Ready As Can Be

Five years ago, if you would have asked me, "Are you ready to have kids?", I would have laughingly responded with a, "Yeah right!"

Indeed, 5 years ago I was a typical urban twenty-something. I was going out on the town regularly in San Francisco, (actually) enjoying bear fights, sharing bottles of wine with Hannah and dancing the night away with friends with few worries other than hoping for mild hangovers and speedy lines for pho (Vietnamese noodle soup) the next day.

After getting married and moving to the suburbs 3 years ago, we were 2 BIG steps closer to being ready to be parents. Right?

Well, not exactly. It was never a question of whether we wanted to have kids. Of course we did--when the time was right.

However, Hannah and I had slightly different timelines when it came to when we should add another Wu to our world--more importantly, when the two of us were ready to become parents.

The most obvious of Hannah's concerns was her age and her biological clock.

Still, I would say that we have plenty of time, and I'd contest that I wasn't ready yet. There were things I still wanted to do, places I wanted to visit with her, friends I wanted to party with, to which some would snark, "You gotta grow up sometime, Eric."

"Do I have to?"

Hannah's counter argument: "We're never going to be truly ready."

Ah, the concept of readiness.

I still disagree with her statement--at least partially--for a few reasons. Of course we're probably never going to be ready for sleepless nights, constant fatigue, not knowing what to do when the baby is crying and he/she isn't hungry, needing to be changed, or sleepy. I won't be ready for how the baby will change our lives completely, and we won't be able to go back.

Still, I have gotten a lot of the twenty-something out of my system.

It's not that I no longer wish to travel, share an adult beverage, party or be spontaneous, but I had a great run and don't crave those things like I used to. Plus, my body can't take the continuous abuse.

I think this example sums it up: We just heard that some of Hannah's friends went to a rave on Friday night. A rave.

Really?? Not for me...

So, with regards to my twenties being behind me, I AM ready.

I see my nephews and friends' little ones, and I want one of my own! (I know they don't stay that cute forever but that's a topic for another post). I'm not reluctant to hold babies anymore cause I've learned they won't break (too easily). I'm ready to change dirty diapers. I'm ready to be afraid of things that are out of my control, to learn to accept them and deal with them fearlessly, if possible.

It's not about me anymore. It's not just about Hannah either. It's about family--both my family and Hannah's, and also our Bay Area family and friends who will provide us with love and support.

Together, we are as ready as can be.

You might be wondering whose timeline we settled on? Let's just say it was a compromise. ;)

Side note: I know I'm not the first to make the distinction, but I tried to distinguish between wanting a baby versus being ready to become parents.