Motherhood - Things I have Learned

There are so many things we learn or re-learn when we become others. Here is a small list of the few I have learned:



1. Sleep is for the weak. I mean, who really needs 8 hours a night?  Moms, and dads, are superhuman and can survive, even thrive, on 3-5.



2. Never pass up an opportunity to pee.  You never know when the next chance will present itself and the need to go will inevitably occur, or increase drastically, when you have a soundly sleeping child on your chest.



3. Never get too comfortable with your child's nap or sleep schedule.  The moment you do, it will change and you will find yourself wondering how to get them to go back to their routine, and do your best to adjust to their new schedule. (hint: you wont be able to before it changes again.)



4. Never wear white when you have small children.  Those cute pants that looked great when you put them on?  They will end up with chocolate, Cheetos or honey hand prints on them.  That lacy white top?  Covered in snot, or r torn by razor sharp, but cute, little nails.  Come to think of it, just plan on never wearing white again, at least until all your children are grown and out of the house.


5. There will be clutter, a lot of clutter, when it comes to our childrens toys.  Oh sure, we can organize, and organize, and clean, and clean, and... but there will be stacks of toys where you used to have a cute pottery dish or magazine rack.  The toys never stop flowing in.  Daily it seems they multiply.  But you don't mind really, not too much anyway, as you know one day the toys will be gone.



6. Potty training is tough, on the parents.  I mean, it is hard to train a child to rush to a bathroom in the middle of the play time, or to wake enough to from a nap to go, instead of just going right there, diaper or no.  If a kid doesn't want to go on the potty, rarely is there much that can coax them to do so.  It can be frustrating!   That is tough on everyone but, for parents, while it is a longed for milestone, it is also a bittersweet one once we realize we have changed our last diaper.


7. Then comes that hard part, teaching your child how to wipe.  Once we have gotten used to the fact that there are no more diapers to change, we rejoice that butt wiping is finally coming to an end! Or is it?  Our child can now hop up on the toilet without help, yet it still takes months, or years, to teach them how to wipe well enough that there are no drippies or streaks in their adorable character undies.  You sit down to take a sip of coffee and hear, "I'm doooone!"  Oh joy, another day where coffee is had cold, or not at all...


8. When your child is congested due to colds or allergies, facepaint does not last.  It ends up smeared, caked in snot, and all over your clothing and your childs hands. 


9. You will get "baby fever" shortly after your child is 6 months old, and it will last for a while.  The sweet baby snuggles are gone in an instant, and you will want more of them.  You will love your child more and more each day, but you will still want another one to hold and nurture.


10.  Your child will drive you crazy sometimes, but you will still love him or her fiercely!


11.  You will have days when you feel so inadequate as a mom, that you will question if you are doing anything, anything at all, right.  You will ache to be better at this whole parenting thing, Then your child will smile at you, for no reason, and you will realize you are doing just fine.


12.  There will be days that all you want to do is hide in a corner and cry.  Maybe for a good reason, sometimes for no apparent one, but tears of frustration, sadness, pain, anger, happiness, joy, and love, are free flowing when you have a child.  And that is perfectly okay.


13.  You will fully realize the depth of love your mother has for you, you will finally grasp just how hard she worked taking care of you, and you will love her all the more.  You will hope to someday be as good a parent as your mom is, to be able to care for your child with as much, faith, love, patience, and understanding as she did. And you will look to her constantly for advice.  You will rejoice when you open your mouth one day and you hear your mother come out.  I know I will have accomplished something great if I can be half the mom to my daughter as my mother is to me.  I love you mom!!!!


This is, obviously, just a very small list of things we learn once we become moms.  There is so much more, and some you just cant articulate well.  I am forever grateful my mother, who taught me how to be a mom, for Alison, who gifted me with my daughter and let me be a mom, and for my daughter, who is the reason I am a mom, and who I hope will forever know how hard I tried and how much I love her!


Happy Mothers Day!!