Yesterday we went to Taylor’s birthday party. It was great because Emma got to not only see her cousin but was able to touch and attempt to hold some bunnies(bundies). I’ve added several pics of her feeding the bunnies hay. She has always loved bunnies, especially the Easter Bunny who she gets to see in person every year!
The last week has been a definite challenge for me as I have felt antsy and anxious. I call it the lion in a cage feeling. I am not sure that anyone can relate to this but I have a feeling that Dads that stay at home definitely could.
I believe that men are not naturally disposed to staying at home with the kids. It is basic nature, look at the animal world. I know we are not animals but the point is that I have always been “out and about” whether as a police officer or any other of the jobs I’ve had. I’ve never felt stuck or trapped before as I do when this anxiety takes hold. I feel bad because my patience drops and I can be more snippy with Emma. I know it is not her fault and that this feeling will pass but it still sucks. I’ve never stayed home as much as this and sometimes it gets tough. I have often told people that going to work would be like vacation. I laugh when I hear guys say that they would love to stay home because it is so easy…Ha!
Which leads me to the next topic, my thoughts on sitters and our lack thereof… I have to temper what I say regarding this as I have some strong feelings on it. With this in mind, I will dive right in.
Ever since Emma was born, for 28 months, we have not had a dependable or reliable babysitter. There you have it–the main point right off the bat. It is very rough on both of us when we can barely do the things we would like to do–not that we have a busy red carpet schedule lined up. We see many other people–I won’t name anyone but they are close to us–who have more than 1 reliable, and dependable babysitter who are eager to watch their kid(s)and are always offering to do so–usually a relative. Not to sound like a complainer–even though I am complaining–but we have ZERO. Sure there are some times when we planned far in advance for a very important occasion that we have had a sitter–and we can’t thank them enough–but we haven’t had anyone offering like we see other people being offered.
Now there are a myriad of reasons why this is so and I can’t go into specifics without offending someone but the bottom line is that we aren’t even able to go see a movie for 2 hours without planning way ahead. I am thinking that this issue has had an impact on the lion in a cage feeling. I know Melissa feels the same way. It is, as a funny relative always says, RIDICULOUS!
Recent developments have raised some hope for us and we’ll see how it goes but this situation has made us realize just how lucky some people are to have reliable, dependable, and more importantly, babysitters!
I wonder how many people have this same problem?