Things that were Easier:
1. I had a Csection and never pushed--that made delivery a LOT easier than I had imagined.
2. Breastfeeding (after we weaned off those stupid shields)
3. Losing the baby weight. It had a lot to do with 2 things: 1) breastfeeding & 2) the flu. I don't recommend the latter.
4. Night wakings during the early days. Yes, we woke up a lot to eat. However, he ALWAYS (minus 2 times maybe?) went right back to sleep after nursing. We always got lots of sleep, albeit broken up.
5. His demeanor. After we got over that terrible colic, Drew NEVER cried unless he was really sleepy. I've seen other babies who just cry apparently for no reason. Drew never did this. He was just happy and content to jump and bounce and play--all. the. time. People told me all the time how "lucky" we were that he was so content in any situation. I hope we don't find out just how lucky we were with any subsequent children!
6. Letting Andrew take control. Andrew had zilch experience with babies, so sometimes I wondered if he would even want to be alone with Drew. However, he's such a good daddy that I have never thought twice about leaving Drew alone with him, even when he was little and I had to work long shifts. I know that he will give Drew exactly what I would. And this is the best part for me: if Drew were to get upset and Andrew couldn't figure out the problem, he would call me or bring Drew to me! That's such security for a mom!
7. Pumping. When I first got my breast pump, it was as if someone had disassembled a car and asked me to put it back together. All the technicalities of pumping, storing, thawing, etc left me boggled! However, it only takes a time or 2 to become a pro!
8. Diapers. They really aren't that bad.
(My goal was to list 10 things here. I just can't come up with 10, and that's gonna eat me up because I listed 10 things below. Unevenness--argh!)
Things that were Harder:
1. Going in any store with Drew. I always envisioned myself spending my days strolling from store to store in the local outdoor mall while Drew played quietly in his stroller and fell asleep for 3 hours. NOOOOOOOOOOOOOT!
2. Traveling with Drew. He's just now getting to where he can take a 2 hour trip and not scream.
3. Being alone in the day. I'm a pretty "to myself" person most of the time-not your social butterfly (are you surprised?). So being at home with just Drew all day sometimes gets me down.
4. Colic. I always skipped that section of the books that I read during pregnancy because I just knew we wouldn't be dealing with that. (Thank you, God, for Levsin!)
5. Worrying about illnesses. I'm sure every mother does this to some degree, but I hear of all these kids with terminal or life threatening illnesses and it just takes my breath away to even consider being in their shoes. Lots of prayer about this!
6. Naps. I just assumed Drew would be this beautiful sleeper since both his parents enjoy it so much. Don't babies just take 3 hour nap, no problem? Well....Drew would sleep for long periods, but only on us because if we put him down....(see number 7)
7. Leaky diapers. Whenever he was laid in his own bed to sleep, pee would go everywhere within 5 seconds. And I'm not kidding! It would be in his hair all the way down to his toes within 5 seconds. Amazing. I guess I never expected to have that much of a problem with diapers.
8. Learning to be selfless. You just can't know how much selflessness a mother develops until you've walked in her shoes. I knew Drew would take up a lot of time, effort, etc. But he takes up most of me. A surprising thing is that even though there have been times when it made me sad to give up certain activities because of Drew, most of the time I haven't minded because I love him that much that I can usually deny myself without negative feelings. Having a child takes selflessness to an entirely new level.
9. Wrangling the child. I always envisioned Drew lovingly lying back in my arms, just taking in his surroundings. NOT. He wants to be up, active, and taking it in with his front row seat. He has just recently started lying back and relaxing in our arms at times. This leaves for lots of sweating, ponytails, and non constrictive clothing! Not necessarily a bad thing...just unexpected!
10. Letting him spend time away from me. How I miss him when we're apart--even for 2 hours!
7 comments:
You read my mind! I have been working on a list similar to this because Jackson's 6 month mark is coming up next week.
Your little Drew sounds like my little Peanut. Seperated at birth perhaps? :) I love her to death, but she can be a HANDFUL! And I wouldn't trade being at home with her for the world!
good stuff. I thought it would be so much harder than it was in the beginning. It's getting harder now that she is mobile. but she's a super baby, not all are as lucky. and as you said, i hope we don't find out just how lucky ;)
Totally agree with those, especially the going to stores thing. I hardly ever take either one of them shopping these days. That was a fun post...I might have to do one of my own, except I think I'd have to do a list for each kid because they are so different :)
super cute post. i'm gonna have to steal this idea!! i completely agree with your selflessness entry. you never realize how much of yourself you'll be giving up until that sweet baby comes along. but it is SO SO SO worth it. i hardly ever miss those old times. life is just so much sweeter being mommy!! happy friday!
Jenna & Audrey--I look forward to reading your lists!
Hi Audra, I love Kelly's blog too and loved reading this post as an expecting new mom. Glad to hear all of the things that were easy to you because they all make me very nervous!!! Have a great weekend!
Karen
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