Parenting is difficult

Ever since I can remember, I always thought I would make a good father and hoped that I could be anywhere as decent a parent as my own parents were in raising me and my brother. So it came as no suprise when I was settled down with my partner and we thought ourselves financially able that we also decided to have a kid. Despite having such a nice, precocious, funny, and cute baby, the whole process is still exhausting. Sleepless nights, getting pooped on (both when changing diapers and sometimes in blow outs), having to plan childcare during all waking hours and having limited time to pursue other hobbies is hard. I still find the whole process worthwhile, as our daughter has quite a funny personality, but there is a general attitude that every generation has troopered on without a whimper so there is nowhere for existing parents to kvetch and complain. (other than to therapists). It has to be one of the most difficult responsibilities there is, so it is always nice bumping into friends with kids and discussing the madness and chaos of parenting. That being said, I do feel that the experience is different when my mother came to visit as for once there was an additional hand in watching Elena while one of us cooked or napped and I can see how large extended families willing to help out really ease the burden of childcare. How anyone can attend to twins, triplets, or other multiple kids of the same age, seems like a massive achievement, haha.