Baby screaming, kids starving what do you do?

[morphlerana]

So my 6 month old is teething, not well and won't stop screaming, he's tired, and wants to contact nap. When I try put him down, screaming starts.

My 6 yr old and 3 year old are hungry I need to prepare dinner. Do I let him scream?? I had to for 5 minutes while I made the 3 year old lunch today and had the neighbours asking if everything is okay because of the screaming
But what realistically do I do.

Sorry @morphlerana I meant to sound light-hearted but re reading I sounded aggressive!! I hope everything is calmer now, you poor thing.

Crack on, say what you want then but don't look down from that fucking great high horse of yours!
If OP wasn't bothered about looking after her kids, she wouldn't have asked for advice on how best to look after her kids when times get tough.

You chuck a brioche and bag of crisps at them and start forward planning simple meals to freeze down whenever your partner is home to take over. Healthy food is not priority on days like this, you enter survival mode!
Love that so many people think a 6 year old would want to hold a screaming baby...

Well done op ❤️. I found with my third that choosing my moment to make the dinner was key. If we were having Mac and cheese say I’d make it now when they were asleep ans put it in fridge for tomorrow. That way all you need to do tomorrow of the baby is restless is out it from the fridge to the over. Bolognaise, curry etc all are good to be made at weird times when the baby is settled and the just reheated at tea time.

Phone for a takeaway for a 3 year old and a 6 year old...

Glad you managed to eat while the children were asleep for a while.

I would suggest batch cooking, whatever you normally cook, portion it up and chill or freeze. Also, when my DC we’re toddlers I used to do a carpet picnic, literally picky bits on plates and they sit in the lounge or kitchen on a fleece blanket.

@Nursemumma92

Crack on?

Intelligent response.

I don’t understand the neighbours knocking to ask if everything is ok if they’re not going to help. I’d definitely help someone out who was struggling like this. Even if your children are grown up, like mine are, yoiu remember how difficult it is when one is poorly and the others need feeding.

A beige tea or a picky tea does no harm. They just need to go to bed with full tummies. I hope tomorrow is better @morphlerana

Wear the baby.

Simple tea tonight.

This is what chicken nuggets and chips were invented for! Microwave some peas so they have some vegetables!

@Wills890

Phone for a takeaway for a 3 year old and a 6 year old

Yes.

Unless of course you only ever feed them homemade quinoa watered by the tears of nuns 🤣

I am not remotely bothered about whether you think my response was intelligent or not.

You are quite happy kicking someone when they are down, reaching out for advice. I am just highlighting how you are being so rude and unnecessary to someone while they are feeling wrung out. If you cant see a problem with that then crack on yes, but I hope you're never in a situation where you need to reach out for advice. You and your little darlings must be pretty perfect eh.

Get a two drawer 9.5l Ninja too and halve the time of all these suggestions in the oven 👌🏽

A bit surprised at my post being removed.
Are slow cookers and rice cookers not allowed anymore?
Not quite sure what's offensive about that or the idea of pre preparing breakfast and lunch so you can grab and go. Or perhaps it was giving the teething baby some Calpol to sooth them a bit whilst you prep the meal. I'm sure we all took pain killers when wisdom teeth came in so I'm not sure why that would be an issue either.
MN is weird sometimes. Anyway, I hope you got to eat a nice meal and your DC is feeling better. O

You must feed the older two, as top priority, for lots of reasons.

Dose baby up on Calpol, Neurofen, teething gel and Piritin if needed.

And

Use sling.

Or

Keep sausage rolls and bananas in for super quick, super emergency dinner.

If impossible to feed the oldest ones any other way, baby can be put somewhere safe to scream. It won't hurt or damage them if it's just occasional and for short periods.

It is hard though op! Hope it all settles down soon for you x

I've got a toddler and an almost 6 month old. I have this issue too. My solution is to have fruit and berries washed for each day so I can quickly put a bowl out to snack on. I also cut up croissant, naan, bagel or baguette add some peanut butter, mashed avocado or hummus add milk to drink amd we're happy. Alternates/additions are cut up veggies and rotisserie chicken (which is a life saver for me) to cut up for sandwiches or just chunks of chicken in the snack bowl. It's easy snacking for me, too, while bf'ing.

I would (and have) put the baby in a sling, but I also tend to have some extremely quick/easy meals to prep like nuggets and chips or ravioli in a can that can be microwaved. Or give them a bowl of cereal until DH gets home if I'm desperate.

Also use slow cooker so I can do meal prep at a less fraught time of day e.g. while older ones are at school/nursery.

@morphlerana hope things are calmer! I also have a teething baby and older ones that need feeding so I feel the pain.

I make up snacks for them when they come home from school, (the clear favourite is a wrap with Peanut butter, a whole banana inside, then rolled and chopped up like sushi, takes less than 30 seconds) one dc likes Hummus and carrot/cucumber batons, the other exists entirely on sugar and carbs so he will have crisps until dinner or some biscuits.

Dinner I often pre cook loads of chicken thighs and drumsticks and have that warmed up, throw in some wedges and a bit of salad and corn on cob for the children who aren't fussy. My fussy eater is autistic so I'm just grateful he eats. He will eat chicken drumstick and wedges, pizza made from wraps, occasionally an actual slice of pizza or plain pasta with cheese.

I have tons of ideas for meal prep etc and I do try to have food sorted for when they're home so all I need to do is reheat it but the reality is, on no sleep, a screaming teething little one and the different meals they all request, sometimes it is just oven fish and chips and a tin of peas or something else completely ultra processed with next to no nutrition.

We do have fuck loads of fruit available, that's my saving grace!

What's your point? To spread your misery, I suppose?

Sling on front, boob in baby's mouth, baby comfort-feeds and snoozes while you sort out dinner. On repeat every mealtime as necessary until at least 12 months.

Hi OP don't worry about the neighbours next time say no actually it isn't the baby is crying and I need to make the dinner.... if they are good neighbours they will either help with the dinner or offer to hold the baby. It's exactly what I would do if I was the neighbour. I wouldn't have been that neighbour though i understand babies cry sometimes.

Don't ever feel judged you are doing a great job

You let them cry. Same as when you're trying to get everyone out of the house for school in the morning. It's horrible but you need to prioritise food and getting to school/nursery on time for the older ones. At other times, the baby's needs come first.

I recommend having lots of easy dinners that can be made/defrosted in less than 10 minutes. Those bags of fresh pasta that boil in 3 minutes are great - just chuck some veg in to cook with the pasta. Add cold chicken on the side or quickly fry up some with it. If I was making something complicated, I used to cook in the morning when the baby was more settled and just heat up in the evening. My older one had a fair number of TV dinners at this stage - not great, I know, but less lonely for them if I was busy with the baby.

A 5 year old in a sling? Is that a typo?

Anything quick and easy.
Baked beans or spagehetti, pasta
Teething is a heck of a time to get through!
I remember my baby out with our pram at 3am going for a sanity walk...
The baby can sometimes wait in shirt bursts, depends on what you can cope with.
Survival mode and what woeks for your family.

You put the baby in a sling and make do. Then, if your baby is prone to being grumpy at dinner time, make a habit of making dinner earlier in the day, a slow cooker is a huge help here, so it is no more taxing than dishing up at this pinch point.