As they say, a baby changes everything, and that certainly applies to holidays. Kids breathe new life into almost any holiday, but their impact on Valentine's Day is totally different. It's safe to say that being a parent adds a chaos to your life that impedes romance — after all, it's hard to be cute with your partner when you have spit up all over your shirt or you hear the baby cry over the monitor during wine time. The good thing is that you can laugh about it. Here are 16 tweets about Valentine's Day as a parent, so you know you're not alone.
When you are a parent, long gone are the days of spontaneous romance, intricately-planned date nights, and uninterrupted movie nights at home. Date nights often take months of pre-planning and, ultimately, you have to schedule it around your sitter's calendar. Cozy date nights in now include a baby monitor within reaching distance, and lots of tip-toeing around to avoid waking your littlest love. But, just because romance looks different now doesn't make it any less special or important. You learn to make time for your relationship and cherish the brief moments of alone time you do get.
The best part is having someone to laugh about it all with — the chaos, the mess, the poop-splosions, and the wild nights of falling asleep on the couch together at 8 p.m. The reality of parenting is hilarious, and these tweets totally grasp that.
Yeah, Gift Concepts Definitely Change After Kids
Yep, Valentine's Day used to be about flowers, chocolates, and romantic gifts, but with little ones in the picture, all you really want is two minutes where you're alone and sitting down and no one is touching you. It might not really seem like a big ask, but we all know it's major.
Fancy Date-Night Preparations Take A Backseat
Getting ready for a special, long-awaited Valentine's date previously included getting your hair done, a full face of makeup, and a stunning new dress to make you feel like your best. But, now? Well, you're lucky to get a shower that's longer than five minutes and that doesn't include one of the kids constantly flushing the toilet while you're in it. Romance is routinely interuppted by crying babies or kiddos with bad dreams, and all you can really do is sigh and chug your wine before you go up to comfort your little ones.
Really, It's A Wonder If You Remember It's Valentine's Day
If you have older kids, really the only reason you remember Valentine's day is because you have to sign and stuff a thousand valentines for their school friends the night before. With babies, diapers, naps, laundry, cleaning, and getting 35 minutes of sleep at a time, who's got time for Valentine's Day? Your idea of a celebration is if your babe sleeps for a few four hour stretches in-between night feedings so you can fall asleep to your favorite Netflix show like a regular adult.
But, Of Course, Kids Always Add A Lot Of Extra Love
It's true that life with little ones can definitely hinder the romantic part of Valentine's Day, but there's no question that they fill your days with more love than ever before. Really, isn't that what Valentine's Day is all about? Maybe your holiday won't be filled with a fancy date or expensive gifts this year, but grabbing a hold of your kid's perpetually sticky, teeny hand definitely makes up for it. And, if you're missing that sweet time with your partner, well, that's what early bedtimes are for.
Check out Romper's new video series, Bearing The Motherload, where disagreeing parents from different sides of an issue sit down with a mediator and talk about how to support (and not judge) each other’s parenting perspectives. New episodes air Mondays on Facebook.
