How did you know you were ready to have a baby?

One of the most frequently asked questions I had to answer over the summer was… “How did you know you were ready to have a baby?”

With wedding fever all over and cousins and friends getting ready to tie the knot, it was the one thing that they all wanted to know. When is the “right” time to start a family? The correct answer to that question is… Never

No matter how prepared you might think you are, parenting is the one job you can never be ready for. Children are an anchor in your life. They add a lot of stability, but they also tend to weigh you down at times. Being a mom or dad (since this applies to both) means that you have to learn to live for someone else. Maybe that’s one thing no human is ever prepared to do.

It’s a tough job. You don’t get a “do-over” and you can’t walk away from it. You have to have good instincts, you have to have presence of mind and most importantly, you have to have a lot of unconditional love. Children can really beat down on you at times, so it’s equally important to understand that if you feel “overworked” and you want to quit, it’s ok.

Most people gasp and shudder when a parent says… I don’t want to do this anymore. But it’s unfair to gloss it up all the time. Parenting has its promising and fulfilling moments, but at the same time it has a lot of heartache and frustration. It’s ok to feel like you don’t want to be a parent at times.

I get really jealous of my non-parenting friends when they have absolute control over their lives. They make spontaneous plans, we can’t do that anymore.

So those of you moms and dads out there, who feel like quitting once in a while, remember that it’s ok. Raising a child is a tremendous amount of work, and if you’re doing it right, then you should be really proud of yourself. Don’t feel guilty if you want a part of your life back. Just learn to “readjust” your happiness to incorporate the little ones. We can’t stop being parents, but we should definitely know how to take our breaks!