When your child becomes THAT child at soft play.

Do you ever have those days when you think to yourself "why did I ever bother leaving the house?" But then you think back to the squabbling and the 3 loads of washing waiting to be done, and the dishes piling up on the side, and you remember why you ventured out into the scary world with your three children.

Master L definitely woke with the devil in him today. After taking his older brother to his swimming lesson, my friend and I decided to take our brood to a soft play centre for the afternoon and get some lunch there. I was quite looking forward to going as it was a new centre just opened and local to us, so trying it out was a must.

I should have known it was a bad idea when my friend told me "he's not listened to a word I've said when you were out there getting the older two" (referring to Master L). I should have taken the hint and turned that car right around and gone back home. But no, I clearly like to punish myself, or similar.

We all know the child I'm talking about, the one who's mum is forever on edge, looking to see where her child is, to make sure he is behaving and playing nicely. The one who shouts "NO" when his mum is crouched down trying to drum into him that we "be gentle" and "play nicely with others", and the one who likes to have his turn with a toy before its time for his turn. The child who likes to grab before asking and, shock horror, the one who hits!

Well, it was Master L's turn to be "that" child today. He quickly found a softer hearted, more mellow child and decided it was his afternoon's goal to annoy him (and his mother). He took it upon himself to follow this boy, snatch from him, tell him not to do something "naughty" but then continue doing it himself. He was causing mayhem. My apologies and explanation's of "sorry, he has mischief in him today" were falling on deaf ears and I could feel those disapproving looks from the boys mother, burning holes into the back of my head whilst I made Master L apologise to the boy and move him away to play with something else. The type of looks that scream at you "your parenting all wrong! Your child is the DEVIL!"

Master L isn't a "naughty" child. He is what you call 'strong willed'. He's very independent, he argues back and thinks he has the right to get his own way, all of the time. He's a mini tornado (think the Tasmanian devil), very full on all of the time, and he terrorises the hell out of his big brother. But he is also the most loving and caring 2 and a half year old too. He'd give you his last smartie if you ask nice enough, and completely drown you with kisses (and licks too - gross!) He gives the best hugs and always makes sure you're OK if he sees you hurt or upset.

What people forget in the heat of the moment - and I have been guilty of it too - is these little people are still only 2 and 3 years old. They're still learning about the world and their place in it. No matter how old we get, we all have bad days, and behind the child having a bad day is a mother (or father) having an equally bad time, thinking they are doing everything wrong and feeling pretty confident in the fact that they aren't good enough as a parent.

 

Obviously, though, some kids are just little sh*ts!

H.x

Am I doing this right?

As you all probably know, this whole process of blogging is new to me. I don't even know if I am doing it right for one thing, and then how do I know if I am writing about stuff that people want to read? Is my life interesting enough? who knows - answers on a postcard always welcome - but I'm willing to give it a go anyway.

Im sat here all old school with pen and paper writing out my next post (this post in fact). Is that what you even do? Or are you supposed to type-as-you-go? I have no idea, but I think I prefer doing it this way. I feel too pressured into publishing the post straight after I 'think' ive finished, and then a few moments later, I remember; I wanted to add another note on that point or I needed to reword a sentence in this section. Baby brain is 100% real by the way. I have probably forgotten more since having my three than I will ever know or learn. Do you ever walk into a room and completely forget what you went in there for? Well the other evening I came downstairs to get the charger for my laptop, only when I had it plugged in I couldn't for the life of me remember why I needed the laptop in the first place. J thought I was a complete loon - I mean who forgets what they need a laptop for? Me. That's who. And don't even ask how old I am, I'll have to start counting back to my year of birth.

Anyway, I digress, back to the point. I have been doing a little reading up on how to blog. Its amazing what one can find, simply by googling 'blogging for beginners'. I landed on a post on a website called bloggingbasics101 which was awesome in the respect it told you how to set up your own blog, but as I have already set mine up, I needed more info on the ins and outs, the nitty gritty, of blogging. I found "5 beginning blogging mistakes you can fix" and "5 MORE mistakes to avoid" really useful - and what's more, I've already avoided most of them! GO ME!

Blogging is a lot harder than it seems! I know I talk a lot in real life, I have my own opinions on pretty much everything - I mean my stepmum bought me a cup that says 'everyone is entitled to MY opinion' on it - but this is completely different. I want people to read my blog and I want people to like it!!

Another thing I have noticed is everyones posts seem to be really long! Is there some unwritten rule or something set in stone for how many words you should aim for in each post? I find when I want to write a post about something, I dismiss the idea as it doesn't seem to go anywhere, or it doesn't seem long enough and is pretty pointless. Do you do short posts from time to time? Is this something that, in time, will come naturally? At this moment in time I am feeling some kind of vibe and cant seem to stop writing, so this one, for me, is verging on 'long'. Does how much you write depend on how passionate you are on a subject?

My last question mark on blogging is reviews. Am I 'allowed' to write a review on something I have bought, a place I have visited with family, or something I simply like, even if the owner/designer/person who runs the place hasn't asked me to review it? What is classed as a review anyway? What if I just want to write about a lovely day I have had with my family - is that a review or am I just sharing a lovely memory? - Definitely send answers on a postcard please!!

And then I stumbled across a fab post on tots100, about writing your first post. It was such a good read, and that's when I realised; it doesn't matter if the thing I am writing about isn't the 'correct' thing to write about, or if I'm doing it properly, or even if my posts are interesting. I started this blog for me, to write down my life as a mummy to 3 gorgeous children, so one day I can look back and remember how chaotic life once was when they were tiny.

So if, like me, you are new to the world of blogging and are worried you are doing it all wrong, fear not - I am here, no doubt doing it all wrong too! Just write what you want to write, something your interested in, but most importantly enjoy it!

H.x

Shouting with your boob out.

I will set the scene; I am trying to put Master D and Master L to bed. To do this requires me to lie with Master L whilst he calms and starts drifting off to sleep. As Miss DL is breastfeeding I took the opportunity to lie her down and feed her too. This was all hunky dory until Master D decided to mess around and after lots of "go to sleep, stop messing, please be quiet" it was time for my stern voice.

So there I am, standing up with one boob out, using my stern voice to tell both boys to go to sleep. All was going well, and Master D was listening to me, that is until Master L declared "MUMMY! You forgot to put your boobie away!!"

Its true, I had one boob in and one boob out. Does the fact that I was stood like this make 'light' of a serious situation? It sure did in this instance. We all ended up giggling like lunatics and poor Miss DL was wondering where her bedtime milk was!

 

H.x

An afternoon in Mummys shoes.

Since getting our car (that Master D still insists on telling everyone about 3 weeks later; "look at our new car, we got a new car") I have been taking my Gran shopping every week. This week, I went alone with Miss DL whilst J had the boys. He'd be fine he said.

Approximately 3 hours later, when I return home to pick J and the boys up to nip back out, I see a frazzled looking Daddy, and two boys who are showing major symptoms of being on a wild one.

Is it completely horrid of me to feel internal glee that J had to experience this for a few hours too? Especially when Master L is going through a phase of repeating sentences over and over until you acknowledge what he is saying. This, you may say, is obvious, but when you are talking to someone or eating something, it can be really, really annoying!

They both seemed extremely thrilled to see Mummy, and I, in return gave my boys a huge hug, simply for being them.

 

 

H.x

Double-Decker Pram!

I Love, Love, Love my pram.


This is us, and how I normally transport my 3 childlings:

When I first found out we were expecting bambino number 3, I knew we would need a double. By the time he/she was due, my then youngest would only be just turned two. We had no car at the time & walked or used public transport to get everywhere.

I began searching the internet for a suitable contender and came up with quite a few options, but it was only really between the Bugaboo Donkey or the Baby Jogger City Select. I loved the fact they could both be singles and doubles at the flick of a switch, but in the end the Baby Jogger won. The HUGE basket was a must - shopping trips and school runs, I always end up with bags and bags of stuff. But the thing that had me hook, line and sinker, was the so many different ways you could have the seat arrangement! I just could not wait to get the pram in my house to try out!!

And then it arrived.

I couldn't wait to start putting it together, but I knew J (my other half, fiancé, partner etc.) would want to play too, so I reluctantly had a little peek but left everything in the boxes for when he got home.

We put it together, and I remember having all of the seats - car seat, Master L's seat and the bassinet all out so I could try each and every combination. I was in heaven. Here are two of the combination's we tried:

I also tried it with the car seat on top and Master L's seat "underneath" but facing out. I liked this way too, but was a bit heavier to lift due to all the weight being on the front.

This is the first pram I have ever bought new. The first one that arrived in my house in a box, that needed putting together, with shiny wheels and crisp material on the seats. Its such a lovely pram to push, even as a double. We do sometimes use it as a single if Master L is tired and I can wear Miss DL in my baby carrier. Its such a versatile pram & I cannot recommend it enough. And what makes it even better is both children love it too, they both look so comfortable in it, which makes me feel I made the right choice! And no one can dislike being complimented on their wheels when out and about either ;-)

H.x

One way ticket to TantrumVille

Master L is 2.5 years old & is definitely making headway in the tantrum department. I am not quite sure where his attitude comes from - well that's a lie, its clearly his older 5 (going on 15) year old brother - but he'd give a teenager a run for their money that's for sure!

I recently took my three to a local Macdonald's for a "treat" after a busy day - I basically had no energy to cook - and the second we got there I instantly regretted it. See, my two year old enjoys making things into a game of 'lets see how quickly mummy gets flustered' and when I say he is the master at this, he is THE best. And when they all join in, I soon feel my eyes glazing over, my "happy place" coming into view and the autopilot switching on, so I can do what is needed to get us out of there and home in as quick a time as possible.

Here are 6 ways to get yourself a one way ticket to TantrumVille whilst eating out:

1. Ordering him the drink he asked for, because it isn't the same as the drink his brother has. Everything Master L has, has to be the same as what Master D has. Obviously. Any fool would know that, even if the thing in question isn't even liked by Master L. He would still like one of his own, you know, just to remind himself why he doesn't like it.

2. Giving his brother one of his chips, after he pinched one of his brothers. Because may I point out - and everyone with a 2 year old should know this - he is allowed to pinch food, but heaven forbid anyone should take a chip off of him. Whether he wanted the chips or not. If he was done with the chips & someone else wanted to finish them off, he now wants to eat the entire bag of chips. So, who's turn is it to sulk? The 5 year old who has had a chip stolen, or the 2 year old who's chip you are taking to replace the one he stole from his brother?

3. Flushing the toilet instead of letting him do it. Now I hate public toilets at the best of times, the germs all over them give me goose bumps just thinking about them, so I try to make toilet trips as short as possible. This means doing everything really, really fast and before the 2 year old makes a beeline for it. Yes, I would prefer to flush the toilet, but, alas, Master L has decided this is his all-time favourite thing to do at the bathroom.

4. Opening his toy for him. This is a huge no-no, especially before he has chance to. He and I both know he can't do it; those little plastic bags are far too hard to open when you are two. But hell hath no fury like a 2 year old who cant at least try opening them!
 
5. Insisting he sits whilst eating his food. Because that's ridiculous. Who sits still whilst eating?!

6. Telling him he cannot, under any circumstances, leave the restaurant on his own, whilst Mummy is popping Miss DL's dummy back in. Yes this actually happened. A lovely gentleman stopped him and caught my attention by saying "is this your little one trying to escape?" Of course that's my little one. Who else would he belong to *sigh*.

H.x

Welcome to my blog!

Hello, and welcome to my blog. This is all very new to me, again, so please bear with me. I did have a blog a few years back, shortly after Master L was born, but due to suffering PND I let it slip not long after starting it. I am hoping to keep at this, to log my daily comings and goings happening my life with my two cheeky boys & baby girl.

I hope you enjoy reading, for the most part it probably wont be very interesting, but it is my life none the less. If anyone can relate to my life then pop a comment below and say HI! I am hoping to learn lots of new things and meet lots of new friends - I have been told the blogging community is a lovely one, so please be kind :)

Happy reading.

H.x