Thursday, December 27, 2007

To three or not to three

I was late.

Eight days worth of late.

Three pregnancy tests peed on kind of late.

And guess what? I'm not pregnant!

I know this because, well, the gears starting creaking and things started, you know, flowing.

But not before David and I had to contemplate what it would mean if I had been pregnant.

We have two healthy, perfect kids (and when I say perfect, I mean in the "all their limbs and organs are functioning normally and they seem reasonably intelligent and well-adjusted" type of way). It is tough enough to manage Sawyer's peanut allergy. I can't imagine dealing with something that affects quality of life every moment.

I have one child out of diapers (the other one will NEVER be out, just to spite me). I removed high chairs, bouncers and other large baby things from my house. I don't worry about toys with small parts becoming lodged in a windpipe anymore.

I don't remember the last time I used a stroller.

Why rock the boat by adding a third?

I'm clutching on to my 30s with my fingernails. Who knows what my eggs are doing, especially after this past Cycle of Craziness. David is in his 40s. We're already old, in parenting terms. I met a woman today who is pregnant with her third - and she's only 28!

There's also the issue of being outnumbered, of not having enough hands to help everybody at once. More snot to wipe. The stomach flu times three. Diapers. Clothes. Toys. Cars. College.

A third would also be at least three years younger than Sage and five younger than Sawyer. Would s/he feel left out, with the first two being so close?

When we thought I might in fact be knocked up, David's attitude was "Bring it. We can have a third, no problem." He was totally up for it.

In a way, it would have been a relief to have an oops. It would take the decision making of should-we-or-shouldn't-we out of our hands. Meant to be, right?

Hmm..

Now we need to, like, make an intelligent, adult decision. Am I done? It seems so...final.

To me, having children is what makes living worthwhile. I can't think of anything more important than bringing a life into the world. Raising kids.

Two is cool. Two is manageable.

Three?

Three.

Stay tuned..

7 comments:

Simply Lovely Gifts said...

Gosh -how crazy would that be??? I can tell you that I was totally against having 3 kids prior to having my own 3. One's always odd-man out, you're always outnumbered. But I can also tell you that I love love love having a "larger" family and you would never regret it. Those first couple of years might be challenging going through the whole baby thing again, but gosh, they're wonderful! Best of luck in your decision-making!

Cheryl said...

Thanks! I was hoping you'd weigh in on the topic. I am the youngest of three myself. And the left-out one was the middle child, my brother! ;) DH seems into it, so we might try for a couple months and see what happens. AAAAACK!

Julie said...

Wow! Exciting possibility. My DH is the middle child of 3. He seems to have survived it for the most part. ;-) Having grown up essentially as an only child (I have much older half-sisters), I am thrilled that my girls have a sibling, but we will be leaving it at that. The looming 4-0 is a big contributing factor for us.
Good luck and keep us posted!

Cheryl said...

Yep, the 4-0 is staring me in the eye too. I told DH maybe we'll try for two months and if it doesn't work, then that's it. I just can't imagine Sage growing up without a sister - altho Sawyer keeps saying, out of nowhere, that he wants a little brother (!?!?!).

Julie said...

Well, first you have to turn 39 before you worry about 40... which I believe is happening on Monday. Happy Birthday!

Pink Dawn said...

Holy crap! I've had nightmares about being preggers again!

Cheryl said...

Julie - Thanks so much for the reminder! LOL

Dawn - Wouldn't you like just one more girl? ;)

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