I love my kids, I just hate parenting
Parenting is boring.
My son and I don’t have a lot in common. Aside from shockingly good genes and a mutual appreciation for Mom and Buried, our differences outweigh our similarities. Being that he’s only two, I imagine it will be that way for some time.
But I hope we find some common ground soon because without it, hanging out with my son is boring.
I went into this parenting gig with almost total ignorance, and while it’s been more fun than I anticipated, I have few illusions about the trials and tribulations to come.
In fact, based on what I’ve seen from other parents throughout my life, I fully expect the goodwill I’ve accumulated – along with the optimistm inherent to the naivete of a two year parent – to be largely exhausted and potentially completely eliminated by the time my kid is 18. Maybe even sooner.
But I’m not there yet, and I’m in no hurry to be. So I keep trucking along, only occasionally stressing about the future. Best case scenario, I end up like the parents in Easy A. Worst case? I end up like a teacher.
My son likes my wife more than he likes me.
Yup. He’s a bit of a mama’s boy. But it’s normal for young kids to have an attachment to their mom; after spending nine months living in someone’s body, and then another year or so relying on that body for sustenance, you’d get attached too. Besides, he’s not even two, so I’m not super concerned that he’ll develop into some freaky Norman Bates type guy. Yet.
But I understand why he likes Mom more than dear old Dad. But that doesn’t mean her preferential treatment doesn’t occasionally hurt my feelings.
Except when it works to my advantage.
Read more about The Pros and Cons of Preferential Treatment …
This Fourth of July, Mom and Buried and I are faced with a bit of a dilemma. The same one we are faced with everyday, really.
We want to celebrate our country’s birth in style by getting drunk out of our minds.
But we have a kid. They should call it “Lack of Independence Day”.
There are some aspects of parenting I think I’m probably pretty good at. Of course, they are mostly the fun ones; I’m kind of like Robin Williams in Mrs. Doubtfire before dressing in drag teaches him to be a responsible parent.
I guess that makes my wife Sally Field, which is at least a little true, because my son really really likes her. As in prefers her to everyone else.
Which is okay. It seems pretty normal at this point, and comes in handy when my son hurts himself, because playing nurse is not one of the fun things.