Does anyone have any advice?

[User19122024]

Hello, lived in our house 6 years and have never had anything like this happen. So for the last 2 months or so, we've had some very strange things happen. Several times I've been stood in the kitchen and had the sensation of someone walking up behiend me, I'm sure I've heard footsteps, seen something out of the corner of my eye- so much so that I've started talking because I thought it was my DH. Turn around and no-one there. My DH has had the same.
He's witnessed things being moved. I always make a point of putting my daughters hair in plaits/ pony tail before bed but one night she wouldn't let me- walk in the next morning and her hair is in a tight, neat ponytail (she is 2.5- couldn't do it herself) I asked her who did it- she said 'Daddy', it wasn't. We never strap my youngest in her high chair but on multiple occasions we've gone to take her out and she's strapped in. Multiple power outages/ flickering (not related to the storm before anyone asks!). My 2.5yr old has recently started to not sleep at night, recently she has told me there was someone behind me when I've comforted her, I ask her who and again she says 'Daddy'.
Before anyone asks, we have never spoken about any of this in front of our daughters. I am a very rational person and I have tried to think of explanations but these things keep happening

Does anyone have any similar experiences? It wasn't bothering me at first but now I think it could be scaring my eldest? Unsure what to do.
Please don't reply if you are just going to try and explain it away, I'm very sure about what I've experienced.
TIA

Why don’t you want these completely ordinary-sounding occurrences ‘explained away’? Why does it matter that other people acknowledge them as supernatural?

We experienced some similar things in our Victorian house when we started doing renovations. It went on for quite a while, stopped and restarted again. We can't explain any of it. Have you listened to the podcast Uncanny? I recommend it so you feel less like you're going insane! I'm super rational, afraid of nothing but have experienced things here that defy all rational explanations. No advice I'm afraid, we've learned to live with our ghosts (if that is what they are).

There was really no point in replying to me.

We've had some odd things happen in our house, the most recent to DH (and the cat!).

I was downstairs watching tv and DH was upstairs in one of the bedrooms playing his guitar. He finished practising, came downstairs and asked me if I'd gone into the spare bedroom. I said no, I hadn't been upstairs at all, and he said that out of the corner of his eye he'd seen someone (who he assumed was me) walk into the other bedroom, and almost immediately our cat ran at high speed out of that room and dashed down the stairs. I said again that I hadn't been upstairs at all, and we looked at each other thinking wtf?

DH isn't prone to flights of fancy, it wasn't me who walked into that room, and there was nobody else in the house at all.

Whoever or whatever it was, it scared the shit out of our cat.

It hasn't felt sinister at all but it feels like it's ramping up and I think it's starting to bother my daughter. I've read on here people just asking them to leave? Does that work or just make it worse..

I would go through the history of the house if you can to work out any residual energy or if you have a family member watching over.
We have the occasional paranormal activity it home.
We have had cupboards fly open, DP has been lay in bed and thought I was bed thought I was walking down his side but I was downstairs making a drink.
I hear walking around in my living room when I'm WFH.

I'm not scared of what ever energy is in the house as it doesn't feel sinister in anyway. It was here before me after all.

I would certainly start by telling them forcefully that they are scaring the children and to pack it in.

They don't sound malevolent, putting your daughter's hair into a pony tail and strapping a child into a high chair sound more like a nurturing behaviour.

We have a lot of weird activity here at times. Long periods of peace and then a few things, and then a few more. Mostly I ignore it until it becomes too disruptive and "words are had". Things calm down again afterwards. We haven't had much happen since the clock incident thank goodness but I really did lose my temper that time!

Maybe it’s worth thinking about why you seem so determined to dismiss rational explanations.

My dgm had her home blessed by the local vicar.. She wasn't at all woo woo but their new house had an evil feeling. Her dd bought it and wasn't concerned but we were! An awful feeling of being watched upstairs.... Awful.

Is your 2yo your eldest? In that case you have two children under 3 and you and dh must be exhausted. It's completely normal that you are doing stuff on autopilot and then forgetting you've done it when the other asks.

Yes 2.5 and 15 months. I would agree with you and thank you for replying, if it was just these isolated incidents I wouldn't give it a second thought. But it's the occasions where I've felt/ heard someone walking up behiend me, my DH has actually seen something rolled across the landing in front of him (for more context it was a nappy that had been wrapped up into a ball ready to go in the bin, it had been sat there while we were bathing them and then just started rolling), I can't explain these things. Something strange seems to happen every day.

2.5yrs sorry

Have you got a carbon monoxide alarm?

Yes

I'm intrigued, what was the clock incident?

Another thing I'd look into, just eliminate the possibility, is mice.

We've had mice, it's horrific.

The thing with mice is sometimes it does sound unmistakably like scuttling mice. But sometimes it just sounds like movement, and your subconscious fills in that it must be a person.

We had a mice infestation that took 4 awful months to clear. I kept having moments like that when I thought dh was in the room for a second, but he wasn't.

I know you said you don't want to hear alternatives but also, just in case if you do have mice, you'll want to deal with that before they multiply any more!

I've read on here people just asking them to leave? Does that work or just make it worse.

^

I think so. Say in a loud, calm and not angry voice: 'please leave us alone. We're here now'

I worked at a place where similar things happened and I used to say every morning: 'Ok, no messing around today please. Behave yourselves!'

And they did

Start strapping your baby in her high chair for goodness sake

Y es but mice cant fasten a tight ponytail ! the best thing to do is try and ignore it if you ask it to leave or stop you re engaging with it and giving it energy . We had stuff like this in our last house it usually goes away if you ignore

How young is the little one? I’m sure I’ve read that young babies can attract things like this. Stress can also be said to cause these sort of flare ups.

I don’t have any advice but I would be leaving asap if the kids are involved.

The tight ponytail is op and dh's sleep deprivation. Extremely common to be absent minded with two under 3

The daughter herself said Daddy did her ponytail.

He wasn't at home

Go and see your local vicar. Every Church of England diocese has someone in charge of deliverance ministry.

If you have a spiritualist church near you, you could attend a few times and if no personal messages come through, you can ask for a private session to see if there are answers forthcoming.

It does sound like a benevolent presence, but not ok if your daughter not sleeping.

I was once dog sitting alone in a big house in Dorset and there was a book there written by the owner about the ghosts she had met there. I had a strict word with the house and said that any shenanigans of this kind were completely unacceptable! Me and the dog slept soundly.
Terry Wogan used to say re the small people/spirits, "We don't believe in them, but they're there anyway." Which nicely expresses the duality.