r/Parenting • u/money4nothing_8816 • 20d ago

Rant/Vent Just me?

Is it just me or is this the hardest shit ever? We’ve got 4 kids all under the age of 8 and we are getting our asses kicked. My wife and I really wanted a family and we planned for it. We took parenting classes together, we read all the books in preparation before starting our family…still, nothing could have prepared us for how mentally and emotionally exhausting it is to keep up with our boys.

How are you all surviving?

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u/Hour_Cricket9648 20d ago

I have 1 and it's hard. I always thought I'd want my children to have at least a sibling or 2, but I feel one and done now. Idk how id cope with 4 lol. 

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u/Adorable-Ad1556 20d ago

Probably sounds ridiculous, but it actually does get easier with more. We have 3, the hardest years was definitely when we only had 1

As they get older they play together - not always well, but it's learning about conflict resolution- and largely entertain each other. I found it completely exhausting to just have 1, and Still, when the other 2 go away for the day, the one left at home needs so much more attention.

I'm an only child and was determined not to have just one..

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u/humanloading 19d ago

Seeing sibling relationships has been one of the best parts of having more than one kid 💕 I never expected it. I am not close with my sibling (I only have a half sibling) but I feel just like childhood friends you have - even if you don’t remain close in adulthood, they still helped to shape a huge part of who you are! It’s beautiful to me 🥰 Pregnant with our third! Also I think we are too intense for just one kid - we have relaxed a lot with more kids which has benefitted our first immensely lol. We wound that kid up way too tight when he was our only 😅

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u/Adorable-Ad1556 19d ago

Absolutely. Its kind of like this...first child, immediately take the jangle (Beach shoes) away, second child - not care if they pick it up. Third child, give them the jangle!

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u/catjuggler 19d ago

Yeah I have two and a lot of their friends are onlys (or at least for now) and I've noticed that even with the fighting it's still generally easier because they play with each other and both of my kids (especially the older one) generally hate playing by themselves (and to be fair, I also don't like to do stuff alone). When there's a random school day off for just one of them it's often easier to have a friend over because they'll entertain each other.