

I have been wonderfully blessed with boy/girl twins who just turned 2years old. There is just one problem,

My daughter could care less about toys, and will constantly get into cabinets/drawers/closets/etc. and remove/eat/rearrange anything and everything. She loves to explore, and gets herself into trouble more often than not!

Her brother is an angel, he can play with toys for hours if you let him. Their personalities are SO different.

I'm looking for some creative ways to encourage my daughter to stay in one place for more than 2 seconds. Don't get me wrong, she is a wonderful child, and very loving. She just...won't stay in one place, and loves to explore!

Any ideas?

Answer 1

nurture that fire. If she loves to explore now maybe she will later...maybe she will want to explore the moon or a foreign country.

Answer 2

I heard a great analogy one time, something like this: Think of a child's world as a big bullseye (like the target insignia). Most parents start out letting the child roam free inside the biggest circle, and then as they get more mobile and mischievous, they start pulling in the boundaries tighter and tighter. That doesn't make sense when they are getting MORE active. The way it should be done is that your child starts out in the smallest circle--maybe a playpen or small playroom where they are safe and allowed to explore that small world. Then as the child gets more mobile you gradually EXPAND their boundaries, giving them room as they are able to handle it, and teaching them along the way what is ok and safe, and what isn't. Maybe you need to use a playpen with your little girl, leave her in there with appropriate toys for, say, 15 minutes to start with, and making it longer as she learns to occupy herself with what's available. Change the toys every week, talk to her, but leave her in there, even if she cries at first. Then as she gets older and is able to understand "no" more, etc, let her out but gate her into the "safe" area such as the tv room or whatever. Expand her world slowly.

Answer 3

I have 7 year old twins, I put magnetic lock on their dressers after them dumped out all the clothes, get some gates locks what ever it takes to protect your sanity. If toys are all she can get into she will have no choice but to stay put. Get down on the floor and play too! Mix up the toys a bit put some away maybe add a few new pieces.

Answer 4

Kids are so different, and neither one is the "right" way to behave. Having twins really makes it obvious - they're the same age, with the same surroundings, etc.

Your daughter is an "angel" too, she's just a busy one! Give her her own cabinet or drawer filled with "safe" things to arrange. Old pots & pans, tupperware, brushes, empty plastic bottles....let her indulge her curiousity. Let her "cook" with cheerios or dried pasta and your old cookware. We got our busy son a big container of plastic animals and he will sit and sort them into various boxes and tupperware, then pour them out and start over.

Child proof or move out of reach the things you want her to stay out of. Strap down the furniture she might pull or climb on. Once you resign yourself to the idea that she just ain't going to sit still, it's a lot easier to handle. Those indoor activity gyms are a livesaver for parents with active little ones.

Answer 5

My 14 month old is the same way. I try to give activities or play games to keep her occupied (you have to participate to keep her attention). One thing that works when I really need to do something, and need her to stay occupied is The Wiggles. She loves them, there are lots of bright colrs and silly songs. I watched a few times and did the dances with her, and now she will watch on her own. You can find their DVD's pretty much everywhere DVD's are sold. They are also on the Disney Channel in the am. Good Luck.

Answer 6

She's just exploring. It's her way of learning about her environment and figuring out what it is and how it works. Let her do it, as long as it's not harming anything. It's a phase that most kids go through. It's like they're always thinking "What does that do?" "What happens if I knock that over?" "What's inside that cabinet?" It's all extremely exciting to them. Let her do it as long as it's not harming anything and it's not too messy.

Answer 7

If you get any really good ideas, PLease let me know, cuz my daughter just turned 2 and does the same thing. She has to get into and open everything!! I need a leash in public or at the dr office cuz she'll get into other peoples stuff too. She does love stickers though. I introduced them for potty training incentives and she'll sit for hour and peel off stickers one at a time and put them on my shirt and then back to her again.

Answer 8

She is normal and healthy. She is more curious about her environment than your son. She is an angel, too, even if it's less convenient for you. She will grow more intelligent more quickly than your son, and will not always be so accepting and content with what works for him. She will also be more physically resilliant and sturdy than you son. That's the nature of the beast. Somewhere in there, the boys are socailized to be tougher, less emotional, and more confident; while girls are more ofetn socialized to be gentler, more agreeable, and generous, but less confident.
Your choice in how to socailize them, but I would engage your girl in more activities that stimulate her intellectually. She will be more easily bored than him, and may get into things to excite herself.

Answer 9

good luck on that she is a typical 2 year old... Continue to watch her an continue to let her explore the new things... But never stop a child from exploring, keep an eye on them... It gets better as they get older...

Answer 10

K this is not the easiest thing to do but try to find something she likes so she will keep her attention on that. Plus she is two thats why they call it the terrible two's. Good Luck!!