I frequently have to remind myself that this truly is the life that I chose. Although I feel blessed that I am able to stay at home with my two young children, I often feel that I have lost the person that I used to be. Before my husband and I had children our hobbies and interests consisted of travelling, dining out, hiking, kayaking, and spending our Sundays lazing around the house watching movies, or going for long drives. Although still possible, adding children, especially young children to any of the above activities brings along a whole new element of difficulty. Trust me we have tried them all….well all except the travelling (I am not willing to go there yet).
- Dining out: what used to be romantic dinners at gourmet restaraunts now consists of a family friendly fair that is fast and cheap
- Hiking: now consists of short walks that our three year old can do because she won’t stay in the stroller
- Kayaking: well to be honest we didn’t attempt kayaking this summer ~ it didn’t seem like much fun with a newborn
- Going for a Sunday drive: Our youngest is not a good traveller and has a hard time being in the car seat for longer than 1/2 hour at a time
- Lazing around the house watching movies: watching kid friendly movies doesn’t quite have the same effect, not to mention the frequent bathroom breaks, changing diapers, providing snacks, bottle feedings (etc.) doesn’t make for a very lazy day!
Although we have found new interests and activities that we enjoy doing with our children, sometimes I miss what used to be…especially those lazy Sunday’s!
November 13th, 2009 at 12:53 am
What I miss after life with two kids is the couplehood, and being part of a partnership where we both have more or less ’symmetrical’ shares - doing and sharing similar activities. We have two boys - ages 3 1/2 and 3 months old, and it seems like nowadays my husband and I have very clearly divided roles. I am the mom, spending most of my time taking care and focusing on developing relationships with my children, whereas my husband has been concentrating on his work. This makes me feel like we have parallel lives sometimes. I would like to know what new interests you have developed that include all family members that father will also enjoy? After all, I want to see my boys bonding with their father more because it is essential for the development of their character. My email address is fycchen@gmail.com if you would like to share your thoughts. Thanks.