Five Things My Kids Love But I Hate (and why it’s okay)
I love my kids. I love my kids. Their laughter is the soundtrack of my life, their hugs are my best medicine, and they fill my home with warmth. Four daughters mean four times as much love, excitement, and challenges.
Here’s the thing: just because I love my children doesn’t mean that I love everything they like. There are a few things that my daughters love, but they drive me crazy. It’s a classic example of a parent-child paradox. We live together and share our lives, but we are so different on certain things.
Here are five things that my children love, but I hate, and the funny or frustrating reasons for this.
1. Tomato Sauce on Everything (Yes! Everything)
Let’s be clear: I am not bad at cooking. I spend time and energy on my meals. I chop, season, and stir with love. What does my daughter do? Every single bite is drowned in a tsunami of tomato sauce.
I’m serious. Even the salad was once red.
Initially, I thought they liked the sauce. Over time, I realized that it wasn’t about the sauce. It was about obliterating flavor in the food underneath it. My carefully prepared meals become nothing more than vessels for ketchup. Under that thick red cover, the nuanced flavor of my home-cooked food is lost.
Is it rebellion or a secret declaration? Is this a secret declaration saying, “Mom makes great food, but we like it better”? I don’t know,w but I know that the sauce is very generous. Very generous.
The Inner Child is Fighting Back:
Can we show some respect to the natural flavor of food? “Please?” The answer is often a smirk and a shrug.
I have tried to negotiate with you: “How’s about a little?” A drizzle?” Nope. Either a tsunami will hit or nothing.
I came to a funny conclusion. Perhaps I should just run out of tomato sauce. The ultimate power move! Better yet, switch it out for something more subtle. But I know that they will find something else to like.
The tomato sauce war is still going on. The tomato sauce battle is ongoing.
2. Why are These Shows Even Made?
You’ll discover a whole new world of entertainment when you become a parent. You’re watching way fewer kids’ shows in your everyday life than you expected.
Some parents, including myself, enjoy watching kids’ shows with their children. Me? Me?
It’s hard to believe that my girls still watch shows like this. The endless ads for toys, the dialogue loops, and the repeated songs make me wonder who approved this content.
There are two types of parents. Those who enjoy children’s programs and those who hide in the back of the couch wearing earplugs.
I am the last.
Yes, I understand that kids need screen time at times. This can keep kids entertained and calm during a hectic day. When I watch the show that they are obsessed with the fifth time in a row, I get glazed over and mentally count the minutes to the end.
How Can I Survive?
It’s not me, it’s to them. When I can, I sneak my hours in.
The question is: Why do kids like the mind-numbing, repetitive shows? They seem to crave the easiest, catchiest things. It’s fascinating, even though it makes me slightly crazy.
Sincerity: I eagerly await the day they find a show that we can all watch together. It’s a daily truce until then between my caffeine-fueled tolerance and their favorite TV show.
3. Wearing Clothes When it’s Cold (Because why not?)
Our winters on the Sunshine Coast are mild, but not nonexistent. The temperatures drop enough for me to reach for my warm scarves and slippers.
Where are my daughters when it gets cold? Usually in their birthday suit.
I kid you not. Are you cold in the morning? They’re not bothered by the cold. They are prancing about in their house without socks, a shirt, or pants.
It was 12 degrees Celsius the other day. I saw a mseven-year-oldld hopping around, her teeth chattering. I told her to wear some socks and a sweater. Her response? Her response?
I tried to explain warmth, but it didn’t seem to register with a child. Perhaps it’s due to the fact that children have a faster metabolism? Maybe it’s because they don’t feel cold as adults.
Parents Face a Challenge
It’s a full-time task to try to convince four happy, naked kids to wear clothes during winter. I feel like I am a nag at times, but I just want to keep them healthy.
I have learned to choose my battles. It’s fine if they want to run in the house. But outside? Socks, jumper, jacket–no exceptions.
4. The Floordrobe Phenomenon (Clothes Everywhere and All the Time).
Anyone with children, and especially those who have multiples, will be familiar with this one. I have two daughters who have closets, drawers, and dressers filled with clothes. Yet, somehow, the bedroom floor has become a clothing dumping ground.
Floordrobe is the perfect term to describe this pile of shirts and socks, pants and pajamas that are spread out on your carpet night after night.
I’ve taught them cleaning techniques such as the Marie Kondo Method, which I love and follow myself. But my kids? The kids continue to throw their clothing on the floor and roll their eyes.
My Tolerance Grows as the Mess Does
After a while, I stopped fighting it. I began to pick up the clothes from the floor, fold them neatly, and place them on the beds of the children so they could put them away.
Do they fold their clothes? Rarely. Do they sleep on top of or around the folded laundry? Yes. Yes.
I tell myself that it’s a funny, frustrating, but ultimately harmless phase of childhood. Even so, I still dream of the day the floordrobe will be replaced by a neat, organized closet.
5. The Never-ending Accumulation of Tiny Plastic Toys
Have you ever wondered how tiny plastic toys can hold such an unfathomable appeal for children?
I don’t get it. I don’t understand.
My daughters collect countless tiny plastic toys, including action figures, dolls, and animals. They don’t serve any purpose other than to clutter up the house.
The catch is that I don’t purchase these toys. They are often gifts from friends and family, who have no idea how harmful microplastics can be.
Learn to Live with Chaos
At first, I intended to remove the toys. It’s a losing battle.
I have made peace with this tiny plastic hoard. The main reason is that I have learned to love the sound of those tiny bits when they are vacuumed in one satisfying Zzzzzhh.
Vacuuming up the little toys is a strangely calming experience. Bliss, even.
Why These Differences Matter (and why it’s okay)
It’s easy for parents to focus on the things they dislike. When you zoom out, the little fights reveal something more important:
Our kids are not like us. That’s beautiful.
It is not intended that our tastes, rhythms, and tolerance levels will be the same as theirs. Our differences instead create a dynamic learning environment that allows us to learn from each other. We learn from our children new ways to live life. They teach us patience, structure, and how to navigate the world.
What are five things that my kids find quirky and sometimes irritating, but I do not? These five quirky, sometimes annoying things my kids love but I don’t? They’re also a chance to practice humor, empathy, and compromise.
Conclusion
Parenthood is filled with chaos and love. I embrace the mess, the noises, the tomatoes, the floordrobes and the plastic toys explosions.
What would I ask of my little tornadoes if there were only one thing? This would be it: Can we please, PLEASE have fewer tiny toys made of plastic?
This one is for me. What about the rest? Because I love them. That’s all that counts.
