Barbara,
I'm an older mom, but I can't say that I'm wiser! I feel your frustration because my boys are only 13 months apart, and when they were younger, by the end of the summer, I was about to pull my hair out. I remember calling my husband at work and crying because I felt like I couldn't deal with them another minute. My two fought all the time, picked at each other, and no amount of discipline worked for them---and I only had 2 boys. I can't imagine having 3!
I don't have any advice for you except to say that I wished I had been stricter on mine. As they have gotten older (and at 6 ft., 2 inches tall), the sassiness is definitely hard to control. I wish I had nipped it in the bud when they were much younger. I remember being so drained of energy that I let a lot of it go, thinking it wasn't that big of a deal. If I could just turn the clock back . . . I would do a better job of following through with whatever I said to them. It seems like I was always threatening to punish them or take a privilege away, and then, I'd either forget, give in, or throw up my hands in exhaustion!!! (or all 3!)
I know what you mean about the party---you don't want to punish the other child. That's the guilt we as mothers feel. But if you've threatened to take this away from him and he doesn't obey you, then maybe following through would let him see that you mean business. (Gosh, that's so easy for me to say, right?) Or if it's really gonna cause a problem with the other child's birthday, then maybe you could take another privilege away from him instead. See, I'm wavering already .... ha!
Being the mother of 3 little boys---gosh, you deserve a medal just for surviving!
And not to depress you or anything, but I tossed and turned last night and was wide awake at 4 a.m. worrying about my 18 1/2 year-old who's leaving for college in 4 weeks. I don't think you ever quit worrying about your children.
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Re: HELP!! Need advice from older wiser moms.
