C will bolt whenever he gets a chance. He's run off through parking lots and into neighboring yards, and the minute the door opens to his daycare class he hightails it down the hallway. Since I'm now toting around an infant, I'm ill-equipped to chase after him.
He is getting better about holding hands since H scared the shit out of him with a "cars can hurt you" lecture, but I'm terrified he'll slip my vice grip and get hurt or lost.
We make "sandwiches". So a mommy sandwich is baby on one side, mom in the middle and DD2 holding my other hand. Or a DD sandwich puts her in the middle. Or baby in the middle with her holding the carrier. I distract her by putting ketchup, pickles, chocolate chips, etc on the sandwich to make her laugh and forget about the fact shes holding hands.
I also make a big deal about her helping me keep the baby safe by holding onto the carrier that the baby is in at any given time. She loves helping me keep her safe.
A friend gave it to me when I had DS2. I would have bet my last dollar that he would not have used it, but he did! He NEVER dropped it & ran, even though he was a runner if I tried to hold his hand. I think that's because it felt like his idea & he had all control.
We also had a backpack harness with a removable strap that we used in airports & at Disney/parades. He LOVED the backpack, so he didn't mind it when we attached the tether.
Does he hold onto a rope thing at daycare when they go for walks? I wonder if explaining it is like that, with his very own handle to hold on to would work? I dont know how they get them to hold on so nicely, maybe his teacher would have some suggestions.
Post by dcrunnergirl on Mar 3, 2015 23:28:45 GMT -5
My twins were like this such that I had to force them into the stroller if I wanted to go out on my own, even if it meant a tantrum, manhandling, and crying. Thankfully it got much better between 2.5-3 years old.
Post by barefootcontessa on Mar 4, 2015 0:41:57 GMT -5
I would keep trying the backpack leash. I would build in extra time for fits and bring treats for cooperation. Eventually my son got used to it and he used it every time we got out of car. The every time was key for us.
It can be so frustrating. A would run when she was mad, especially right after M was born. The worst was the day she ran out of a Picture People studio and into the mall. I ended up leaving M, who was newly mobile, in the studio, because I couldn't grab him and get her. She was out of the door and running down the mall hallway before I could grab her.
I'm going to try it out when we travel in a couple weeks. I'm optimistic since it's stretchy. DS hated the feeling of the backpack leash, and it threw off his balance.
I know this might not help when you have the baby, but I always give the choice - hold hands or be carried. She usually concedes to hand holding if her other option is to not walk at all. Very rarely is she allowed to walk without holding hands because she might run.
Post by twolittlecheers on Mar 4, 2015 8:19:30 GMT -5
Dd was for a while. When I had a newborn I bought one of these things that velcroed to both our wrists. It didn't take her long to know she had to stay near me. It taught her how far a way she could walk from me. You could do the same thing with a ribbon. I felt better because it wasn't one of those back pack leashes and it was attached to me too.
Put the baby in a carrier, and the C in a stroller? I dealt with two runners, and it sucked. I remember one time very clearly when I was leaving the gym with DS2 in the infant seat and DS1 was just a couple months older than 2. He took off through the parking lot. I couldn't chase him while carrying DS2 so I had to put the baby down and chase DS1. Awful choices to make.
When DS2 got to the running stage, DS1 thought it was hilarious and would run the opposite way (when they were around 1.5 and 3.5 years old). Yeah. I started keeping my double stroller in the car and strapping them both in, even for the shortest walk (like, from my car to the daycare door). It was a hassle, to be sure, but it saved my sanity. It was only for a short period of time though.
I have to grip N's hand by the wrist to keep him from pulling/running away when I let him walk. I end up carrying him most of the time, due to his penchant to run an any opportunity.
We usually turn it into a game of some sort too, and I try to distract him by pointing out things we see (sun, cars, birds, trees, puddles). If he's focused on something, he's less likely to run.
Following this for advice too! DD will often wet noodle herself if I make her hold hands. I end up carrying her while she shrieks because she wants to run wild in the street and whatnot.
Post by DarcyLongfellow on Mar 4, 2015 12:20:54 GMT -5
My DD1 wasn't really a runner, but here's what I did for her -- maybe you can do something similar.
First, I scared the everloving shit out of her regarding streets and cars. I rarely raised my voice at her when she was a toddler (notice the past tense), but if she ever stepped a foot in the road I would get right in front of her (to block her) and say "NO" very loudly and sternly. We also talked at length about how a car could hurt her.
Second, any time there was about to be a situation where she could bolt, I'd prep her beforehand -- "We're about to get out of the car and walk into the grocery. What are we going to be walking on? (the street) What do we do on the street? (hold hands)"
Third, I taught her what to do if I said, "FREEZE." We played a sort of red light, green light game, and she learned what it meant. I still use that trick now at 5.5. If I say freeze, she knows to freeze.
Good luck -- none of that is easy with an infant in tow!!!