I thought that once we were out of the baby stage, parenting

In the words of Tori Spelling, we hear a sentiment that is both tender and universal: “I thought that once we were out of the baby stage, parenting would be a breeze.” These words carry the innocence of hope, the expectation that the earliest trials—the sleepless nights, the endless feedings, the constant cries—are the greatest burdens of raising a child. Yet as every seasoned parent learns, each stage brings its own trials, each season its own storms. The infant grows, but the challenges do not vanish; they transform, becoming more subtle, more complex, and often more demanding of patience and wisdom.

The ancients themselves recognized this truth. In the writings of Aristotle, it is said that the task of raising a child is not merely to preserve life, but to shape virtue. This, he warns, is a labor far greater than feeding or protecting. For the body may be nourished with milk, but the soul must be nourished with discipline, truth, and love. Thus, the baby stage may exhaust the body, but the later years test the spirit. Spelling’s reflection mirrors this wisdom, for she speaks to the surprise every parent feels when the path only grows more intricate as time passes.

History offers a clear example in the life of Saint Augustine and his mother, Monica. In his infancy, her struggles were simple: to feed him, to comfort him, to keep him safe. Yet as he grew into manhood, her burdens multiplied. He wandered into philosophy and error, he resisted her guidance, and her heart ached with worry for his soul. Though her hands no longer carried him, her spirit carried the far greater weight of fear for his choices. At last, through her prayers and endurance, he became one of history’s great thinkers. Her story teaches us this: the hardest labor of parenting often comes not in the baby’s cry, but in the grown child’s defiance.

Spelling’s words remind us that the journey of raising children is not linear, but layered. In the baby stage, the needs are visible and constant. The parent’s duty is to respond with immediacy: feed, rock, soothe. Later, the needs grow invisible. A child demands guidance, yet resists it; seeks independence, yet longs for safety; desires truth, yet hides in falsehood. The parent must then learn to nurture without smothering, to correct without crushing, to guide without dominating. This is a far more subtle and difficult art than the simple demands of infancy.

The meaning of this reflection is deeply emotional: to be a parent is to be ever humbled. Just when one believes the hardest part is over, new trials emerge. It is a journey without a final “breeze,” for the soul of a child is ever changing, and the task of the parent is to change alongside them. The labor shifts from body to heart, from sleepless nights to restless worries, from rocking cradles to guiding choices. To expect ease is to misunderstand the sacred weight of the calling.

The lesson for us is clear. First, let us not imagine that any stage of parenting will be without trial; let us instead prepare our hearts for endurance across the seasons. Second, let us embrace the unique beauty of each stage, knowing that today’s burdens will one day be gone, replaced by others, and each carries its own lessons. Third, let us seek wisdom, patience, and humility, so that we may guide our children not only with hands, but with hearts.

O seekers of truth, remember this: parenting is not a storm followed by calm seas—it is a voyage across ever-changing waters. The waves of infancy give way to the winds of youth, and those winds give way to the tempests of adolescence. But in every trial lies also joy: the first smile, the first word, the first step, the first act of courage. Let us not seek a life free of burden, but a spirit strong enough to bear it.

Thus, Tori Spelling’s words endure as a lesson. Expect not the breeze, but the journey. The baby stage ends, yet the labor of love continues, deepening, expanding, demanding more of us even as it enriches us. The true victory of parenting is not in escaping difficulty, but in walking faithfully through each stage, with love that endures beyond exhaustion, beyond resistance, beyond fear. For in that love, the parent is shaped as surely as the child.