Parenthood 2.0

I am a father again! My wife and I, the delightful Mrs Guru, welcomed our second child into the world on Monday 15 March, 2010. We had a second son, and we named him Gus.

This isn’t a recount of the birth adventure (which was timely, standard and quite pleasant this time around, all things considered); I will save that for my other website, which I am still working at updating, though I will cross-post that one when I do write it up.

No, rather than the birth, I wanted to reflect on the unbelievably selfless and challenging role that parenting is.

I’ll be honest, I had no idea just how damn tough being a parent can be. I love my kids and I love being a parent, that’s not the issue – I just had no idea at what was demanded, which is basically handing over your every moment (waking and otherwise) to little people who won’t ever really appreciate it themselves until they continue the circle and have children of their own.

Baby Gus is feeding quite a lot, as he was a little tiny thing and needs to fatten up a bit. My wife has spent a lot of the past week just sitting on the couch or lying in bed, feeding and feeding our wee lad. She has a sore back and is very tired, but she keeps going because she is, like most mothers, simply amazing.

A second child is an even bigger challenge than a first, as not only are you welcoming and settling in a new one, but also taking care of your first child as well. This very moment, for instance, I am sitting up with my eldest boy Leo, who is sick and miserable and wants only to watch In the Night Garden and snuggle on the couch. Nothing else is helping him so this is where we are, at 2.30am on a school night.

Parenting is hard and I had no idea beforehand at just how demanding it would be. Not for a second though do I regret having my children – they are the best thing I have ever done, and a happy family is my sole ambition. I am exhausted and so is my wife, yet the tender moments of cuddles and smiles are as good as sleep most of the time, so we adapt and we soldier on and we raise our babies.