If I haven't mentioned it before, my house is a split level. I do have stairs. Not so many at a time, but stairs none the less. I have never had stairs with a crawler, so this is a whole new experience for me. Dinner prep time is often clean up time for the kids. While I am in the kitchen, they are cleaning up toys from various ends of the earth and putting them away in their proper chronological order (I know chronological is wrong, but it sounds so big and wordy, so I am going to leave it there). Hopefully. Right?!? Not just stuffing them in toy boxes, or under the shelves to be found later by little brother who like to eat things? Can I get an amen?!?! Anyway, since Dylan has found his new independence, I don't like to leave him at a place where he can fall down the stairs (albeit only 6, but that is 3 too many). (What? 3 stairs can't hurt anybody. Ask my little sister :) So, often as I leave them in their room cleaning (translation: playing with everything in a leisurely fashion as they mosey towards the assorted toy box/shelves) I will quietly close the gate at the top of the stairs so there are no mishaps. They don't hear the latch. They don't care that I am walking down the stairs. But, undoubtedly, every time, one will notice the gate is closed, and they will all whine and complain. I swear if they had metal cups, they would grate them on the gate. Anyway, this is what the hall normally looks like:
And this is what the hall looks like approximately 23.7 seconds after I have closed the gate. (Please note Dylan is there too... Monkey see....)
"Moh-ohm. Let us out!"
Nevermind the room isn't clean. Nevermind they have no reason to come downstairs. It is just the restriction of their life, liberty and freedom they are protesting...
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It's true. I guess I did survive a small tumble down some stairs. I didn't know just how many though? Anyway- Your kids are silly little persons!
That is kinda cute them all standing there looking at you. :) And obviously 3 stairs won't hurt a kid, Laura has turned out just fine, right? ;) just kidding Laura!
I thought it was just Demzi. We had a gate at the top of our stairs and the first day we had it there she would cry everytime she saw it, even though everyone was upstairs with her.
What if you let the girls take turns closing the gate? Can they do it? Give it to them as a job, and they know you'll come open it as soon as the room is clean. I'm pretty sure in under a week they won't care about the closed gate anymore, and eventually they'll be like, "Oh mom you close it! I'm busy!"
i don't know - laura is kind of weird.
....
just kidding! :)
man, em - have a heart. they look so pathetic! (just kidding, again. you know i have nothing but love for the entire thompson clan). you should check out the blog "the meanest mom." it is hilarious, i think you might get a kick out of it.
love ya! :)
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