Truths I just don't want to hear...

[lchats]

'It only gets harder as they get older... '

(My dds are 20wks and 2.2yrs)

aww! It does get easier when they start school tho

Then after a few years respite the teen years start!

It's a myth it all depends on what your child is like what kind of person you are and what kind of parent you are.

My friend loved the baby bit sailed though it glowing and happy where as I found it really hard and stressful fast forward 2 years I love toddlers and find it much easier but she really struggles with the tantrums. I think it's the same all though your childs life there are highs and lows and everyone will deal with these things differently.

Not so much harder as different. Still problems but different ones. Once they get to their thirties it's a bit easier!

In my experience it was very hard when DD was little, but that was because of her medical issues. Primary school was a breeze, then high school, bullying, exams and friendship issues. I worry more about DD now that she is 13 than when she was younger.

Not all parents have the same worries though.

I think some things get harder as they get older and some get easier. Its not all doom and gloom. And the things that make your children so wonderful change as they get older too, as well as the things that make them hard work. So, eg, when they are toddlers we are all so thrilled to hear them learn to talk, and the funny things that they say, but then when they get bigger, it is amazing to hear them grow in understanding of things and form their own viewpoint etc.

Honestly, I think some people always want to get one over on you, so if you've had a sleepless night with a six month old baby, you'll get the mother of a toddler saying 'ooh, that's the easy part, wait until they can climb out of bed, then you'll wish they were six months old'. And when you're the mother of a toddler, you'll get the mother of a nine year old telling you about how they answer back when you tell them its bedtime. And if you have a nine year old, you'll get the mother of a teenager telling you that she would give anything to just have them at home and in their own bed at a decent hour, because hers are out late at night and she worries.

Its annoying though!

Excellent points treaclesoda

I have roughly the same age gap as you. You're in the hardest bit in my experience (though my kids are only 3 & 5 so I could be wrong!!)

Ours are 13, 5, 3, and 1. They've gotten easier with every year that has passed. It's also gotten easier with each new addition. I found it much more difficult to care for newborn dd than I did to care for 3 dc's under 5.

It's a myth. When my daughter turned 4, it was all so much easier. Every age has its charms and babies and toddlers are the most wonderful, but gosh they are hard work.

Yeah, but when your kids get older you'll have more experience as a parent. Right now I only have a few weeks experience with taking care of a baby. By the time she's 3 I'll have 3 years under my belt and be better at what I'm doing, and know my daughter better (god I hope!).

I know what you mean, my DD is almost 5 months and I have a friend who says that to everything I say about my baby. I just wanna say oh f**k off will ya!