oh dear i can feel my halo slipping...

[saywhat]

well its been about 5 days of trying to restrain myself from shouting or losing my temper with my two year old and three year old and i have been pretty proud of myself so far...but today i dont think i am doing too well, and want to get myself back in control!

So far this morning, my two woke me at 5am, i was highly unimpressed, because i sleep awful at the moment thanks to being 23 weeks preggers and baby being a night owl! They then got up again at 7, fair enough. Over the course of the morning they spent most of it fighting, pulling hair, dumping toilet roll twice down my loo, refusing to eat dinner (depositing it on the floor) and generally being...toddlers.

I have been on tidy alert as my land lady is coming today and sorting out dinner, plus baking and trying to squeeze some time in for them, so on the whole i presume they are bored, especially after fathers day and yesterday, both busy, fun days out of the house.

so what i really need is tips to keep your cool when in the house all day, and some new ways to amuse the girls, other than dvd/video, reading books or playing with toys, all of which they seem thoroughly bored of!

help me before i turn into shouty mummy again please! (it actually helped already just writing it down!)

My tip is to go out with them at least once a day, for at least an hour. Just walk along the road, yes they stop and look at every cobweb but they are out and not fighting. Get reins if they are runners, hold hands if not, wander along, point out stuff, chat, go to the park.

Small children in confined spaces is always a headache.

yes its just laziness on my part really, all i can do is sit hear yawning and thinking how nice bed would be right now. However i do have to wait for landlady whom conviniently has not said what time she will descend upon me, so i may turf them out in the garden and let them dig in the mud, that should make them happy.

You're not lazy - you are pregnant and have two small children - I didn't mean to imply you were!! Just I always found that going out was easier than staying in but agree that sometimes mustering the energy was hard work.

Have you got a sand-pit? My two spent endless hours playing in theirs and still do, and they are 9 and 6!!

I am also on a be a nice calm mummy strategy that started this weekend after my PMT brought shouty mummy out again.
It is tough.
I have organised several activities for the day that get put out and put away after one hour, changing the focus for them.. A bit like playschool i assume.
They are seeming more ecxited about doing stuff and less keen on killing each other and winding me up.

It is only things like, cars/garage then playdough, then dolls and buggys, then colouring but appears better than before.

Mine are 2 & 3 as well. big admiration for even going for no.3

What about a tea party in the garden. fill their teapot with water (or a jug from the kitchen) a couple of cups and some plastic food or real food if you have it.

If it is warm where you are, you could just give them a washing up bowl of water and some toys that 'need a good wash'. nb; keep towel handy so they don't run through house soaking wet just as landlady arrives!

A friend of mine would give her dd a cup of water and paint brush and let them 'paint' in the garden i.e. paint all the leaves with water.

Sorry bit of a watery theme to these suggestions. Have just watered my garden so think my brain still on that!

I'd like to point out that whilst writing the above post, my dd was actually watching cbeebies!

It made me feel very guilty so have now sent her out into garden with paints and paint brush which I may regret. especially as she said she wanted to paint her face

ooh desperatehousewife, thats a great idea! I think i will do just that when they get up, as they are napping fr a few blissful minutes! Kbear i know you didnt say or mean that, its just how i feel, like a big lazy ameoba!