Infancy was easy compared to toddlers...

I was asked the other day if things were easier now that the kids are older. I answered with my standard not easier, but new challenges. I then visited my triplet forum that I am part of and there was a thread regarding 20 month olds and exhaustion. I read it and probably could have written it myself. The first line was something like...do you feel like you are on a treadmill at full speed and cannot get off. This is where the title comes in...you may think I am nuts but some days I really feel like 3 infants was a LOT easier then 3 toddlers. I will give you some reasons...
1) as infants you laid them down...they STAYED where they were laid (toddlers do NOT sit still...ever!)
2) infants cry but the reasons of the crying are few - tired, full diaper, gassy, hungry (toddlers whine constantly and the reasons are too many - someone touched them, they cannot reach something they are not suppose to have, they are hungry, they are tired, they are hot, they are cold, their toy was taken away, they just feel like it, etc. etc etc.)
3) infants barely know the others are there so there is no fighting (toddlers also seem to fight a LOT - over toys, space, attention, sippy cups, etc. etc. etc)
4) infant tantrums are nothing (toddler tantrums are just plain dangerous - to you, to them, to innocent bystanders)
5) as an infant tasks are more easily done (I will just give an example...changing a diaper...as an infant you have to worry about explosions and having to change a whole outfit...changing a toddler diaper is like a wrestling match...1st to catch them, 2nd to try to get them to lay down, 3rd wrestle to take off their bottoms while they are twisting like a croc, 4th taking the diaper off, 5th telling them not to touch or get their hands away from there, 6th wiping off their fingers and all other things they decided to put in the area, 7th getting them to lay down again, 8th trying to convinvce them to stop moving their butt long enough to strap the diaper on, 9th trying to dress a twisting croc and finally 10th putting them down off the changing table before they think they are a bird and can fly....ugh I am sweating just writing it...lol)
I could go on but the kids are swinging from the light fixtures...just kidding. I hope you are laughing as I am...toddlerhood is an experience just as infancy was...no I do not really think one stage is easier than the other...it truly is about the challenges. I try to embrace each one and learn from them (although it seems to take longer on some). So we work thru their frustration to communicate, tantrums, whining, boo-boos, sleeping issues and much more just as we did when they were infants. And for those who are wondering...I am exhausted...but still loving being a mom to these wonderful little people. I hope you enjoyed the humor in this post.
Love, Jen
PS So while I was writing this the kids continue to be...well kids...Liz has been putting a pillow over the fence and I got it a couple times for her...so you know what...she is throwing a tantrum because she cannot get the pillow SHE threw over the fence...here's to toddlers!!!