Ahh peaceful church or not

Since Destructo was born, church hasn't been what it used to be.  What I mean by that is that I spend the entire time chasing him around trying to keep him from completely disturbing the entire congregation.  Oh when he was a newborn, it was easy enough.  He slept through the entire thing unless he was hungry and then we fed him.  Easy peasy.

Back when church was easy.  He was mesmerized by the flame.

But then he got where he screamed and cried so much that I started leaving him at home with Mr. Destructo.  Around a year, Mr. Destructo started going to church with us more often and/or was working on the weekends so Destructo had to come to church with me or else I had to miss church.  This was a huge challenge at first.  The first two months, I am pretty sure there wasn't a single mass that I got to stay inside the church for the entire time.  I would end up having to take Destructo out in front of the church where he could get the wiggles out.

This slowly evolved to where I could sit the entire mass inside the narthex with him where he had a little more wiggle room and he would sit at my feet and play with his toys.  Now this week we went to my parents church and he even made it fairly well through the mass inside instead of out in the narthex.  It is getting better all the time.  I mean yeah, he provides enough entertainment for the entire side of the church we sit on, but still.  I am able to sit through an entire mass with only a handful of having to chase him downs.  My newest goal is to actually be able to pay enough attention to follow the sermon.  Right now I am constantly having to hand him a toy, keep him from wandering off, getting him a snack.  Ahh the joys of parenting toddlers.

Who me?  A  trouble maker.  No way

Oh and just to make this post make a bit more sense, my church doesn't have a nursery.  So I have no other option but to keep him in the mass with me.  This bothered me at first, but I have come to like it.  I love that my child is learning to worship and sit nicely in the mass by being an active participant from the very beginning.  Or at least that is what I tell myself when Destructo is driving me crazy the entire time and I haven't heard a word that the priest has said.   My church is also too small so people have to sit in the narthex each week which works out well for  us. 

So with that said, what works for you guys to keep your kids in control, quiet, and behaving during church?

The things I recommend so far are:  1)  Have snacks for your kiddo.  The fruit/veggie purees and puffs are favorites in our household.

2)  Have a special book that is just for church.  This is our church book. .  Kai loves opening the flaps and seeing what is under them and sometimes it will even buy 15 minutes of sitting still.

3)  The Little People farm animals are small and awesome to back in his toy bag.  He loves playing with the animals even without the barn and they don't make much noise when he throws them down and the don't roll far away.

4)  The other church favorite toy are the small cars from the Melissa and Doug car carrier set.  He likes to roll them around the floor at our feet or the chair next to me.  Oh and I always bring a few extra toys because apparently Kai's toys are awesome and a lot of other kids end up sitting by him and wanting to "share" his toys.  I don't mind anymore since I just pack a bunch of extras so Kai can have his and share.

5)  Coloring books are always a good idea as well.

6)  I am teaching him how to whisper by demonstrating the difference in loud voices and whisper voices.  Maybe he will catch on at some point so I can tell him he needs to whisper when he is getting too loud.

7)  If people sit in the narthex at your church or there is a special area for families with children, I highly recommend it.  I love letting Kai sit by other kids because he behaves much better when he can watch and play with the other kids.


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