Coffee

  I realize this is not a super important topic. But at the same time it is. Could any parent really function without coffee? I know I couldn't. Everywhere I go, I see parents chugging Starbucks, Caribou, Dunn Brothers, or their own House blend in an eco-friendly travel mug.
  
  Is it a mental crutch? Is it an addiction? Does the aroma inspire us to be better parents and not think about how many times we got up throughout the night? Can we drink our java and ignore the tantrums more efficiently? Does the caffeine allow us to get through each mind-numbing yet chaotic day with our children? Is the pleasure of each hot sip enough to sustain us while we are digging in the sandbox or drawing on the driveway with chalk?

  Do we have a better relationship with coffee than our own parents? 

  Now for the important question: how on earth will I have baby #2 when I have to give up caffeine during pregnancy? It is not so much the 3 days of headaches, shakes, and waking in cold sweats (it might as well be heroin), as much as what happens after the addiction is kicked. I have a 2 year old who is an early waker, not a napper, and has the energy potential of a hurricane. Coffee gets me going first thing and then through the entire morning. Not only will I be hormonal and living with the changing pregnancy body, but now I have to keep up with a toddler at the same time? With NO COFFEE?! I used to judge parents who only had one child; now I understand it is simply that there is no perfect age of a child to deal with caffeine-free. Let's not even delve into the breast milk caffeine limitations. I am looking at 12-15 months of limited and/or no caffeine. And a toddler. 

  That's enough for now. I am getting overwhelmed just thinking about it. Time to perk myself up by grinding some Guatemalan beans and turning on my auto-drip.