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I kept waiting for the "terrible twos". Never happened for me. The FOURS, however, were a totally different story!
Ahhhh yes, the F'ing Fours, I remember them well.
Just wait, the negative nasty 8's and 9's are not far off
I agree, the lack of sleep in those early years was tough and the inability to clearly communicate was another. My sons energy level was the toughest with him and my daughters inability to cope which resulted in constant meltdowns was the other in relation to my two darlings.
They are now, 23 and 14, they are pretty cool human beings and like to sleep as much or more than I do. Hang in there, there is a light at the end of the tunnel
Potty training is a most humbling experience; it is by that point a parent realizes just how little control they have over another human being. My official policy is now "Use the toilet whenever you darn well please, but after your 3rd birthday, you're changing your own diapers."
Quote:
Originally Posted by Natsku
Well haven't started potty training yet so that might turn out to be the most frustrating thing but so far the most frustrating thing is her unpredictability - she loves something one day and hates it the next. Super confident one week, terrified of everything the next. Sleeping great for a new nights and then not sleeping at all.
Potty training is a most humbling experience; it is by that point a parent realizes just how little control they have over another human being. My official policy is now "Use the toilet whenever you darn well please, but after your 3rd birthday, you're changing your own diapers."
Nice policy!
I'm dreading potty training as she's scared of the potty, won't go anywhere near it.
Most of any "stress" was them having to be carried everywhere (lugging a child is HEAVY and strollers are seemingly impossible to fold & un-fold, who designs these things?) until age 1 and 3 months or so, dealing with car seats, that they whined & were too young to correct for it until age 2 or so, and that they couldn't eat real food & you had to make theirs as well as make yours.
Once they started walking I no longer carried them anywhere "you've got 2 legs, use 'em" except letting them ride in the buggies at the grocery store (by age 3 even that was stopped), they were taught very early how to buckle & unbuckle themselves (I forget what age, I think around 3) but they were strongly reprimanded if they unbuckled while the car was moving (if they ever tried to get out of their car seat or even simply complained about it they were disciplined for it), I was disciplining for whining by age 2 or so, and they were almost as eager to eat real food as we were to have them do so. Potty-training--done by 2 years of age, maybe 2 months or so, but surely not 3 or 4. Being scared of the potty rarely was a problem, and on the few occasions it came up, refusing to do as we said was more unpleasant than the potty was scary. It's been a non-issue forever now.
Sleep--they were sleeping through the night by age 3 months (and if on any occasion after that they were unnecessarily cranky in the middle of the night for no good reason--oh well, they weren't NEEDING anything they were just wanting ATTENTION--at 2 a.m., oh heck no), and they were never in our room anyway. The 1st 3 months when you had to get up a couple of times around 2 and 5 a.m. or so to feed them was hard, but it had to be done--it was made easier by having bottles already ready to go so all you had to do was warm them up a bit and run with it.
Most of any "stress" was them having to be carried everywhere (lugging a child is HEAVY and strollers are seemingly impossible to fold & un-fold, who designs these things?) until age 1 and 3 months or so, dealing with car seats, that they whined & were too young to correct for it until age 2 or so, and that they couldn't eat real food & you had to make theirs as well as make yours.
Once they started walking I no longer carried them anywhere "you've got 2 legs, use 'em" except letting them ride in the buggies at the grocery store (by age 3 even that was stopped), they were taught very early how to buckle & unbuckle themselves (I forget what age, I think around 3) but they were strongly reprimanded if they unbuckled while the car was moving (if they ever tried to get out of their car seat or even simply complained about it they were disciplined for it), I was disciplining for whining by age 2 or so, and they were almost as eager to eat real food as we were to have them do so. Potty-training--done by 2 years of age, maybe 2 months or so, but surely not 3 or 4. Being scared of the potty rarely was a problem, and on the few occasions it came up, refusing to do as we said was more unpleasant than the potty was scary. It's been a non-issue forever now.
Sleep--they were sleeping through the night by age 3 months (and if on any occasion after that they were unnecessarily cranky in the middle of the night for no good reason--oh well, they weren't NEEDING anything they were just wanting ATTENTION--at 2 a.m., oh heck no), and they were never in our room anyway. The 1st 3 months when you had to get up a couple of times around 2 and 5 a.m. or so to feed them was hard, but it had to be done--it was made easier by having bottles already ready to go so all you had to do was warm them up a bit and run with it.
My daughter was strong willed and independent from the get-go and wanted to do everything herself, even when she wasn't able. My biggest frustration at that age came from things like her wanting to clip her car seat buckle but not having the dexterity to do so and then going completely apesh!t when we did it for her. The same thing with buttons, carrying heavy things, etc. Often the choice was wait interminably while she struggled or do it and do it for her and provoke a meltdown. There was a time when I'd do anything I could to avoid taking her in the car somewhere because of the dreaded carseat buckle issue.
I loved the baby years and even though the lack of sleep was a killer, the baby and toddler years were my favorite. it was when they started talking back it became difficult for me. Not sassy mouth as much as "NO" to everything from peas to naps and just to hear themselves say NO all the time.
I also loved the twos when it was constantly "I DO IT MYSELF!". How I wish I had a recording of each of my 4 kids in that stage. all you can do is sit back and watch them try and even conquer.
I have kids and step kids from 10 to 52 and every stage can be difficult. It's when the divorces start that you long for the good ole days of baby temper tantrums!
I can say with absolute certainty I HATED infant phase. Without a doubt the worst.. My daughter had acid reflux and my god the hours of crying and choking and me worried. She stopped breathing at 3 weeks and I was awake thankfully (she turned blue had to call 911). After that the constant anxiety of watching her breathing and sleepless nights and problems breastfeeding.. Forget it the "cuteness" of such a tiny baby didn't outweight the incredible physical and mental pain I went through (ppd also)
Toddler years were trying but not as bad I suppose.. Yah everything went in the mouth, coloring on the wall once or twice but I enjoyed her first steps, feeding her self, able to eat more (minus the teething!) more words etc. I didn't like the tantrums, the wanting to do everything yourself but not being able to (then freaking out!)
She is now 3 1/2 and its getting better. She isn't needy per se but she's an only child (had my hubby get the big V after that infancy experience no thankk you) so she does look to me more as a play partner. More so at inconvient times like when I need to do the 3 weeks of laundry and 2 days of dishes! I'm also not a fan of all the climbing on me when she wants attention but I do love cuddle time.. I LOVE she can tell me what she needs/wants so no more guessing. She refuses to potty train right now... so yeah thats a hair puller..
All in all I thought that terribly infancy phase would never end, just horrid I can't even see why anyone would want to experience that more than once! Its getting better now , much more fun!
Last edited by Sweetbottoms; 06-12-2013 at 09:24 AM..
Most frustrating...people who think 1-3 year olds or infants are "hard". You aint seen nothing yet. Just wait until YOU can no longer fix THEIR problems.
That aside...lack of sleep. You do get used to it after a while, but it's a hard transition when it happens.
Most frustrating...people who think 1-3 year olds or infants are "hard". You aint seen nothing yet. Just wait until YOU can no longer fix THEIR problems.
.
True in many ways. My son was horribly colicky but at least he was home with me. I used to work overnights and there was one woman always worried sick because her 18 year old daughter was off with an abusive *******... I really can't imagine.
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