Time Check:
2014 is two weeks old.
Ivy is five months old.
I am 36 1/12 years old.
Free Me-time is extremely limited these days, which is why it has been over a month since writing here and it is 11:00 pm, which has become obscenely late-night for me recently but is the only time that everyone else is sleeping so I can be selfish and creative! In theory I could have these hours every night as I did Before Ivy, but somehow I am drained after a day of work and play and find sleep to be the most attractive evening option… Music Production, a staple of my previous life’s evening activities, has been negligent over the past 6 months; I miss it but know that my rhythms and melodies and harmonies will express themselves again. Movie and concert experiences have dwindled because of obvious logistical burdens, but art and culture cravings have not abandoned me so I am sure the balance will resume eventually. Social engagements are carefully planned and negotiated with many opportunities for old-fashioned hang-outs passed up for the sole endless purpose of child care.
The rhythm of my life has completely changed.
And I love it.
Everything became infinitely more complicated when Ivy arrived–the time and effort required to keep her healthy and happy was unimaginable before it happened. I was aware that it would be different but had no hope of understanding the impact it would actually have. I might have balked at the trade-off of My Time for Family Time before I knew how deeply rich and rewarding raising a human being would be. I have always loved making music and could never eliminate it from my life but it seems obvious to me now that if I needed to do it for my child, I would. I am a consumer of entertainment but nothing could possibly be as entertaining as watching my daughter grow every day. Friends have been and will be a part of my life forever but no one has ever given me pure joy like Ivy.
Life has never been better.