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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

to expect my DC to be bored sometimes?

55 replies

chinstrappenguin · 30/03/2015 10:47

So my DC are on the first official day of the Easter Hols. We have a few things planned for the time off but normal life (work etc) still has to go on as well. DD who is 7 is already moaning about being bored. I have told her it's okay to be bored sometimes as that is part of life. I also said I could find her some housework to do if she wanted to help Smile I do feel a bit guilty that I am not making their time off fun packed but it's not possible to do fun things all the time. AIBU to think that society makes us feel like we always have to be entertained and we have forgotten how to be bored??

OP posts:
calculatorsatdawn · 31/03/2015 12:50

I was constantly bored as a child and this is how I stomach being an accountant as an adult Grin

prepperpig · 31/03/2015 16:58

It really is essential training for adulthood.

Phephenson · 31/03/2015 17:43

You are not a red coat, you are her parent. It is not your job to give her 24/7 entertainment. Sitting down and doing some craft activities, tidying her room, playing with her toys or watching a bit of TV or a film will not result in bad memories of her childhood. YANBU

TheReluctantBride · 31/03/2015 17:45

My grandmother always replied to the winge "I'm bored" with "only the boring are bored."

Mehitabel6 · 31/03/2015 17:53

That was my favourite TheReluctantBride, or 'I am not your entertainments manager' . It is good for them and forces them to use their imagination.

Andrewofgg · 31/03/2015 18:00

Bored children should be out sweeping chimneys.

JCDenton · 31/03/2015 18:02

For me boredom was a sense of frustration at not knowing what to do with myself, rather than needing something to do.

This expresses perfectly how I used to feel and still do quite often. It's like wen you're hungry but don't know what you want to eat.

ilovechristmas1 · 31/03/2015 18:04

agree sometimes bored is just how it is

i dont drive and through the years mine have been bored as i dont have the transport to take them everywhere,im glad that they can entertain themselves,they always had access to our large garden and learnt to build dens,collect bugs,argue etc

2 are much older now so not an issue (as long as the fridge is full and some cash thrown at them)

i was just reading some threads on here and am horrified with all the parents packing in so many activities this Easter,ive long held the view that people that constantly lay on activities and have every hour planned out are scared to be with their children alone without boundless things going on

WaitingForMe · 31/03/2015 18:14

Whenever my stepsons say they're bored I act as though I'm fascinated and say "ooh so what are you going to do?" Pisses them off no end Wink

clam · 31/03/2015 18:14

This issue is seeping into schools now as well. Children expect to be entertained all the time - if lessons aren't all-singing-all-dancing then woe betide the teacher in an observation.

Ratfinkandbobo · 31/03/2015 18:28

A fact of life! I am studying and have work to hand in after the holidays (I also work nights!). My kids will have to get on with it for much of these holidays. I have 2 planned outings, the rest of the time they will have to amuse themselves. God knows how it will pan out!

CwtchCorner · 31/03/2015 18:36

If mine mention the 'bored' word then they are invited to tidy their bedroom/empty the bins/put some laundry away or whatever household job needs doing and - hey presto - they are no longer bored and have found something exciting to do.

ShadowStone · 31/03/2015 19:57

YANBU.

They'll need to learn how to handle boredom sooner or later, and I think it's good for a child to learn how to entertain themselves.

My mum also handed out housework to me if I complained about being bored. It was a great incentive to encourage me to think of ways to amuse myself.

StationeryOrdering · 31/03/2015 20:34

DD knows where the craft drawer is. She's currently making some Easter purses whilst watching Masterchef on catch up. When she gets bored of that, she can practice her recorder. If she says she's bored, I suggest some Maths. She doesn't say she's bored much. Grin,

DS OTOH is a very different kettle of fish. He needs perma sporting activity. He's out at football atm.

lastlines · 31/03/2015 22:52

Feeling a similar guilt that I have to work and they are bored. But they have to be bored sometimes.

We have stuff planned - friends and family coming over and one has a couple of sleepovers planned, the other has a gig he's been waiting for for ages. But hour by hour they just sit in PJs glued to screens. I feel guilty not getting them up and out but I have to work during the day. Boredom is OK sometimes. They got so bored the other day that they wrote a song together and didn't even fight. Very cute.

HouseHubs · 31/03/2015 23:26

In the holidays I try to give them one activity with my full attention each day. Ideally I get them out of the house, if they stay in all day they go mental. Yesterday I took them to the allotment and we spent an hour digging and sowing seeds. Today was the weekly food shop followed by a trip to the dentist, which broke the day up. Tomorrow they are having a friend over and I am running a roleplaying game for the three of them. On Thursday we will go for a short bike ride (ending up at a country pub for lunch, with a glass of lemonade to accompany the picnic I will pack). Otherwise they can fill up a certain amount of each day with Minecraft, Lego, listening to music and TV while I do essential jobs.

WineAndChocolateyummy · 31/03/2015 23:39

YANBU, I agree. Mine can entertain themselves really well and I think that is because, as a PP does too, they have had quiet time from an early age. Once this week they've asked to not go out as they were too busy. I have told them the plans for this week, one of which is tomorrow they have to entertain themselves at home as I am studying and have an assignment to submit on Thurs. Dd(7) and DS(5). Bit worried about DD actually as she asked to clean the bathroom to help me instead of watching TV after being out all day. She's weird isn't she? Hmm

dougierose · 31/03/2015 23:42

Being bored is essential for creativity, it shuts down the mind and let's the good ideas flow in. A mind that is constantly on the go and is constantly being organised is going to end up being inflexible and narrow. Of course, I always shout at my kids "Only boring people are boring"

dougierose · 31/03/2015 23:43

BORED

Pipbin · 31/03/2015 23:44

I spent half of the 70s and most of the 80s bored.
It does you good. As someone else said being bored makes you creative. Look at Charles Dickens, all he had to keep himself amused was eating mutton and watching public hangings, so it's no wonder he had the time to write books.

Hathall · 01/04/2015 07:13

I give my dcs worksheets or get them to learn times tables in the morning. Funnily enough, they're never bored after that.

BoffinMum · 01/04/2015 08:03

I am a believer in the 'one activity a day' rule, so a trip out to the park or to get a comic or whatever, then I let mine get on with it. They know where the hoover is if the going gets tough.

QTPie · 01/04/2015 08:38

This reply has been withdrawn

This has been withdrawn by MNHQ at the poster's request.

BabyGanoush · 01/04/2015 09:16

I am quite evil.

As soon as kids say they are bored, I say :" great! i need the living room hoovered" or "brilliant, I was just thinking i could do with some help cleaning windows"

There are always jobs to do, and sometimes they actually end up helping.

But they have learned to keep quiet now about being bored, and seem to be able to find things to do.

this one works (Mums hate her! Follow this One Weird Old trick to get Through the Holidays! Wink )

RabidFairy · 01/04/2015 12:47

Yep, my two are pretty bored on day 3 of the holidays. But we've been plagued with sickness; cold for DS (and now me) and sickness for me and then DD. So we're somewhat stuck at the moment. Hopefully tomorrow will be a normal, healthy day so we can actually get out a bit, but for now my two are bored. I've played games with them and built things with them and DH has been around in the mornings so they've been able to play with him which is nice. But they have loads of books and toys and games to play with for now.

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