Kids- How do you do it?

[Harmon]

Few years ago my wife is told that our chances of getting pregnant are next to Lotto winning chances.

So a couple weeks ago, she gives me a card, and well after nearly ten years of trying, I discover that she is pregnant. Yahoo!

Now on Friday she hands me a card telling me that we need to by two of everything. Oh, crap- twins! :\

February 28th is the due date.

We are really happy about this, but kinda sad too. So much is gonna change for the better a worse.

Sleep is gonna be a long lost dream, gaming is at an end, freedom to just up and go- is well- gone, the extra bills, the diapers, the expense, but there are so many things that are gonna be there that have never been. Like having a child- emm, children (plural, Harmon), the laughter, and the love.

What I am curious about is the positives and the negatives of raising a child- umm, children. Also how do you manage to game with kids- specifically the little ones.

 

[TheGM]

First off, Congratulations!

As to how to manage it - with the help of your group. They've got to either support you or you've got to move on. It's an imposition to bring the child, but lots of people can't afford a sitter for every game, so you have to let 'em know and ask for their support.

Playing at your house for the first while is best, you can make it up to 'em when the kids a toddler and will just sleep.

And when they're old enough, you'll have "insta-gamers"
Good luck!

 

[Jdvn1]

http://www.enworld.org/showthread.php?t=104708

One of my favorite threads.

 

[Harmon]

Thanks guys.

We game at our house now. My wife would like to try to stick to it, but I think its pretty much over for a while starting in about mid February. The two remaining people in our group are pretty cool and care about us a great deal, but this might be a bit much to ask of them. Plus my wife and I are trying to handle school too.

She plans on taking about three to six months off, then I will be a stay at home Dad and she will do the work thing. Not sure how we are going to afford to get her through two years of Nursing (40 hour weeks and no pay check), but so is the life of a parent.

Should be interesting.

 

[Jdvn1]

Well, PbP games require less time, I think. At least, the time is spread out more.

 

[pogre]

Sounds like you have a solid understanding of some of the challenges that lie ahead. Unlike many new parents who get blindsided by just how life-changing a child is. Twins! Wow - good luck.

We have three children with one on the way this September. My wife has not gamed in over five years, but for a couple of rare occasions. My oldest is five and a half.

It takes a very special kind of person to stay at home with children. I respect people who can do it a great deal. I know I cannot, I am just blessed with a saint for a wife.

 

[Dingleberry]

When my wife was pregnant, we heard tons of advice/anecdotes about being a parent. I'll pass along the simplest and truest of it: it is so much harder than you think it will be, and it is so much BETTER than you think it will be.

 

[IronWolf]

It's hard to know what to expect when you first have kids. Despite all of the advice you will get here and the advice you will get from friends and family it is hard to be truly prepared for it. I know when our son arrived and we brought him home we had a crazy first three hours. He was pretty small at birth and we hardly had anything that fit him (everyone said they grow fast you won't need newborn size). What did fit him he promptly peed on in the first hour or so. Within three hours we were doing our first load of laundry!

The first six weeks are hard in my opinion. Gettting used to the changes, etc. After that things start to get easier as you get the routines down. Soon, you can sort of just up and go as long as it isn't nap time as they get older. It just means you have grab an extra bag or two as you head out the door (and be back a little earlier in the evening).

It is a lot of fun and we have a great time with our son! It sounds like you are ready to take things in stride and that will help you the most in the beginning! Enjoy it!

 

[Rel]

Congratulations, Harmon. As mentioned before, it is good that you're going into this with your eyes open. Being a parent has been the most challenging, most rewarding and most life altering experience of my life. I suspect that is true for most parents.

As to this:

The first six weeks are hard in my opinion. Gettting used to the changes, etc. After that things start to get easier as you get the routines down.

The one bit of advice I give to parents expecting their first child is to prepare in advance with whatever coping mechanism works best for them and be ready to employ it regularly for the first two months. Whether it is watching bad reality television, eating fatty foods or going outside to scream at the sky, be ready to vent your fatigue enhanced frustration in a way that won't be aimed at your spouse and child. Will you still get frustrated after two months? Absolutely, but at around two months those babies are going to start to smile and you won't care so much anymore.

I guess this solves your "career move" issue, huh? I applaud you for being willing to be a stay at home parent. I work out of my home and my job is such that I get to spend a lot of time here with my daughter. One thing that I think I can say is true of every child is that they are always changing. And changing fast. I promise you that years from now you will be very glad that you were there to see those changes happen firsthand.

As for the gaming situation, just wait and see. A lot is going to depend on how soon and how well the kids begin to sleep through the night, whether there's any colick and that sort of thing. You may have to lay the dice aside for a while but the day will come when you can get back to it.

Anyhow, enjoy the ride and roll with the punches.

 

[reveal]

Lots of good advice here.

The "6 weeks rules" is golden. By 6 weeks, you and your baby will settle into more a routine. In fact, most babies start sleeping through the night when they're 6 weeks but, of course, all kids are different.

Gaming went on hold for about a month after Duncan was born. Then it was just putting him in his pack n' play to sleep while we gamed or holding him when he woke up.

As he got older, it got easier to keep track of him. He's 3 now and splits his time between watching his cartoons in the other room, playing with his toys, or sitting at the table and rolling his dice with us.

Oh and congratulations!