'I was not prepared for the amount of times a day I would have to hear my name over and over again.'
"I feel like something nobody warned me about was how much time my husband and I would be sick! Our daughter brings home a cold every other week.""No one talks about how mentally hard it will be on you.
Not just postpartum depression, but years after as well. I don't know how people have more than one kid. I love my daughter to death, but parenting definitely takes a toll on my mental health. The worrying, anxiety, stress, less me time, and less husband time. It's a lot. But she's the greatest. My husband and I have agreed we are a one-child family.""Having the house to yourself is a rare treat. I usually have about 20 minutes between coming home from work and getting my first grader off the bus, and my husband coming home from daycare with our two-year-old. I cherish those 20 minutes! I used to try to get stuff done, like make lunches for the next day or throw in a load of laundry. But goddammit, those are my 20 minutes, and I use them to sit in silence!""It’s all bittersweet watching them grow and become their own person. You love seeing them excel and become this awesome person, but you hate it at the same time because it means they don’t need you the same as they did before.""You will be wiping something for the rest of your life: faces, hands, butts, counters, tables, walls, everything. It may not seem like much, but when you realize you’ve wiped the same surface eight times in one day, you can get a little ragey about it.""You have no idea just how much of a time suck homework will be on family life. It will often upend evening, weekend, holiday, and even summer plans if your kids are in honors programs. The amount of homework given to kids is downright abusive. Pro-parenting tip: it doesn't make them any smarter. You'll find it a hoot when school administrators and college admissions counselors ask why your kids don't participate in more activities.""There is a big difference between having one kid and having multiple kids. I only have one, so many phases, like diapers and carrying a stroller everywhere, only lasted a few years. I know some larger families where they’ve been dealing with diapers for over 10 years.""For better or worse, you’ll see a different side of your spouse or partner and feel a lot of new, unexpected things.""No one warns you about childcare and aftercare, especially when they start school. It’s so insanely hard to put them in school and then try to find an aftercare that will open at the same time school lets out and will pick them up. If they won’t pick them up, you better hope you have an understanding boss who will let you take your lunch break late so you can drop them off at aftercare. The days when school’s out but work isn’t are an entirely different level of Tetris I was not prepared for.""Be very careful not to live your entire life for, or through, your child. So many of my friends let their hobbies, friends, and interests fade while they were raising their children. Then their kid moves out, goes to college, or leaves the nest, and the parents have no idea how to be people anymore. Most got very depressed. Still being an adult, with adult interests and relationships, is important throughout your kids' childhood.""I wasn’t prepared for how intensely I would want a little time to myself and how I feel like I literally cannot have it. Even when my husband takes the kids so I can have time to myself, I’m still totally focused on them!""No one talks about feeling 'touched out.' I love all the snuggles, kisses, and hugs, but sometimes I just want to sit and not be poked at.""I've been a stepmom for just over two years now, and I was not prepared for the amount of times a day I would have to hear my name over and over again.""After my grandparents died, I hated Christmas. The holidays weren’t warm and fuzzy anymore; they were filled with family fighting and a lot of tears. I started dreading it. Then I had kids. We now celebrate Hanukkah and Christmas, and starting new traditions with my own little family and seeing it through their eyes has absolutely restored it for me. I no longer dread it. I can’t wait to curl up with the kids and watch movies, or see their faces light up when we light the menorah or decorate the tree. They are the best part of every holiday.""People don't talk about the crushing, heartbreaking moments, both good and bad. Dropping them off at kindergarten, when they take their first steps, when their friend moves away, taking them for stitches, and so on. You seriously learn a whole new level of love, compassion, and fear. Your feelings become deeper.""Some positives: Just how funny kids can be. Their expressions, wording, and logic are funnier than anything you could ever think up. Their interests also become your interests. I know so many more dinosaur names at 36 than I did at 6. I love looking things up to answer questions for them."And finally,"Nobody told me how much fun my kids would be as they got older! Everyone talks about how cute babies are or all the milestones of the toddler years, but I found those years really hard. My kids are now tweens, and they're a lot of fun. They’re funny and creative, and I’m really discovering who they will be as people. So if you’re in the middle of that tough period and feeling like you should be savoring moments that make you want to scream, remind yourself that they will be different people so much sooner than you think."Parents, what's something about having kids that no one warned you about? Tell us in the comments or use the anonymous form below:
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