The Second Time Around

I get asked a lot (by people with pained looks on their faces) about how I am doing with two kids so close in age. It is only natural I suppose. My kids are 20 months apart. I got lots of warnings before I had Scarlett about the exhaution, the inability to get anything done and the overwhelmingness and frustration I would feel now that my life was so "busy".

Sure, some days I experience those feelings. I have had some long nights and frustrations with my obstinate toddler. But really.... not half as bad as I thought or was made to think. Now, I know that I am a whopping 3.5 weeks into the business but so far so good. I really enjoy being a mom. I love, love, love being home with my kids. Do I get annoyed... sure. But I remind myself I used to sit in a quiet cube all day and play accountant.

Now, I get up every day and think about what fun things I can do with Porter. There are morning snuggles, giggle fits and the inevitable tantrums. There are walks in the gorgeous weather, park trips and sunshine. Truth be told.... it is bliss (most days). And the little one... she comes along for the ride. I realize now how easy newborns are and how easy I had it with one. But we do stuff and go places. The second child doesn't have the luxury of sitting around the house for 6 weeks. Nope, we get up and go every day.

There are a couple things I think helped me. One, natural childbirth post partums are UH-mazing. Thanks to no drugs and my short labor, I felt great pretty much right away. I was completely physically healed in about 8 days (those that have had a baby can read between the lines on that one). So that helped a lot. Two, BABYWEARING. I kinda, sorta got into it with Porter but with Scarlett, it is a lifesaver. I am not sure how parents have multiple kids and not wear them! I wrap her daily. She loves it and I have two hands. Three, I nurse. This (and running after Porter) has allowed me to lose all my pregnancy weight in two weeks and best of all, you can nurse anywhere! It is easy, always with me and fast. I struggled with nursing with Porter and after the first week, nursing has been great with the lil bug.

I am for sure not trying to brag or paint a picture of perfection. Trust me, you won't find any of that around here. More like a picture of reality. I am sitting in a room scattered with toys and there are two piles of laundry that need to be put away. My house isn't HGTV ready and I have not a lick of makeup on but mostly, I am in heaven. I decided it is all about perspective. If I concentrated on different things (like the toddler that has said "mama" 10 times in the past 5 seconds but doesn't need anything) then I would get more swallowed up. But for now, I concentrate on the kids, doing at least something around the house every day, getting a shower in and cooking yummy meals. And I can handle that much.... for now.