Forever Young

One of the big things that some parents focus on when they first find out they are expecting is how becoming a mom or a dad isn't going to change them.  We made plans for all the ways we were going to keep up our old lives despite being parents and for the most part we've done an okay job of it, but the truth is that it has changed us and looking back that's not such a bad thing.

Our weekends are no longer long lazy stretches of sleeping in and late late nights, although sometimes there are late late nights followed by early early mornings. We have less time for "us" but I think we try to use all of our time more wisely.

Being a parent myself has given me a new appreciation of my mom and dad and their own unconditional support which as children I think we are far too self-centred to really comprehend.  A while ago Chris was at a business conference and one of the keynotes was Canadian Comedian Jessica Holmes.  In her segment she talked about being a parent and the epiphany moment, while she was holding her infant daughter, when her mother simply said, "You understand that I love you just as much as you love your daughter, right?"  When he told me about it I marinated on it for quite some time.  It's something so completely obvious, but as a child I just didn't get it.

This week we attended a funeral for a close friend's mom.  For the entire service I kept thinking about how terrible it would be to lose a child, at any age.  I thought about my friend having to tell her grandmother that she had lost her daughter and how incredibly terrible that would have been.  I found myself watching my friend's grandmother intently wondering how I would deal with losing one of my kids, whether it was tomorrow or when I was in my 80s.

 I have seen some of the changes that come with being a parent or growing up and I am very happy about most of the things that are different in my life.  I have less time, so I'm trying to focus on the things that I love and what on earth could be scary about that?

I have been nominated for Voiceboks 2014 Multiple Parenting Blog Awards - If you have a moment to spare: Click Here Now and cast your vote for Multiple Momstrosity #27, it's the little heart icon that pops up in the top right hand corner that registers a vote NOT clicking on the photo.  If you follow any of the other blogs or enjoy them like say HDYDI (#21) you can vote for them too - you can vote for up to five different blogs daily.