It dawns on me every Friday...

M.Amy

that I don't have real weekends anymore. I can't sleep in on the weekends or go off to play golf all day with DH. It is worse for my husband because at least the weekends get better for me (extra set of hands). I am heading off to bed wistfully remembering those care free days...but giving DS a kiss on the way.

peeper72

Dude, isn't life so different now?

We were heading home from a walk yesterday and we  walked past a bar we used to sometimes go into. I don't miss it. Not at all. What I do miss is  doing whatever I want whenever I want (shaving my legs, brushing my teeth, etc).

It's weird to explain, right? I miss it but not so much that I want it back. I love her so much more than doing what I want.

busybea

peeper72:

 

What I do miss is  doing whatever I want whenever I want (shaving my legs, brushing my teeth, etc).

HA!  shaving legs?  I can't even remember the last time I did that!  poor, poor DH .... LOL!

M.Amy

peeper72:

I miss it but not so much that I want it back. I love her so much more than doing what I want.

That is exactly it. Pre-pregnancy, I used to go out with friends every Friday for Happy Hour and I mean EVERY Friday.  DH has kindly said that he would watch DS while I keep up my Friday tradition. I think in part so then he can ask to play golf the next day but also because I used to have so much fun. I haven't gone and I don't want to, at least not now.

JenninMA

This is partly why I'm happy I waited to have kids til my 30s. I do miss the freedom but am glad I had so many years to have fun without the responsibilities of parenting. There were a lot of years of great weekends!

Moiselle

I guess it hits us harder when we are in our 30s and start the family.  We are so set in our ways.

Last night, we did not go out for sushi and drinks lots of sake.  We stayed in and watched 2 DVDs.  But at least we were able to watch at least 1 movie uninterrupted.

We woke up at 6am and were walking. 

peeper72

JenninMA:

This is partly why I'm happy I waited to have kids til my 30s. I do miss the freedom but am glad I had so many years to have fun without the responsibilities of parenting. There were a lot of years of great weekends!

Here here!!

To take it a step farther, I just feel a world apart from the person I was in my early twenties. My experiences between here and there put me in a completely different position to appreciate being a mom. I completely acknowledge that it's judgey of me but I could never participate in this same conversation on the 0-6 board b/c there are so many very young women.

I remember watching Oprah some years ago when an author was on. She had written a book about how she loves being a mother but really missed her old life. It was an honest appraisal: sometimes motherhood wasn't all it was cracked up to be and she occasionally pined for her old life. She was older, educated, affluent, had a career, had traveled, etc. before she had children. Not that I've traveled so much or am so affluent (Ha!) but on some level I can relate to this woman.

There was another woman on who apparently represented another point of view - she 'loved every minute of being a mother'. The implication was that she was a better mother because she didn't pine for her former life. She had her first baby when she was 18 years old, never continued her education beyond high school, never traveled from her home state, etc. Not that there is anything wrong with being woman #2 but I remember clearly thinking about that second woman that she had never developed a life of her own before having children so of course she didn't miss it - there was nothing to miss! She just didn't get it and never would.

M.Amy

Peeper - that is so well put!!