Yesterday was the first day I looked after my 8.5 month old DD for three weeks because my parents have been visiting from the UK and boy was it a shock to the system. So I have two questions:

a) What do you do with your baby when you need to get something done ie. shower, load of washing etc. etc. It's been bliss to have those extra hands around but now I can't remember what I did before! Do you wait until your baby is asleep or do you leave baby in another room? I guess my frustration is that DD is now VERY active and we are about to renovate which means that barely any room is baby-proof (stuff everywhere and no storage space which means it HAS to be on the floor). I don't REALLY want a playpen because it's just another piece of clutter that I will have to put up with and the house is driving me nuts as it is. DD is very good at getting from A to B in record speed. Yesterday she crawled out of the bedroom and down our 15 metre hallway no problem at all!

b) How do you entertain your baby? My DD is pretty good - she will play with her toys but I think I should be playing with her more rather than letting her play on her own. I sing songs to her but it feels like I haven't taught her anything new for ages.


Interested in your thoughts.