To ask if you enjoy time with your children?

[ShadowMoonlight]

I’ve NC as this is obviously a contentious.

I love my DS (2 1/2) and he brings some fun to my life but mostly I just find it a dredge.

When he was born I found it incredibly hard in a way I didn’t expect. He didn’t like being put down and would cry, which meant someone was always holding him. After 4 months of this we moved to cosleeping until he was 2. As I also breastfed for that amount of time, I had very little sleep.

Now he sleeps (mostly) very well in his bed but I still find him hard work. I actively look forward to work to get away and don’t know what do with him on my days off with him (I work part time).

He’s a sweetie and mostly (!) well behaved but he can be very clingy and I just don’t want to spend time with him and feel terrible about it. And his DF (we’ve very recently separated) is hands on so I’m not with him round the clock but I still don’t find our time together enjoyable. Just more of a chore I need to fulfil. It’s definitely better than it was at the baby stages but I still find it miserable.

Please tell me it becomes better with age! Do you enjoy spending time with your child(ren)? I want to feel that surge or excitement people feel and I just don’t have it.

Mine son is 5 yrs old. It's only really been in the last year that I've really enjoyed spending time with him. There are still times that I find him too much!

When he was 2.5 I felt pretty much as you describe. Of course there were lovely moments, but mostly it was a daily grind of tantrums, frustration, running off and just general hyperactivity.

It's a difficult age, some children are bloody hard work. Don't feel bad.

I generally do. I think sometimes people put a lot of expectations on themselves to entertain kids all day though- I’ll build duplo for half an hour but then I’ll watch Netflix or read a book while she potters around and plays in the same room. She’s quite good at entertaining herself now.