Does anyone else look back & wonder how they did the pre-school childcare years?!

[Echobelly]

I certainly do. We had half the money and double the costs (childcare, and a mortgage we are very lucky not to have any more). Also that we were working and in the office 4 days a week... I kind of can't believe we did that now!

Yes. I worked on a bank trading floor, I had to be in by 7am. DS was a trader for the same bank and was expected in by about 6.30am. I used to get up at 5.15am, get myself ready for work, then get a 1yr old & 3 yr old up and out by 6am. Hour commute, with 2 kids and drop them off at the nursery directly behind work which opened at 7am, to get to my desk (late) at about 7.10am. DH used to pick them up at 5pm so I could stay late, given I got in ‘late’. It was a fucking nightmare looking back. DC are 13 & 15 now and no lasting damage, but I can’t believe that was our set up.

In many ways I am finding the teenage years harder.

DH was a trader - not DS obviously, he was only 3. Although tbh, probably could have done a better job than some of the traders in those days….

My children are now adults and I look back and wonder how the hell I did any of it! - all that cooking for five people year in year out! And all the rest of it! No wonder I am crumbling away!

Yes! We had 4 in 6 years and DH was working nights so I basically did all the childcare. I have no idea how I did it.

I have 4 DC the 3 youngest in 3 years.

I must have been insane.

Teenage years nearly finished me off.

Yes dh is military and based 6 hours away. 2 years between our kids.

No! Because although it was expensive, nursery was open 50 weeks of the year, 8am-6pm, rain or shine.

Now I'm contending with school and honestly it feels like they are always on holiday so not only is it still quite expensive but I have to be much more organised and creative 😕.

One of the toughest bits was when oldest started school and DS was at nursery so I got to home tube station where I'd parked the car nearby so I could picke up oldest from after-school childminder (5 min drive, and I drove to the station in the morning just to park even thought it was only a 5 min walk there), then went back home and picked up DS from nursery 200m from our door and somehow this whole thing between getting out of the tube and getting home managed to take about 40 minutes. No, I don't know how either. But the first few months it filled me with a kind of inner rage (which I dutifully stuffed down) but thankfully that passed once I decided to accept things as they were.