Managing tiredness

You are all stars, wonderful grandparents, I take my hat off to you all. I couldn't do it, not now. for all of you.

I have looked after my 5 DGC now aged from 4 to 9 in various combinations since they were born. 3 of them stay with me and their dad 3/4 days a week and I often take them or pick them up from school or out of school activities on other days too, as well as attending school assemblies, plays, book fairs etc. To be honest their adult dad (DS) causes me more stress than they do! He is ultra laid back! It is difficult sometimes to be the disciplinarian rather than the grandma. I do get tired but half an hour nap in the evening usually cures it as it did when I was working.

By the way my house is a shambles!! Nothing new there!

I'm nearly 70 and often look after two of my grandchildren - 8 and 5. I get extremely tired if not exhausted. It's particularly tiring if you don't have a partner to share the experience. My solution is to have early nights. I have been known to go to bed at 7pm. after a lot of babysitting.

Yes. Bibs are a must. Don't see how you can easily feed a toddler without them.

Good to know I'm not the only one who also get tired.
I used to think it was just me being lazy.

DGS2 and I have just passed 40 happy minutes with me casting stitches onto a knitting needle and him slipping them off and unravelling them, then rolling the wool carefully back up, then again, and again. Fairly restful for me and a bit of counting thrown in. Unfortunately he's now moved on to painting very messily creatively...

He's 3, and we look after him Mondays and Wednesdays. We set off to his house at 0630h and get home at 1900h, so Tuesdays have been our rest and recovery days. As of tomorrow we're looking after DGS3, 18 months, on Tuesdays at his house too, so will have to raise our game!

They're gorgeous boys and we're delighted to be able to help out and build up close relationships with them. The housework can go hang.

I have just come back from a day with my two grandsons and their mum. No1 is 4yrs and no2 18mnths. I will be 69 in February. Just watching and playing with them takes a lot of energy. Trying to keep one step ahead is exhausting.

They are lovely boys, the 4yr old is getting more sensible now, but the toddler is just a toddler and gets up to all sort of toddler mischief if he gets half a chance. Bless him.
There are very good reasons why we should have children earlier in life. Our energy levels are just not what they were.

I'm 71 and have looked after combinations of grand kids for varying periods over the last ten/ fifteen years I find it harder now with young teens and pre teens as they don't want to engage with you (I m just there to make sure the house doesn't go on fire and get food etc etc ) I miss the getting down on the floor playing games

Yes kids do wear bibs I work in the kids section of a charity shop and we do them up in packs of 4 and they sell very quickly The cowboy type (triangular tie at the back) are the favourite boys ones I had one grandson who dribbled so badly my daughter used to have to put two big bibs on him he's a 6 foot blond Adonis now who doesn't dribble any more LOL

My daughter has tried using bibs with DGS2 but he just pulls them off over his head and grins at you because he thinks he is so clever.
He more or less gets his food into his mouth with his hands.

Yes I think both my DDs stopped because bibs just got taken off. GCs
very tactile with food too. However did I manage to get mine to keep bibs on and eat with toddler utensils ? id just hate the thought if all thst washing.