Sometimes I wonder how my life would have been different if I didnt have kids. My three sons are now young men ranging in age between 22 and 26 years old. One of the “age old” questions is how many kids is too many? It certainly seems like there is a significant difference between the parental demands of those with one child and those with anything over two. Men and women, mothers and fathers all differ in their opinion about which gender, daughters or sons is more “difficult”. Predictably most parents with daughters say girls are a bigger challenge and more likely to test their patience and emotional stability. Those with sons just raise an eyebrow and think to themselves, “Riiiight…did you ever have to pick up your drunk kid at midnite from the go cart track at the high school’s “lock in” dance?

Let’s face it, there is no such thing as a perfect kid and there are always going to be stories about another son or daughter who was a nightmare to raise. As a psychologist I have heard a million stories about kids with online gambling addictions, drinking problems, public intoxication arrests, disorderly conduct, convictions for selling marijuana, identity fraud and using a fake ID, as well as failure to attend college classes even tho it is costing the parents a literal fortune to send them to school out of state. Then I have heard another million horror stories about somebody elses kids besides my own…………..

Most of us have been through the figurative mill in realizing that every child is going to face personal challenges that cost us nearly all our money and much of our sanity. Perhaps we did the same thing to our parents but somehow we dont remember because we were too drunk, too stoned or just have convenient amnesia. Bottomline: If you ever start to feel bad about the “parent trap” that we all got ourselves into and yet few of us really regret because of how much we love and adore our kids, think about Lindsey Lohan or just watch this slide show of Octomom’s house. She’s the single mom who had six small children and then decided to have eight more all at one time. I believe that totals 14. I just heard she signed up to do a “self-pleasuring video” to pay for all their expenses…….. A self-pleasuring video? I wish it would be that easy. Sounds like a great job, with or without the pension plan and health benefits.
http://photos.tmz.com/galleries/octomom_nadya_suleman_kids_living_conditions_toilet_photos#tab=most_recent