Some days I really wish that I could be the fun parent. I get that as parents, we really need to be on the same page but I think no matter what, one parent still gets the "fun" label. It has taken a long time but I can honestly say that we have a really great balance in our household. I just don’t wear the hat that proclaims me as the fun one.
As mothers, we have so much on our plates, from scheduling to meal planning, it is just impossible to be fun all the time. If I participated in every single tea party and hide and go seek activity, we’d all be walking around malnourished and with no clean underwear. The reality is my responsibilities are different than hubby’s, not more or less… just different.
Credit: bigd2112.
With all that being said, every so often I still feel just a smidgen of jealousy or resentment. Why can’t I be the fun one? I love my time with the kids and really cherish the moments of belly laughs and silliness… but this is just a fraction of my time with the kids. Being that my hubby gets less time with the kids, it is really important that he has good fun with them… but sometimes I wonder if they are keeping track. I highly doubt my five and three year old are keeping track with a giant fun meter hidden in their closet, but it does cross my mind now and again.
This past weekend was a perfect example of how much "fun" my husband can be. We went to the park that is just a few blocks away. My son took his scooter and my daughter insisted on being valeted there in the wagon that’s wheels are so loud you can’t even hear yourself think… that is if you have any brain cells left at the end of the day. Once we were at the park, naturally the kids didn’t want anything to do with me. I didn’t push them on the swing as high as Dad does. I didn’t let them bring the metal detector like Dad does. I didn’t track deer like Dad does. After a full evening of being told how "not fun" I was… it was time to go home. My son didn’t want to ride his scooter home and insisted on going in the wagon. Naturally my husband decided that it would be hilarious if he rode the scooter home.
After about two blocks of the kids thinking it was awesome their Dad was riding a child sized scooter, the fun came to an end. Hubby tried to cruise into the driveway at mach speed and launched himself into the air and onto the concrete. I’m sure it really hurt… and the only reason he got up right away I’m certain was because all the neighbors were probably laughing their asses off. If I was a wonderful wife I would have attentively took care of him and brought him ice and perhaps a few band-aids. But I was much too busy laughing until I cried to attend to anyone but myself and my kiddies. I laughed all night long. The kids giggled until they couldn’t remember what was so funny to begin with. And although it all might have been slightly at the expense of my husband… I’m sure he didn’t mind, after all he gets to be the fun one the rest of the time.
To all you moms out there who sometimes feel like you’re not the "fun one," you’re probably not -- and that’s okay. My kids might not remember all the things I do around here that make our family run like a well oiled machine, but hopefully they’ll remember the times we laughed so hard we cried. Not wearing the "fun hat" doesn’t make you have any less fun with your kids… it just means you’ll never be the one launching yourself off a child’s scooter. For me… I think I’m okay with that.