Now that we're basically getting into a good schedule, a rhythm some might say, I am noticing things becoming easier than they were when we started out.
Changing a diaper - I haven't timed myself but I am pretty sure I can do it, and do it well, in under a minute.
Feeding - I can tolerate her screaming long enough to warm up the milk and shove that bottle in her face.
Her naps - making the best of them, and have noticed that the pacifier can sometimes act as a snooze button for me.
Her time awake just looking around - talk to her, stick her in her swing so I can do stuff around the house, or just sit and listen to her make farting sounds while she sits there.
Overall, things are getting quicker, easier to manage, and I'll even admit, more fun.
I sometimes think parenting shouldn't feel like work. Don't get me wrong, it is very hard work, but should it always feel like it?
I mean, playing a video game can feel like work if it is monotonous enough, but people will still swear its fun. Playing football hurts (I know from experience) but even though a lot of work goes into it, people play it every day because its still fun. Marriage is hard work and anybody who tells you differently probably has never been married, or stayed married for long, but you can still take joy in being around each other.
I think of a quote I once heard from the movie, "The Princess Bride" (I admit it, it's my favorite all-time movie) and hear the words of the dread pirate Roberts once again, "Life is pain, highness. Anyone who tells you differently is selling something."
It's true. Life is hard. Parenting, marriage, work, all of it. Yet, if we take the time to be a dad or mom, a husband or wife, we should try our best to take enjoyment out of it.
Not the kind of sick enjoyment that laughs when an old person falls down, either. The kind of enjoyment that just gets its fulfillment, contentment, and so forth from being who you are with the other person.
At least, that's my point of view. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have a bottle of milk to warm up...
Yeah, she's crying. Time to go!
