Question for Those of You with 3 Children Close in Age.

Hi A.,
I'm a working mom of 3 also. I have my own business that I manage from home most of the time and I have to tell you, it wasn't until recently that I didn't feel so overwhelmed. My kids are now 10,6 and 5. I joke to my husband that looking back at old pics, memories, etc that I really don't remember certain parts because I was so busy. I know it sounds crazy but I was so busy just trying to keep my head above water. Looking back I can honestly tell you I wish that I would have worried less about "keeping it all together" and enjoyed it more. That's probably a typical "mommy statement" but it is so true!! I try to live my life with no regrets, but my youngest is starting Kindergarten in the fall and I wonder where all my time went. I guess bottom line, worry less about it and just enjoy them because it doesn't last as long as you think it's going to. Hope this helps!

Well I have 4 all about 2yrs apart. Yes, The hardest is the first, but with each addition it throws a kink into the daily routine. I think it takes around 6 months-a yr to get the schedule back where it is suppose to be. My best advice is to not be stuck in the house with the kids all day, and when they get old enough put them in preschool. I feel your pain. picture this, the first day of kindergarden for my oldest I wasn't smart enough to break out the double stroller. Youngest was just a week old, so I was lugging around an infant carrier in one hand, and had a train of kids in the other. Instead of the school secretary asking me for my ds's birth certificate she made a fruediant slip and asked if I had birth control. Be prepaired for all the "You have your hands full." comments. Anyway, almost 10 months later I can say that I survived the turbulance, and "Yes" it does get easier. Good luck :.)

*raising my hand and waving it wildly*

Having three kids about sent me over the edge. When my youngest was born I had an almost 4yo and a 2yo. Eighteen months later it's a lot better but we still have our moments. :P

Sometimes I think I'm too organized to be a mom. I've learned to deal with chaos a lot better though. If you want to chat send me a message. I love to share the insanity LOL.

Mine are a little more spread out but I understand your frustration. Mine are 8,5, and 2 and this last year was the first time I had 2 in school.
Remember this is just a season!!

Summer is hard for me, my boys figh alot.
Try to find activities in town to take them too in the am., then come home and work your business in the afternoon while they nap or watch a movie. My business is flexible http://www.senegence.com/face2face so I can work it when I want, not sure about how yours works.

Can you afford a sitter one day a week or half a day so you can get out and run errands and get a break??

After reading all of your responses... I am completely scared now!!!! I am expecting baby #3 in September. My boy will be 2 1/2 and my girl will be 1 when this one is born. Oh heaven help me. My sister in law has three and said it was no different than having two.... I'm starting to think she's WAY off her rocker. I hope we can handle it all. Ugh. Good luck with yours :)

My thoughts exactly!! I had my 3rd child last summer. Mine are all 4 and under too! This has been so hard. I thought I might just be whimpy or something, but I met with a lady at my church who has 6 children. She said I was completely normal. She said number 3 and number 6 were the hardest to add. (Can you imagine 4 and 5 not being a big deal??!!)
I don't know if your youngest is sleeping through the night, but when mine finally started to last month, I felt better and was able to do more. She said that when my youngest hit 17 or 18 months that life would be more managable. I'm looking forward to that. 3 kids is so different that I feel like we should have our own club, b/c mom's of 2 and less kids have no idea do they?? Let me know how it goes.

H.

A.,
I TOTALLY know what you are talking about. When I had my third child, my oldest had just turned 3, now my kids are 7 1/2, 6 and 4 1/2 (all girls). I had a much harder time adjusting to 3 than 2 (especially since I now had 2 in diapers). It started getting a little easier when they were able to start doing things for themselves. My oldest daughter was also a lot of help. I call her my little mother hen. She wanted to be involved with everything about the baby so that helped a little. If you can get your older two involved (getting diapers, finding toys, getting towels, etc.) that will help you out a lot. I wish I could tell you that this feeling would go away soon, but mine took a couple of years. I am not sure if it was b/c I didn't get a lot of help. My husband is a firefighter so he was gone for 24 hours at a time, so it was (and still is) the girls' and I by ourselves alot. It WILL get better though. I would not change anything. My girls are becoming great friend (in between all of the fights :-). Stick in there. If you ever want to talk just contact me. B/T/W/ - your pictures are BEAUTIFUL!!!

C.

Hi,

My name is T.. I have 4 children. My oldest is 22 and already out of the house. He was raised for the first 14 years as an only child. Then I got married. I now have 3 more kids. The oldest of these 3 turned 7 in March, followed by my first daughter who will turn 6 in June and last is my youngest daughter who will be 5 in July. I had 3 under 3 at one time. It is very hard when they are little. It fely like I was pregnant for 3 years straight. Now that they are a little older it is a little easier in some aspects but worse in others. It is almost like having triplets. lol. The fighting and tattling etc. However, it is nice that they are so close in age because they always have someone with the same interests to play with. My youngest starts Kindergarten next week. I will finally have some quiet time to myself. LOL.

I have 3. They are not really close in age, but 3 kids is 3 kids no matter what. My oldest is 10, middle one is 5 and the baby is nearly 2. The jump from 2 to 3 was easy for me. Baby #3 just fell into the mix. Our lives didn't change with the addition of another kiddo.

Of course I didn't have time to worry about what to do with a third kiddo. When the baby was 2 wks old my middle one was diagnosed with kidney cancer and so we hit the ground running. My kiddo is fine now, though I feel like I missed much of the baby's first 6 months.

I'm with you! I can't wait until they can do some stuff on their own. I can't have five minutes to myself without worrying they are into something. *big hugs*
~R.

Hi A.,
I understand totally what you are saying, I have 4 children 15 yr, 6 yr, 3 yr, and 6 months. I agree with you it was much harder going from 2 to 3, it was a piece of cake from 3 to 4 but then again I think people sometimes handle things differently. A schedule is what helped me with my kids and juggling a house and everything else. You don't give their ages but a very good schedule may help you out alot during your day. If I can help you in any way on this feel free to send me a message, W.

Keeping three happy requires six arms, three hearts, eyes in front and back and on the sides, etc... Our three are farther apart - 11, 8 and 6 but their dad always says it was an exponential leap in the chaos quotient from two to three! i am the "step," so i wasn't there at the beginning, but you have my sympathy. we find that we enjoy it when one of us watches two kids, and the other spends some one-on-one time with the third. We rotate kids...

good luck!

How old is your youngest? I have 3 boys 4.5, 2.5 and almost 8 months, and I'm just starting to feel like I have "a handle on things". And even then, it all depends on the day!

Is dinner time your very worst? One small thing that I've started doing that totally helps the rest of my day is starting dinner early. I've been using my crock pot...they have crock pot liners that you cook the food in and throw away so there's virtually no clean-up. And, I got a crock-pot cookbook. I start everything on low during my youngest's morning nap then just let it go. I know it sounds simple and silly, but it's made a huge difference in my afternoon and early evening demeanor.

I also have a beer in the evening which helps:)

I also have a part time job which is a help and a strain as far as someone to watch my kids.

Prayers for both of us...God doesn't give us more than we can deal with...but I strongly question this sometime!

A.

My kids are 6,3 and 10 1/2 months. So a bit futher apart then yours. We did have a hard time adjusting! My 6 year old startd school when the baby was 1 month old. I thought that would make it easier but then I realized how much she helped! Anyways, there are days when I feel like I don't have a handle on ANYTHING! So just keep it up! Try to grab some time to yours self! It will help!Good Luck.