Easiest Age to Parent

I think it has gotten easier the older my son gets...granted he hasn't hit the teenage years yet, so my story may be changing in a few years...LOL. The hardest years were toddler because they try and test everything!! After about 4 y.o. until now (11) it has been smooth sailing!

great topic. I agree with you. My DD is 19 months old and I am SOOO thankful the screaming, up in the middle of the night stuff is behind me. She is fun now, but I can see the terrible 2 creeping around the corner. She gets honestly down right annoying at times. I wish she could TALK in a lanuage so I could understand her. From what my sister in law said, and my dad agreed is from 2-3 or 3.5 is the worst and then it gets SUPER cool because they can interact, do the things you do (we are huge fisher people, camping boating) so we are pumped about showing her how to fish and make tents etc. I cant speak for teenage years though...noone in my family has one.

I dunno about easiest but hardest are 2-5 yrs

I'm liking seven so far. Our son is old enough to take out to most places, understands the concept of "best" behavior and can be reasoned with. The earliest years are just plain hard work.

Every age has been pretty easy for me except from 3 to about 3 1/2.

My six are all grown or nearly grown--my youngest is 14. I'd say the easiest ages, in general, were from around 5 to puberty. Then each kid got difficult for a couple of years while going through all those changes before settling down again. My four oldest are fairly easy except that I often don't seem them as much I'd like and my third and fourth still need financial help. And I always worry about them when they drive!

i truly think the first year is the hardest. after that it's all just, different day, different drama! :) every stage is difficult, and miraculous, in it's own way.

I have 2 girls ages 6 and 3. I would deff have to say the easiest was when they were newborns/infants. They slept all the time, didnt talk back, didnt run away and you could snuggle them all day! once thoes little feet hit the floor running snuggle time kind of goes out the window. except of course with the occasional not feeling well or a boo boo. babies by far the easiest!

I think it depends a lot on the child's temperament and the overall family dynamics as well as what you might define as "easy". IMO I find it helpful to view the question as not whether things are getting "easier" but whether they're getting "better" - because even though a particular stage may be more challenging than another, it can also be more gratifying. I posted some thoughts on this in our twins club blog here: http://twinsbythebay.blogspot.com/2008/11/does-parenting-...

Has anyone warned you about 3 yet? We all hear about the "terrible 2's" but 3 was so much harder for us.

Actually, I think it's really dependent upon the child's personality.

Our daughter was fussy until she was 12 weeks. Her change in personality happened to coincide with my cancer diagnosis and chemo treatments. She was an angel until about 21 months. Now, she's 2 and much more difficult than her older brother (4).

Each age has its challenges, but they also have a greater abundance of rewards. That's a really fun age, and enjoy each as much as you can.

i only have 1 so far (and another due in 7 weeks), but i have to say once he started walking my life got SO much easier! Babies are hard. Very hard. I hated it when people would say "oh no, he's walking?! Now your life's about to get REALLY tough!". Puh-lease! Maybe he was just a very difficult and demanding baby, but once he started walking he became downright pleasant. He's 19 months old now, and i'm loving having a toddler so far. Everything is so exciting for him and he's just a hoot to be around. I never get sick of teaching him new things and running around with him. I'm also very lucky that he speaks really well (300+ words and adds about 10 new ones a day, and he already speaks in complete sentances) so tantrums dont happen very often because he can communicate what he wants and understands my reasoning with him. Now watch, these next few years are going to make me eat my words...my new baby won't talk until she's 4! haha

Easier is.... no bottles. then no diapers. YAY! Then they can walk and you don't have to carry them. YAY! **btw you are here!** then.....uh oh terrible twos. now they have an opinion on everything and wanna do everything themselves. But they can't yet so here come the tantrums. ugggh hard. Then 3 to 4 it starts getting easier again when they get the hang of doing it themself and you don't have to fight to get them dressed in the morning. They can put on thier own clothes and shoes. YAY They can go to the potty by themselves. They can feed themselves. They are capable of listening to reason. They still take naps. It's fun to play with them and they like to learn colors, shapes, numbers. Life is good. Oh but 4.... here come the thousands of questions a day. Why Why why why mommy? **BTW I am here***

infant stage was really tough for me. My son was colicy, had acid reflux and didn't sleep through the night until about 8 months.. 1-2 wasn't bad, 2-3 was having fits and not fully able to understand but it was fun to watch them explore everything... My son is now 3.5 and he's very strong headed.. He's a good boy but tries my patience about 10 times per day, lol... He goes in and out of phases. He'll be great for a few weeks, then it will be SUPER challenging for a few weeks because he wants, what he wants, when he wants it!!!! I've "heard" from other moms with boys that it gets easier after 4.. So we'll see :0)

my son is almost a yr old (in two more weeks!) and I think the easiest age so fay has been 4mnths-7mnths. he was sleeping through the night and holding his own bottle and was able to play by himself for 20 min at a time, and he wasnt mobile enough where I had to chase him around the house to keep him out of trouble lol! oh and he was still relativly still for a diaper change...I miss that!

My youngest is 3...and you thought screaming was over! heehee... Just kidding..all depends on the temperment of the child...My 12 year old...the hardest was 8-9..all the inbetweens were great. My 11 year old...totally different kid..she was never hard...at all. From the moment she was born..then she hit 5th grade, we had a rough couple of months, but now we're back to smooth sailing in 6th grade. Now...that brings me to my darling toddler...she was hard around 18 months, and again right now. She has got to be the most stubborn child I have ever had an encounter with....pair that with the brains and wits she already displays and I feel like I am dealing with a teenager in a toddlers body. then, she says.."mommy, I love you my heart.."..(with all her heart she means..LOL)....and i forget all the stuff that makes it hard right now. I guess what I mean is to me, it's never hard or easy...it's just always different. It's really cool around 5 and 6 watching them learn to read, making friends, going to birthday parties...and they still think you are the coolest person in the world...now they are preteens..and I'm still cool, but it's a secret..shhhh, don't tell anyone! HAHA

The older our daughter (nearly 16 now) got the parenting was easier. However, it is so important to stay involved in the middle and high school years. They need a parental advocate.

We have maintained some very open communication lines throughout the years. She knows she can say anything to us and it is ok. We talk about everything.

SO much goes on at the school and the importance of having open communication with your children is vital. We've been through tough times having a popular daughter, cheer captain, orchestra leader, very pretty girl who also models, and coming from a strong supportive family.

Those "great" aspects are also bad because she falls into the category where she is targeted by many due to jealousy, grades, $$, etc.

I personally find it tough at being a parent now because when I see and hear bad things posted about my daughter, including threats, I turn into the MOM mode of you are now messing with me not my daughter. We've had issues strong enough to currently have police reports in 2 cities filed for my daughter's protection. I recently found out who was making the threats and we are waiting on the moment to press charges. I don't care who it is and from what family....DON"T MESS WITH MY CHILD

My daighter is a black belt in martial arts. She is well capable of taking care of herself and she has on more than one occasion. That security she has within herself is so important. She is fully capable of killing someone and she does not look like a martial arts person. She was underestimated earlier due to that aspect.

I support her high school education, loving all of high school and her friends but there are some "friends" who over step the boundaries and parents need to step in. We are parents, not friends. Some of her friends dislike me because I hold them accountable for actions. They are welcome to be at my home at anytime to socialize, HOWEVER, they are not allowed to have alcohol ( I am amazed at the parents who allow it), not allowed to vandalize other friend's yards (TP), and listen to the unedited versions of the songs on radio (I better not hear it).

All said and done, so far, i think we are ok with a well rounded, very good daughter who is exploring her options. My hardest part is letting go, ESPECIALLY BEHIND THE WHEEL DRIVING.... I need help with that part, LOL. I do know in reality, my letting go helps my daughter gain her independence.

So to answer your question.........no, parenting is never easy. Parenting is very rewarding, although a lot of hard wok and sometimes that work is so unappreicated. In the long run, as of now, we are a strong secure family of 3.

say when they are young adults, mine are 26, 23, and 21, great young adults but things were so much easier when they were kids. I think children who are disciplined, nurtured and have both parents in the home, are the easiest. J.

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say when they are young adults, mine are 26, 23, and 21, great young adults but things were so much easier when they were kids. I think children who are disciplined, nurtured and have both parents in the home, are the easiest. J.

I have 5 children, 3 girls 25, 21 and nearly 18, and 2 boys 23 and 12. I don't know if there is an 'easy' age to tell you the truth. It seems that just as you take that deep sigh and kick back a bit, something rears its head and you find yourself saying "oh I wish they were XX again, it was so much easier'.

As newborns, while they do sleep a lot, they don't seem to sleep when 'normal' people do and you find yourself exhausted wishing for the age when they slept through the night.

Then that age arrives, followed closely behind by teething and grabbing for everything and you wish they were newborns again, just lying there and smelling so sweetly.

Then they start to walk and you're finding yourself constantly chasing after them, they don't want you to carry them anywhere, which can be a hassle at times and you wish they were back just sitting in the middle of the room playing contentedly.

Then they start school and you think ok THIS is the best age ever, but then they come home telling you about the bully in their class that you'd like to take that bully behind the wood shed and have a discussion with them, their friends are being mean to them today when yesterday they were best buds. They want to wear the latest fashion, come home saying words you never say in your home, has a boyfriend one day & then he's stupid the next day. And you feel that some of their innocence is slipping away and you wish they were back as a toddler just running and playing.

Then they hit PUBERTY and you wonder if your child has been replaced by pod people!! At about age 13-15 they are going through changes faster than Elizabeth Taylor goes through husbands. Suddenly you as the parent 'don't understand them' and they don't hang on your every word like they use to. They want to be independent but still they still need you and that bugs them. Their bodies are changing and they go through this awkward stage and the boys voices are cracking & changing, the girls are starting their cycles (if they haven't already), they're both growing hair in strange places and all the while trying to 'keep up with the Brittney's/Justn's' of this world. They cry more easily, get angry quicker and need you more even if they don't ask or act like it. And once again you find yourself reflecting back on the day they started school and thought you could do no wrong.

Then they get into high school and WOW, lots going on there. They are driving, planning their futures, 'finding themselves' and while the explosions of puberty are no longer there, you find you're not as close to them as you once were and you miss that. They get up, go to school, come home, homework, then out the door in the car going to friends or to the mall. They no longer want to hang out with the family as much as before, their friends are such a big part of their lives now. They start looking at boyfriend/girlfriends as possible husbands/wives so when they have break ups, its very hard on them. They are trying to find their place in this world and you are trying to keep them from losing their way. And soon they graduate and they're off on their own and you pray that what you've instilled in them values and skills to make it in this world.

Now they're on their own and you think whew---my parenting is done. Think again. You see them making choices that you don't like or understand and it makes you question your parenting, it makes you feel like you failed somehow. But you realize you didn't fail, because at some point you know that its their life, their choices and you've done well to give them the ability to make those choices. Sometimes those 20 somethings come back to the nest and you realize you can't parent them like you use to because now you have an adult on your hands. And your relationship changes and you long for those days back in high school when you could set the curfews and execute the consequences. Instead you come to an understanding and both parties work within that.

But as I now look back on my life as a parent for the past 25 years, I wouldn't change one thing. I would never wish NOT to be a parent despite all the heartache and work involved because when that 20-something writes and tells you how much they love and admire you, when that high schooler crawls up in your lap because they want your comfort, when that 12 year old brings you flowers he picked himself--you forget all that and just cherish the right now. So just cherish the right now because before long it'll become that 'oh I wish they were XX again' moment.

Hope that's not too long.