Let me preface this post by saying how much I love my children. Their health and well-being is everything to me. Their happiness is paramount to mine and my husband’s life and we spend most of our effort ensuring their happiness.
Now- with that caveat in place, let me talk about parenting. It’s a drag. Am I right ? I know this is some taboo topic and we are supposed to be grateful for every little thing that our children do. We are supposed to savour every moment because they go to quick. Maybe this is all true. In fact it is all true. But that doesn’t mean that it’s not intense and sometimes let’s face it – downright boring. I was doing the school run this morning, sitting in hideous traffic and I just had an epiphany, I love being a parent but I hate parenting. It’s tedious. It’s boring. It’s relentless. Every morning it’s the same argument and pleading- wake up, please please wake up, go for a wee- you don’t need a wee? Of course you need a wee. Everybody needs a wee when they wake up. Brush your teeth. You didn’t brush for long enough. Get dressed. I know you don’t want to go to school. I know you’re tired. Eat your breakfast. I know you’re not hungry but you should eat anyway because you will be really hungry at school. Come on let’s go. Let’s walk to school. I know your legs hurt but it’s good exercise. And on it goes. I often see adults running in the morning and I envy them. They are so free. Or maybe they‘re not. I don’t know what their lives are but I envy being able to just wake up and doing what I want. Not having to consider anyone else. I often look at others who have their own evening free. From the moment I pick up my kids at 2:50pm I am just doing stuff for them, with them. Making dinner, supervising homework, washing uniform, bathing, bedtime, conking out in my daughter‘s bed, then shuffling to my boy‘s room to put him to bed. By 9pm I am finished. Where has the time gone? Where has the time gone for me ? I think this is the same for most parents whether they work or not. Life is hectic and intense with kids. We love them and we love being parents, but the actual minutiae of parenting is a drag. There is no end to this post. There is no wrapping it up nicely. This is parenting. There is no end. To this day my poor mum and dad still worry about me and on top of that now they worry about their grandkids. What a drag.
