The 1 Sad Truth No One Tells You About Having Kids

It's no secret that being a parent is hard, but that's often a nice way of phrasing what is really the saddest truth in parenting — that your kids make every single thing harder.

There is no situation that can't be made more difficult by the presence of a child. Basic chores like vacuuming or just getting out of the house to go to the store or for a walk — they are all harder obligations when you factor in a baby or child. Little things are more challenging, but the big stuff, like moving, changing jobs, marriage, and death? Even more so.

Here's just one example. Last Christmas, my cat got really sick. We were faced with a multi-thousand-dollar vet bill, where there was still a possibility that the cat wouldn't make it, or we were going to have to put him down. Besides having to deal with the basic heartbreaking reality about what those options meant for our family, at the forefront of my mind was my son.

Thankfully he was too young at the time to have to explain death to, but that wasn't the only concern. That unexpected hospital stay required numerous visits, consultations, and time away from my son. Who would watch him became a concern, and every time he would go looking for his "itty," my heart would break. Even when dealing with a life or death situation, a child always requires attention that you might not have readily available.

When I brought my cat home to recover, I was tired and still uncertain if we made the right call; $3000 was a lot of money to spend on a silly little feline who mostly sleeps at the foot of our bed. My son, the same one who made that very situation harder, ran to the cat carrier and gave "itty" a big kiss on the belly, which is the best homecoming I could have ever hoped for.

And that right there is what makes all the hardship worth it. Just as babies and children make everything harder, their extremeness also has the odd and magical power to make everything better.

Just taking a walk with my son around my neighborhood is filled with more enthusiasm, curiosity, humor, and energy than I've ever seen. Sticks and pebbles that I would normally step right over are now carefully turned over until he has truly examined every angle. He breathes life into the doldrums.

So, yes, going for a walk is more challenging with a toddler. We're certainly not getting anywhere quickly, and crossing the street is a minor heart attack every time, but that little child who makes everything harder sure does have a way of making everything better.