It's amazing how much one tiny person can change your life. You're not given a manual on motherhood. You're thrust into this job the second your baby is born (or even earlier). It's a fly by the seat of your pants kind of job. It's hard, overwhelming, rewarding, messy, stinky, sweet, slobbery, exhausting, eye-opening, joyous....amazing!!
I've put together a list of things that motherhood has taught me thus far.
I could list more, but 13 sounded like a nice enough number to me!
[One]
The world does not revolve around me after all.
OK, I already knew this one, obviously, but having a child completely changes the way you think.
It's like an automatic mind shift that just happens. Before Hudson, I thought about how certain decisions and situations would affect me. (& Joseph) Nowadays, my first consideration for just about every decision is always Hudson. Where we eat for dinner or what I cook(will he eat this? is it healthy for him?), where and when we go out and about(is that a good time for him? is that nap time?), what to watch on TV (should I expose him to this?). This list goes on and on.
[TWO]
Sippy cups, if left unattended, will walk away on their own.
It's a conspiracy, I'm certain. One minute it's on the coffee table, the next minute it's been sucked into a black hole never to be found again....at least for about 20-30 minutes, anyway. I'm pretty sure I've spent half my life searching for lost sippy cups.
[THREE]
The pain of stepping on a Lego with bare feet is almost as bad as childbirth itself.
Well...I can't really attest to the pain of actual childbirth, seeing as how I didn't feel a thing(get the meds, people!) but my recovery is something I'd never wish on my worst enemy. OK, moving on. Point here...watch out for the evil Legos!
[FOUR]
It is perfectly acceptable to cry over spilled milk after you've spent half an hour pumping it at 3am.
You're sleep-deprived, attached to this pump 24/7 to provide nutrition for this tiny person you're responsible for, and in your delirious state you knock over that whole bottle of milk you just pumped. Yes, this is a travesty and it calls for a meltdown. It's OK. Melt away!
[FIVE]
Real words are overrated.
"Din din", "diapee", "Bry Bry", "wawa"....you tend to forget how to talk like an adult after you have a baby. Just try not to communicate with your bosses or coworkers in such a fashion. Asking the boss if he'd like some ice in his "wawa" is probably not gonna help get you that promotion.
[SIX]
There's no such thing as TMI anymore.
Once you've gone through childbirth and cleaned God knows what off of areas of a tiny person you never even knew existed, you kinda lose your filter. Not much phases you anymore. But your family and friends who haven't recently gone through such glamorous events would probably appreciate if you didn't share every detail about your child's poop schedule, what spoiled breast milk smells like, or how your recovery's going.
[SEVEN]
It's OK to laugh to keep yourself from crying.
But it's also OK to go to your bedroom, scream in a pillow, and just cry it out for a few minutes. Make sure the baby's secure or someone's watching him/her first, though, before you go have your moment of madness.
[EIGHT]
A messy house is a happy house.
The laundry can wait. You can clean those floors tomorrow. Don't worry that all the toys and books are strewn all over the living room floor. Your little one's been learning and playing. He's been engaged. He's had his mind thinking. He's working on those motor skills. Get in the floor and play WITH him!! Building a castle and playing instruments is much more fun than doing laundry!!
[NINE]
Tomorrow's a fresh start.
So today sucked a little. Your child woke up super early, cried all the way through breakfast, wouldn't take a nap, is teething like they surely must be dying, finally fell asleep at 10pm and you barely have the energy to put yourself in bed so you might as well forget about that shower you're in desperate need of. These days happen. Let the dirty dishes sit there, take some Aleve, maybe some ZzzQuil, and go nite nite.
Tomorrow's another day with new possibilities! It will be OK.
[TEN]
Don't wish the time away.
You'll never get these days back. They are fleeting. Take the time to cuddle, read that book(for the 37th time), build that house, and make memories.
[ELEVEN]
Kids don't miss one. single. thing.
You told your child he can't have a cookie, but you just stuffed one in your mouth? Yeah...they saw that. Just give them the cookie now and be done with it. Pick your battles!
[TWELVE]
Children don't need the fancy, shiny things.
You can spend hundreds of dollars on brand new, shiny toys to entertain your child. This is fine. Toys are good for them. They need play time and there are great learning toys out there.
There's just something about an empty box or water bottle....and they sure are a lot cheaper. Just sayin.
[THIRTEEN]
You will never know a greater love.
It's true what they say....you never knew you could love something so much. It will be instant and you will fall hard for this brand new tiny human in your arms. You'll find yourself staring at them while they sleep, and before you know it 2 hours has passed. You'll worry about them every second of every day, even if they're right beside you. You'll find that even 5 minutes away from them feels like an eternity. You realize that all that matters is their health and happiness.
You know without a doubt you'd give up your life in a second for them.
I've only been a mom for 2 years and 3 months, and I know I have a whole lot more to learn about motherhood. I will learn many more lessons along the way. With twins coming soon, I can hopefully use what I have learned thus far to be better this time around....with the late night feedings, constant diaper changes, teething, etc.
As moms, we are constantly teaching our kids one thing or another. But we should also open our eyes and realize when we can learn something from them! Life doesn't have to be as complicated as we like to make it. Look at things through the eyes of a child, and it becomes a whole lot simpler and joyful.
What has motherhood taught you?
I've put together a list of things that motherhood has taught me thus far.
I could list more, but 13 sounded like a nice enough number to me!
[One]
The world does not revolve around me after all.
OK, I already knew this one, obviously, but having a child completely changes the way you think.
It's like an automatic mind shift that just happens. Before Hudson, I thought about how certain decisions and situations would affect me. (& Joseph) Nowadays, my first consideration for just about every decision is always Hudson. Where we eat for dinner or what I cook(will he eat this? is it healthy for him?), where and when we go out and about(is that a good time for him? is that nap time?), what to watch on TV (should I expose him to this?). This list goes on and on.
[TWO]
Sippy cups, if left unattended, will walk away on their own.
It's a conspiracy, I'm certain. One minute it's on the coffee table, the next minute it's been sucked into a black hole never to be found again....at least for about 20-30 minutes, anyway. I'm pretty sure I've spent half my life searching for lost sippy cups.
[THREE]
The pain of stepping on a Lego with bare feet is almost as bad as childbirth itself.
Well...I can't really attest to the pain of actual childbirth, seeing as how I didn't feel a thing(get the meds, people!) but my recovery is something I'd never wish on my worst enemy. OK, moving on. Point here...watch out for the evil Legos!
[FOUR]
It is perfectly acceptable to cry over spilled milk after you've spent half an hour pumping it at 3am.
You're sleep-deprived, attached to this pump 24/7 to provide nutrition for this tiny person you're responsible for, and in your delirious state you knock over that whole bottle of milk you just pumped. Yes, this is a travesty and it calls for a meltdown. It's OK. Melt away!
[FIVE]
Real words are overrated.
"Din din", "diapee", "Bry Bry", "wawa"....you tend to forget how to talk like an adult after you have a baby. Just try not to communicate with your bosses or coworkers in such a fashion. Asking the boss if he'd like some ice in his "wawa" is probably not gonna help get you that promotion.
[SIX]
There's no such thing as TMI anymore.
Once you've gone through childbirth and cleaned God knows what off of areas of a tiny person you never even knew existed, you kinda lose your filter. Not much phases you anymore. But your family and friends who haven't recently gone through such glamorous events would probably appreciate if you didn't share every detail about your child's poop schedule, what spoiled breast milk smells like, or how your recovery's going.
[SEVEN]
It's OK to laugh to keep yourself from crying.
But it's also OK to go to your bedroom, scream in a pillow, and just cry it out for a few minutes. Make sure the baby's secure or someone's watching him/her first, though, before you go have your moment of madness.
[EIGHT]
A messy house is a happy house.
The laundry can wait. You can clean those floors tomorrow. Don't worry that all the toys and books are strewn all over the living room floor. Your little one's been learning and playing. He's been engaged. He's had his mind thinking. He's working on those motor skills. Get in the floor and play WITH him!! Building a castle and playing instruments is much more fun than doing laundry!!
[NINE]
Tomorrow's a fresh start.
So today sucked a little. Your child woke up super early, cried all the way through breakfast, wouldn't take a nap, is teething like they surely must be dying, finally fell asleep at 10pm and you barely have the energy to put yourself in bed so you might as well forget about that shower you're in desperate need of. These days happen. Let the dirty dishes sit there, take some Aleve, maybe some ZzzQuil, and go nite nite.
Tomorrow's another day with new possibilities! It will be OK.
[TEN]
Don't wish the time away.
You'll never get these days back. They are fleeting. Take the time to cuddle, read that book(for the 37th time), build that house, and make memories.
[ELEVEN]
Kids don't miss one. single. thing.
You told your child he can't have a cookie, but you just stuffed one in your mouth? Yeah...they saw that. Just give them the cookie now and be done with it. Pick your battles!
[TWELVE]
Children don't need the fancy, shiny things.
You can spend hundreds of dollars on brand new, shiny toys to entertain your child. This is fine. Toys are good for them. They need play time and there are great learning toys out there.
There's just something about an empty box or water bottle....and they sure are a lot cheaper. Just sayin.
[THIRTEEN]
You will never know a greater love.
It's true what they say....you never knew you could love something so much. It will be instant and you will fall hard for this brand new tiny human in your arms. You'll find yourself staring at them while they sleep, and before you know it 2 hours has passed. You'll worry about them every second of every day, even if they're right beside you. You'll find that even 5 minutes away from them feels like an eternity. You realize that all that matters is their health and happiness.
You know without a doubt you'd give up your life in a second for them.
I've only been a mom for 2 years and 3 months, and I know I have a whole lot more to learn about motherhood. I will learn many more lessons along the way. With twins coming soon, I can hopefully use what I have learned thus far to be better this time around....with the late night feedings, constant diaper changes, teething, etc.
As moms, we are constantly teaching our kids one thing or another. But we should also open our eyes and realize when we can learn something from them! Life doesn't have to be as complicated as we like to make it. Look at things through the eyes of a child, and it becomes a whole lot simpler and joyful.
What has motherhood taught you?
This is SO true! It is not only acceptable, but completely expected to cry over spilled breast milk. I remember my very first melt down over spilled milk. I'm only a week into this round of nursing, and I'm sure it'll happen again! :/
ReplyDeleteBrock is 18 months old and Brooke is 8 days old...& I already see that the next couple of years will no doubt be a bit more wild than the last 2 years. Early in the morning on the day that I went into labor with Brooke, It hit me and I started to really be anxious about how I would handle having 2 babies under 2...the fear set in. After much prayer, I realized that THIS is my life's purpose right now...not teaching or marketing or sales, but being a mommy! God has chosen me for this amazing job, and he will help me each day, even when I'm overwhelmed, tired, confused etc...Thanks for this blog! It's a great reminder that, even in the crazy moments, I'm not alone! :)
This is great! I love number two. So funny!
ReplyDelete