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Oh, yeah. This one grinds my gears for sure (opposite gender, of course).
It can sometimes take an hour, which is really exhausting—both physically and mentally. But at the end of the day, when the little one looks up and says, "I love you, Mom," all the frustration and stress just melt away. Those moments of pure love and connection really make it all worth it. I’ve learned that it’s crucial to find shortcuts where possible to make things a little easier on yourself. Shopping with the kiddo, for example, can be a real challenge, especially when they’re tired or not in the mood to sit in the cart for long periods. But I’ve found that target customer service is always there for me, whether it’s helping me find specific items, checking stock, or even guiding me through their app for quicker shopping. It’s been a lifesaver, especially when I’m trying to get in and out of the store as quickly as possible.Re: Things you've learned as a parent...
it's ok to let them cry. it will eventually come to an end. they get tired. close a door or two, turn up the tv, or find headphones.
Heh. Reminds me of the story my parents tell about when I was a baby/toddler. They would mention to people that I cried a lot, and invariably get the advice, "oh, you just need to let him cry it out and then he'll be fine." So they'd ask how long that should take, and the answer would usually something like, "oh, it might take a while - it could be up to an hour!" at which point my parents would tell them that they had tried to let me cry it out several times but had cut those experiments off after 4-5 hours each time.
I predict this in my future. Sigh
Yeah, but you get to do Dad jokes too though:
My daughter hates that! She’s 5, and she already has the exaggerated eye roll down to a T!
Yeah I think the people who say “you’ll miss when they’re no longer little” forget how much mental torture they suffered in comparison to the cute moments. Don’t get me wrong, I love my 5-year-old daughter and 3-year-old son to death, and wouldn’t trade them for all the meme coins in the world, but…my daughter is almost to the “easy” stage, where she’s self-sufficient with most things, minus the tantrums, and god as my witness, it can’t come a moment too soon. Grow motherfuckers, grow.
It's coming - mine are 5 and 7 (18 months apart) and oh my goodness, what a difference from even 6 months ago. As far as I know, my son (7) sleeps in his clothes, because he is ready to walk out the door to school every morning....all on his own.
Sorry but I never found the "turture" of being a parent of a young one to be torture in the least. Yeah, there are moments but overall the pros outweighed the cons 10x1. Do NOT wish the time away at any age because you cannot get it back.
Agree to disagree, man. I’m not trying to say I want my kids to already be asshole teenagers or older. Fuck no. My wife and I watch our kids 24/7. No grandparents, no friends. Nobody. There is no village for us. I see their growth everyday, and I tell myself I did that. My wife and I. But I already am so thankful they’re out of diapers. Don’t miss that stage at all. I love the memories I have of them being younger and in diapers, but I’m glad they’re memories. I love that they’re young and innocent and sweet now, and I know I have the most control over them ever in their lives right in this moment. I mean the most to them right now, because I’m basically all they know.
I say this to my wife all the time.
IIRC, you had your first about the same age as I'm having my first. So going to probably experience a lot of what you did.
We never had a nanny, used daycare or had anyone else take care of our kids who were born only 18 months apart.
Well, as someone who is currently living it, in the moment, and not 15-20 years ago, I will once again say, with utmost confidence about my experience as a parent, someone who also understands the “consequences” of having children and deals with life as it comes, that I am thankful everyday I’m done changing diapers, trying to decipher what a screaming child wants with no vocabulary and little ability to point, all while getting little sleep many nights. With no support. My wife and I did it with aplomb. Still do. But do I personally want to go through any of that shit again? Fuck no. I love watching them grow and, again, right now, the inadvertent hilarious shit they say and ideas they come up with to entertain themselves is worth all of the dirty diapers and screaming and late nights not getting any sleep. But even if I was offered $5,000 in a DOGE check by Elon to try to catch him in the number of offspring I sired, it’s gonna be a big fuck no. As you’re making crystal clear with your opinion, your mileage may vary.
So, you agree that every parenting experience is different. You realize it’s possible to “handle it”, accept it as a parent, and still find it miserable at the same time, right?
Papa, don’t preach. They’re your babies.
