Parenting Safari

Thank you for weighing in on the flu vaccination yesterday. While I am not sure it really helped me make any decisions (each of you make such compelling arguments), at least I know that I am not alone in my confusion regarding what decision is the best.

Parenting sure is hard work, isn't it? Wow, that's exactly the kind of comment that would have irritated me when I was struggling to have a baby. I would have thought, "Duh. It's hard work. That's what you sign up for when you have a baby. Now, stop complaining about it!"

I am not complaining, but parenting is challenging. And it's not the expected problems that really knock me for a loop. It's the things like this that you never really think of that really hit you hard. When you are dreaming of having a baby, your toughest questions are "What color should I paint the nursery?" not "Should I vaccinate my baby with an untested, potentially ineffective strain of flu?"

It's just one of the many unexpected dilemmas I have faced since becoming a mom. It sometimes feels as if I am on this African Safari, without map or guide, just friendly locals (other moms and dads) to help along the way. There could be a perilous turn this way, but you don't know it. You just use blind "logic" and something called "your gut." You hope for the best, you do your best, and you sometimes make mistakes and just pray your kid(s) don't pay for it.

Good luck to all of us on this parenting safari!