The Reality of Two

My husband has a friend whose counsel he actually listens to. (This is different than my counsel, you see.) And this friend, while I was pregnant (excellent timing) said something to the effect of, "Having one kid is having one kid. Having two kids is having twenty." Now, since this little snippit of amazing advice was useless to us at that point, I laughed it off in that way you laugh off a piece of truth you hear but can not believe. 

Here is what I call "The Reality of Two"

You get more privacy in a public bathroom than you do in your own home.

And Josh wonders why I go to the potty every time we go to dinner. And why I am gone for thirty minutes.

The time it takes to do something increases exponentially.

I assumed that if it took five minutes to get out the door with one kid, then it would take ten minutes to get out the door with two kids. Um, no. It is more like it takes twenty minutes to get out the door with two kids. Unless it is winter, then it takes an hour.

You have no time for yourself.

I thought I didn’t have any time to myself when I had just Little Man. Ha! Most days I long for those days. Having an office or place of business outside my home sometimes sounds like a vacation.

Photo by: Hudson. Yep, the boy is going to run me out of business if he keeps this up!

You better learn how to do things with one free arm.

Like eat.

And wipe a three year old’s bum.

And type blogs.

You need more patience than exists.

I wish that I had more. I really do. I fail at this every day.

Anything short of multi-tasking is not an option.

Two kids= two different agendas. Hudson’s standard agenda: play with me, play with me, play with me. Tucker’s=feed me then hold me while I nap.

You will say, “Hold on a minute” about every other minute.

And I know I say this because my mockingbird said it too me today when I tried to rush his cereal choice. “Pick, Hudson.” “Hold on a minute, Mama.” Jeez.

Dirty takes on a whole new meaning.
I have friends who I thought were terrible housekeepers. No the case; they just have two kids. Thank goodness men do not see dirt the way women do.

You're going to love him/her just as much as your first.

Oh, I do. Tucker can snot all over my sweatshirt and I just want to gobble him up. He is just as cute as Hudson and I did not think that was possible.

Life gets better.

I love that Hudson loves Tucker so. I love it that Tucker's smiles instantly the second he sees his brother. I love that these two will forever be brothers and I made that connection possible for them. And that is a reality I can live with.