I've said that the thought of becoming "instant parents" has been daunting to me and John. I'm less scared about how-to's of parenting, but worry more about making our home a place where a small child would want to live. We've been given a few baby things and know the basic equipment needs of babies/toddlers. We are open to taking in children ages 0-5. I want to be able to have a few things on hand for each of those ages so we are a litle prepared before we get the phone call. If you have young children, what are some of the things that you can't live without?
Can you advise?????
14 comments:
Get some good, basic toys. Balls, blocks, jump rope, chalk, fridge letters, and art supplies. :)
Maybe some stuffed animals too?
Let the loving begin!
A drawer of Tuberware. A bucket of wooden spoons. A box. Boys - balls. Girls - bags (anything that can be filled and toted around the house. YOu know have to invest much money. Play good music often. Legos. Doll and stroller. Lots of walks.
Call me!
but yes, blocks, stacking toys, wood puzzles, the tupperware drawer, music, nearby park/playground. Find out where the indoor play areas are near you. Duplos. M loves the oatmeal container as much as a regular drum!
Start a collection of picture books for young children. Library books are nice, but having a bunch that are your own that can be read again and again is great. Christine, did you run into Shirley Hughes' stories in Scotland?? "Dogger", "Alfie Gets in First", etc. They are wonderful! I could mention more... Nothing like cuddling up for a good story!
A Costco-sized box of baby wipes (the kirkland brand is great - keep some in purse at all times) for cleaning babies/kids and everything around them. A good digital thermometer (buy one with covers for rectal temp-taking) and a good ear thermometer too. Children's Benadryl in case someone has an allergic reaction from an allergy that nobody knows about. Children's Tylenol and Advil. Leap Frog magnetic letters. Chicken nuggets, frozen corn and frozen pizza in the freezer at all times for emergencies. Cheerios (keep some in purse at all times). Neosporin portable spray/kids bandaids (keep in purse at all times). Matchbox cars (keep one in purse at all times along with a box of crayons and paper). And a new purse about triple the size of whatever you're carrying now. So excited for you guys!
Forgot to mention, but it seems like a lot of kids go through predictable stages, so girls up to age 5 seem to like princesses and dress up (boys too), and boys up to age 5 seem to generally all love trains (Thomas or anything else) with the tracks that come apart so you can re-configure and the trains that are magnetic so you can form long trains. Lego Duplos (the larger ones) are great to have on hand too. There are also cardboard bricks that you see at lots of daycares/schools that all kids love to build with, but they take up lots of space.
Nothing particularly new, but I second the train table. Boys and girls loooove these. For the little ones it's mostly about having a safe place to put them when you need to go to the bathroom or cook, so an exersaucer/walker/packnplay. And the list of library story times and any other play places in your area. Books with easy kid games might be nice too if you get stuck.... Good luck, you're doing a great thing!
Oh---and an idea I heard a looong time ago is to get a photo album for each kid. Foster kids tend not to have pictures of themselves growing up, and if you can provide a cheap easy slip-in-the-photo one, then they can have some documentation of themselves as a kid (some hopefully provided by you).
your friends photo album idea is excellent. Kids love to look at photos of themselves with other people. Take some quick photos the first few days, slip them into an cheap photo album and let them keep it in their room. Seriously helps the adjustment. Matthew loved his.
The Costco brand of wipes were a HUGE necessity in our lives! For babies/younger toddlers there are these great diaper changing pads that fold up and have a place for a couple of diapers and some wipes. GET ONE! Saved my life. It looks like a big clutch and can slip into a bag easily enough for a quick trip into a store, etc. We just refilled the wipes box from the big costco one and were on our way. Matthew was 2 1/2 when we got him and we used that for a good 6 months before we got him into pull-ups. A move to foster care can set a child back in the potty training area, so don't be surprised if accidents rise.
Oh, we got a mattress pad from IKEA that is awesome. I think they are $16.99 and repel water so nothing gets through it. Get 2 if you have a single bed. With younger kids you might have crib or toddler bed, but it is well worth it. Oh, and night time diapers! We had Matthew 2 weeks before we discovered those wonderful items! :-)
I'm sitting here looking at the things we bought we thought he would like and the things he actually plays with! Simple. No need to get complicated stuff.
CALL ME! I'll message you my number.
i third the train set idea. geotrax, brio, thomas, whatever. eli has been obsessed with trains since about 18 months. and his girl cousins are, too. both of my boys are crazy about anything with wheels. since the time they could sit up. matchbox cars, tractors, diggers, whatever. stuff that you can pick up in a trip to goodwill. and if the child is old enough not to put things in his mouth, throw all the cars/trucks/tractors into a box with beans or rice. there is something really therapeutic and soothing about the texture of a big pile of beans running through their fingers.
Sheet or blanket for tents, cardboard box to climb into, little (plastic or wooden) people or animals, play doh. A little apron for helping you in the kitchen. We get the best dress up clothes at Goodwill (and regular wardrobe items, too, actually.) Does your area have kids' consignment sales?
I am excited for you!
One more thought before I shut my trap - vinyl mattress covers (bed bath and beyond or lots of other places). They sell other waterproof covers or pads that are pricier/cushier but we've found that simple vinyl is the easiest, covers the whole bed and is easy to wipe down and quickly re-make a bed post-accident. They're like $10 apiece.
Thaks for all the GREAT comments on here and FB! So many ideas I would not cime up with on my own.
Animals. Schleich is a fabulous brand of hard plastic animals that are practically indestructible. They are wonderful. Cody has loved them since he was about 1, and we have developed quite a collection over the years. They are sold at Target, Hobby Town, Hobby Bench, and I'm sure other places as well. There are other brands, but Schleich is the best. They will outlast every kid you have and you can save them for the grands! :-)
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