Kids Are Loud

I love being with my kids.  I really, really do.  But, damn, they're so loud!  I think that's maybe one of the hardest things about the daily nitty-gritty pre-schooler parenting for me.  The noise is constant.

Unless we deliberately seperate them (one parent to one kid) the boys MUST play together, and invariably this involves loud voices (at the minimum) or yelling and running with someone crying briefly every ten minutes or so (pretty often).

They rarely play with different toys in the same room.  I think Pumpkin would, but Sparkle wants to be involved with whatever Pumpkin is doing, and it's very hard to distract him from that.  It almost can't be done without actually moving Sparkle to a different room.  For the most part, they play together pretty well.  They clearly enjoy each other's company.  But I don't understand why individually they could each play quietly (or relatively quietly) with some game or toy, but they can't play quietly with each other.  Does that make sense?  There are great toys in our playroom that almost never get used because the boys are so often together, and they are usually chasing balls or racing cars or wrestling.

Is it because they're such boy-ish boys?  Is it because they're so close in age?  Is it because Sparkle has more trouble playing by himself without being distracted?  Is it a competition thing between the two of them that requires so much rough-housing and yelling?

I don't know what the cause is, but, man, it's exhausting.

I hate that the noise makes me feel impatient with them.  I'm at work during business hours four days a week, and you would think that would be enough of a "break" from the noise.  (Happily, there is very rarely yelling and rough-housing at my place of employment!)  But some days I can feel my own voice getting tense and loud after about 15 minutes at home.  I wish I could explain to them that if they would cut the decibel level by 25%, my patience would last about 100% longer. 

Comments

[Krissy Poopyhands]

THE NOISE! THE NOISE!

One of them drives me ape. Two would drive me spare. As it is, Wallace and his dad will wrestle and yell and throw the two dogs into the mix and it's like a herd of elephants slowly and loudly destroying the house.

I thought I was a pretty tough girl, but at the end of the day, I'm a girl.

SSssshhhhhhhhhhhh!

I don't think there is anything you can do. I think that this is how a group of small boys acts. Particularly when they are Just Like That.

My sympathies. Big-time.

[cloudscome]

Man I could have posted this exact thing myself. The noise drives me crazy! I am ADD myself and get really irritated and jumpy when I am surrounded by noise. The worst is when I am driving and they start up in the back seat. If you come up with any good strategies let me know!

I think the wanting to play together, the fussing, the rivalry, even the crying is good for them in the long run. They are learning tons of social skills that singles don't get till they are in school with an excellent teacher. But all that learning such is hard on the parents! The only consolation is that the pay off is huge if we are patient and thoughtful and have just the right balance of letting them work it out and knowing when to intervene.

[rebecca]

Well, I have a boy and a girl that are 5 years apart and the very same thing happens (although, the boy starts it and knows how to push buttons..the girl can SHREAK).

I am also trying to figure out when to let them figure it out and when to stick my nose in...

[Heidi - happy mom]

I have always wondered if it is the same in others houses, is it because my husband and I are not quiet? We don't wrestle but my husband is really a loud talker! and I am not a quiet person. I try asking my son to use his inside voice, but it lasts seconds, and it isn't always sam that starts it and it is true, the girls they shreak and squeal! let me know what you figure out, my only thing is Josh Groben music, for me, I find it calms my nerves, but I love his music.

[Leigh]

I tend to think it is just boys. Cody is loud, loud, loud. And when he and dad wrestle I can forget watching tv. They are both loud. I've tried asking them to pipe down and that last 10 seconds. Nothing works.