Division of Labor

Listening to: Estranged by Guns N Roses
Mood: Content

As I mentioned previously, my husband and I have a 4 year old daughter. She will be going into Kindergarten next year. In White Plains, we have a crazy, cool thing called the parent’s choice plan. There are 5 elementary schools in White Plains and you get to pick which one you want to send your child to. Well, 93% get their first choice anyhow. The district has set up tours of all of the schools so that you can make an informed choice. All of the schools follow the mandated state curriculum, so it’s more about the atmosphere of the school than anything else. Unfortunately, kids aren’t allowed on these tours as they occur during school hours and they would be too big of a distraction. My 4 year old currently goes to preschool, so I don’t have to worry about her during this time, but my 6 week old is another story. So far, hubby has been babysitting out youngest daughter while I go on these tours. It’s absolutely fantastic to have a partner who’s willing to help out with these things – I don’t know how I’d get them done otherwise. My hat is truly off to single parents who have to deal with all these difficult things on their own.

Becky

Negotiation

I’ve been married for almost 5 years now. I’ve been with my husband for 7.5 years. It’s a fair assessment to say that we have had our share of negotiating. All marriages do. Well, the ones that last beyond the honeymoon phase anyhow. We’ve hammered out everything from who’s underwear goes where in the dresser to how often we visit the in-laws. We have entered a new stage of negotiation. We had our second daughter 6 weeks ago and negotiation has become a new art at our house. We also have a 4 year old. I don’t talk too much about our daughters in this blog – I have a separate one for that. They only come into the picture when they affect my relationship with my husband. As I was saying, learning to negotiate with terrorists (i.e. my daughters) has reached a new art form around here. Hubby and I have had to have an intensive session regarding how we negotiate and what we are negotiating with. Which required a lot of negotiating between him and I. Oh the irony. We have also had to develop a new system for chores and household duties. I.e. Which do you want – the screaming baby or the whining preschooler? Right now we have a good thing going on. We’re not outnumbered. There are two of us, and there are two needy kids. I shudder to think how it will be when we have our next child. I have a sneaky feeling that there won’t be much negotiation – just my husband and I being taken hostage.
Becky