16 winter-woes parents know all too well
Old me (in winter): Lazy mornings spent in bed, drinking a bottle of wine by an open fire and weekends away at the snow. Bliss.
New me (in winter): Snotty noses, rainy days stuck inside with an overzealous toddler who refuses to wear a jacket. Did we mention the snot?
Here are some winter woes parents know all too well…
Parenting little ones through winter is a trip. And not the good kind…
From the constant runny noses to having to entertain an energetic toddler when the weather is nasty outside, butting heads over weather-appropriate clothes and not to mention those cold early morning wake-ups.
1. Snot, snot SNOT
Yep with winter comes ALL the sickness. From the first sniffles to the onset of green snot to the full-on flu. And not to mention all those other germs that fester and spread like wildfire during winter, from conjunctivitis to hand foot and mouth to gastro.
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2. The countless sick days
And with all those germs comes all the sick days. When your little one is too sick to go to daycare or school that inevitably means another day off work for you or your partner.
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3. WFH with a sick kid
Whether you try to do the work from home juggle (with your child plonked in front of the TV) or you have to scramble to make up the hours when they go to bed or on the weekend.
4. Refusing to wear weather-appropriate clothes
Toddlers are hard enough to get dresses at the best of times but when the mercury drops and it’s bucketing down outside of course your little commander-in-chief decides it’s the perfect day to wear their swimmers.
5. Winter layers
Speaking of winter clothes, they’re so good in theory and it’s so cute seeing little one’s all snug and rugged up in beanies and puffer jackets. But spare a thought for the poor parent who took 45 minutes wrestling/bribing their toddler into that outfit.
6. Kids always manage to find a body of water
When you do make it to the park or out anywhere really, kids always manage to find a body of water. It can be freezing cold but they’ll find a puddle, a fountain and bubbler and manage to soak through all their layers in about 30 seconds flat.
7. Temperature checks
Winter means constantly checking the temperature to ensure your precious bundle is comfortable (and doesn’t wake at night 🤞🏼). Then there’s also checking for rain, so you know whether to pack raincoats and spare clothes – oh and to not get caught out at the park during a downpour.
8. Nighttime layers
Keeping your child warm at night, so they don’t wake up is a full time job in itself. Understanding tog ratings and how many layers they need is a true science and you go to bed every night praying you got it right.
9. Night feeds
Getting up to feed or comfort your little one during the night is hard enough but in winter it’s just positively cruel. Peeling yourself out of your nice warm bed to sit there in the cold and feed your little bundle, is well… cold! Lucky they’re cute!
10. Drying the washing in the house
Even though it’s cold and raining outside, the dirty laundry doesn’t stop for anyone. Actually if anything it gets worse in winter because you’re washing heavy jumpers and jackets more often. And so your house becomes a laundromat with clothes slung over chairs and in doorways as you desperately try to get them to dry.
11. Dry skin
The harsh winter elements wreak havoc on little one’s skin and make them itchy and uncomfortable. But don’t think they’ll listen to you when you tell them putting cream on it will help, they’ll scream murder and run away when you dare try to help them…
12. Cabin fever
Yep, winter means being stuck inside entertaining high-energy kids, busting out ALL the activities: books, puzzles, blocks, drawing, painting, baking, building forts… and then realising it’s only 9:30 am. Ah, what’s that they say about the days being long…
13. Cue the the screen time guilt
Typically the screen time amplifies during winter when you’re all out of activities and so your co-parent Bluey steps in to help… again.
Tip: Try mixing the screen time up with some kids’ exercise videos or yoga. These are easily found on YouTube and will at least encourage your little one to get up and active while they’re watching. Alternatively, get them to listen to their favourite movie on audio book to break up some of the viewing!
14. Burning up energy
Trying to tire out a toddler when you’re confined to your house is no mean feat. There’s only so much ‘the floor is lava’ that one parent can play! Not to mention scavenger hunts, ninja warriors and pillow forts… Toddler’s have energy to burn – if only we could bottle it and get some of that ourselves.
15. Playdates constantly being cancelled
Forget locking anything in the diary during winter because half the time plans end up being cancelled anyway. Playdates are constantly being rescheduled because either your child is sick or your friend’s child is. Or if they do go ahead, 1-3 days later they both come down with something… damn those winter germs!
16. Epic tantrums
There’s something about winter that just makes us all a little less inspired – and toddlers aren’t immune. Whether it’s a lack of sunshine and vitamin D or just cabin fever, when toddlers are stuck inside and bored the tantrums are next level.
Life with little ones is testing at the best of times, but winter adds so many new layers (literally!) for parents to deal with. Hang in there, it’s only three months and you and your little ones will be back running a muck in the sunshine in no time!
This is a paid partnership between Kiindred x De’Longhi.
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