Other than that, I feel like the stages I was really done with are already over.
Mostly this. Mine are 9 and 7. Really the next big milestone is staying home by themselves. The 9 year old can but I don’t want them both home alone especially for a longer period of time. So I guess the milestone is less stay home and more get off the bus and be home alone for 1.5 hours before I get home from work. Be able to be home by themselves for 3 hours so we can have a date night. Not have to pay for aftercare and summer camp, although our childcare costs have really gone down and I think summer camp is good.
I just re- read this, and no I’m not still wiping their butts lol.
I want to add stop doing DD’s hair to my list, and if she can stop having nightmares and shower 100% without help that would also be nice.
Post by thebreakfastclub on Jan 20, 2020 19:17:25 GMT -5
I wouldn't mind if my almost 7yo could age rapidly like kids in soap operas and maybe be 12 now. I'm ready for junior high, lol. Thank goodness I only had one, I'm not super cut out for it.
Post by Velar Fricative on Jan 20, 2020 19:59:57 GMT -5
I can’t wait to...
1) Stop paying for daycare (September cannot come soon enough...thank you NYC for free 3K!)
2) Be done with diapers AND potty training. I actually hate diapers less than potty training and the period immediately thereafter because at least with diapers, I’m good as long as I have diapers and wipes anywhere I go. Finding bathrooms, avoiding accidents in public, etc. is so much more annoying.
3) Be done with harnesses on the car seats.
4) Reclaim my living room since half of it is a play area.
I haaaate having to remind and get Ds1 ready in the morning. So painful and annoying and frustrating. When he can do that himself I will throw a party. Ds2 at 4 already seems to have a better grasp on how to get himself ready.
They get up on the weekends and get cereal for themselves, I highly recommend. Ds1 is 7 and pours milk for ds2.
Also if I could skip ahead to when they eat like normal people are aren’t so picky that would be great.
My coworker and her nine-year-old daughter invited me and my kids (4 and a month shy of 2 at that time) to their house, and after seeing me frequently checking on the 2YO and explaining 17 times why he couldn’t touch something, she looked at me wide-eyed and said, “Oh my god, I forgot how fucking exhausting it is. I don’t know how you do it.”
It was nice to hear because everyone else always just smiles and says something like, “You’ll miss these days someday soon” and it was very validating for someone else to recognize that it is so tiring and it takes a lot of work! And he’s an easy kid! Toddlers are just a lot of work, period.
DH also taught DS1 how to pull a shot of espresso from his automatic machine, so now DS1 will pull a shot and take it up to DH in bed. lol
H did this too, so now DS will put a K cup in the machine, pull the lever down and push the correct button. Then he comes running in the living room to tell us "coffee's done!" so we can go get it (we won't let him carry it to us-he's only 2).
I'm loving DS at the stage, but I'm so ready to be done with diapers and car seats! I also can't wait to sleep in in the morning on weekends as well-or at least not have to rush to get up. It's rare I sleep past 7am on my own anyway, but the day DS can get up and turn on cartoons and make his own breakfast will be a glorious one...
My coworker and her nine-year-old daughter invited me and my kids (4 and a month shy of 2 at that time) to their house, and after seeing me frequently checking on the 2YO and explaining 17 times why he couldn’t touch something, she looked at me wide-eyed and said, “Oh my god, I forgot how fucking exhausting it is. I don’t know how you do it.”
It was nice to hear because everyone else always just smiles and says something like, “You’ll miss these days someday soon” and it was very validating for someone else to recognize that it is so tiring and it takes a lot of work! And he’s an easy kid! Toddlers are just a lot of work, period.
H and I went to a get together at his co worker’s house last month and it was the first time in 7 years I was able to just chat and eat without following a kid around. We checked in with them occasionally but they just played with the other kids there. It was amazing.
- be able to take an uber/Lyft with kids or travel without car seats
It would have made life so much easier so many times (like when our flight was cancelled and we were stranded at the airport until DH could get us with car seats, or when we were in Vegas and so tired of walking).
abs, I’m with you on this sweet spot. My boys are 6 and 9, and honestly, things are pretty easy right now. Other than staying home alone, I think we’ve passed every stage here...which makes me happy and sad at the same time.
However, I know that within a couple of years, I’ll have quite a few things to add to this list!
Generally I am enjoying toddlerhood way more than babyhood. Dd (32 mo) is a pretty great traveler and sleeper, BUT...
- Sleeping in more, or not having to set my alarm to get up, just so I can have some quiet time in the morning before she gets up.
- Going to any restaurant, anytime, withour considering how toddler friendly is it, or how dd might do given her current mood.
- Traveling & picking the destinations without giving too much thought about how age appropriate it is. (Ex: We currently avoid major cities or destinations where we would want to be too active. When she’s not napping and able to walk/hike/explore more without our assistance, that will be nice.)
I'd like to be able to enjoy evening events and activities without having to leave early to put kids to bed or deal with the inevitable awful sleep that comes with a too late bedtime. I'm also so so tired of having to explain to family members that no, my kids will not sleep in later just because they are up later.
I'd also really like to be through this picky eating phase with my 5 year old. I just want to make one meal a night.
Post by somersault72 on Jan 21, 2020 8:50:18 GMT -5
For the toddler --get to sleep in at all --quit being so damn messy (at the very least not have food dropped/spilled/thrown all the time) --be better about cleaning up her toys
For the 11 year old --stop being so fucking annoying. I love that child more than life, and he has a million great qualities but OMG he is SO obnoxious these days. Apparently it's somewhat normal (judging by my flame free post on FB last night), but my God stop already.
DS (3.5) -Stop saying variations of but whhhhyyyy? all.the.time -Stop wiping his butt and being fully daytime potty trained. As in I no longer have to monitor when he last went to the bathroom in conjunction with how much liquid he's consumed. -Being less of a picky eater
My coworker and her nine-year-old daughter invited me and my kids (4 and a month shy of 2 at that time) to their house, and after seeing me frequently checking on the 2YO and explaining 17 times why he couldn’t touch something, she looked at me wide-eyed and said, “Oh my god, I forgot how fucking exhausting it is. I don’t know how you do it.”
It was nice to hear because everyone else always just smiles and says something like, “You’ll miss these days someday soon” and it was very validating for someone else to recognize that it is so tiring and it takes a lot of work! And he’s an easy kid! Toddlers are just a lot of work, period.
Yes to all this!
It is so interesting to watch DD2 grow up. I'm enjoying her baby/toddler years SO much more than I did with DD1 since I have experience now. Knowing she's our last, I'm trying to enjoy it and not wish the time away, but it *is* fucking exhausting! I know it gets easier which is helping me get through it.
DD1 is at a really good age right now (4.5). I'm looking forward to when DD2 is 3, I feel like that's when she got a lot easier. She was PTed, could play by herself a bit, we started going to restaurants again, etc, etc. Further out I look forward to daycare payments going away (2 in daycare is killing us ) and someday not having to pay for babysitters so we can actually go out again.
I can hardly read this b/c I am really emotional lately for some reason about time passing. All of my kids are having birthdays, and my birthday is next week, and it's all just going too fast!
I hear everything you are saying, totally. And I was there and still am in some stages, but my youngest just turned five now and will be in kindergarten next year, and I've gone from being slightly jealous of the mom shopping alone, to being slightly jealous (!!) of the mom with two toddlers in the cart.
Last night my oldest was trying on a sweatshirt and pulling at it b/c she "doesn't want anyone to notice her nipples" and I gave her a big hug...and had this flashback to when she was like 3 and tiny and I could hug her whole body on my lap, and I started totally crying out of the blue. Even when you try to be in the moment and enjoy the little stages, time just keeps flying by and you can't quite ever get your arms around it. I wish so much I could time travel...not back to days of being exhausted and covered with spit up or having mastitis, but just for a few hours of being able to hug my tiny people or sit on the couch and snuggle with them. It's hard b/c as time passes, those memories fade. You just can't hold on to the REALITY of them. Like I can still clearly remember my youngest being a baby, and I know just what it feels like to hold her b/c I still can, but I can only remember those things with my oldest already in a sort-of more distant and vague way. It makes me sad.
At the same time, I can appreciate so much about where we are now, and the things we can do together. I love seeing my kids at every stage. It is fascinating to watch them grow and change, and I also know how lucky I am that I have that chance...that my kids are healthy and doing well. Still, it just is soooo bittersweet all the time.
flygirl, mine are 5 and 7 and now I give them a list to pack from and they are responsible for getting everything and laying it neatly on my bed so I can just check it over quickly and pack. Saves so much time!
I had a 4 year old over as a drop off playdate to give my friend a break. OMG I don't miss the constant vigilance needed for a younger kid. My kids are fine one their own for a bit in the playroom/bedrooms/watching TV if I need a nap, shower or have to wrap work in the home office.
An exuberant 4 year old required constant attention. I am sure he's better at home where there are routines he knows but wowzer I was wiped out after 3 hours.
For when my kid finally realizes that yes, you have to get up and get ready for school M-F and it's not like groundhog day every morning. I mean, come on, at 6, she should be able to get up and get dressed with minimal direction from me, but NOPE to that.
I can hardly read this b/c I am really emotional lately for some reason about time passing. All of my kids are having birthdays, and my birthday is next week, and it's all just going too fast!
I hear everything you are saying, totally. And I was there and still am in some stages, but my youngest just turned five now and will be in kindergarten next year, and I've gone from being slightly jealous of the mom shopping alone, to being slightly jealous (!!) of the mom with two toddlers in the cart.
Last night my oldest was trying on a sweatshirt and pulling at it b/c she "doesn't want anyone to notice her nipples" and I gave her a big hug...and had this flashback to when she was like 3 and tiny and I could hug her whole body on my lap, and I started totally crying out of the blue. Even when you try to be in the moment and enjoy the little stages, time just keeps flying by and you can't quite ever get your arms around it. I wish so much I could time travel...not back to days of being exhausted and covered with spit up or having mastitis, but just for a few hours of being able to hug my tiny people or sit on the couch and snuggle with them. It's hard b/c as time passes, those memories fade. You just can't hold on to the REALITY of them. Like I can still clearly remember my youngest being a baby, and I know just what it feels like to hold her b/c I still can, but I can only remember those things with my oldest already in a sort-of more distant and vague way. It makes me sad.
At the same time, I can appreciate so much about where we are now, and the things we can do together. I love seeing my kids at every stage. It is fascinating to watch them grow and change, and I also know how lucky I am that I have that chance...that my kids are healthy and doing well. Still, it just is soooo bittersweet all the time.
Me too. I'm sitting here nursing DD2 (our last) aand I can't take it. DD1 is 4.5 and SOOOOO WHINY, but she's getting so big. I didn't realize how big she was until the first time I held her after DD2 was born. Yesterday I was filling out paperwork for kindergarten registration - WHERE DID THE TIME GO?!
Okay, so after bringing the thread down with my emoting...
--what I am so happy about and really appreciate is that now I can go to a party, and the kids can go play. I don't have to spend the whole time chasing someone up and down stairs or nursing in a back room. --also as nice as nursing was sometimes, it was sooo freeing to be done with that stage. --related to the first one, when I go to one kid's soccer or whatever, I can actually sit and watch, b/c the little kids can play on the playground on their own without me hovering around and pushing baby swings.