So, you get to school with your toddler in tow, find your bigger beloveds and then it starts. Either something is wrong, everything is wrong or they don’t want to talk at all. At least one of the three is in an emotional heap, one is either missing completely or won’t get up off the floor and the other is chewing on his coat. All three are overstimulated, tired and hungry. You quickly shovel food in and hope that helps to raise the mood, which it does. Sometimes. By the time you’ve left the playground, you feel like you’ve done a good solid 4 hours of childcare and your head is jangling. Oh the joy of grumpy kids with low blood sugar. Do they actually give them enough to eat at lunchtime??
Or is it just me?
So I’ve tried a different approach and I actually think it helps. It’s my new three step approach that goes like this:
1. Locate each child.
2. Hug them while simultaneously shoving a snack at them.
3. Hold the hand of whoever is in the worst state and just walk. Slowly.
I don’t ask them questions about their day or tell them anything about mine, I just let them talk at me while I just make all the right noises in all the right places (or so I like to think).
Suddenly, once all the angst is out (the girl) and there’s been time to poke sticks at dog poo, kick leaves or chase their mates down the road (the eldest boy) or stop and stare for eternity into a crack in the pavement (youngest boy), their world becomes a brighter place and a place where we can start to have some fun together.
My brain still continues to jangle but not for quite as long.
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