The Bub in the Belly

I sometimes wish that I lived in a simpler world. I'm paralysed by choices. I have left a shoestore empty-handed many times simply because I couldn't decide between the black shoes or the brown shoes. I walk out of bookstores that have shelves crammed full of books because there's too much to compute.

You see, my problem is that I need to be convinced. I need to know the pros and the cons, the good and the bad, the upside and the downside. I need to process. And the more choices I have, the more I process. I process even when I have already made up my mind. I scan the entire menu before I order the exact same thing I had the last time I was at the same restaurant. I read all the reviews on other car/camera/[insert product] models before buying the model I'd set my heart on in the first place.

Since I've become a parent, all this processing has taken on a new dimension. There are so many decisions to make - which gynae? which PD? which diaper? which laundry detergent? which stroller? which toy? should I breastfeed? how long should I breastfeed? should we teach him phonics? sight words? should we teach him now or later? TV or no TV? what time should bedtime be?

Everyone has an opinion and every issue has divided opinion. There is an incredible amount of literature and opinion on every aspect of childcare and bringing up children. I myself have books and books on childcare but all that is a drop in the ocean compared to the millions of hits that turn up when I google "weaning" or "breastfeeding".

Which brings me to this blog.

I've been blogsurfing quite a bit and that has prompted me to think about what I want to see on this blog. It started out simply as a journal to record Ryan's milestones and our milestones as parents. We didn't even tell anyone about it in the beginning. It was just a diary for us. We finally told our family to look it up for updates when they hinted that we weren't keeping in touch as often as we should. And so it became a way to keep in touch, to share a piece of Ryan with people who were interested. And I think I'll keep it that way. I had been a little worried about putting our little family out on the internet. I had been considering going completely anonymous - no names, no faces in photos, etc. - or even making the blog private. Perhaps I will, one day. For now, I'll continue to share Ryan with everyone.

So, this is just a blog about our family's everyday life. I'm not going to tell you which stroller brand to buy, which school to send your child to or what to serve your child for breakfast. I will/may tell you which stroller we bought, which school Ryan goes to and what Ryan ate this morning, but only by way of reporting and not because I think you should do the same. If our choices for Ryan inspire you, that's wonderful. If they don't, that's cool too. We can still be friends.