Recipe for Parenthood

I watched A LOT of other peoples' kids before I had some of my own. I loved them, and took care of them, kissed the boo-boos, and played games. I missed about 70% of what it is to be a parent...but it did give me some insight into this world that I hoped to enter someday.

I have been a parent for about 3 years now. I am counting from the time that I found out we were having our first baby because from that moment on your mind begins to change. In these years I have learned that there are certain "ingredients" that are required for parenthood...

Selflessness...time, effort, my mind, MY BODY. These are all things that have to be given to your children with no thought or expectation that they could, or should, ever pay you back. There is no raincheck on giving them life, they don't owe me theirs just because I made some sacrifices. For men this is a little different, but a good example is that it is the only time that a man can have someone hit him or injure the 'privates' and they don't automatically start swinging.

Love...I love my children enough to be their teacher instead of their friend. Enough to protect them from what I can and encourage them to try the things that scare them. Raising a loving child is a great big game of 'show and tell'....you show it and they hear you in their head telling them how when it's their turn to love someone else.

Sacrifice....I don't look like I did when my husband married me, but thankfully he thinks stretch marks are sexy ;-). And we don't get to go on dates like we did before kids, but we are doing what we can when we can.

Time...I will be there to rub my child's back at 1am, when they are puking, even if I have to be up at 5!

This recipe could go on and on, but the ingredients are going to change as your little 'cakes' grow. Every one just as unique as can be, but it all begins with similar ingredients. Don't worry about failing because the finished product isn't ultimately dependant on you...it's dependant on how they interpret what you showed them.