Truly. I swear. No joke. I genuinely like my kids and think they're pretty cool.
They're not perfect. They whine and squabble and talk back. They don't want to do homework or eat veggies.
But -- and I know I don't even need to say this -- I love my children to the moon and back. And I know my husband feels the same way.
However.....there is absolutely a difference between having kids around vs. not.
As you may have heard, my mom and step-dad had my kids for a week earlier this month and I took notice of how different things were for Mark and I during that week.
1. We didn't argue not once. No kids to push our buttons and get on our last nerves, thus making us easily irritated with each other, or disagree about parenting (which is kind of an issue with us right now).
2. I didn't feel incomplete. Because our kids are 14 and 8 1/2, and already on their way to being more independent, it didn't feel very weird that they weren't around.
3. We weren't as tired. We may not have to hold, feed and bathe our kids anymore, which makes them less physically tiring, they are still -- or even moreso -- mentally tiring.
4. It didn't go by too fast or too slow. Time seemed to pass at the pace it's meant to. I think. I mean, I didn't blink at noon and it was suddenly 5:00, like so often happens when I'm doing mom things.
5. We had a good time together. This was so nice, because it showed me that Mark and I can still easily enjoy each other's company when we take our parent hats off and it's just the two of us. I know this is something a lot of couples worry about as they become empty-nesters.
While completely worth it, parenting is work. And it's often hard. So it is SO NICE to get to take a break from it even just once a year. I think it's good for everyone.
Thank God for grandparents!
Never mind how I may have stopped and wistfully gazed into my kids' rooms thinking about how much I love them....
Dammit, I'm such a sap!
Do you ever get to take your parent hat off?
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