“I’ll never be the Mum that bribes her kid with food” she says.
“I’ll never put my son in front of the TV so I can get stuff done” she says.
“I’ll never resort to distracting my kid to stop their bad behaviour” she says.
My childless self was so naive.
Ethan is currently 17 months old and throwing his weight around. Literally. Back arched, head back, arms and legs flailing… You know the scene. Trying to get him into a pram or car seat is like wrangling a bag of snakes. He’s also getting really good at constant, incessant whinging when he wants something. Usually that something is food.
So when it comes to making dinner, guaranteed, I will have 12kg of boychild hanging on to my leg and whining at me as I travel around the kitchen. And being a solutions kind of girl, I’ve done two things that will hopefully make my evenings easier:
- I’ve let go of my maternal guilt at sitting my son down in front of Thomas the Tank Engine with a plate of snacks (or as I like to call it, his entrée) while I get 15 mins to prep dinner before the next round of leg clinging begins.
- And I’ve invested in a slow cooker, so some days I can do all my prep in the morning and sit down next to my son in the evening.
I feel like anything that I can do that keeps me smiling and relaxed with my son rather than frustrated, is ultimately the best decision I can be making. It’s also insanely cute to see how bounce-up-and-down excited he gets when he realises it’s Thomas-Time.
So I’m interested, how do you survive the arsenic hour?
Do you use the great art of distraction so you can prep a balanced meal for your family?
About Naomi Liddell
Hi! I’m Naomi, I’m a Brand Identity and Web Designer living in Perth, WA. I’m a creative soul that loves nothing more than having my husband on my arm and my baby boy on my hip. When my son sleeps you’ll find me designing up a storm in my office and sending love notes to my clients. I’m an extroverted introvert happy to come out to play with other Mumpreneurs, but I fully recharge on my own with a To Do list or a sketch pad. As a productivity junkie, I see time and money as magic to be manipulated at will.
