Are you a Threebie? Tips for coping with that 3rd baby here...

[5goldrings4MONKEYBIRDs]

Aw shucks MaHurdicure, since ya asked:

• Cbeebies: there's nothing Iggle Piggle can't cure for under 5s IMHO. No guilt allowed at leaving them there for half, no a full hour, no a whole day if necessary...

• Cereal for dinner. They're not gonna die of malnutrition from the odd evening of Cocopops are they? And unlike formula, that's a choice you can easily backtrack from...

• Send a desperate 'third baby' email to your local friends, especially those in same boat. Here's what mine read on approximately day 16 of 3rd baby: Cannot get out of bed, clean teeth and feed children all on same day: please someone come and take them out for an afternoon. HORDES of women descended on my doorstep... All the Threebies will 'know'...

• Go for a very long poo, DH won't need details. Lock door. Dig out previously stashed supplies of book, wine, chocolate, ipod or other sound-killing earphone type thing (to drown out screams of dismay when they realise...). Sit on floor and read if you have too. Or even on the toilet.

• Get out of house. All things with toddlers are better in the fresh air, even the screaming. You know this, and park benches are great places for BF. Any if not any near you, coats on the ground work just as well.

• strap toddlers in car with baby. either give them colouring books or just ignore them (see next instruction...) Play music very loud. With luck all 3 will be comatose in 10 minutes (apologies if you've got pukers) Drive anywhere you like. Be assured that sitting in McDonalds drivethrough carpark eating McFlurry and not telling the sleeping toddlers is compulsory when you're BF. Drive back again. Relish in the brief imaginary notion that it's just you and the music and the road (until you pull up on the drive and the screaming whimpering horde in the back come into focus again...) Start at 5 minutes, build up to a whole hour...

This started cos JARM needed to step away from the formula and keep BF with two other kids to keep entertained but I guess they apply to anyone, even Twobies (or if you're Juuule, Ninebies...)

So - best ideas here please for coping with jumping minimonkeys while losing your rag, bottle, sanity...?

Great tips Monkeybird

To add - do not let anyone into the house (including th HV) who cannot work the hoover or the kettle. If they wander towards the kitchen direct them towards the dirty dishes and shout 'I take sugar in my tea'.

If someone offers to hold the baby - go and do monkey's 4th tip. If you don't need a poo/aren't a reader, lie on the bathroom floor and sleep.
Under no circumstances do housework.

Teach sensible preschoolers how to replace baby's dummy, wind up muscial toys and generally become a baby entertainer.

Fabulous tips. have taken notes (although I am only a mere twobie).

awwww..... got to post here to keep it on my radar.

thanks mate!

oo great tips, due #3 in march and will by that point have a 2 and 7 year old. the soon to be 7 yr old is already in training to do such things as tidy the table and put her washing away. may have to encourage dd2 to watch more cbeebies though as she never watches tv.

BABY BRIGHT DVD ..has lulled all 3 of mine into comatose state, it drives DS1 upstairs to his bedroom and time for MN and large mug of tea for me
Have fully trained toddler (DD1 2yrs) during day that acts as alarm sound when DS2 (10mths) is doing something he shouldn't, she fetches nappies/wipes and sighs when he fills his nappy ( wonder where she gets that from?)
DS1 comes home from school and both just follow him around like the Pied Piper..great stuff
Have 20 mins after T when Iggle Piggle works his magic do whirlwind hiding tidying of toys, foods etc ..other half walks in from work and does Bathtime after my loooong day..sssssh don't tell!!

haha twofishes

that reminded me about when we first discovered these mad Israeli baby channels on Sky - has anyone seen them? OK leaving aside the drug-fueled cookery programme, the rest is all waterfalls and those swirly oil pictures you used to get in the cinema back when films were in black and white...

Danger is though they work best at sending adults to sleep rather than kids.

I do find a sling also helps around the house and am thinking of getting one I can wear on my back (any suggestions?) since the Babybjorn doesn't cut it while doing housework. Not that that happens too often...

My oldest is also now old enough to want to earn money and you'd be amazed at the range of jobs I need doing that cost 50p.

the other thing that has been helpful by accident rather than design is encouraging the toddler now 3 to walk everywhere.
hasn't been in/on a pushchair for well over a year so much easier with the baby now.

still in nappies though so we've just had to grin and bear that one

Loopy, he's 4 months now and mahoosive... (was 9lb5 at birth, got no idea now since never bother weighing him just squeeze the fat on his wrists to make me happy he's growing...) Anyhow he's just getting to the end of the 3-6mth size clothes...

Thanks Loopy, those are great links. Will definitely investigate the hire option since I'd like to try before I buy...

monkeybird