Marriage – the facts you need to know - 28
· You need to know there will be days when you're so tired of little hands touching you that you don't even want to touch each other. This is temporary.
· You need to know a babysitter may be the most important person in your marriage.
· You need to know that while it seems like kids cost a fortune, it's actually the first one who costs a fortune. The rest of them get hand-me-downs.
· You need to know one way to spend more time with your husband when you have children is to spend less time on the housework.
· You need to know your children's teachers can tell the difference between a child from a stable marriage and a child from a rocky one.
· You need to know having a baby before marriage doesn't strengthen relationships.
· You need to know you'll talk to each other in a whole new language with words like poop, cooooookie, susho shusho, dah, and nanna. You're not regressing. You're parents.
· You need to know a father will worry about his children's ability to make it in the world. Moms will always worry about their happiness.
· You need to know from the beginning who is going to raise your children. Him? Her? Daycare? The mother-in-law?
· You need to know moms tend to spend everything on the kids while the dads tend to panic over of the price of diapers. Communication is vital here.
· You need to know to never tell your kids you're so mad you could divorce their father. It makes you sound like a lunatic. And it scares them to death.
· You need to know to buy a lock for your bedroom. Marriage saver.
· You need to know to make the hard decisions together. Then stand by them.
· You need to know to totally agree about homework, chores, money, and show respect when you're in front of your kids. Settle any differences behind closed doors.
· You need to know that neither spouse should encourage a three-year-old to misbehave.
· You need to know there's no such thing as a romantic dinner when a two-year-old is involved.
· You need to know that where you once discussed music and fashion and your jobs, you now discuss pooping. As well as the color of snot and how to get barf stains out of a shirt.
· You need to know that one parent shouldn't always be the bad guy. Both parents need to enforce the rules.
· You need to know to never criticize each other in front of the kids.
· You need to know a spouse who constantly undermines the other's abilities as a parent isn't doing the marriage any favors.
