A Second Child

I was recently in Madison, WI. I got the chance to visit my now, 72 year old friend. She is brilliant and, of course, British. She is a well renowned physiotherapist and educator.

When I last saw her, 3 years ago, she overwhelmingly encouraged me to have another child. Her reasoning was...hmmmmmmm...I can't remember. Might I say that she's just very persuasive. My primary objection was that I didn't think I could survive the sleep deprivation of another newborn, and the mind-numbing tasks of caring for a child before they can talk (some people really enjoy this baby phase but it's just not my cup of tea). Her rebuttal, "Just hire someone to do the things you hate." I felt defensive and immediately blurted, "I didn't hate it. It's just not my favourite thing in the world". She laughed, with a frown, and simply stated, "Consider a second."

I now have 2 sons and did hire my beloved Bridget to help me when the new baby arrived. Much to my surprise, the second time around was a breeze (except for the sleep deprivation which is now a foggy memory). It was the 3 year old that I needed help with. I even somewhat enjoyed round 2 of the baby phase, with my parental experience hidden in my back pocket.