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By the time you read this column, hopefully I’ll be holding my healthy newborn girl in my arms. Afterall, I’m due at the end of December and this issue will be out Jan. 1. Of course, there’s a possibility I’ll still be pregnant — let’s not go there though.
Some of the things I was scared of with my first child seem a little unreasonable to me now. I remember being scared by people’s constant commentary that “my life” as I know it would be over. I feared I wouldn’t see another movie for years. Or ever go out to eat. Or ever be free of a constant worry in the back of my mind.
I feared I wouldn’t know how to handle my child. Or that she would cry all the time. And never sleep.
And I didn’t know how I would wash her clothes. I had a new “High Efficiency” (frontloader) washer. But they didn’t make the special Dreft baby detergent for “HE” washers. How would I get her clothes clean without giving her terrible skin problems???
Well, things have worked out fine. In fact, we’re still amazed by her everyday. And I knew how to take care of my baby. Sure it’s been frustrating at times, but she didn’t cry all the time. She even slept pretty good. And I can still go see movies when I really want. And “free and clear” detergents worked just fine for her clothes.
The second time around I don’t really feel these same big fears, but I do have some. I worry that she won’t be healthy or labor won’t go well. Or that labor will happen when my husband is out of town. But it does no good to worry about things I can’t control. So, I’m sticking to obsessing over some smaller, yet realistic worries …
Was Ella my “easy” baby? Will this baby be colicy and want to stay up all night long?
Will Ella be hurt or upset and become very rebellious when I can’t do things for her because I’m holding the baby?
Will Ella try to feed or sleep with the baby when I’m not looking?
Will I ever be able to get out of the house in under an hour?
What if Ella runs from me in a store or somewhere — and I have the baby with me?
Will I be grumpy all the time because the house is a mess?
Are we going to be broke with two kids?
Anyway, hopefully soon I’ll have the answers to all these questions, and maybe I’ll even look back and say “I shouldn’t have been so worried.”
Erin Doucette is the presentation editor for KPC Media Group Inc., leading design and layout for several of its publications. She, her husband, Stephen, and daughter Ella Ray, born March 19, 2007, live in Huntertown. She can be e-mailed at
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