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I no longer have a free hand

My husband is spending the day at a movie marathon, leaving me with both girls. Early this afternoon, thankfully, his parents watched them for a little while. giving me a two hour break. A much needed break, I might add. During that time, I was able to shop in peace, without a toddler hiding in the clothing racks, or a baby crying because I had the nerve to stop the stroller for half a millisecond to look at something. It was heaven.

Before Mira was born, I remember asking several people what it was like to have two children. My husband and I felt pretty good about raising one. Sure, it was hard at times, but overall we had made the adjustment to being parents without much trouble. Would moving up to two children really be that big of a change?

At Christmas two years ago, when we began considering another addition to our family, we spoke with my cousin and her husband about the topic. She had just given birth to her third child. At one point, her husband offered up this piece of advice: "Going from two children to three really isn't that big of a deal. It was going from one to two that was the kicker. It's not double the work - it's exponential." We all laughed, and I don't think we really took his words seriously.

Two years later: I now take his words seriously.

On days like today, I wonder if I will ever have a single moment to myself. Once I picked up the girls, it was a non-stop workload until Cordy eventually fell asleep at 9:00pm. If Mira was content, Cordy was asking for juice, or to watch TV, or needed her diaper changed. If Cordy was content, Mira was crying or being fed. There were also a few moments this evening when they both wanted me, and I had to make the choice as to which needs to take care of first. It was maddening, and other than making sure they were happy, nothing else was accomplished all day.

When it was just Cordy, I had entire evenings to do as I pleased. During the day, if she was occupied with a puzzle or Duplo blocks, I could work around the house or spend more time on the computer. When my husband was home, only one of us had to be on child duty, instead of the tag team parenting we use today. I don't know why I ever complained about the work load - clearly I had no idea how much harder it could be!

Now Cordy is upstairs sleeping peacefully in her chair (because she refused to get into her bed), and Mira has finally fallen asleep in her swing. I have these few precious moments to collapse, eat dinner, and unwind, before turning my thoughts to laundry, cleaning up the house, and preparing for the next day. I may be tired, I may feel like free time has become a mythical beast, but when I look at those two sleeping faces, I suddenly don't mind as much.

I have to agree that having two is exponentially more difficult than having only one. But it's also exponentially more rewarding, too. As for the advice about having three...well...we don't plan on testing that one out.