These are tough times we are going through in the world right now, especially for parents, and working {from home} ones at that. My husband and I are currently working from home, with 2 boys under 4. We have a travel addiction, so this has proven to be a difficult time to say the least. Last year we traveled to a new country every month.

“It was amazing as we plan for travel in our downtime, between our traveling, if that makes sense.” We are always planning for our next trip. It makes us as a family happy. Then covid19 happened and it changed everything, rocking our world.

We too, like many of you, had travel plans. This summer was to be a dream come true traveling from Singapore → Canada → Hungary → Czech → Austria → Sweden → Denmark, then back home to Singapore. But just like all of you, that has all been canceled now.

We found our boys throwing tantrums when they usually wouldn’t, and the two of them being more emotional than usual. What was wrong? What were we doing wrong as their parents? ...should we change our routine?

Our family thrives on routine. We have our routine during the week with school and work mixed in with our little outings, then on the weekends and during holidays, we travel. It has just always been the way for the last 4 years. Now, it all changed, and we needed to figure out how to make it work with 2 months of quarantine looming in front of us. 

Honestly, we are loving it and will find going back to work to be more challenging than expected. So, what are we doing? How are we surviving?

Stick to the Schedule (mostly)

Making a schedule is important for toddlers, so they know what to expect next. Routine is key, always. Don’t worry about the exact timing as all days will be different and for different families. However, keeping the order is what works with our 2 boys. An example of our current routine:

• First our boys have their breakfast and change into their clothes for the day.

• Then, our eldest has a 10-minute zoom session with his teacher and classmates.

• Then, both boys watch and participate along with a ‘kids sports’ exercise video on YouTube.

• Then, the boys have music singalong time with a 25 minute YouTube video.

• Then, it is outside time with the balance bikes and scooters.

(p.s. The scooters were definitely one of the best $100 spent ever! The kids love them. Our youngest who is just 22 months old is riding it for a kilometer at a time, easily). *Here in Singapore, you are allowed out for exercise and to get essentials such as groceries and whatnot. Otherwise, you must stay in. So, this is their outdoor exercise time.

• Then, home for lunch and afternoon nap.

Toddlers especially crave routine. They thrive on it and it controls the chaos when they know what happens next. If you ask our 1 year old what time it is after exercises...he yells, “SING-A-LONG TIME”. He’s a very communicative boy, we are lucky that way.

Ensure Rotation of Activities often Inside

For everything we do inside, we ensure each is relatively short. It keeps the kids engaged. Having two active boys means it is always go go go. So for example, although both the exercises and the Sing-along are on YouTube, they are two different things and keep the kids engaged for almost an hour. It is great! Anytime we are doing an art activity or we are playing with the Lego blocks, we keep the activity for approximately 45 minutes. 

Again, whatever works for you and your family is best, but that is what we find works for ours. To be honest, every day, and every activity is different. Like who knew that toddlers love chasing the pointer light as much as the cats do? HA! Try it! Read the signs your kids are giving you and follow those. If you see they are getting bored or irritated it means they are done with the activity. Move on and if need be, finish it another day. This is all for them anyway, isn’t it?

Use of Different Rooms

We have found that strategically putting toys in different rooms has proven to help keep their sanity, and let's face it ours, for hours on end inside – where they could only stay inside for two hours maximum in the past...no joke! Use the living room, the bedrooms, the bathrooms – use them all!

Having specific things in different rooms allows for change, a big change as it involves movement. We have a toddler kitchen in our eldest boy's bedroom. It keeps both of our kids entertained for at least an hour every night. It. Is. Great! 

In our bathroom, although we don’t have a proper bath, we have a blow up bath, which is great for water play. We live in the tropics, so these boys get so sweaty every day. Water play is essential and they love it! Finally, the living room has most of their toys, and we rotate which toys are out front on a regular basis, so they don’t get bored. It has worked so far!

Use of TV for different activities

We too are those people that do not like our kids watching {meaningless} TV all that often. We think it’s a bit of a babysitter and we like to spend our time with the kids when we are usually at work for the better part of the day.

With that said, the TV is not  your enemy, especially now that people are working from home. There are so many wonderful things it can be used for. It is a tool! Do not be afraid of it. It also ensures you keep your sanity! Hook the TV up to the internet, and play some exercises on it for the kids. 

Our toddlers specifically love Little Sports  on YouTube. There are many videos to choose from and they are animated kids that my toddlers especially love following along with. There are lots of breaks and the exercises are easy. My 22-month-old even loves doing most of them. In terms of how long, I would say just to follow your child. Each child will be able to maintain their focus for a different amount of time. Our eldest (almost 4) is good to follow a 15-minute exercise video.

Another great tool the TV can be used for is music. Have the kids listen/watch sing-along songs on TV. The animations are great to keep them intrigued for a long period of time so you can drink your coffee in peace. A suggestion from us would be Gigglebellies. They are very colourful, and have jazzed up versions of old nursery rhymes, so everyone can enjoy the music. Sesame Street, Super Simple, and Cocomelon also have some good sing-along videos on YouTube that my active toddler boys love to watch and sing along to for 30 minutes.

MAKE A MESS!

Finally, make a mess and don’t worry about it! One thing parents always worry about is having a tidy house.

You know what? No one is coming over, so it is time to let loose!

Don’t stress the small stuff! If the kids want to build a jumping zone or a fort or an obstacle course with couch cushions, not only let them do it, but join in! It is so much fun!

Drawing all over the floor is equally as fun as well, and feels a little devious at that! If you have tiled floors, the whiteboard markers wash off incredibly easily.

So, let the kids draw all over the floor. In saying that, the little ones may get some sneaky ideas for after, so maybe ensuring that the markers are in a safe, high up storage place after is a good idea!

Sit on the kitchen floor, paint some pictures, and allow the kids to paint themselves. To be honest, our boys enjoyed painting themselves more than the pictures I had all carefully planned out… STOP PLANNING! Get the paint out and see what they do with it. They may surprise you with their creativity (on the floor -- which is why you’re in the kitchen).

This is a tough time, I know. However, try your best to simply enjoy this time, because you will never again have a time in your life where everything is shut down and the country is telling you to just spend time with your family!

Further reading:

- Classic card games to play with your youngsters

- This year's must have toys - according to kids

- Fire their maginaton with these dressing up ideas

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