Swingsets, Daycare Alternatives, Reward Charts, Sippy Cups, and Ice Skates From Our Members… (and some of our friends!) Originally printed in January, 2006 Question: We are in the processing of choosing a swingset for our 28-month old trio. What model/type would you recommend? What brand, if any, would you recommend? What type of wood would you recommend, or what to stay away from? Has anyone purchased the BJ's brand/model and, if so, are you happy with it? At what age were your kids when you bought your swingset and how long have you had it? ~Sharon R. I bought a Creative Playthings [swingset]. It has a double seat, two swings and one trapeze bar that they hang off of. It also has a house and green slide attached. My son, who is 4, climbed the structure three weeks ago and broke his elbow. I think 4 is a good age to purchase the swing set. The first year, they didn't use it at all. It was pretty expensive and when I went to BJ's, I thought the one there was comparable for much less. Creative Playthings has a great fifteen year warranty. ~Joanne C. We have a Rainbow playset. They have a showroom in Braintree. Its redwood and has a lifetime warrantee. We also looked at Creative Playthings and I liked them too. I liked the castle design of the Rainbow more. I'm not familiar with Backyard Adventures. We needed to get one that comes with assembly because my husband doesn't have the time to put it together. I've heard Costco has a nice one that is a Rainbow. As for age, we got ours in April when my girls were 25-months. They did great with it. It took them a few months to master climbing up the castle (it has a chain-link-cargo-net thing to climb). They were able to swing on the regular swings and I was happy not to have wasted money on the toddler versions. Another thing - In my neck of the woods, the Creative Playthings is the most popular overall, I'd say. I'd get the redwood since you plan on using it for a long while. [The company] will move it for you if you move too. ~Janice E. We bought a Rainbow when our boys were 28mo and it was one of the best purchases we’ve made! We have the Castle edition (trapeze bar, three sling swings, clubhouse with tire swing underneath, disc swing, rope ladder, rock climbing wall). It was expensive, but I knew it would get a lot of use and wear/tear. At the time we bought it, I thought it would be too much for my kids (I was wrong… they climbed the ladders like they were nothing). Some of the other stuff they grew into (the rock climbing wall and trapeze bar). I also have heard that Rainbow usually retains some of its value, in case you want to sell it in 10 years. We also did a lot of research and thought Rainbow fit our needs best. Not to mention, my husband is a tradesman and is very particular about how things are built! I know there is a showroom in Woburn, MA. ~Erin D. There are several great choices in swing sets. We bought one from Cedar Works five years ago when my triplets were just a year old and my older son was 5. It's a very solid, unpainted, splinter-free structure. There are lots of options, designs, and accessories. We assembled ours (it comes with instructional video). Although it is a heavy swing set, my husband and I have taken it apart once to move it across the yard, and that wasn't too difficult. But it is heavy enough that when my now 6-yo triplets and my 10-yo all swing at the same time, it barely rocks. My neighbor has a Rainbow swing set that is great too. The kids run from yard to yard playing on the different swing sets. One tip: if you get a swing set with the built-in sandbox under the climbing area, check if it will be easy to cover the sandbox when not in use. Roaming pets LOVE sandboxes... YUK! ~Sue J. I wrote an article for the newsletter [July 2003] about swingsets - area prep, the things to consider for kids' usage now and as they get older, and a bunch of other topics to consider when buying one. If you visit www.tripletsmomsandmore.org and look through the newsletter archive, you will find it. ~Catherine E. Question: My trio is almost 18-months and I'm beginning to think that they need some other stimulation than just being home during the day and doing occasional errands. During the day, they are home with my husband and at nights, they are home with me. I have called around to daycares and they charge around $140 for 2-days a week, then times this by three… Do you have any suggestions on how to find cheaper day care but not have to go to a lesser quality place? I’m also interested in any suggestions on what to do with them other than day care? ~Melanie M. My kids go to the YMCA. I work out for two hours and they play in the babysitting room with other kids. The family plan is $43 per month and babysitting is free. Also, I use them for the “in-between” hours. I work nights so I drop them off at 4pm for a reduced rate and hubby picks them up at 6pm. I also bring my 8-year old and he attends the after school program and has a good time. ~Joanne C. Barnes & Noble has story hours (free). Some Bruegger's used to have music hours. Learning Express, the toy store, has free story/craft hours. Local libraries have story hours and activities, and your town department of community services may offer inexpensive classes. I agree that outside stimulation is great. I think the Y is great for older kids in the drop-in program, and their dedicated pre-school/daycare programs seem good also, but I personally wouldn't drop off three toddlers into the drop-in program. Maybe it is just our Y, but the supervision and facility isn't that great in the drop-in room. I do think their classes (with a parent) are a tremendous value and they have them for all ages and activities (sports, enrichment, swimming). They swim the kids wearing "bubbles" so it may be feasible for your husband to take them for a class by himself if there are many instructors, or with one additional helper for three kids. It can be hard to find a smaller, cheaper program that can take three kids in diapers. The price you were quoted seems typical. I know some people have gotten their kids into town preschool programs as "model" kids even if they didn't qualify for early intervention. I’m not sure how to go about investigating that. Also, a membership to the Children's Museum in Acton, or the Museum of Science (that has a toddler play suite) is well worth it for a year of entertainment, if either are reasonably close to you. The Aquarium is great, but parking is expensive there. I understand that Perpetual Motion has reopened. ~Lisa G. Does your town have a resource center? In NH, we have the HUB and a Families First. Both of these programs have some neat programs set up for both the children and the parents. Some of them are free and some charge a small fee. You can check out the HUB's website at www.hubfamilies.org. I know this is far away from you, but there must be something around you that offers the same kind of thing. ~Marie D. Question: I was wondering if anyone used/had suggestions for a reward chart structure appropriate for 3-year olds. I also wondered if anyone had suggestions for playroom activities for kids this age. My playroom is not huge, but I have tried to make a kitchen area, etc. Are there ways/things to set up that are not too expensive? What about first games? I know the usual, but since my sons have developmental delays, I need to keep it simple and maybe find something that would help with OT skills. Any thoughts? ~Joan S. I painted a full wall with chalkboard paint. It has been the highlight of our playroom! There's enough room for all the kids to draw at the same time. Even with my kids getting older (11, 8, 8, 8), the neighborhood kids all come over for "school." Someone is elected teacher. They print up class work off the computer, go to the cafeteria (kitchen) for lunch and even get a visit from the principal (me) to make sure everyone is doing well in school. At the end of the school day, the custodian (me again) stops in to make sure THEY all clean up the classroom. Chalkboard paint is a very inexpensive, long-term addition to any room. It is dusty having a lot of chalk and erasing going on, but it's worth it! I remember hearing about magnetic paint too - paint a portion of a wall and the kids can stick those magnetic letters to it. ~Kim R. It is true about the magnetic paint. You paint the wall with it and then, can actually paint regular paint over it (to match the room) and it works great. I want to say Crayola makes one. Check both Michael’s and Home Depot. ~Shannon L. When we were teaching our children to use the potty, we had a sticker chart for each child (I had one too!). I used a piece of construction paper in each of their favorite colors and wrote their name in huge letters at the top. Each time they sat on the toilet they got a sticker (even if they didn't go). We went through many charts and they loved it. Getting stickers with favorite things such as trucks, flowers, etc., was more of an incentive. You could have one chart for both potty and good behavior. As for our playroom (a former 3-season porch that’s rectangular shaped), we divided it into different areas based upon their age and interests. We painted it bright yellow and have a mirror on one of the walls as soon as you walk in so it appears larger than it is. We had a kitchen area which included old boxes of cereal, measuring cups, oatmeal container, plastic cups, plastic utensils, oven mitts, timer, towels, bowls, etc., all of which are not expensive since you probably have many of these items in your house anyway. We have a book area, a small art area with a Little Tykes table and four chairs, and a science area (magnets, magnifying glass, matching games I've made from old subscriptions to Animal Baby, and other magazines). We incorporate nature and the seasons into the science area as well, for example, coloring snow in the winter, making leaf collages in fall, planting seeds in spring, etc. We have a flannel board with different flannel board stories. I made mine, but you can buy them at educational stores. In the dramatic play space, we rotate dress-up clothes of mine and my husband’s, former costumes, and shoes and have different themes like Barber Shop, Bakery, Supermarket, Fire station, etc. Your idea of a cardboard box is a great place to start. It can be storage for dress-up clothes and your children could decorate it. You could have more than one - boxes can be a million different things: spaceship, car, mailbox, house, airplane, toy box, computer, robot… wherever their imagination takes them! Maybe start with what they're interested in and go from there. ~Karen O. There is a website, www.chartjungle.com, where you can print out many different charts (i.e. bedtime, morning, potty). ~Susan H. Question: Does anyone know of any sippy cups out there that don’t leak but don't have a plug-thing inside them??? ~Shannon L. We ended up only using the Playtex brand sippy cups. It was the only type where the plug wouldn't fall out when thrown or tossed around. ~Joyce B. I have the Nuby Cups which are great for the price. I did have a problem, however. My son likes to bite and managed to put a hole in his. I also have Tomee Tipee cups that I bought online that came highly recommended. I think Baby Universe carries the line. I think they are imported from the U.K. They come two to a package and are not expensive. ~Michelle W. The Nuby cups have been great for us too, but like Michelle said, they can be bitten off. I found out today that anyone can purchase just the spouts in any style by contacting: Kimberleigh Holloway Customer Service Luv n' care, Ltd. Post Office Box 6050 Monroe, LA 71211 USA 1-800-LUV N CARE (588-6227) ext. 3106 kimberleighh@luvncare.com ~Marie D. Question: I'm enrollng my 7-year old in ice skating lessons and she needs figure skates. I'm going to try and get them used but I know nothing about which brand is a good brand or if there are other things I should know about getting decent skates. ~Jeanne S. I don't know which are the good brands, but you might go to a rink that has sales and check out which brands they sell. I know Phillips Academy rink in Andover sells good quality skates. Then, you can also check out the resale places for those brands. My kids have taken skating lessons for several years and we have just bought whatever fits from the resale skates or the cheaper figure skates if we have to buy new and the kids just care if they are comfortable. None of them are champion skaters, mind you! ~Lisa G.