The 2 (or more?!) Under 2 Support Thread!

[GrrrlWith2Boys]

Post your woes (or joys) here if you're currently tackling 2 kids under 2 (please say i'm not alone!)

DS1 is super wingey today and driving me batty...the slightest thing and he's whining and crying.

Have managed a 10 min walk with pushchair to get out of house. DS1 watching far too much TV, i haven't brushed my hair and the dog won't stop barking.

I need some gin.

I hate early starts too. Can't manage it unless I have a deadline and then I always think I'll be late (have to go out early tomorrow to get the car fixed properly...)

Happy new year everyone! and welcome to Lostmarbles. Hope everyone had fun and adventures over the festive period. After our xmas drinks party I came down with a sick bug so DH spent the weekend before xmas looking after the DSs. DS1 cried alot for me and that daddy should go away etc. Clearly didn't like the way daddy does stuff but tough! And by xmas he was used to DH again and everyone was v. happy.

Today is the first day back at work for my DH so we have had quite a full on morning whilst I re-educate myself on how to look after 2 boys on my own! God, I miss the extra pair of hands. Still DS1 has been v. good playing with his new xmas pressies by himself whilst DS2 is struggling with seperation issues! He will not be put down without screaming, aaahhhh! Hate this stage!

My next job is to try to find homes for the mountain of toys both boys got for xmas. All very generous but not sure DS2 needed quite the amount he got . 1 of my NY resolutions is to be tidier ??!!!

Hello ladies!

So far my worrys about managing on my own again now dh is back at work have been unfounded. We had a fun morning going to see the trains at the station!!! I asked ds1 what he wanted to do not entirely sure I would get a sensible answer (usually you just get out! out!) but he said train so off we went! It involves a trip on the metro too so double the train fun! Both boys have been lovely this morning making me feel silly to be so worried about coping on my own. Sure they will create merry hell this pm now I said that but never mind!

Oh and someone was talking about toy storage? We got these from Ikea www.ikea.com/gb/en/catalog/products/90076364 - we got 6 and they all stack together so we can add to them as we need to. Not the most beautiful storage solution but not bad and it means we can separate toys out a bit so small pieces don't get lost!

After worrying about how I would manage being completely new to dealing with the two of them it didn't turn out too bad. I think it counts as cheating though coz dh has got "man flu" and decided to take the day off work so I pretended I was on my own, knowing emergency backup was upstairs snoozing and feeling sorry for himself! It also meant that the trip to the HV for ds2 to be weighed was much simpler as I left dd1 with the emergency backup. (He's put on just over a lb in the last 8 days so I know the almost constant feeding is working - ds, not the emergency backup).

So, I've yet to try managing on my own as even just knowing there's someone else around makes a difference. I'm hoping we'll have a similar arrangement to yours alicet and dd1 is usually quite happy to play in her room for a while... but I am, and always have been, completely hopeless in the mornings even if I have had a great nights sleep.

Must go, ds2 calling for yet another feed....

Glad it all went OK today lostmarbles - true it makes a difference knowing someone is there but essentially you managed on your own so well done! I too am pretty hopeless in the mornings but slowly getting better!

Yes glad it went OK Lost Marbles (I cheated at first too, since DP worked at home had a bit of a shock when he got a new job... But it's good to be eased into things gently (or at least as gently as possible).

Hi guys. not been having a great time here...i think i have mild PND. The kids haven't been bad- it's all me. Just back from doctors- she was fab- HV going to come see me for a chat. Been up since 4am though, and was looking forward to a sleep as DS1 at childminders today, but some family have announced they're coming to see me this afternoon. This means i have to do some housework, no PJs, no sleep

Oh TinselGrrrl, poor you

I've got far more down with the second DC than I ever did with the first I think it's exhaustion more than anything (but it didn't help in my case when DP was looking for a job because he wasn't in a good mood either). I hope your HV is good (mine is lovely, regardless of how much criticism they all get on mumsnet) maybe just having a good moan will help (although sleep is also a good cure I find). Failing that, it's good to hear that your GP is nice and understanding. Tell the family to bring you chocolate/cake/something else you'd like and leave the housework alone. (I know that doesn't always work we asked my dad and his current wife to bring lunch when DD was born and they turned up with a piece of stilton which had been in a really hot car for 2 hours I don't even like stilton and never have )

i think stilton would make me more depressed!

It's my grandparents that are visiting, so i don't like to ask for anything. And i don't like to say how i'm feeling, don't think they'll understand.

On a different note- can't believe how quiet house is without DS1! And DS2 slept for 2 hrs in his pushchair after doctors, so i've done a quick tiday / wipe/ hoover and chucked some soup onto cook.

I'm going to bed as soon as the kids are down and i've had a bath- i can't wait!

In my case, the stinky stilton just made me mad! I agree that you can't really ask grandparents for anything, nor let on how you're feeling (although my grandma quite surprised me a few times).

It's quiet in my house too today because DD is at the childminder's (she always wakes DS up these days when the poor guy is trying to nap in a very loving but totally disruptive way).

Sorry to hear you're feeling a little down Tinselgrrrl. Hopefully things will pick up soon. I always find January depressing anyway with nothing to look forward to and long drak cold days. Not managed to get out yesterday or today as too cold - DS2 looks frozen in the buggy and DS1 whines constantly! Never mind as the cleaners are upstairs, DS2 asleep and DS1 about to have quiet time in his room. And a friend with her 3 boys are coming this afternoon (will undo all the cleaners work !). They are 3.9, 2.5 and 5 months so she's even more stressed and knackered than me !!

Today used to be a nursery day for DS1 but its all change for him - he's starting at the nursery of the school he will go to eventually and will be just 3 mornings a week instead of 2 full days - so I will need to do all his meals, eeekk!

DS2 has started crawling proper over New Year and is into EVERYTHING. Its driving both me and DS1 mad! DS1 never really crawled and walked at 13months plus first time round I didn't have all the tidy bits of a toddler's toys for the baby to choke on! I need eyes in the back of my head at the moment - and I feel unable to leave the room for more than a second. Chores are being left undone and we will have no clean clothes soon!!

hey can i join you's? i have a ds at 4 months, ds at 1 year and another ds at 3! lol its a real juggling act at times and need somewhere to moan. ill be back later ds2 is pulling all books out of bookcase!

hi & welcome tasha!

Sorry you're not feeling great TinselGrrl, exhaustion, long dark nights and cold days isn't a good combination whichever way you look at it.

dd1 in nursery all day tomorrow so I might get a chance to catch up on some sleep. ds2 is feeding about every 2.5 hours during the night and sometimes takes an hour or more. Really tempted to try him with a ff tonight.. the bottle is in the steriliser!

WriggleJiggle--I was YOU ten years ago or so, when I had two dogs and two under one and a half. Oh it was fun and manic and crazy. I don't know how we survive.

My dogs still run off on walks.

well dare i say it, today isn't too bad so far. Ds1 was up at 5am with DH. He's just asked to go back to bed, so i took him up and he's fasto! Will just leave him there until he wakes now. DS2 sitting quietly / dozing. Woke up with a headache (again) but it's passing.

Tinselgrrl sorry to hear you're struggling but well done for asking for help and great news that your doc was so fab. I am with Chaotica in that I have struggled muchmore emotionally with no 2. ALthough nothing can prepare you for number one i think I thought it would be easier this time and although I was prepared for it to still be tough its knocked me sideways a bit. Not PND or even close but still tough. So don't relaly know how you feel but where you're coming from if that kind of makes sense?

Tasha welcome - OMG 3 so young! how on earth do you cope!

Hello everyone else - hope you're all doing well! Ds1 is also in nursery today (and yesterday) so we have relative calm here!!! Apart from the 2 mahoosive boxes of flat pack sofabed(??) in the front room which means I can't actually get in there when ds2 ia in his sling! Oh well!!!

Welcome Tasha -- how do you manage? (If you do, I'm very impressed.)

And glad to hear that your day is a little better, Tinselgrrl. Hope it continues like that.

I was going to go shopping today, but DS had a jab this morning and the poor lad is suffering, so I have no other choice but to cuddle up on the sofa with him (after giving him a dose of calpol) and hang about on MN. Damn and not damn (wanted to get to the sales, but I guess I can manage a few more days of feeling like I'm a candidate for a tv makeover programme ) (Actually, I must remind myself that while I have a baby with reflux there's really no point in new clothes...)

Alicet -- Have fun with your flatpack. We bought a changing table from ikea and it put years on DP! (i could have offered my services, but "too many hands..." ) Now I'm rather careful about anything which 'requires assembly', especially since we need to get some new chairs.

How're you doing, Tinselgrrl? (soon to be plain grrl... , I presume) (I never got around to a christmas name myself -- bah humbug!).

Talking of which, has anyone discovered an easy way to explain to a toddler (DD in this case) that Christmas is going to be over and all the lights and decorations are going away? -- she still asks to go and see Tanta (as in Mr Claus) almost every day. There might be tears (but then I presume she'll forget quickly enough, although her good memory constantly surprises me).

Chaotica I just said to ds1 to say bye bye to the tree the night we were going to take it down and told him it wouldn't be there in the morning. He was fine with this - he is well into 'bye bye' at the mo!

Good idea, Alicet. I'll try that. DD likes 'bye bye' at the moment too -- she says it to all sorts of things (including the swings and slides in the park today). She also quite like 'sleep' for things that are only gone for a little while; eg 'Beebies sleep' 'playgroup sleep'... (You get the idea )

Phew lost this thread for a while over Christmas and New Year!

Hello and Happy new Year to newbies and oldies (that sounds wrong somehow)

Sorry to hear your down Tinselgrrl, I hope it's just a 'downphase', I have had a few of these since dd2 came along, it just seems too overwhelming sometimes. Sleep, and doing something just for myself seems to help a bit.

We have all had flu, and I've got a chest infection, so we haven't been out of the house for ages. Went out to do sales shopping today, and everyone seemed fine until dd1 puked all over herself in the car, poor lamb.

When I took the tree down, dd1 decorated dd2 with a bit of tinsel, and stuck a handmade snowman decoration to her head, it seemed to keep her happy for long enough for me to hide the tree!

Hi HJ, good to see you're back. Not good to see you've had flu though. Like the idea of decorating a baby (I kind of felt DS needed some tinsel on him all christmas (or at least on his bouncy chair).)

More later once I've persuaded DP to buy an Indian takeaway...

I'm feeling pretty good on the whole (It's Tinsel here)

HV coming Monday to see me- not met her yet so bit nervous, but she sounded nice on the phone. My friend has a baby a little older than DS2, and she's popping to visit me next week, which will be nice (i haven't told her how i'm feeling though)

I'm feeling quite positive- i'm really giving 100%, and thinking of all the nice things i have to look forward to this year