Before getting married and having kids, my husband and I had a lot of opinions about certain parental topics and child-raising techniques. Believe me, if I could go back in time and tell us to STFU, I would. It’s humorous to even believe that we were this naive before we became parents and how strongly we felt about a few topics back then.
On Mealtime
Before kids:
Our child will never EVER dictate to us what they want to eat. We will make one meal and one meal only. I will never be the parent that makes 3 meals at dinner just to get my kid to eat. If he/she doesn’t want to eat it then they go to bed hungry.
After kids:
You won’t eat the chicken I made? Ok..how about this pasta? No? Ok…how about PB&J? I can’t let this kid go to sleep hungry, they’ll lock my ass up!
On Electronics
Before kids:
What the hell is wrong with these people at the next table from us – giving their 2 year old an iPad to watch a movie at a freaking restaurant!?!? C’MON!
After kids:
Take the damn iPad/iPhone out now! PLEASE!!! I just want to eat one meal in peace and quiet.
On Co-Sleeping
Before kids:
There is no way in hell that I would ever let our children sleep in our bed. I refuse to start that horrific habit! I have no idea what is wrong with these parents that let their kids sleep in their bed. They are going to be 10 years old and still cuddling up with them!
After kids:
It’s 3 a.m., there’s a tiny person in our room, kicking my ribcage and slowly pushing me out of my king size bed. If I just position myself directly at the edge of the bed so her feet can’t reach me then I might be able to fall back to sleep.
On T.V.
Before Kids:
I am going to limit the shit out of television watching. 1 episode of Sesame Street or Little Einsteins and that’s IT!
After Kids:
I just need 5 minutes of quiet time, for the love of God – Bubble Guppies, Sofia, Mickey Mouse Club House, what would I do without you??!
On Our Social Life
Before Kids:
Nothing is going to stop us from enjoying ourselves. Happy hours, dinners and nights out will continue. Might not be every weekend, but at least every other weekend.
After Kids:
It’s 9 p.m. on a Saturday night, I’m in my pajamas, yawning my ass off thinking how once, not so long ago, I was just starting to get ready for a night out. I try to conjure up the energy to just simply mentally prepare myself to stay up and watch Saturday Night Live. I lucky get through the monologue. We haven’t been out in over 2 months on a weekend. Maybe, just maybe, we can plan a dinner out one of these days…annnnd then mommy guilt sets in.
Have you and your spouse ever had these convos? I brought this up to my husband and he started to laugh at all the things we said…how young and dumb were we! Reality quickly set in for us, so this goes out to all you soon-to-be parents out there who have had these same conversations! No matter how much you think you will be different, you too will be a contradiction.
– Amanda
