Parenting: You Think You Know, But You Have No Idea

Parenting: You Think You Know, But You Have No Idea


When you are pregnant with your first kid, you are headed into the unknown. You’re excited, but also nervous. Nervous about if you will know what to do, about if you will be a good parent. You wonder how you will ever manage. So you stock up on all the latest and greatest “must have” parenting products, and anxiously read about what to expect.  All the while your mind runs wild imagining what life will be like.

You Become a Parenting Pro

But after your baby arrives, you soon become an old pro. A baby can be fed while catching up on your emails. You have mastered cute and quick up-do’s because you have little time to blow dry your hair. You’re able to change a diaper so fast that your baby doesn’t have time to pee on himself or cry about being naked. You become a baby whisperer; able to decipher your baby’s exact needs just by the pitch of her cry. As time goes on, you and your toddler are masters of your daily schedule.  Now you never miss an opportunity for a fun activity or outing. You’ve got it so good that you think, “Hey, let’s bring on number two!”

So you bust out your old baby items, and get rid of all those “must have” products you got for your first but never opened. Your confidence runs high because you’ve done this before, no sweat, you’ve mastered this parenting thing. You remember all your old tricks, like the old bounce-pat-shhh, and you’re prepared to use them. You think you have it all figured out, but you have no idea.

Number 2 Brings Throws a Curve Ball

Soon after number two arrives, you realize you are playing a whole new ballgame. The thought failed to cross your mind that this was going to be a different human being, with different needs and wants, with different cries and a different personality. But, you soon re-master your old feeding and diapering skills; this time with the added challenge of a toddler hanging from your leg or trying to jump on your lap.

You’ve also developed the art of the layered look, because, unlike your first, this one projectile pukes. If you hold him a certain way after he eats, and you don’t have time to change your entire outfit twelve times a day. Multitasking has taken to a whole new level when you have a crying baby, a toddler with underwear on her head and you have to get out the door to be on time for pre-school. Your life has become so busy you hardly have time to think about what’s for dinner, let alone imagine what the future holds. But amongst all the chaos, you do know that you wouldn’t trade it for the world. And maybe, in a few years, you’ll have such a good handle on things that you can bring on number three!

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