It all started at 4:00am Drew wants to eat. Go to his room and breastfeed him in bed. Get a horrible kink in my neck that lasts all day long. Early in the morning the whining starts. Each time I tend to Drew, Paige throws a horrible tantrum. I can’t breastfeed him without Paige trying to grab my finger and take me to the fridge. Suddenly she’s dying of thirst and god forbid if Mommy doesn’t immediately put Drew down, stand up, and get her milk. I tried to keep all three kids occupied, but they were so restless and bored all morning. I decided to take them to the park.
Last time we went to the park I spent the majority of the time chasing Paige from running into the parking lot. She thought it was hilarious to watch Mommy leave her brothers with strangers and run after her. Yeah, really hilarious. So why did I think today would be different? Well it was. Today the park was empty. I had no one to leave Cole and Drew with while I repeatedly herded her back into the play area. She makes me crazy. I can’t NOT chase her. I tried that one time just to see how far she’d run away from me. It was far. This is the same girl that won’t get off my lap at home to initiate playing with toys on her own. Needless to say we didn’t stay at the park long. When we got home she fell asleep in her highchair and I struggled to wake her up. That’s how tired she was.
So I got them fed and went to put them down for a nap. Paige screamed/cried for an hour in her crib. Huh? Same girl that fell asleep in her highchair? She finally went down and slept for 3 hours. That’s four hours total she was down. So after all that time…you’d think she’d wake up refreshed and pleasant. First thing when I got her downstairs she started going “mmmm” I said Paige “you want milk?” doing my little hand sign language gesture. She gets all excited and grabs my hand to take me to the fridge. I get her milk and hand it to her. She takes her cup and throws in on the ground, screams, and proceeds to drop to the floor and throw her head back, crack on the tile floor. That makes her mad and she does it again. Turns out she wanted a cracker, not milk. Stupid Mommy. Our therapist calls half an hour before she is due to arrive to cancel our therapy today.
Cole and Paige start fighting over sitting in my lap. I try to explain to them that since I am still overweight there is plenty of lap space to go around. They scream and bump heads together. I get up so no one gets Mommy’s lap. The peak of my day had to be when Cole was pulling my hair multiple times and laughing. I said “no Cole” nicely, not so nicely, very firmly, then in desperation I pulled his hair. I heard that works for biting so I thought hair pulling might work too. I can’t tell you how horrible and sorry I felt when he whimpered and looked at me like I hit him. He can pull all my hair out after that look he gave me. Our play therapist who is scheduled for tomorrow calls and says she is not coming tomorrow and is taking another job so she’ll no longer be with us. It took over a month to get her and she only worked with us for one day. Now it will take over a month to get another therapist. Is it time for Daddy to get home yet? Nope, we go for a lonnnnng walk. So now it’s time for bed so we can start the whole whining, tantrum-filled day tomorrow.
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Oh Tobie-
I am sending you a huge virtual hug and if I were a drinking women a tall Cosmo.
Gotta love those days….Could be worse…You could have your mother-in-law living with you:)Good luck tommorrow!
Hey Tobie,
I had a thought… It sounds like this is typical Paige, but have you noticed these behaviors any worse than usual this week? For many kids the time change can REALLY screw with their internal clock. I know it’s only an hour, but I’ve heard that it can sometimes take weeks for a child to adjust - and that some children (and adults for that matter) are just more sensitive than others.
On a more sympathetic note, I’ve had those moments and days w/ 2 kids - and can only imagine how much more difficult and crazy when trying to meet the needs of a 3rd! Thank goodness for Drew’s laid back nature. My favorite is our weekly trip to school, where we have to transition between 3 different rooms - it’s when Ivy’s arching her back and screaming, and I’ve scooped them both up in my arms to go to the next room that one of the staff finally says “oh, do you need some help?” Yes, you could close all of the doors so my girls don’t run out of them - you could help me prepare to transition the girls BEFORE the tantrums begin - and you could magically strengthen my back 3-fold so I can transport them from room to room without fear of throwing out my back… “No, I’ve got it.”
Shal - I would love that! (I have to say that because my mom reads the blog, hi mom).
Pam - We don’t have daylight savings time here in AZ.
Well NO WONDER she’s off her rocker… those of you who don’t change time like the rest of us!
Hey the rest of you are crazy. AZ got it right! haha. So are you 2 hours ahead or 1? DST is so confusing for us.
How do Bragenlina manage? Oh yeah, they can hire all the therapists and help they want! Hang in there…if NOTHING else, you are being of service to all of your eager BLOG readers with sharing your stories. XOXO
throw her some Benadryl, it’ll knock her out alllll night!
Here’s some vodka and Advil for you (((((((drink/pills))))))))) It is tough. Going to the park by ourselves is sometimes a NIGHTMARE! One goes one way, one goes the other. Oh how I know.
Here’s to the weekend!
All of us un Texas
Fun stuff! First off, if she runs off, say something like “uh-oh” and stick her tooshie straight back into the stroller for some time out. I keep T.O. short and sweet, personally I think it is easier to be consistent that way. If it happens again and again (and it will) keep saying “uh-oh” and sticking her in the stroller, maybe add 30 seconds or a minute longer each time until you are tired of it and keep her in the stroller until it is time to go.
A book I really liked and is kinds a of no-brainer but good to be reminded is Love and Logic for early childhood. It is short and sweet, easy reading, and really helps me keep it together. The biggest thing I got out of it is not to let your kids see you sweat over them. They seriously know at even a young age that they can take us on (especially with multiples) and make us look like lunatics in public, lol.
Go get it and good luck!
HUGS!!!
I am so sorry this kiddos are giving you a hard time! Put her in her stroller for a time out every time she runs off. That’ll teach her not to leave the park!
This age is SO difficult because the kids don’t fully grasp the comment of time-out and they love to RUN RUN RUN. You need a park that is fenced in - or what about your backyard? Or, take them to a big field, let them run in the center - and bring some balls that they could kick around and chase after. My advice with the baby and bf’ing (because I love to give free advice to people who aren’t asking) is to put him in a sling or Bjorn. The only time I get to “sit down” and nurse during the day are when my husband is at home, OR, the kids are watching a video. The rest of the time, I am feeding him while he is suspended - so I have two hands available for my other three children.
Hang in there. One day at a time. This shall all pass, although it’s true that time often passes like a kidney stone with multiple toddlers.