Let’s be real, having two kids is WAY different than having one. When it was just Reagan, I legit did not understand why everyone said their house was never clean or their dishes were never done or they never had time to shower. Granted, she didn’t crawl until she was one year old and even after she was mobile she pretty much stayed put and didn’t wreak much havoc on our house, but I really didn’t get it! I always had time during naps or at night to get things done and take care of the house and myself. Since having two kids, I now understand what everyone was saying! Holy smokes there is not enough time in the day and not enough hands to get anything done around here. That being said, here is a list of things I have given up on since becoming a mom (of two!).
- Showering every day – I’m lucky to shower three times a week. And if my hair gets washed twice then it’s a good week!
- Being caught up on laundry – It doesn’t matter if I collect every article of clothing in the house and make everyone be naked for a day I will still never be caught up on laundry.
- Having the WHOLE house be clean – Occasionally I’ll get two rooms picked up (or maybe even cleaned) at the same time, but usually it’s only one. Or none at all.
- Being on time – It stresses me out to no end to show up somewhere late. I actually prefer being 5-10 minutes early everywhere I go. This past weekend I showed up an hour late to a birthday party and didn’t even break a sweat.
- Decorating for holidays – I’m hoping I have this more together by Christmas time but my current theory is why bother when it’s going to be hidden under the mess anyways?
- Having alone time – Thank heavens I go to work every night and work alone because this would not happen otherwise. Every now and then I get lucky and naps will overlap, but it’s rare!
- Wearing clean clothes – If I’m not leaving the house that day, I’m probably wearing a dirty t-shirt because why bother dirtying another one with more spit up and poop? That just adds to the never ending laundry list!
- Finishing an episode – …of my TV shows. We’ll go through four episodes of Phineas and Ferb no problem but it took me a week to get through a 45 minute episode of my show.
- Going to the grocery store – Because we live in a second floor apartment, it takes at least four trips up the stairs to get both kids and all the groceries into the house. I do not have the endurance for that many stairs!
- Sleeping in – With one kid, I could convince my husband to wake up early on weekends so I could sleep in. With two kids, I’m always needed somewhere in some way by someone so mama has no hope of sleeping in past 7 am.
- Not bribing my kids – LOL. I bribe Reagan so many times a day to either get her to do things (take a picture!) or to make her stop doing these (like licking the doctor’s office floor). Chocolate chip cookies are my best friend!
- Having everyone ready – Usually I can either get the girls ready or get myself ready. Very rarely are all three of us dressed and clean with our hair done. On Sundays, we don’t have church until 1pm and it’s still a struggle making sure everyone is presentable!
Whew! Really, I love my life and I know things will get easier as the girls get older and more independent, and honestly I love so much about this stage of life! I wouldn’t trade any of it for the world, but I am looking forward to the days of regular showering again 🙂