@mercuryash The songs work! My daughter is only 2 and a half but putting on music while I clean helps so much. I do a mix of my songs and her songs and she entertains herself singing and dancing
What’s your worst part of being a one and done parent?
- Thread starter mercuryash
- Start date
@mercuryash I totally feel you with the "mommy!" thing...but another kid wouldn't help that, it would mean twice the "mommy!", and for longer til the younger one grows out of that phase 
@mercuryash Corny, but that I won’t get to experience everything a second time knowing what I know now.
@canook182 I have a friend with 4 kids, and she says it’s never really like that because even if it’s your second baby it’s still your first time with two kids. If it’s your third baby it’s still your first time with three etc. You’ll always have to figure out everything again because usually the second one is very different from the first and you’re also learning how to juggle two. If that helps.
@canook182 Yes I feel this! I used to confuse it with wanting another the I came to realise I just want chance to do things better with my son x
@canook182 Oh my gosh yes. I wish that i could do it over with what I know now
@canook182 Yes this is how I felt about having a rough pregnancy labor and first few weeks. Not that I could control that but I was pretty anxious around things like prenatal tests and what you can and cannot eat and then the first few weeks I felt like I had everything setup wrong to take care of the baby. Before we decided OAD I was looking forward to feeling more experienced going through it again.
@canook182 Same here. I’m constantly trying to be present with my son because I know once the age & moment is passed it’s gone. For a few reasons my kiddo has had trouble sleeping since Dec, he wakes up 1-2 times a night needing comfort. Of course it’s at times exhausting but even then I tell myself he won’t always want or need these extra cuddles and hand holds. The constant need to embrace the now.
katrina2017
New member
@mercuryash When our kiddo was little, it was other people thinking "Oh, you only have one child, so you can be our free babysitter whenever we want."
Uhm, just... no. Literally the entire point of only having one child is to only take care of one child.
Uhm, just... no. Literally the entire point of only having one child is to only take care of one child.
@mercuryash I’m not yet a parent (im pregnant) so please take this with a grain of salt but I just read a great book called Hunt Gather Parent which suggests getting kids involved in tasks around the house with you instead of entertaining them. Apparently they like to help if given the chance. Could be rubbish I don’t know! 
@melissauk Enjoy it while it lasts
our 7yo (going 14) thinks I'm trying to slaughter her everytime I'm asking her empty the dishwasher.... she was awesome helping with everything until 6, then it slowly stopped
our 7yo (going 14) thinks I'm trying to slaughter her everytime I'm asking her empty the dishwasher.... she was awesome helping with everything until 6, then it slowly stopped
@melissauk Glad to hear it! 
nigelrocks
New member
@eric2015 Yes! One favorite activity that I want to pass on is sweeping. When my kid was a couple years old, I cut a broom down to his size. Then I made a square on the floor with painters tape and emptied our three-hole-punch holes onto the floor. He had a ton of fun learning to sweep the dots into the square. It was more fun when we made colorful dots from construction paper. He’d happily sweep for a long time while I took care of things I needed to do and he’s a great sweeper as a teen!
@nigelrocks Haha that is so sweet!
tanananana
New member
@eric2015 Mine (7) loves this! She thoroughly enjoys helping me sweep, mop, load and unload the dishwasher, and loading, sorting, and putting away laundry. She also loves using the dustbuster. She's also super helpful in settings other than home (she loves to help her teacher clean up at school, etc).
I did all of those things with her present starting when she was very young. I played with her but refused to be an endless source of entertainment, and my husband works long hours and stuff's gotta get done.
The only caveat to this, at least for me, is/was adjusting your expectations for younger kids. Toddlers love to help but sometimes their "help" isn't actually helpful or makes a job take longer. We had at least one instance of broken dishes when my then-toddler pulled something breakable out of the dishwasher to "help" me unload and promptly dropped it on the tile floor, for example, or she would say "I help" by pulling clothes out of drawers I was putting laundry in. But, in the long run, I'll take having a helpful kid over having an even number of bowls.
I did all of those things with her present starting when she was very young. I played with her but refused to be an endless source of entertainment, and my husband works long hours and stuff's gotta get done.
The only caveat to this, at least for me, is/was adjusting your expectations for younger kids. Toddlers love to help but sometimes their "help" isn't actually helpful or makes a job take longer. We had at least one instance of broken dishes when my then-toddler pulled something breakable out of the dishwasher to "help" me unload and promptly dropped it on the tile floor, for example, or she would say "I help" by pulling clothes out of drawers I was putting laundry in. But, in the long run, I'll take having a helpful kid over having an even number of bowls.
@tanananana Wow this is awesome! 
