Toddler years are tough, but this mum maintains they're easier than teenagers!

• You spend so much time trying to get a toddler to bed and live through the ensuing madness as they escape their beds for the hallway each night. “Can you not just stay in bed?” I often asked though now I have to shout “Get up out of bed!” because these teenagers have flipped the whole sleep thing on its head. Now they won’t bloody get up and when they finally do, you cannot ask a single question without having the head bitten off you. At least a tot loved seeing Mammy and Daddy in the morning, now those days are gone.
• Do you remember when you found your little monster knee deep in lotions and shampoos in the bathroom? You realised once they had been so quiet for so long. However teenagers will rob your toiletries and perfumes or aftershaves even though they have their own. Do yourself a favour and find a safe hiding place and put your luxury items away. Trust me it will help avoid any fights at home.
• While toddlers are quite happy to sit at the table and do a bit of finger painting and you can do it at your own pace, teenagers get homework- and lots of it. They will have exams and you will literally be reliving school with them, and trying to answer all their tricky questions on biology. At least a toddler is impressed with your playdoh figurines and thinks you the smartest person ever. You will be found out by teenagers unfortunately.
• We know that babies and toddlers can smell a bit yucky when they are pooping or sour milk on their bibs, with teens though it is worse. Their rooms are like a breeding ground for bacteria and God knows what you will find in there-approach with caution. There will be the aroma of sweaty socks, shirts and old runners mixed with their perfumes or aftershaves: Yuk!
• Your tot will happily travel in the car with you going where ever suits you and has no major demands. However teenagers have school, activities and parties to go to and Mam and Dad's taxi will be out in full force for hours on end. 
• Apart from the few times you have lost sight of your tot for a fleeting moment (when they rambled off) in the supermarket you otherwise know where they are all the time. These young people though will keep you awake at night waiting for them to arrive home from a freinds house and you will be back to the days of your child keeping you awake at night. In the early days it was a new born baby waking up and now with a teenager- it is fretting about their safety. It really does go round and round.
• Relish the days with the little ones because soon they will be big and that comes with more concern! Who ever said parenting was easy anyway?