To ask if you enjoy the company of small children (preschool sort of an age)

[Mightneedencouraged]

I really don't which I feel bad about because they're usually trying so hard but my GOD they are boring and effortful.

5+ a different matter, you can have a good chat and they can do activities.

Nope

Love my 3 year old. She is the absolute best company.

Loved being a mum to a toddler and loved being a nursery teacher. My own was quite nice from 7-9 but by far it's the least appealing age to teach.

It's the teen/pre teen years I hate ...never felt such frustration and rage!

I love early years and the learning ...such stubborn, curious, feral cats 🤣

It was my favourite age. Never much of a baby person, but I loved 2-7!

Under about 18 months, nope. They get more interesting from then on, and from about 3 and up, I do like them, yes.

No.
I like from about year 4

I love them. I love babies, toddlers, all of them. I work in a primary school and they're great. I love how you can see their brains growing and their personalities coming out. It's fabulous.

I've got a 7 year old and she's my favourite thing in the world.

I find babies boring but love them at 1-3, so funny, easy to entertain and still have a daytime nap! I think 7 year olds are the hardest.

Two close friends have 4 year olds. Love my friends and their children are really lovely but fuck me, after a couple of hours with them I am so thankful mine are older now. It’s not just the exhausting children but the way parenting is all consuming when kids are that age. I met the two friends for a coffee recently and both spent 90% of the time talking about various issues (kids making friends in Reception, bedtime dramas etc). Mine are almost 11 and 13 and I just zoned out. Both friends were asking what I did in such and such a situation when mine were 4 yrs old but I drew a blank each time as I just couldn’t remember. I hope I didn’t come across as dismissive but I found it hard to fake genuine concern when one friend said she was going to complain to the school because her DS’ new teacher clearly hadn’t recognised how advanced he was at reading.

I think it’s fun and sweet seeing them discover the world. They notice and get excited about things that are just mundane to you and I.

They are exhausting. I have an almost 5 year old and notice the difference now when I go out that they’re much better behaved and I’m not constantly having to pay attention to them.

Babies are boring & stressful. DD is 5 and I absolutely adore spending time with her and have done from about the age of 18 months.

I like my own children and my children only at any age

My son is a cheerful, amenable little thing. Almost always happy with what we do, throws out camp compliments if I change the decor (ooh, I love it! At new bedding), and if we share the bath, he clears the cold water from the bath seat for me and pours hot on to warm it up for my bum.

Love his little pals too.

But outside of that group I can definitely leave them.

Have a 3.5 year old granddaughter staying with us at the moment- charming, clever and chatty but a nightmare when told off, not getting her way or not eating whatever she is given (after careful consultation with her mother). Full on from waking up to bedtime, with no naps any more.

Roĺl on Tuesday

My boy is 2 and I absolutely love this age, I could be around him all day. He’s an absolute lunatic but he makes me laugh like no one else and I do get some interesting conversation out of him! I remember when he tuned 17 months old and it was the first time I remember thinking that I loved this age and he’s just got more and more fun. He’s way more entertaining than my 9 month old who spends her days cackling whilst crashing objects together 😂

Nope not interested

I'm a sahm with a 3yo and I love spending time with her, she's keen to try out new experiences and is easily entertained. I'm not interested in spending time with other people's pre-schoolers. I don't think it's the age for me, I just liked spending time with my dcs at any age, and I'm not so invested in other dcs so they don't interest me.

Oh I love it, I love how you can literally see them figuring out the world and learning as they career through their life. They’re so funny and I love their little perspectives. I’m a SAHM at the moment to a 4yo and a 1yo, happily so, but maybe one day I’ll look at a way of working with littlies, I think maybe it would be a good option.

18month to about 6 is such a lovely age.
Learning so much about the world. Language development. Skills development. Just so interesting and fun to spend time with, discovering everything new.

Also exhausting if you are the parents, and looking after 2 or 3 of them whilst also trying to balance work and everything else in life.

Agreed except my middle bracket would be age 1-2 and then I love 2-5 and 5-10 the same but for different reasons.

I absolutely love babies and children of any age. They are brilliant, fun, original.

I prefer them over babies but look forward to having older DC.

Have you read mumsnet? Adults are horrid. Kids are at worse a bit annoying.

From birth to 2.5 - no thankyou
Anything above is lovely (from my experience anyway)