Time And Children

if this is not known yet - we have 3 children. yes...3 boys, aged 38 months, 16 months and 6 months. and no, we have no maid. a shock horror to some, a life to us.

i'm not saying its easy but its not rocket science either. we go through life like everyone else, we sleep, we change diapers, we go to work, we buy milk, we talk, we do laundry, we cook, we eat, we read, we watch telly, we soothe crying babies (all 3 can scream out loud at the same time!). we do all that, just like any other parents.

i've never use my children as an excuse not to do certain things and i never use my children to gain sympathy or attract praises. of course, there are things we have left behind because we have children but we do that conciously. we dont spend hours at the mall anymore (hubby and i used to do that during our 'berdating days'), we dont spend hours idlying on the bed during weekends anymore, we dont eat out as much as we used to anymore (that one is also due to less disposable income). but we leave those behind happily, conciously and with no regrets.

there are people who say - you've got three kids, you dont have a maid, its ok if you dont cook. or they say - with 3 kids and no maid, you cook - amazing. excuses and praises. we dont ask for them, we dont need them.

for us its simple...we have 3 boys, we have to take care of them. maid or no maid, work or no work, we have to do what we have to do. that includes cooking, that includes getting up in the middle of the night, that includes waking up and dragging your feet to work the next day. we dont do this better than parents of 1 child and we dont do this worst than parents with 6 children. we just...do!

and no, we're not the only ones who do this. parents everywhere do the same. they get up, go to work, come home, cook, clean, bathe their kids, lepak with them, go to sleep.

to me, although juggling to raise children and to manage a household and to work, is not an easy task, it doesnt have to be difficult as well. proper planning helps, time management helps, not expecting a lot helps tremendously.

when one gets pregnant, plan for the 9 months of pregnancy, plan for the 9 years of raising a child, plan for the 9 years after that when they reach their teenage years. when one plans a family outing and plans to take the family shopping, plan the night before. plan what to wear, what to bring, where to go, what to buy, what time to have your dinner, what time to leave, where to park. you can plan all that...plan not to face a hassle, plan not to face the crowd, plan not to have your child throw a tantrum. granted not all plans will go smooth sailing, but there's no harm in taking 2 minutes off your precious time to just sit and jot down what needs to be done.

for us, going out doesnt have to be a stressful time. i put aside the boys' clothes, i pack their bag the night before. come morning, they are ready by 8am - we are early risers and i insist that my children bathe once they get up, no excuses (drill sargeant, i am). once they are ready (extra clothes are set aside in case something happens), the parents bathe. 30 minutes, we are done. we have time for a quick bite and bottles of milk and a trip to the bathroom before we leave. by 930am we're out of the house and within half an hour, we're already in the shopping mall. go where we need to go, do what we need to do, by 1130am we'll sit down for our lunch. when the crowd starts to build up, we're already in our car heading back home. we went out...we bought what we need to buy...we go back. minus throwing up, minus tantrum, minus headache.

we do this to accomodate both worlds, to go out and to have a screaming-less session while we're out. the parents can enjoy their time and run their errands, the children can have fun as well. we can eat as a family with minimal screams and "amir, no"s. we can do all that and still arrive home feeling like the day hasnt passed by in a blink of an eye.

of course, even after reading this, i'm sure people would go...."alah, you takpe lah, anak you baik-baik semua. i ni anak satu tapi nak jaga...mak ai...susahhhh". or "you are so lucky to have such angels for children, mine is sooo difficult to handle". or "how can you come and go within 2 hours, mana cukup nak shopping?" or "tapi i cannot lah because my child hates to be strapped in"

to me, its all boleh lah...its just whether we nak or tak nak.

and a final note - no, my children are not angels. try living in our house for a day, can you handle the screaming and shouting and throwing by the children and the parents? they are not angels, but we accomodate and adapt to their styles and their time so that while we are in public, people can assume there are angelic.