Before I had kids, I golfed at least 3x a week. I traveled to Thailand, Morocco, Peru, and New York. I was on a first named basis with the manager at Hugo Boss, wore Prada shoes, and drove a BMW.
Granted part of this lavish lifestyle was due to the attitude of my ex-wife, but that’s how I lived back in the day before kids.
After I divorced her and the chihuahuas named after Coco Chanel and Louis Vuitton, I met another woman, fell in love and we immediately had children.
My life changed 180 degrees.
On a rare night out, a glamourous evening at a fast food burger joint famous for their root beer, I asked my wife if “We’re doing it wrong?” and if we should loosen up a bit, bring our kids along, and live a freer lifestyle.
Since having children, I haven’t shopped outside of H&M, or Old Navy. In fact, I can’t even tell you the last new thing I bought in a store where they didn’t also have a kid’s section.
I still wear the Prada shoes, but they’re now 7 years old, instead of the latest styles.
The BMW is gone, and I now cruise around in a sensible Hyundai Elantra.
I golfed once this summer, as a guest of my boss, for the first time in 14 months. I still travel to exotic places, but now I do it as a part of charity work for Team Diabetes.
I took a lot of heat for a post I wrote about why people bring their children to midnight movies. People were saying I don’t know the parents, and maybe they needed a night out and couldn’t find a sitter.
Yeah, we could all use a night out, but guess what? Kids change things.
What you want to do doesn’t come first anymore. As a parent, we give up our rights to be the most important person in the room. I’m not talking about spoiling kids, and creating entitled brats. I’m talking about not going out to the hot new restaurant/dance bar. I’m talking about not golfing every weekend. I’m talking about seeing Madagascar 1. 2. 3. AND 4 before you get to see any of the latestBatman movies.
Kids change things, and I don’t think people fully understand or appreciate that sometimes.
Has your life changed since you had kids? Do you make a conscious effort to bring back your old lifestyle (like infants at the Playboy mansion, concerts or movies)?