Trapped toddler parents: support through winter and beyond

[squishymamma]

Following on from the previous thread:

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/_chat/4292353-Trapped-toddler-parents-Inspiration-and-support-needed-through-the-summer-hols

Not the most inventive name but apt I think...

I just typed a long message and for some reason it disappeared!

How annoying. Hope everyone has had a good day, it sounds like it. Motherofmonsters I hope your DS feels better, I can still smell wet paper towels from school! Lostthetastefordhalias I hope your DD enjoys all of her celebrations. bbo8 McDonald's and swimming sounds like great fun.

We've had the paddling pool and hosepipe out and water balloons as it's been so hot.

Sorry I haven't tagged properly, when I do try my phone just freezes for some reason.
Enjoy the opera Squishy.

Evening!

Hope everyone has had a good day!

We've had DH's family up for brunch and then a walk in the woods. It's been lovely

Annoyingly DS has had a very bad day of not listening, mucking about and being a general pain. I've confiscated his tablet until Tuesday which has gone down how you would imagine. I'm not sure if it's from DH actually being home for a whole day, people coming over, not being to therapy for a few weeks or he's just being a pain for funsies but it's been tough today.

However just changed the bed, had a shower, shaved by legs and now getting in. Nothing better sometimes

Hi everyone, Monday again!
We had a nice father's Day, went out for breakfast then we all went swimming.
Motherofmonsters that sounds like a nice way to end the day, hope you slept well.
At least the sun is out, males things easier.
Hope everyone is ok .

Hello hello,

We had a good time at the opera, makes you feel like a grown up person again when you do stuff like that!

@Motherofmonsters I hid DS1's tablet when we got back from the UK and he's forgotten it exists...he is only 2 though so not a long memory! Definitely noticed an improvement in mood though. Hope it helps your DS. Glad you had a good shower etc, it's the little things that get us through sometimes!

Sounds like a lovely day @Chocolatetrifle.

DS2 is the one being the biggest pain at the moment, he's teething and going through a sleep regression so it's been a bit rough. DS1 has been in a good mood generally. We went wading in the sea yesterday and met my pen pal from the US who was randomly over here, which was lovely!

DS1 is obsessed with Playdoh at the moment, just one specific set we have with a hairdressers...which happens to be my most hated because the "hair" never comes out properly and the head bit always pops off due to too much Playdoh pressure. Plus it requires way more parenting input than the other sets! But I guess it's better than the TV so will grin and bear it 😁

Hope everyone has a good Monday!

Ugh, I've just lost it , let boys out in the garden to play, what do they do? Turn garden tap on fill up buckets and throw them over their head, start whinging both at the same time and say they want to watch Tele instead of being outside! I want to scream!
I admit to throwing their soaking wet shoes across the garden!
Why can't they just play normally??????????

I'm going to make a coffee and hide in the toilet for a bit.

Hi all. @Motherofmonsters brunch and a walk in the woods sounds like a lovely day.
I’m glad you had a good time at the opera @squishymamma.

OH was home this weekend so we had a more relaxed day yesterday, then a roast chicken dinner in the evening.

Me, OH and DS took DSD to school this morning then walked to weatherspoons for Breakfast, which was really nice. DS sometimes gets fed up waiting for food when out but has got a lot better lately and sat really nicely drawing and playing with his cars. He then had sausages, beans and toast.

That is only too much what “playing normally” looks like over here @Chocolatetrifle but I know what you mean!! For some reason we are having nuclear levels of whinge from our 4 year old at the moment and I am always on the verge of losing it!

Hope the coffee has restored you a bit
I am still recovering from this morning when DS did the hugest dirty nappy I’ve ever seen, all over t shirt, shorts, changing table, living room floor. Once I had dealt with it as much as I could with wipes I had to put him in a bucket, wash him down, and then bleach the bucket. Then DH texted to complain that his secretary had not remembered to ask for hot milk in his coffee order again. CRY ME A RIVER 🙄😂

Lostthetastefordhalias 😮, no hot milk in the coffee after you were dealing with all the sh*it! OMG. Does DH not understand at all? !!!!

Well I sort of rallied them around a bit and took them out in the car , and we drove to next and had a look round and got them a warm milk in the Costa coffee shop, was quite pleasant in the end but I'm really looking forward to them going to bed tonight. I just need more sleep, ds1 for some unknown reason keeps trying to get up at 5 .45 every day. It's taking its toll. DH has gathered the sodden wet shoes I threw across the garden.
Tomorrow is a new day, and breathe.
Sounds like you have had a good day BEEO8, I'm glad.

Ok the sun is out and it's a brand new day!
So far we have made some lemonade ice lollies which are setting in the freezer, nothing fancy, just used shop made lemonade and the lolly moulds.

This afternoon I'm taking back control and going to the garden centre of course and going to get some pumpkins seeds to plant to see if we grow our own for Halloween.

Hope everyone has a good day.

Hi all!
I've posted on this thread but never returned (sorry!).
I'm a single mum to a 2 and 5 year old. I live in Lancashire and I also work part time.
Thinking ahead to the summer holidays and what activities I can plan to keep us all happy! I am NOT a stay at home person. I love to be out and about.
I don't really have any mum friends so would love to make some :)

Evening!

Love the positivity and action @chocolatetrifle, it sounds like you've had a good day. Did you find some seeds?

I picked up some courgette, tomato, beetroot and lettuce plants from ASDA this morning which we planted after school. Hopefully they won't die as DS was giving them kisses...

DS got his tablet back for about 5mins before he kicked off because I wouldn't let him watch Minecraft videos so it's back in tablet jail. Other than that it's been a good day.

Welcome back @wednesdayafternoon. I'm trying to think of things for summer to.
I can't stay home with them else they go loopy. Usually I plan to annoy PIL but MIL is having her hip replaced 3rd August so they will be out of action

Welcome back @Wednesdayafternoon , lots of support here and some ideas too.

I got the seeds and we put them in pots so let's see if we manage to grow a pumpkin for Halloween, I'm not holding out too much hope! It's been a better day, mainly because I've felt better. Any day I'm struggling with anything it makes my tolerance levels plummet, other days I'm like 'oh so you've poured a massive load of cereal on the floor, that's ok not to worry!'. Whereas yesterday I was mum from hell.
So I'm going to put myself to bed early every night to cope with these boys. Ds1 starts reception in September and dS2 preschool in January so things will change for me then. Does anyone else have any coping techniques?

Sleep well all.

Ps @squishymamma you need to check out the play dog dentist drill and fill kit!! 😃

Play doh not dog!!!!

@Chocolatetrifle my coping technique at the minute is mainly eating 😅 which I'm trying my best to break that habit but it's hard, I'm such an emotional eater!!

Thanks for all being kind, looking forward to chatting 🥰♥️

Anyone else got children who only talk about poo and constantly tell you they want to poo in your face etc etc or is it just mine 😳

Is it only Tuesday? Feels like it's been a week already...

Welcome back @Wednesdayafternoon , I really enjoy how many Northerners we have here. Since you're in Lancashire I can highly recommend Windmill Farm and Gulliver's World, we did those recently when back in the UK and DS1 (2yo) absolutely loved them. He's also a big playground fan so we usually drive around looking for new ones to visit.

@Chocolatetrifle early nights sound like a great plan! It's rough when they get up so early but it will pass, as all these phases do...one day they'll be teenagers and we'll struggle to get them up! Hope your pumpkins grow. I'll have to check out that Playdoh set!

@Motherofmonsters hope your plants grow well too, didn't realise you could buy all that from asda! I feel like I've missed the planting boat this year, maybe next year I'll be more organised.

DS1 woke up this morning with a swollen eye, it doesn't seem to be bothering him and he did a whole day in nursery (I told them to have a low barrier for calling if he didn't seem right). He's still not asleep, it's almost 9.30pm here. Just playing around in his cot and making loads of noise. It is really irritating (I am not an evening person) and I know he'll be knackered tomorrow.

DS2 is whining yet again (he's realised we can leave him and he's not a fan of that) so I'd best go see to him. Hope everyone gets some sleep!

I'm an emotional eater too, trying really hard to stop that. On a positive note I'm going to an exercise class on Friday, yes a real exercise class. Not been to one for years since before being pregnant with ds1. So, I've got some new gear and going to get myself fitter.

We have a lot of poo talk here too at the moment, poo, wee, stinks etc, it's great 🙄.

We live 5 minutes away from Gulliver's World 😊. Looking forward to going again next month.

Hope your boys settle tonight Squishy and dS1 eye gets better.

Morning all!

Last night was a car crash of a night, DS2 woke up basically every half hour complaining despite being in our bed and seemingly not having wind...and DS1 went to sleep at like 10pm then was up in the night, he still uses a dummy but DH was struggling to find them in the dark despite one being literally right on the top of the chest of drawers. Both eyes are now a little puffy but the one from yesterday is a bit better so he's at nursery again today and hoping it gets better. Maybe it's hay-fever...

I'm just about to get on with some work while DS2 naps, DH working late today but it's glorious weather so I think I'll try and keep DS1 outside as long as possible when I pick him up from nursery.

Hope you all have a good day!

PS i am also quite an emotional eater. Cheering you on @Chocolatetrifle, exciting to get back into the swing of exercise!

Good luck with today @squishymamma ! Its horrible when you dont get enough sleep and I forget to make things easy for myself sometimes. So please remember to do what you can to make it easier to get through today, and fingers crossed for a better night tonight.
I am with all the emotional eaters 100%! Some evenings by the time everyone is asleep all I can do is lie on the sofa watching a blank tv posting smarties into my mouth, because even finding the remote is way too much effort. I got a folding treadmill to try to exercise at home then promptly twisted my ankle at the weekend, so it hasnt been out the box yet.
We have had such a nice day so far today for DD’s 4th birthday. I snuck down with her early to open some presents and construct some of her new frozen lego. She was so excited by her presents. We had waffles for breakfast and DH is home because of the train strike too. She is at nursery this afternoon for her party there, and I am “wfh” & setting up the sandpit the PiLS got her. Sometimes its all worth it isnt it.

Oh and hello again @Wednesdayafternoon . Please do share any good summer activity ideas. We hired a beach hut last weekend which was really fun, depending on where you are. I also want to go to a pick your own fruit farm. I thought this article had a few good ideas (though many not suitable with preschoolers!) amp.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2022/jun/04/from-sundae-stations-to-snorkel-trails-30-ideas-for-cheap-fun-this-summer

Happy birthday to your DD @Lostthetastefordahlias , hope you are all having a lovely day. It's definitely all worth it yes 😊.
Hope you got your work done @squishymamma ? Hope tonight is better for you.

Happy belated birthday to DD @Lostthetastefordahlias! Hope she had a lovely party. I had a good chuckle at your smartie scoffing while staring at a blank TV because I have also done that! Also guilty of watching Paw Patrol for the same reason.

I was so tired I fell asleep at 9pm last night! Both DC slept better last night though thank god. But DS2 was a handful yesterday and then DH was working late so I had to entertain them both. DS1 has gotten really good at climbing so he was climbing on the little playground thing by ours and then insisted DS2 come down the slide with him. And go on the settings with him. Etc...

"Lazy" day today for us, DS1 at nursery so going to clean the house and do some more work hopefully. Hope everyone has a great Thursday!

Swings not settings!

Morning, hope everyone is ok. Glad you had a better sleep Squishy.

So far we've been to feed the ducks. Hopefully make the most of this good ,dry weather before it starts raining again tomorrow.

Ds1 has a visit from his new reception teacher at preschool this morning.

We had eggs for brekky so made some eggy heads as I had some cress seeds.

Hope everyone's day goes well.

@Chocolatetrifle Sounds like a good day, especially feeding the ducks.
@squishymamma DS loves his big sister to go on all the playground equipment with him too, especially the round about.

I’ve been to work and DS has been with my parents for the day. He goes with Nanny to a toddler group and he loves it there, especially the snack witch is homemade cakes and fruit.

DS feel asleep on the way home which is always are danger zone for naps, but stayed asleep bless him. I’ve put him to bed now, he did seem tried tonight, he spend quite a lot of time in their garden, eating raspberries as they are growing their own fruit and vegetables.