That comment was obnoxious to hear then and it is obnoxious to hear now, when OF COURSE my life has been dramatically and beautifully and miraculously changed by my first child, and I'm pregnant with five weeks left to go before my second child arrives. Hubby and I conceived this second child hoping our lives would be forever changed.
While visiting a lovely playground at Woodlake today, Caleb and I were sharing playground space with another family comprised of a mother and two children - a boy and a girl. They were playing the sweetest game of tag/superhero/castle using as much imagination and energy as one could only dream of. We all coexisted for some time together before the mother asked me my due date. We continued playing together for another 30 minutes before she left. On her way out she yelled casually over her shoulder, "You just wait."
Meaning, you just wait till you have two of them running around. I bet she meant no harm. I bet she was just being friendly, as she had been for the duration of our time together on the playground. But what it sounds like to me is what everyone else says: it's going to get so much harder, you'll wish you only had one child again.
Well, folks, this isn't a shock to me. I think all parents sometimes wish for moments without their children. It's only natural. Parenting is difficult, challenging, and requires much patience and flexibility.
But it just takes one glance at that child to know it is all worth it.
And I just can't wait for my next blessing to arrive.
3 comments:
Couldn't have said it better. My life would have been empty and meaningless if I had not had such beautiful, loving, accomplished daughters. Thank you for being in my life. Mom
Amen Maria and Melanie!!! What a great coment on being a parent. I love that you were well aware of the probability, she meant no harm. So often that is the case, but the outcome of the conversation is, well, disheartening. So glad also you are so level headed, so equipped to see the joys of parenhood clearly and the reality of parental needs as normal. Good for you. and sa always, thanks so much for the pictures...wonderful!
Because I don't have kids, people often say to me "you have NO idea what it's like". It bums me out when they say it in sort of an exhausted tone, sounding like they sort of wished they didn't have kids. I always reply that of course I can't imagine what it's like, and that I'm currently enjoying being incredibly selfish with my time. But also I really can't wait until we have children, and though I know I cannot imagine the exhaustion, also know that I cannot imagine the joy. So it's really refreshing to hear your take on it :) and I wish more parents appreciated their little ones childhoods because eventually I expect they'll look back upon them and realize how much they missed.
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