Comments on: The Joys of Motherhood http://www.feministe.us/blog/archives/2006/10/02/the-joys-of-motherhood/ In defense of the sanctimonious women's studies set. Fri, 10 Feb 2012 10:18:49 +0000 hourly 1 By: Ledasmom http://www.feministe.us/blog/archives/2006/10/02/the-joys-of-motherhood/#comment-66768 Ledasmom Tue, 03 Oct 2006 19:59:39 +0000 http://www.feministe.us/blog/archives/2006/10/02/the-joys-of-motherhood/#comment-66768 <blockquote>Hmmm… I never think “well, at least she’s not an infant”… toddlers are way harder, far more demanding and bitchy as hell. The crying I could handle (though I used to say “I wish you could just TELL me what you want), it’s the “No I want the blue one!!!” crying, screaming and hissyfits I can’t stand. At least baby’s only cry when they NEED something… toddlers cry just cause they get the wrong color of something they want… ugh! </blockquote> For sheer stubborness, buttheadedness and aggravation value nothing and nobody beats my four-year-old. He is also very independent, which is good when it means he dresses himself but not so good when he decides to feed himself. Also speech-delayed, which means he started preschool early, which means I did a happy dance all over the apartment the day he started.

Hmmm… I never think “well, at least she’s not an infant”… toddlers are way harder, far more demanding and bitchy as hell. The crying I could handle (though I used to say “I wish you could just TELL me what you want), it’s the “No I want the blue one!!!” crying, screaming and hissyfits I can’t stand. At least baby’s only cry when they NEED something… toddlers cry just cause they get the wrong color of something they want… ugh!

For sheer stubborness, buttheadedness and aggravation value nothing and nobody beats my four-year-old. He is also very independent, which is good when it means he dresses himself but not so good when he decides to feed himself. Also speech-delayed, which means he started preschool early, which means I did a happy dance all over the apartment the day he started.

]]> By: Dianne http://www.feministe.us/blog/archives/2006/10/02/the-joys-of-motherhood/#comment-66711 Dianne Tue, 03 Oct 2006 14:20:15 +0000 http://www.feministe.us/blog/archives/2006/10/02/the-joys-of-motherhood/#comment-66711 <blockquote>I thought the whole “you have no idea” thing was going to end when the kid was born, by the way, but no. Suddenly it was “having two kids is so different from having just one.” Sigh. </blockquote> Yeah, everybody has to one up you. Ignore it, it's just self pity on the part of the advice givers.

I thought the whole “you have no idea” thing was going to end when the kid was born, by the way, but no. Suddenly it was “having two kids is so different from having just one.” Sigh.

Yeah, everybody has to one up you. Ignore it, it’s just self pity on the part of the advice givers.

]]> By: Dianne http://www.feministe.us/blog/archives/2006/10/02/the-joys-of-motherhood/#comment-66710 Dianne Tue, 03 Oct 2006 14:19:20 +0000 http://www.feministe.us/blog/archives/2006/10/02/the-joys-of-motherhood/#comment-66710 <blockquote>I never think “well, at least she’s not an infant”… toddlers are way harder, far more demanding and bitchy as hell</blockquote> There is that. Personally, I found it much easier to deal with a toddler who could say or at least try to say what she wanted than an infant with whom you just had to try random things until one of them worked. Then again, my little lamprey had colic but talked early and therefore was able to negotiate relatively early in toddlerhood. YMMV, as they say.

I never think “well, at least she’s not an infant”… toddlers are way harder, far more demanding and bitchy as hell

There is that. Personally, I found it much easier to deal with a toddler who could say or at least try to say what she wanted than an infant with whom you just had to try random things until one of them worked. Then again, my little lamprey had colic but talked early and therefore was able to negotiate relatively early in toddlerhood. YMMV, as they say.

]]> By: Brooklynite http://www.feministe.us/blog/archives/2006/10/02/the-joys-of-motherhood/#comment-66701 Brooklynite Tue, 03 Oct 2006 11:47:17 +0000 http://www.feministe.us/blog/archives/2006/10/02/the-joys-of-motherhood/#comment-66701 <i> What I loved about this piece was that it simultaneously acknowledged the reality of these difficulties and poked fun at the mountain of horror stories that warns of them.</i> Yeah. Exactly. When my wife was pregnant, we (I planned on being, and was, a stay-at-home-dad for the first few years) got a steady stream of "it's going to be so much harder than you imagine" from friends with kids. But you know what? It wasn't. It was hard, but we knew it was going to be hard. And it was and is a hell of a lot of fun, too. I thought the whole "you have no idea" thing was going to end when the kid was born, by the way, but no. Suddenly it was "having two kids is so different from having just one." Sigh. What I loved about this piece was that it simultaneously acknowledged the reality of these difficulties and poked fun at the mountain of horror stories that warns of them.

Yeah. Exactly.

When my wife was pregnant, we (I planned on being, and was, a stay-at-home-dad for the first few years) got a steady stream of “it’s going to be so much harder than you imagine” from friends with kids. But you know what? It wasn’t. It was hard, but we knew it was going to be hard. And it was and is a hell of a lot of fun, too.

I thought the whole “you have no idea” thing was going to end when the kid was born, by the way, but no. Suddenly it was “having two kids is so different from having just one.” Sigh.

]]> By: Sally http://www.feministe.us/blog/archives/2006/10/02/the-joys-of-motherhood/#comment-66670 Sally Tue, 03 Oct 2006 01:16:02 +0000 http://www.feministe.us/blog/archives/2006/10/02/the-joys-of-motherhood/#comment-66670 Oh, dear. I had to stop reading that because I was laughing out loud, and it was alarming my roommate. Oh, dear. I had to stop reading that because I was laughing out loud, and it was alarming my roommate.

]]> By: car http://www.feministe.us/blog/archives/2006/10/02/the-joys-of-motherhood/#comment-66667 car Tue, 03 Oct 2006 00:40:14 +0000 http://www.feministe.us/blog/archives/2006/10/02/the-joys-of-motherhood/#comment-66667 There's a good book called "Loving every (other) minute of it", in the same vein - everyone says it's supposed to be fun and giggles, but sometimes motherhood sucks, but we aren't allowed to say so, and so on. I wish I had read it when my kids were infants. There’s a good book called “Loving every (other) minute of it”, in the same vein – everyone says it’s supposed to be fun and giggles, but sometimes motherhood sucks, but we aren’t allowed to say so, and so on. I wish I had read it when my kids were infants.

]]> By: NBarnes http://www.feministe.us/blog/archives/2006/10/02/the-joys-of-motherhood/#comment-66639 NBarnes Mon, 02 Oct 2006 21:48:57 +0000 http://www.feministe.us/blog/archives/2006/10/02/the-joys-of-motherhood/#comment-66639 The second page made me want to call my mother and apologise for having been such an awful child and send about ten years of make-up Mother's Day cards. *guilt* The second page made me want to call my mother and apologise for having been such an awful child and send about ten years of make-up Mother’s Day cards. *guilt*

]]> By: Raincitygirl http://www.feministe.us/blog/archives/2006/10/02/the-joys-of-motherhood/#comment-66623 Raincitygirl Mon, 02 Oct 2006 20:36:08 +0000 http://www.feministe.us/blog/archives/2006/10/02/the-joys-of-motherhood/#comment-66623 There are some people in this world who have no sense of humour whatsoever, and it looks like a lot of them read Salon. There are some people in this world who have no sense of humour whatsoever, and it looks like a lot of them read Salon.

]]> By: Rhiannon http://www.feministe.us/blog/archives/2006/10/02/the-joys-of-motherhood/#comment-66620 Rhiannon Mon, 02 Oct 2006 20:10:32 +0000 http://www.feministe.us/blog/archives/2006/10/02/the-joys-of-motherhood/#comment-66620 Hmmm... I never think "well, at least she's not an infant"... toddlers are way harder, far more demanding and bitchy as hell. The crying I could handle (though I used to say "I wish you could just TELL me what you want), it's the "No I want the blue one!!!" crying, screaming and hissyfits I can't stand. At least baby's only cry when they NEED something... toddlers cry just cause they get the wrong color of something they want... ugh! Hmmm… I never think “well, at least she’s not an infant”… toddlers are way harder, far more demanding and bitchy as hell. The crying I could handle (though I used to say “I wish you could just TELL me what you want), it’s the “No I want the blue one!!!” crying, screaming and hissyfits I can’t stand. At least baby’s only cry when they NEED something… toddlers cry just cause they get the wrong color of something they want… ugh!

]]> By: Betsy http://www.feministe.us/blog/archives/2006/10/02/the-joys-of-motherhood/#comment-66611 Betsy Mon, 02 Oct 2006 19:55:54 +0000 http://www.feministe.us/blog/archives/2006/10/02/the-joys-of-motherhood/#comment-66611 Oh yeah, and I too love the "lamprey" reference. Oh yeah, and I too love the “lamprey” reference.

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