My DC seem to always be knackered!

[Mummabear04]

DD is 5.5 years and DS just turned 3 years. We don't live in England and DD started her summer holidays 3 weeks ago (DS doesn'tgo to nursery and is at home with me or with DP). We went on holiday for the first week, we spent a lot of time at the beach, play parks and did quite a lot of walking (think zoo trips) but it was a good balance of exercise and rest. I expected her to be quite tired last week with coming home but they both seem absolutely knacked still!

I don't feel like we've been doing anything extravagant. For instance this week we had DD friend over for the morning/lunch and then yesterday I took DC to the museum but was home by 1pm and today I took them to a local craft morning, again getting home for 1pm. Every day they are bloody exhausted by lunchtime so we spend the afternoons at home playing with toys, garden, drawing , maybe watch a movie. I see OP out all day with their kids but I just don't feel mine have the stamina. Is this normal for kids to be so tired?

They both eat well and sleep well (have been going to sleep a little later but sleeping in to make up for it so getting at least 10-11 hours per night).

Is it very hot where you are?

Not particularly, around 20° at most!

We are also on week three of holidays. I think it's the lack of routine and the many new experiences that makes them more tired.

It's amazing what tires kids out,I agree that the lack of routine can be tiring for them. Us adults like to get out of the routine because it's all obligations for us, but for kids it's comforting to know what's coming every day.

Holidays are about to start here and I'm going for the "don't plan anything much" approach, just to give us all time to find our level again. Then maybe we will want to do something.

Are they normally this tired or just the last few weeks?

My 5 year old isn’t ever tired. He’s definitely not tired by 1pm. And he only ever sleeps about 9hrs overnight. We had it almost 40 degrees here 2 weeks ago and he just spend hours and hours at the lake swimming and playing with nursery friends ( not at school yet either)

10 hours is on the low side for sleep for that age. Are they physically tired or just wanted a chilled time at home?

My nearly 4 year old is the same. We’re also 3 weeks into summer holidays. We did all the big things in the first few weeks- holiday, big day trips we had planned- and now we’re spending the rest of the holidays staying local and taking it easy. He’s not tired by lunchtime but he’s going to bed half an hour to an hour earlier than usual and sleeping 12 ½ to 13 hours a night rather than 12 and we’re just taking things easy.

Could be a vitamin/mineral deficiency, iron and Vit D probably the most common (although the latter not so much in summer months). If you're particularly concerned I'd speak to the doctor and ask for blood tests tbh. I had this concern about one of my kids a couple of years ago and I was right, they turned out to have an iron deficiency. They had iron supplements prescribed for a few months til it was sorted.

We rarely did a full day when mine were that age, and if we did, they both slept in the car.

We would do a morning activity (park, dog walk, friends over) then a long lunch time with a movie or TV and playing quietly at home. Then maybe something from 3-5pm. Then tea bath and bed.

Mine would always sit still to watch a film, never super active like some children.

Oh and I was the same as a child. Still having a 2hr nap until I started school and I'm on holidays at the moment and sometimes nap twice a day!

My vitamin levels are perfect. Some children don't want to hare around all the time. It's OK.

They take multivitamins every day and eat probably 10 portions of different fruit and veg every day. We dont eat much meat so maybe that could be a shout only my DC dont really like it all that much and DD is going through the stage of realising meat is animal....

This is what I've been trying to do but my kids are not fussed by tv which makes sitting still for long hard!

Just to say that my DC was a reasonable eater (although vegetarian) and also took a multivitamin with iron it every day, but still had an iron deficiency. Just something to consider.

That's good to know. My GP is absolutely useless so don't think they would even bother to check unfortunately