a question about kids.

[vash]

ok. i like kids. i think.

yesterday a friend came over to spend the day with me and my wife. her SO had to work. she brought her 3 year old son and almost one year old daughter. i cooked, the ladies chatted and the kids napped. all was great until the kid both woke up. then hell broke loose. it was like we summoned a two foot tall kraken to scream and destroy things. and what is up with all the questions??? the one year old was cool until she saw someone that wasnt mom. and she is LOUD. the 3 year old fed my aquarium maybe 10 times, chased my chickens around, played ball relentlessly, badgered me with questions... the one year old, can climb anything. she took a salad and "planted" a garden in my living room. we have no kids, so our house is basically a child stunt house. knives and guns had to be hidden. rooms blocked off, tools hidden.

i was exhausted when they left. how do parent do it? i assume with your own kids, the insanity builds up slowly? wow, talk about a sterilizing moment.

i still cant find my flashlight. but i havent checked the toilet yet.

[stomachmonkey]

Dude that was nothing.

Why do you think we drink.

[legion]

My sis-in-law is bringing her step-kids for the weekend. (I apparently had no say in the matter.) Girl is 12 (but acts 8) and boy is 16. Boy has been acting out since his dad (my bro-in-law) rejoined the national guard. (He did a sixth month stint 10 or so years ago and was discharged after six months for endlessly complaining about not getting the MOS he wanted. He had to sign on for a 7½ year stint to make up for not fulfilling his last stint in addition to a new one.) He is enroute to Afghanistan as I type this (general infantry).

A couple months ago the 16-year-old got arrested for shooting at people with a BB gun in the park. It wasn't until months later my bro-in-law realized that the BB gun used was actually his. Son decided "he didn't need to take this anymore" and moved in with his mother.

[Jim Richards]

They are nice at age 4, usually. By 7 they start the slow progession towards hell (teenage), then, if you're lucky, they eventually turn into people you wouldn't mind having over for dinner every now and then.

[911boost]

Dude, you have chickens? Wierd.

In all honestly, I think my 2.5 year old son has some regressive spider monkey gene. That kid climbs any and everything, including my legs. My 5 year old daughter has been coming up with some humdingers lately too.

Kids are great. Fortunatley, when they are first born all the do is poop, eat and sleep, in that order. So its not like one day you have a toddler running around, it builds up.

I wouldn't trade either mine for anything.

'cept maybe a Carrera GT, but don't tell my wife. Just kidding.

Bill

[Rot 911]

My 8 year old can be a handful, but I would not put up with that crap at my own home, much less when visiting someone.

[the]

Under the circumstances (i.e., kids of a friend visiting), that's not normal behavior.

[Steve F]

Ahh yes,ankle biters.......This is why duct tape was invented


p.s. yes I have one but almost 26 now

[Heel n Toe]

The parents... that is what is wrong with those kids, vash. I'm sure they act like that at their house, so why not at yours, too? Bad parenting.

Actually, lazy parenting, too... for her to let them act up and mess up your place, you know?

It's normal for a 3-year old to ask a million questions.

This guy is the best no-nonsense parenting guru I know of... if you ever decide to have a kid or two, get a couple of his books, and you'll get compliments on your kids from other parents: http://www.rosemond.com/

Follow his advice and it won't be so hard and you won't lose your sanity. Kids are great and a lot of fun if you do it right.

[Christien]

We've got a 2 year old and a 2 week old. And we know/have met tons of other parents with similar-aged kids. SO MUCH has to do with parenting. Our 2 year old is an absolute monkey, but knows the limits, at least as well as any 2 year old can. We encourage her to be loud and rambunctious, but also to listen to us when we say it's time to be quiet. She's more or less perfectly well behaved when we ask her to be.

Stuff around the house is definitely something you have to watch out for. But you learn that quickly, and it's easy enough. Our daughter isn't really mischievous, so we're not overly concerned about hiding things, aside from the obvious (chemicals, faberge eggs ). But stuff does get broken, occasionally. Nothing overly expensive so far. Our 2 week old is 10x the work. I don't really enjoy the newborn stage, because there's little interaction, and no sleep. But once they're past that, it's just pure joy.

Remember too that it's different when it's not your kids, because you never see the positive side that parents love, only the rowdy side that you're not used to.

I was prepared for parenting to be somewhat like what you described, but 2 years in all I can say is that it's been a million times easier than I expected, and a billion times more rewarding.

[crustychief]

Originally Posted by stomachmonkey

Dude that was nothing.

Why do you think we drink.

HAHAHAHA! how true. I have three teenage boys, the insanity piles up in power spikes. Two months ago my 16 YO spent a Saturday night at his friends house, when I got up Sunday morning to go to work there was a police car in my driveway. Heart pounding, thoughts fleeting, was he hurt, did he hurt someone? It turns out him and his buddy stayed up all night playing video games ( we don't have them at our house) and decided that 4 AM was the perfect time to go to 7/11 for an Abba Zabba. My son has autism so when the police asked for his phone number he said " I don't know" when they asked for his address he said " I don't know" They told me they thought he was lying until he showed them where he lived. I still kind of laugh about this. BTW he knew the curfew law before this happened and is doing his time with community service plus the essay he had to write.

[BGCarrera32]

Originally Posted by Kurt V

My 8 year old can be a handful, but I would not put up with that crap at my own home, much less when visiting someone.

Yup...kids are a reflection of their parents, event to some degree at a year old. Mine aren't allowed to bang on the TV, fiddle with other peoples things when they are a guest, etc. Couch pillow fights in my living room are allowed on occasion.

[911Rob]

Ha, Ha, Ha! That was a great post, got me laughing out load! Too funny.

I love the non-parent perspective!
I raised 5 and I'd agree with BG, kids are a reflection of their environment.
So are dogs for that matter.
Cats, well they're like women

Thanks again, very funny.

[stomachmonkey]

Guys, the kids woke up from naps in a strange place. Those of us with kids know they have on/off switches, they get tired they shut down, when recharged it's on.

You are assuming the kids were worse than they may have been.

So tell me, has the 3 year old ever seen chickens before? How's he supposed to know not to chase them? Asked a lot of questions? Yeah, they do that, a lot. Not that big a deal if you ask me.

But play ball incessantly? OMFG, horrors!!!!!! Imagine a 3 year old wanting to play ball. WTF is this world coming to???

[M.D. Holloway]

Wait till they get older and wiley...nothing is safe, nothing sacred. You will never get a good night sleep (nor a warm meal) again if you have kids.

[Amail]

Why do you think "Get off my lawn!" is the second most popular phrase for folks over 60?

[vmisquez]

Tell the mom to quit the yapping and get to minding her children. There's no excuse for this when there are only TWO children. The parent is just plain irresponsible. No wonder the SO was not around.

3 years of watching Barney and The Wiggles will turn any adult into an alcoholic.

[Burnin' oil]

My ten year old and 12 year old boys tore their bedroom door off its hinges yesterday.

[jyl]

Sound like undisciplined kids and undisciplined parents.

Toddlers are tougher to control (1-3 y/o) but they don't have to be little maniacs. My kids were happy and active, but not destructive, would stay with us, play more or less contently with their toys, etc. We told them "NO" enough that they understood the word, and we also paid attention to them rather than let them tear around making trouble.

If you're a firm, calm, attentive parent then odds are you'll have pretty good kids.

P.S. For example, at 1 y/o my kids would have watched the chickens with interest. At 3 y/o they would have wanted to pet the chickens but if I said "no" they wouldn't have chased them.

[HardDrive]

I knew I was doomed when I couldn't stop fantasizing about doing Jasmine and Ariel at the same time. I keep shouting 'Open Seasame!' when the wife and I are knocking boots, and I think she's getting weirded out.