Diaries of a Diaper Bag: November 2008

Raising a toddler is hard work ... especially when they are "spirited," a term Ambyr uses to describe her active son.

Do parents with more-active-than-usual two-year-old carry anything special in a diaper bag?"A notepad for me to write things down on," Ambyr says,

"and Luke loves to scribble on paper. Nail clippers, just in case. And of course, our favorite train, plane and auto-mobile."

Ambyr chose this Skip*Hop diaper bag because she likes the clips that attach to a stroller,

and the messenger style bag.

"Parents of spirited children may find themselves in a Catch-22," Ambyr explains. "They want to get out with their children to help socialize their child, but they hesitate because their child doesn't play well with other kids."

Ambyr says getting out, joining a play-group or attending a mommy-and-me class is essential. "It takes a lot of pride swallowing," she explains, "because when your child miss-behaves other people really don't understand what it is like to be in your shoes."

So, what to do?

#1. One solution Ambyr offers is to start a play-group.

When her son was little, she organized a group of moms to meet weekly and rotate from house to house. "I loved that time," Ambyr says. "I loved talking with other moms and I loved having Luke play with other kids his own age."

As the children grew, the play-group moved to the park.

Recently Ambyr began an "ABC" school. "Basically it's a play-group with a purpose," she says. Once a week the children meet at some one's home and learn about a letter in the alphabet.

"My son wasn't ready for pre-school, and neither was I," admits says. "So when a friend mentioned this to me, I knew it was something I could do and wanted to start."

#2. Try a play-based class:

Ambyr formerly enrolled Luke in a "Little Hands" co-op program.