25 Things I Have Learned Since Becoming A Mom

25 Things I Have Learned Since Becoming a Mom

I am way over do for a post about motherhood so I compiled this list of some of the things I have learned since becoming a mom.  I could go on and on but here at the first 25 things I thought of.

1. Having dogs is nothing like having children!  Like a lot of couples, Brandon and I thought we were prepared for children because we already had 2 four legged children.  I'm sure it helped us adjust compared to people who had never had the responsibility of caring for any other living being.  But even though we loved our dogs, took them on vacation with us, took a picture with them for our family Christmas card each year...they were nothing like having children! I definitely didn't have to find a baby sitter for them when we wanted to go out, change there diapers, get up with them multiple times a night (regularly), and the list goes on. Trust me it is very different...no mater how much you love your dog!
2. EVERY person you have ever met and some you don't even know will want to tell you how to parent your children.  You can throw at least 95% of that advice out the window.  Every child is different even two children from the same parents, just because it works for someone else doesn't mean it will work for you or is best from your children. 
3. Just because I had worked night shift in the past did not mean I understood what true sleep deprivation felt like!  I thought I was prepared for a lack of sleep, hahaha...I don't think you could ever really prepare for the lack of sleep/delusion you experience with a newborn!
4. Just because every hiccup/rough patch/struggle you encounter as a Mom will be "worth it" it won't always feel "worth it."  That is OKAY! It isn't all rainbows and butterflies regardless of what the mom down the street with the white picket fence tells you. 
5. Your baby's cry will affect you differently than it will affect anyone else even your husband.  Which is why your husband lays in bed at night snoozing away and your hear the baby's every whimper.  
6. It does NOT matter if you cloth diaper or use disposables, breastfeed or bottle feed, make your own baby food or buy it at the store, what matters is you love your child and you are making the best choices for YOU and YOUR child.  Don't get so consumed with  your parenting decision that you made prior to becoming a parent that is steals your joy and stresses you out.  Because if you are stressed out you can't be the best Mom you can be and you won't be able to bond with your baby and enjoy your time with them.  I recently sold all my cloth diapers because as much as I wanted to be a "cloth diapering Mama" it just wasn't for me.  
7. My house used to be clean.  Before children when I thought my house was a mess it was really clean! 
8. I used to be skinny!  Before when I thought I needed to lose weight I didn't.  Oh to be as fat as I was the first time I thought I was fat. 
9. Never say never! The "Child-less Me" said "I'll never put my child on one of those backpack leases" and "My child will never drink kool-aid" and "I would never let my child act like that in public" and "I would never let my child wear that in public." Hahahaha...oh the things you don't understand before children, you must pick your battles!  I haven't put a backpack lease on either of my children yet (but Silas hasn't started walking either) and I don't give my children kool-aid.  But I have learned not to judge! 
10. Babies aren't as delicate as you think.  Of coarse you don't want to play hot potato with them but they don't have to be wrapped in bubble wrap either.     
11. The First Birthday party is more of a celebration for the parents because hallelujah you survived and so did the child!
12. Buy gender neutral baby gear for your first child if you plan on having more than one.  Don't get sucked into the pink and blue trap. 
13. Buy anything you really want for yourself or house before you have children because afterwards all your money will go toward your child.
14. Vacation with children is totally different.  I recently saw a post of Facebook that said a Mom on vacation does all the same chores she does at home just in closer proximity to the ocean...TRUTH!  I used to enjoy laying on the beach reading a book and dozing to the sound of the waves hitting the beach.  Now I chase little ones around making sure they don't eat sand or rub it in their eyes. But seeing them experience everything for the first time makes it all "worth it" even when it doesn't feel "worth it" (see #4).  
15. Someone else's poop will never be as important to you as it is once you have children.  You will examine it's color, texture, smell, and sometimes look for missing items (sad but true).  
16. Motherhood is lonely! Take the time to bring new moms a meal, send them a text, or a letter.  You won't realize how much it means until you are in their shoes. 
17. What you consider "staying up late" will change drastically.  Brandon and I used to stay out until 1 or 2am like it was no big deal now I start getting anxious if I'm not home and in bed by 9 or 10pm.  
18. Baby things are expensive!  Shoes and clothes for children cost just as much as yours do except they can only wear them for one season (provided they don't hit a growth spurt mid-season). 
19. What you consider "bad words" will change.  I never cussed like a sailer but I would let a few words slip every once in a while.  Now we cut an eye at our "child-less" friends when they say shut up or stupid. 
20. You will pay countless co-pay to the pediatricians office just for your own peace of mind. 
21. Don't underestimate the entertainment ability of trash!  There are few things more exciting to a child than a box, empty paper towel roll, empty Pringles can, or sheet of bubble wrap.  These will be the things your children fight over. 
22. Babies don't need much. With your first children you will register and buy everything ever invented for a baby to sit in, play with, eat out of, etc.  Once you have your second child you realize you didn't need or use half of those things. 
23. Your newborn will be the most gorgeous baby you ever laid your eyes on.   Then one day when they are older and you look back at the pictures and realize their eyes were puffy, nose seemed big, and face was all red and bruised.  
24. Don't lose yourself!  Being a mom should be part of who you are not who you are.  Does that make sense?  I LOVE being a mom but I have to remind myself that I am still Brittany.  Just like getting married made me a wife, having children made me a mom, but I'm still me.  I have changed a lot in the past 3 years and 8 months but I still have hobbies and enjoy doing things that don't always include my children and though I don't do them as often as I once did, it is important that I still do them.  I want my children to know who I really am. 
25. You will love your children like you have never loved before.  It is an overwhelming love no one can explain to you.  It will make you want to call your own Mom and thank her because you will finally understand. 

 I am in pure shock and disbelief that he will be one year old this month.  This has been the fastest year of my life. 

Taegan in "princess mode" all ready for Lauren's baby shower.