Last week's vote focused on the difficulties that we face in the early stages of parenting, and how much that may or may not affect the size of our family.
If we could somehow be given a guarantee that every baby was without colic, reflux, sleepless nights, tantrums, and whatever else may cause us to scream in a pillow, how many children would we have?
Or, does it really come down to carpool management and table availability at a restaurant?
The votes are clear: Most of us would choose to have three or four children.
From my own perspective, I always planned on having three children. It's what I had growing up, and it always felt perfect. The first born, the baby, and the middle child.
That perspective has since changed; partly because we had two reflux babies, and partly because I am ready to begin the next stage. I'm ready to explore the world as family of four, I'm ready to explore this whole professional writing thing, and I am ready to sleep through the night on a consistent basis.
When I shared this perspective with someone who has divergent views, they felt compelled to tell me that these early struggles in parenting were really just a moment in time, a flash in the pan. Getting through the ealry years would always be worth having a fuller family.
Though I remained unconvinced, I did take something from that conversation. Every time I am confronted with a meltdown, tantrum, or even endless whining, I start singing "One Moment in Time" to remind myself that it is just one moment in the day....and a lot better than yelling or throwing my own temper tantrum.
I'm not kidding. In the worst, most testing times, I bust out singing and even if it doesn't keep me completely sane, it certainly distracts the kiddos.
Shout out to Whitney and on to the next poll.....
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2 comments:
You raise a very meaningful and important point about these early days being fleeting, but still, I can't get past the hilarious image of you singing "One Moment in Time." The hilarious part not being you singing, of course, but the choice of song. :)
Considering that I have a select group of friends that think I am getting divorced because of a stupid fight over responsibility, I think I might take your advice and just start belting out a song.
And also the early days are fleeting but for how long can one go without a good solid night's sleep. That is what makes us a little more crazy during the trying times, I think. We can't just keep procreating in order to satisfy our need for baby smiles. Now that my kids are sleeping on a consistant basis, I am banking on some nieces and nephews that I can coo over and send back.
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