Keeping one year-old out of the kitchen
We have a one year-old son who we can't keep out of the kitchen. When someone is in the kitchen, he likes to come and stand next to them, grab onto their legs and try to reach things on the counter. Obviously this is not safe as there are knives, hot liquids, etc. that could easily injure him in an accident. We try to move him out of the kitchen as quickly as possible while saying "no", but he usually just comes crawling right back. This can make it almost impossible to work in the kitchen when only one person is at home and sometimes we have to let him stay under-foot just to get things done.
Unfortunately, we live in a small studio so there is no natural separation between the living/dining room and the kitchen and it is not possible to install a baby-gate or any kind of barrier.
Any suggestions for how to approach this problem?
(4)4 Comments
Sorted by latest first Latest Oldest Best
My kitchen also has an "open" plan, so a baby gate wasn't an option. If a playpen or other enclosure isn't possible, or if your son is too distraught at being "abandoned," consider putting him on your back. A back-carrying position keeps a toddler satisfied at being attended to, but away from any dangerous kitchen activities. This can be achieved with a backpack (which can a bit on the expensive side) or a cloth wrap.
picture from WrapYourBaby.com, which also includes instructions and video
I personally found back-carrying to be the simplest solution when I needed to putter around the kitchen with a baby. I avoided things like frying (risk of grease splatter), but I found most typical kitchen tasks could be easily accomplished with little to no worry.
I would suggest a Mother's Helper (also called a Kitchen Helper). This allows your toddler to hang out in the kitchen with you - and even help out with simple tasks, which in my opinion is a great start to being a helper with kitchen tasks like doing the dishes or cooking.
The toddler stands inside of it, and is able to reach the counter (put it where that is a safe thing of course!). It's much smaller than a playpen, so good for conserving space, and lets the toddler feel like he/she is helping mommy/daddy. You can give him/her a spoon and a bowl with something to stir, for example, or even just some of his/her normal toys that won't get too involved if the current cooking project isn't something that small hands can "help" with.
Picture from Amazon.com
You don't need a door to the kitchen in order to divide it off - you can get little baby-fences that are kind of like baby-gates but wider.
Example:
That's a 'BabyDan Configure Gate' but there's a bunch of different brands. With most of them you can buy extra modules to go on each end, to make it as long as you like.
Of course you can make the gap narrower first with some judicious placement of cupboards / booksheves / etc.
Erica's suggestion of a sling is good as well, of course.
If you can't separate the area there's little you can do. Toddlers do follow parents whenever they can, for us it happens even if one parent is engaged in play with the child and the other does something - our LO will "switch" and go from one parent to another with no apparent reason.
You can try to ignore the child disturbing your work in kitchen whenever it's safe. Never pick him up, never entertain him in any way. In time, he may learn that kitchen is not a place to "play" with parents. He'll still do it, but the interruptions may become less interrupting:)
A playpen is always an option, possibly a tourist-portable one. You can't separate the kitchen from the rest of the apartment, but you can separate the baby from it. Your son will most likely not like it, but you'll get something done in the kitchen.
Terms of Use Privacy policy Contact About Cancellation policy © freshhoot.com2025 All Rights reserved.