I love my children but I hate weekends with them

I think it's fun to link up with friends or relatives for a bit. Have some kind of a theme eg The Paris Olympics Kid Version.

In the summer municipal paddling pools can be lovely. Bus trips and train trips are also fun. Or going to look at animals whether it be ducks in a pond or horses in a field or looking at bugs.

Young kids are easy to entertain on a v low budget as everything is new and a novelty for them. What are your kids passionate about?

Also yes to this, although I'm an 80s child so even more benign neglect 😂

We've recently had to cut down a lot of the stuff we did due to cost of living and I'm refusing to feel guilty about it. Just spending time with their siblings is important for them

Mine are 4 and 18 months. We tend to do parks or museums on the weekends. If it's been a hard week (like this one), then short walks, garden play, and TV/music at home. Take the pressure off and just do really simple things. It makes it more enjoyable when not dealing with the guilt you should be enjoying every minute and doing wonderful things every weekend

Oh stop it.

OP, ignore the trolls. I know exactly what you mean. It's exhausting and dull and also involves a lot of breaking up sibling rows. We rarely have what I would call a relaxing weekend.

I think this does get easier as they get older. My 7yo is now a lot easier to just chill with. But I still have a toddler so no respite for a while

Do tell me to do one if you don’t want suggestions because I am all about the empathy when it comes to entertaining a 3 year old and a baby! But, if funds allow, what about nice gardens or an NT property or something if that’s your bag? We have a spectacular garden quite near us that also happens to have a great play area and a wee train. DC get to do what they want and we also get to spend some time in more beautiful nature than the local cops 😂

If you didn't have them, what would you spend your weekends doing?

What are your own passions?
If cooking you can do baking or mud pies
If art you can draw chalks on the pavement or make designs with a watering can and water
If you love sports then have novelty races
If you love to read do some reading activities
What is DH bringing to the table at weekends?

OP do you have DP? If so take some time each weekend away from the kids (and give them the same). Having something to look forward to and break up the time will help.

When it comes to small children, yes. Also, possibly your parents. Outside of that, no.

1 year old entertaining themselves... they empty a cupboard in the kitchen of all the contents. I cared for child who loved doing that from the point she could crawl. She had a cupboard with lots of plastic tubs, lids, so she could empty it.

Finding things that don't bore YOU to tears is not the objective. It will be boring for you. It will be repeating the same things over and over again, which is going to be boring for you.

I think you need a contrast to how you spend the rest of the week so it depends on what weekdays look like for you.

Do you have some "me time" at the weekend for yourself?

Getting outside is vital with those ages. Twice per day, go for a walk, whatever the weather. If it is raining, go out and watch the water going down the drains, go under a tree/inside large bush and see how the rain gets stopped by the leaves.

If it's dry, walk to a playground and take snacks+drink with you.

I love my weekends with my kiss but I get our alot if I go the park I get a friend to join and the time flies by. Plus kids love playing with other kids. If I stay in the house time seems to go slow and they end up fighting. So get out as much as you can and if you can meet a friend you also get some social time.

Those of you having a go at OP for not liking weekends, have you had a 1 and 3 year old?
You love their bones but they can be Incredibly hard work, and some days time seems to move as slowly as treacle.
I'm with you OP, I much prefer structured days where we're out and being social, but the days at home just drag sometimes.
I find sunny days much easier as we can all be in the garden with the paddling pool and some toys, but I still clock watch for DH to go home.

And I adore my kids, just like I'm sure OP does.

I totally agree, spending long chunks of time with children that age is boring, even if you love them more than life.

My daughter wanted to do imaginative play for hours and hours when she was little - I found it mind numbing. She didn't even try to do it with her dad, as I don't think he entertained it - but I sort of felt I had to. I actually used to take her over to my mom's a lot, as my mom used to like doing it!

It does get SO much better, I promise you. Once my daughter was about 6 or something I started to really enjoy conversations with her - now she is absolutely my favourite person to be with and my best friend.

I would say, don't put too much pressure on yourself re screen time. Allow some - it breaks the day up and helps everyone relax and chill - it also actually helps fuel their imagination if you watch decent stuff! (Films, nature documentaries, musicals - you can find stuff that inspires them, and its fine as long as it is in moderation) . I accept that is an unpopular idea on here......

It’s tough at that age. I found it helped to get out for an hour or two each day.

I absolutely love my children beyond words but I find weekends really hard.

SEN DS means that everything is very challenging, exhausting and it’s hard to get anything done around the house.

I want to relax, enjoy time together and get little jobs done. But that is all quite rare 😞

I am not a fan of the early years myself, even with the children I love more than anything else in this world. You have to be ON DUTY constantly. At least when they are school age they can amuse themselves for more than ten minutes. I coped by having a raft of Things To Do. I did my best to include household things like emptying the wastepaper baskets but it was hard going.

Would your just turned 1 year old genuinely be happy to play, draw, read stories, watch TV etc? I don’t know if I just produce feral children but my just turned 1 year old is only happy if he is on the move, occasionally crawling, but usually running towards something he shouldn’t be! Toys engage him for approx 0.2 seconds!

Have a schedule like wefly has suggested. Children like routines, they may not always show it, but they like to know what is coming next.

Non napper - good time to do something 1:1 with them. Making a cake, decorating biscuits, reading books, playing a board game or some other game which younger sibling would not like.

Children don't need constant entertainment. Have some time where they just potter around. They entertain themselves, you have a cup of tea, observe them but don't interfere unless a safety issue.