I think you have stumbled upon the answer to __________'s disappearance.... _______ is no longer on this planet but has left is now residing on Venus?...This the planet you were all planning to relocate to, right?

This  question concerns me, especially if it was written by a parent! 

A child needs your love, nurturing, attention, time...Not candy...!  

Shouldn't this question be removed from here and placed in the daft group?...LOL

If you want your child to end up being obese, with rotten teeth, low self esteem, negligible social skills and you don't care about your relationship with your child; then yeah, give the kid candy.

A good dose of time management might though. Time in the day to have one to one fun and creativity. Some water play at the sink (keep the mop handy) while you tidy round them, some make and do and a trip to the great out doors. Keep them busy for chunks throughout the day and they will welcome some quiet time to process and allow you to get your jobs done.

If old enough involve them in your business, are you making beds, make a game out of it, kids even as young as 2yrs love to polish round and help their parents. Encourage their imagination, your not going to clean the bathroom, your going on a spider hunt,LOL You're not dusting your counting spider webs, who is going to help.

Going shopping, give them a list of their own to hunt down, or if you got babies sing, o.k you get some lovely looks as you go round, but the best looks are from your baby,hehe. Got ironing to do, hide the socks individually, they got to find and pair them. Kranky sit them down read, then give them some old sheets and let them build a tent, that can keep them occupied for hours,LOL.

Thing is they grow so fast, blink and you will wonder why some things were more important than time with the kids. Prioritise your day and the rest can wait, they wont be little forever.

Best Wishes. Winnie.xxxx

little kids NEED fun, attention, nurturing, love, acceptance, time, tolerance, encouragement, discipline, boundaries, caring, guidance etc. NOT candy.

ask yourself do you deserve your kids? ask yourself do your kids deserve better? ask yourself where you priorities are? if you are too busy for your kids, why did you have them? Are you really that busy that you can't offer you kids part of your time? ask yourself, what will the outcome be to their psychological state if you continue to want to abandon them when life gets too much for you?

Call your local council and see if there are some good parenting programs available in your area to improve your coping and general parenting skills.  practice time management. delegate some of your tasks to others. cut back on work. find some quality time activites that you and your children can enjoy together. still take time for yourself so that you have the emotional ability to be able to focus on your children. find some balance in your life. get some help with time management.  refocus your priorities. life is too short.  your kids are too important.

do you really think that anyone on here would actually say that candy is the answer- i think not.  perhaps if you reworded this to say- my kids and busy life are overwhelming and getting on top of me, what can i do about it? might get some more encouraging responses.  I think most mums and dads can appreciate the overwhelming task of parenthood. I understand, i am busy too (recently separated, working mother of 3 young children) but candy is not the answer.

Take them to the room and read them a book, they deserve it.

I have found that kids need your attention, but they also need free time to do their own thing.  The trick is to spend enough time with them that they will be happy to go and entertain themselves for a bit, or to sit and do an activity that you have set up for them, leaving you free to grab a bit of time to get things done.  And to know how long it takes to do what you have to, and plan for it.  Being a mum means not having a perfect routine, so you need to get real good at slotting your bits in between the kids, or leave it until they are asleep (much easier).

It is much less stressful if you are able to devote all your time to the kids while they are awake, without having all your other obligations gnawing at the back of your mind.  I know it ain't that easy, though.

My youngest (18 months) lets me know if I have not given her enough attention - she will try and climb on me, or hang onto my leg until I pick her up.  If I spend ten or fifteen minutes giving her my undivided attention, she is satisfied, and will go play with the others.  She only does it when I haven't spent much time with the kids (perhaps she's bringing herself up).