to think that as a sahm with a toddler and primary aged dc life is actually harder in tsrm time

[coolcookie]

So you often see people on posts saying your dc bar preschooler are at school 6 hours a day you should be able to do x y and z etc.
Well in the school holidays I find older 2 play with toddler giving me time to tidy etc. There are no endless schoolruns. Well 2 morning and 2 afternoon. No endless dragging toddler to older dc after school activities etc.
The older 2 make much less mess than toddler and I have more time to get things done. Or we go out for the day and it stays tidy.
Aibu

yanbu the hardest time ever was one at school, one at home. Two at home was lovely and two at school is great but the bit in the middle was crap, especially home time school run when baby/toddler was generally wanting to nap.

yanbu

i also found it much easier to invite a mates over rather than just one dc to entertain (primary age),rather than follow me about

all mine are at primary/secondary the youngest and oldest love spending time together after school,so much easier

kids entertain each other far better than any adult

Two in school, one pre school. Term time is definitely harder.

I agree. Mine are 4 years apart and I hated 4 school/play group runs and bombing around like a loon for gymteds/swimming/diving/ballet. I loved the holidays, everyone just vegged out and relaxed. Makes no odds now at 17 and 13 as they're pretty self sufficient.

God school plays. Science days mothers day activity, easter assemblies etc.

When the little one started pre school was the hardest time for me. Three school runs a day, on the bus, two hours our of the house for each one. Oh what fun!

I have DD5 and DD3.

School drop off at 8:45.
Collect DD3 at 11:50.
Collect DD5 at 3:15.

I do 3.2 miles a day walking in just the school run.

Pick up times a nightmare, can't get anything done in the morning, I'm an OU student and this current module is an absolute killer, if I need to nip on the bus into town it has to be done in the afternoon with a tired DD3.

And this is how it'll be till DD3 starts full time in Sept 2015. At which point I will probably have a sobbing meltdown cos I'm alone for 6 hours a day.

I like the holidays best too.

The older ones amuse the little one and we're not on a schedule.

I'm already counting down to half term. I love the holidays.

My experience is the opposite, but I never had older ones to do the entertaining when mine were little. Even when they were too young to be at pre school, I preferred the structure of term time days where all the activities we wanted to do were running and places weren't as busy.

Now that my dc are older and entertain themselves with their friends, and the small detail of my term time job, I definitely find the holidays easier!

Holidays are the easiest for me,
School and nursery run at 9am to drop of dd3 and ds10 with dd1 in tow
Pick up dd3 at 11.45
Go back to pick up son at 3pm
All while trying to let 1yo nap etc

I have an 11 yr old and a 1 yr old, holidays are wonderful she dotes on the little one and they are currently playing in her room together.

God no. I do this 1 day a week and its a very lazy and peaceful day imo. Firstly you dont have 1 all day, nothing to do other one just does whatever. Its lazy ass day to me.

YANBU. I just worked double my normal hours last week and it STILL felt like a holiday because there was no ferrying the teenager to evening things, or rushing the dinner on to get him out on time, and no baby groups to plan baby naps round. Bliss!

I agree to an extent, it's nice to get off the treadmill for a while. I have one at school, one at preschool and a 14mo at home. During term time it can feel like we're constantly running from one drop off to another and then to pick ups and then after school clubs etc etc and that's before we've even started on homework and other stuff for the eldest.

I wouldn't exactly describe it as hard but it's definitely full on in the way that holiday time isn't. Then again holiday time can bring headaches and strains of its own!