Fort Worth mommy blogger Lauren of Gabbing Ginger talks the realities of family life after having her second child.
I never thought that having two kids would be easy in any way. However, what I thought would be “issues” don’t seem to even be a blip on my radar. I will admit that our transition to two kids went way smoother than I expected. Maybe I set my expectations too low; maybe I have superstar kids. My answer might depend on the day.
What I do know is that parenting did change. I became fantastic at coordinating things logistically. For example, bedtime became man-on-man between my husband and I. (We used to switch back-and-forth each night so the other could have some alone time.) That being said, here are some other examples of how reality was not what was expected:
Expectation: Sweet kisses and hugs between siblings.
Reality: Sweet cuddles followed by someone smashing someone’s arm or leg and screaming.
Expectation: Kids playing together so I can get the house cleaned up.
Reality: Kids playing together for half a second, then screaming because they want the exact same toy despite having 100 other toys to play with.
Expectation: Still getting “me” time for workouts.
Reality: Kiddos crawling around and climbing on me during those workouts.
Expectation: Meals together at the dinner table, full of love and conversation.
Reality: Kids throwing food to the dog, lots of up and down from high chairs—oh, and chairs and dishes thrown on the ground.
Expectation: Walks around the park together.
Reality: Walking around the park, pushing a stroller and pulling my toddler on a bike because his legs are tired.
Expectation: Admiring how sweet they are together.
Reality: Your heart exploding when you realize how much they love one another and how they will protect one another.
No, expectation was not my reality. But that’s OK. Having two kids means twice the fun and twice the hard work—but infinite times the love. The season of raising a toddler and a baby at the same time can be really tough, but you have to laugh at the moments that come because while it might be hard, those kiddos are learning so much from us as parents.
It is a beautiful, messy and loving season, and though expectations don’t accurately depict reality, I wouldn’t change a thing!
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Gabbing Ginger’s Bio:
Lauren is a 30-something mama of two who loves to gab about family, food, fashion, fitness, Fort Worth…anything fun! She married her college sweetheart and has a little boy, little girl and one fur baby. She was born in Arlington, raised in Edmond, Oklahoma, and moved to Fort Worth, almost 10 years ago. She attended the University of Oklahoma and has a master’s degree in Human Relations. She loves gabbing and helping guide others—whether it’s finding the perfect outfit or navigating the throes of motherhood. She believes we are all here just trying to do the best we can, and if she can help make life a little easier, then that makes her happy. Find her blog Gabbing Ginger online at gabbingginger.com or on Instagram @gabbingginger.
This blog post was originally published in February 2020.
Photos courtesy of Lauren, Gabbing Ginger
