Living with Nieces and a Nephew

Been through hell and back with my son. Being an only child he could be bratty sometimes knowing that he'll get what he wants anyway. I've lost my patience many times and it's my husband who would calm me down. When he loses his, i'm the one who calms him down. I think it's good that when i'm mad, my husband isn't. And when he is, i'm not. That's how we deal with the situation.

My daughter is 14 months old so when we do go to church people don't know she is even there. Some kids are just quite but the church we go to from time to time plays a lot of music which she loves music so that is why she is so quite. Some time she will cry because well she is 1 year old and 1 year old just don't know to be quite like other toddlers do children under 5 tend to be a lot louder in quite places. It doesn't bother most people at our church. There is a nursery so if parents want to drop off there little ones they can and they get a vibrating pager that will go off if they are needed. Church school for the kids normally goes on while services is as well. But we don't go that often and my daughter is normal always a little angel no matter where we are at even at home. Some times she does things she shouldn't but that is part of learning. I haven't lived in a house with my nephew for 2 year now but he is a handful since he is autistic so it takes more patience then most other kids. He is a good listener when he wants to be and it takes a soft hand to deal with him. He normally listens a lot better to me and my mom then his own mom she just doesn't understand how to talk to him just the right way. My parents raised three learning disability children so one autistic child isn't that hard for them to handle.

Dealing with small children in public places like church can indeed be challenging. and having three of them so young is really a challenge I am sure. But it's best to start out with them so young and train them up in these types of settings. I am learning that being consistent and clear about what you expect really does help!

I don't think that we would ever really be able to consider them to be children if there is never a time that they try our patience. Right now it is only my two children that are in the home full-time, but my friend's kids come and spend the weekend with us pretty frequently and those are the times that they tend to drive me the most crazy. I think that the reason that they drive me nuts is just because of the fact that there are so many of them (we end up with seven kids at our house on those weekends).

I don't have kids yet but I am living with my sister who has 3 year old son. He is my only nephew as of yet so imagine the attention that the family gives to him. I agree that kids that age can be downright stubborn and crazy. I, myself have been in the situation where my patience was really tested in terms of dealing with my nephew. During the moment when he gets out of control I make it a point to instill in my mind that he is just a kid. I always think that when I was a kid, I was as stubborn if not much crazier than him. And everyone in the family was very patient on me so I should be very patient and forgiving towards my nephew. Also, I am trying to do as much research as I can in terms of dealing with kids. Like what I have mentioned, he is my first and only nephew for now. After further research and observation I learned some things that triggers my nephew to be out of control. Such things are chocolates, candies, and lack of sleep. Having these things in mind. We make it a point to minimize if not omit chocolates and candies on his diet. Also, we make it a point that he gets enough sleep so that the crankiness will not be triggered. I think, aside from having patience, doing some research could be a big help as well. A lot of information is available now through the internet, so it should be easy.