Being the Second Parent

Lots of people talk about mothers fighting to strike a balance between their desire to be involved in their child's upbringing and their increasingly common need to earn a living. I know its something your mom has tried to strike a balance with. While I think she has found a compromise that works for her, she probably make different choices if she could. I suspect very few people are completely happy with the balance they have.

My balance is very different. While there are certain advantages to swooping in an hour before bed-time to save you from an entire day with the parent you may have grown tired of interacting with (or who has grown tired of disciplining you on your bad days). In the end, that adds up to a whopping 5 hours during the week?

There are definitely days that I wish for more. You are growing up so fast and there are so many good stories your mom has from her time with you -- "Stop it Elmo!" -- that I would share here but they aren't really my stories.

I certainly do not begrudge your time with your mom. I'm glad it works out. But I'm also looking forward to the long 4-day weekend coming up.

Of course there are also days when you are showing off your 2-year-old credentials that I do not envy your mom.