Does anyone find it odd that women, more than men, get asked if they want another child almost immediately after they have their first? It doesn't stop there, it continues ad infinitum it seems until you actually do have a second child. Don't get me wrong, I do get asked if I want another on occasion, but from the stories I get from my wife, it seems that she is asked almost 10 times as much as I am. From our perspective, it seems that there is an overabundance of people who really enjoy the baby phase; that cute, innocent, non-speaking, non-moving, entity that we like to call "infants". Please don't misunderstand me here. I am not saying by any means that I would trade in any of the time that we have had with our son, nor would I wish for time to speed things along and have him talking and walking before he is ready to, we just aren't the sort of parents who would like to freeze our son where he is and preserve him until eternity so we could enjoy his "infant hood". Building off of that, we definitely do not want to rush into having another baby just so we could have that "infant" around the house again. We love our son with all we have, its just his infant phase is just that, a phase of his life that he will grow out of and move on from, nothing more, nothing less, and nothing changes the love that we have for him. But moving on, I guess that the question still remains unanswered as to whether we are ready for another child or perhaps a more apt question would be, do we want another one period?
To be honest that question has been put on hold for now. All we do know for certain is that we don't want another one right now or anytime within the next year for that matter. Life is good right now and quite frankly, after hearing stories about other children, the difference in sleeping patterns, their demeanor; we will stick with our son for right now. Lets consider some of the facts surrounding this. Our son started sleeping through the night at 2 months old, unusual and rare yes, but wonderful. He is a happy go lucky baby, fussing only when wet, tired, or frustrated. I guess that there aren't too many factors that go into this consideration, but those are the bulk of them. Part of us questions why we would want to jinx our luck and have another child, who might adopt the same pattern, but who on the other hand might not want to sleep through the night till 9 months and who could be more fussy than our current son is? There is also the money factor that must get discussed. But there are also benefits that we see to having another child. There is the companionship that the two of them could have, the bond that could be formed as siblings, the help that they could offer each other as they grow older. There are many pluses to the equation as well. I guess the biggest part is that our son is only six months old, we are new parents, and life is going well right now. If anything, the question will probably not be brought up in seriousness for another year at least.
Going beyond the facts of the matter, my wife and I also have two different perspectives on this issue. She was an only child and as such, sees how someone doesn't necessarily need another sibling in order to grow, mature, and make it in the world. I had a younger brother, 7 years difference, but there was still a certain degree of companionship during our young years that I see as a benefit to having a sibling. I think that if my brother and I were closer in age, we might have forged a tighter bond earlier on in life, but we have no control over those things. So many things to consider, discuss, and move forward with, but for now, we will simply enjoy the little bundle of joy that we have. Although he is growing and not nearly as little as he was six months ago, he is still our little bundle of joy. Personally, whenever I spend even five minutes with him, there is no consideration whatsoever of having another child. My focus is entirely on him and what he is doing. Although now that I have said that I don't consider another child when I am with our son, I probably will now. But such is life, a tumultuous roller coaster of decisions, considerations, discussions, and more decisions. We never know if we make a right decision until after the fact and even then, we don't know half the time. The time we have is meant simply to be enjoyed and let the future bring what it may. I find it much more exciting that way anyway, letting things unfold without trying to exert too much influence over them. Ah well, must move on now and start my tumultuous day.
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