Reasons my kids make me want to tear my hair out

Kids are one of the greatest gifts in life but let’s be honest, their antics can drive us up the wall and make us rock in a corner sometimes. Amy certainly makes me want to tear my hair out on occasion and as much as I try to convince everyone about my angelic ways, I swear my own dad has considered a hair transplant more than once during my teenage years. The good news, however, is that we’re united in parenthood. We all have to suffer through temper tantrums, embarrassing moments and ehm ‘unique character traits’ at some point.

To show you that you’re not the only parent who regularly wants to tear their hair out over their kids’ antics, I have asked some of my blogging besties to tell me about their kids’ best – or probably worst moments.

Reasons why my kids make me want to their my hair out

Nickie from Curly and Candid regularly despairs at her boys’ lack of filter – especially when out in public. She still remembers one particular day when she was walking behind a group of high school girls who had rolled their skirts up to make them shorter after leaving for school. Her boys, however, thought they had forgotten their skirts entirely. Their statement “Look Mummy! Those girls have forgotten to put their skirts on!” earned Nickie evil glares from every single one of the teens. ‘I felt like something from The Craft or Village of the Damned’.

Her son’s laziness is something that really riles Vicky from The Motherhood. She says: ‘My son would rather hide a plate, crisp packet or yoghurt pot behind the sofa cushions than walk the 12 steps to the kitchen to put it in the bin. Also not having the ability to throw something away when it’s finished with No, he rather leaves it on the side, table, in the sink or puts it back in the fridge. It’s like he stops functioning half way through a task. Gaaahhhhhh!’

Becky from Simple Parenting told me about a struggle that I’m sure I’ll be sharing with her once Amy starts school in September. ‘I find it really really frustrating when I get my children to school in one piece, certain everything is packed and completely frazzled only to return home to a phone call from school saying my daughter has left her lunch box or PE kit in the car, and I have to turn around and go back again! This happened twice last week!’

Climbing, cuddling and wet feet

It’s not just older kids that can drive you insane, though. Amy regularly made me want to tear my hair out with her antics. She’s been a climber from the age of 11 months and regularly ended up at the top of shelves, window sills or wardrobes and there was nothing I could do against it. Once she sat happily playing in her bedroom only to come downstairs looking like a member of the African Karo tribe because she had covered her entire face in Sudocrem. She scared the living daylight out of her Dad. Secretly, he was rather proud of her sneaky ways.

My friend Lucy from Lish Concepts has another sneaky toddler on her hands. ‘My littlest one is driving me bananas at the moment’, she admits. ‘She takes her drink and pours it into pairs of shoes, normally mine and often very quietly so I don’t notice.’

The opposite of silence is what Katie from It’s A Mother Thing experiences when her four-year-old gets cross. ‘My four year old can throw the most epic tantrum when he wants to cuddle me and I have to turn him down because I’m working. He reacts so broken-heartedly that I feel like a complete ogre. But if I pick him up, he will spend the next 40 minutes insisting on watching YouTube videos on my lap. I get so frustrated because how can you turn down a poor child who just wants mommy time?? But when you work from home, you have to set boundaries. I end up bribing him (and his brothers) with cookies or candy to get them to leave me alone for an hour.

I have already admitted that Amy sometimes makes me want to tear my hair out, but what do your kids do that drives you insane?