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[quote=Anonymous]DH and I have three kids, and while we have some family nearby, we never had a situation where we could drop the kids off and have time to ourselves. As another older parent, I didn't mind. I was happy that we all enjoyed spending time together as a family.

The hardest thing for me was not having any extra layer of protection for emergencies (i.e. what if you partner has to go to the emergency room). This is where your neighbors and friends come in. Cultivate those relationships and offer help to others when you can.

Aside from that, I struggled when people who literally dropped their kids off at grandparents' homes most evenings and every weekend would complain about how busy and tired they were from parenting. At other times, I would compare myself unfavorably to others, asking why they had things together and I didn't, ignoring the fact that those people had extensive family help with their kids. That's a waste of energy.

Eventually, I stopped comparing myself to others and enjoyed my family. As others have said, help from extended family isn't always as good as it seems; in some cases, it's downright toxic.

If time away from your child is important, work on finding a reliable babysitter. 
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