New Mom: Getting Out

I can’t believe it. I’ve become the Mom who hasn’t had a babysitter in the year since my daughter was born. We did have a niece babysit one night after New Girl went to sleep so we could go out to dinner, but it barely seemed to count. We were two miles away and New Girl slept the whole time. It’s not that I’m afraid to leave my daughter with a sitter. She does go to child care every weekday, after all. It’s just that New Dad and I have yet to prefer the idea of going out just as two adults, or even with others, than we have to spend our few precious non-working waking hours with our daughter. Is that bad? Truth be told, if I did have a few extra baby-free hours, I’d like to get my overgrown, over-gray hair cut and colored. I’d like to finally pack away my maternity clothes. New Dad would like to finish the many home improvement projects he has half done.

But still, we would rather do one more trike ride around the block, draw one more sidewalk chalk masterpiece, or take one more trip to the playground than do any of those things. On the one hand, I know we should really get some babysitters in the rotation so that we have them when we really need them, but on the other hand, why would I invite someone in to my home (let alone pay them) to do the thing I’d most like to be doing in the world. Is that completely lame?