Looking after kids

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Ok for the last 3 days i've been off work looking after my daughter. She's got flu or some such and has been up most of the last few nights coughing and crying etc running a fever.
For me my kids come first so i will always take the time off work to look after them rather than get somone else to do it. I have no idea if work will make me take holidays for this yet or what (havent any spare days left). I havent slept well either what with the coughing from my lil un and the snorring from the g/f (tune one sound out and all i can concentrate on is the other, keeps me awake all night!!). SO i feel exhausted!

What i was wondering is what do others do when your off looking after the sick kids? Can't go out, every time i try to settle down to do something i have to see to the lil un so cant spend much time doin stuff that needs doing... I'm just getting bored. But i shouldnt complain, kids first and all that.

 

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So long as you're within sight you should be okay to get on and keep an eye on them(easier said than done), it's when they can't see you that they want the attention.I've seen a different side to family life since i was made redundant and it certainly makes me appreciate what the g/f goes through everyday aswell as work part time.You've just got to make the best of every available minute.Then you go to bed, knackered.

 

Why don't you use the time to read the paper (doesn't require too much attention) and also do stuff with your lil one - find some fun in - door activities to do together that you wouldn't usually have time to do?? That's what I'd do if / when i'm eventually lucky enough to be blessed with one

 

I do stuff that I can do for a few minutes, then rush off if need be. Nothing intense like studying, because my train of thought would derail every few moments. Sometimes I catch up on forum postings, news articles, read techie or PC gaming mags, read novels... stuff like that.

 

I have only had two days off sick in the past 15 years and my wife has only been sick one day.

It is my understanding that sick leave is meant to be when *you* are sick, not someone else.

I suppose it depends on how much you value your job.

 

I haven't had any employers have a problem with taking a sick day when kids (or the spouse who takes care of the kids) are sick. I rarely have to take sick days anyway, in either case.

 

Well, it can be very disruptive to a business if people are taking time off work for personal reasons - i would try and find somebody else to look after them, a relative etc rather than taking time off myself, but then i don't have kids, so i haven't been in this situation. I have been in the situation many times where i have been let down by an employee taking time off at the drop of a hat. Of course, once in a blue moon is okay if the employee is a real asset - but i can see where this 'I'll throw a sicky' solution could cause the company problems.

 

Hey I hope the little one is better before you get to read this...

I generally end up with the housework when home as I think that the MOTH [man of the house] should get to whatever housework needs doing before the wife does it - this is probably one of the first rules of a good marriage]

Also my wife is at four months this week for our fourth child, so the family stuff will increase over the next few months.

As I work for a small outfit, take one sick day a year if that, am owed 12 weeks plus holidays, and owed about eight weeks unpaid leave..things are flexible.

Basically flexi-time applies as long as I keep things going and do the base hours per day.

Often I am here to 9pm or 10pm at night if I spend a couple of hours with the kids at home 5 minutes from work.

supa

 

It CAN be disruptive... but good employers understand that life happens. If an employee misses two or three days a year due to family illness, that's one thing... an employee missing many days or weeks due to family illness is quite another.

Yeah, it's nice to say "I'll find someone else to keep my sick kids", but who will? Daycare centers won't take sick children, and if they did, my children would have an absolute seizure as they've never been dropped off at daycare a day in their life. Our extended family all work or have other responsibilities. So who will keep them if their own father cannot?

Trust me, it ain't by choice. I don't just up and decide I want a day off, so I'm gonna "throw a sickie".

 

Okay. i am not going to argue my point because i can see both sides of the story and i don't intend to make this a big issue. Obviously someone has to look after the poor little sick ones - all i am suggesting, is that 'the main bread winner of the house' may not be the best person to do it, and they should only do it if all other avenues like older brothers and sisters, aunts, mums etc have been asked. Clearly if there are really no other options, well you don't have much choice, i realise that.

 

Blue,

I do it because for a few years i was a single parent and spent all my time looking after the kids. I find it hard to trust some one else to do it, now, when they are sick. My g/f can't take the time off as she dosen't get paid for sick leave where as i do, so it makes sense. The other thing is my family live 250 miles away so they cant just have the kids for the day (they would other wise) and the g/f's family all work or her mother is too old to look after the kids (gets tired easily at her age 75+).

Works ok with it as they understand, most of the rest of the guys on the section are single so theres normally some one who can cover.

As for doing the housework, i do that even when i'm not off. Spend most of my time ironing (hate it), cleaning etc. Its just that as soon as i start anything i get this little voice saying " Daddy i don't feel well. Cough Cough Cough". So i start seeing to the lil un and leave what ever i was doing, so it seems to take even longer. Can't study as i get distracted too often, and the big jobs are easier when the kids aren't here.

hopefully she will be better by next week, still having sleep less nights and being sick and coughing for the last 3 days. Then i can get back to a normal routine and see what mess has been left for me at work. Be glad to get back to normal!!

What's worse being sick or looking after sick kids????

 

Thank you for explaining your circumstances - i can see you have no choice now!

..see i am human afterall.

 

Aint we all???

 

After reading these threads, you can tell who is a parent and who isn't...........

I always print off fresh pictures from the internet for them to colour in. We have a session on tiding their toys together but find without fail they start to play with toys they'd forgotten they have and it all helps them to forget that they are ill... along with Calpol and Nurofen of course (that's if they are allowed to take it, I'm not a doctor - honest)

Incidently, I'm off today because my dog coughed up a load of blood, and thought it gracious of me to be around if she pops her clogs! And I do have an understanding employer which is mainly Take on their part , but today is abit of give for me.
Clarkey

 

No.

 

My best advice is try & get some sleep/rest when their asleep, an hour here & there keeps you going.......

Muff

2 kids under 2

 

I find channel 617 works when adult nerves are starting to fray a little (although I try to keep her away from the electronic babysitter), personally my family are far more important than any job which is why im looking for a new one now (going 24 hours or take a pay cut!)

 

Channel 618, my kids have worn the numbers off the remote.

 

If i see the same Peppa Pig, Tikabilla or FiFi Forget me not, one more time, it'll be me off sick, wrapped up in a nice white coat with arms tied behind my back in a warm safe room with rubber walls!!

As for playing games with the kids to take thier minds off it, all my ones wanna do is play on thier DS, PC or PS2. I tell them if they ok to play on them they ok to go to school, then the coughing starts again lol!

Well just finished tidying the bathroom, removing some fence posts and part of a PC Mod build i been working on for the last few months. All these i could do in 10 min stints so still be at the beck and call of lil un when she decides i need to wash the floor again for the 4th time today!

 

With Channel 618 on continual loop?