An afternoon at home?

[MonkeyandParrot]

I have two DDs - 11 months and 2.5 years - and I find it much much easier to be out of the house with them as much as possible. However, DD1 has started asking to 'stay at home' so I am going to have to start having a couple of afternoons at home. My main question is how the hell do mums survive this? DD2 is a velcro baby and will not sit and play - she has to be standing or moving in her pram or be held and walked otherwise she screams blue murder. DD1 is at that toddler stage of wanting constant attention which is impossible to give with DD2 clingling like a limpet. They have enough plastic crap educational toys to open a shop but never settle to anything just get everything out. I've been at home this aft and let DD1 watch TV/videos as a bribe(she's normally allowed an hour at bedtime) and I have had to change the progamme/video 12 times. I am tearing my hair out and longing to get out of these 4 walls. How to I make staying in managable? Surely it must be possible?

It will probably get easier as they get a bit older - for us, but also for friends, once the little one was confidently walking, the kids started to really play together. Then it got much easier. But we still have awful afternoons at home! Does it have to be either/or - could you negotiate with dd1 an hour out followed by the rest of the afternoon in? - we have a mid-afternoon snack and so can split the afternoon into two parts. And actually food does offer some respite! - no one fights over toys while they´re eating if we have something really nice.
Both of them playing the bath together works quite well for us, too. They are sufficiently distracted by the water that ds doesn´t want carrying and both of them feel that they´re getting sufficient attention. Also dancing to music goes down quite well with us - usually with ds being carried although increasingly he likes dancing with his sister.

Sling for dd2 & tv for dd1 (or at least that's how my time at home seems to go!). Will dd2 go in a door bouncer or a walker or similar?

Or how about afternoon 'picnics' ie snacks on a mat on the floor?

You can just say "no".

"No, Dd1, I m not chnaging the channel. you watch what is on, you you go and play with your toys"

"No, Dd1, you are not getting everything out, you can get THIS box out, and we will all sit and play with it."

I must ask though, as you have a young baby - do you have 'her age' appropriate toys? My freind's four year old is very clingy and destructive at home, but here, where the toys are not pitched at her two younger sisters, she always finds something fascinating to do.

Afternoons (mornings as well)at homes are hell with 2 small children - it is just getting better for me now with DS2 being 20mths and DS1 is 3. But being out is much easier. Just found out am pregnant with DC3 all being well but I think I'm a bit mad!