Mommyhood

Happy (day late... but hey, I'm a mom so it's okay!) Mother's Day to all of the lovely moms in my life!  We had a lovely couple of days here and the weather could not have been better!  It finally hit seventy degrees... wooo-hoooooo!  Hopefully it doesn't just jump straight into hot weather because I could take a few more weeks months of this!  Jake and his daddy took me out to dinner on Saturday night and gave me a picnic basket for our future park trips and a certificate for a mani/pedi (yes, please!).  They did GOOD!  I also got a nap for the second Mother's Day in a row, so I think that's becoming a bit of a tradition.  I'll take it!

As I was laying in bed last night (at 19 weeks I'm already starting to have insomnia... awesome) I thought about just how much motherhood has changed me.  How it changes us as women.  The most defining moment in my life by far was the moment that Jake was born and I became a mother- by far the best thing that has ever happened to me.  Becoming a wife is something that you do; becoming a mother is something that happens to you.  And with it, comes the highest of highs and at times, the lowest of lows, but the highs by far make it worth it.  So in honor of this occassion, I thought I would share just some of those highs, lows, and lessons learned from this adventure we call motherhood:

• Sleep and showering are not as necessary as I used to think they were.  However, a long, hot shower is one of the sweetest pleasures in life these days.  It's truly the only "me-time" I get in a day.
• There is no better feeling than when your child spots you in a crowded room and makes a beeline to give you a hug or be picked up.  Although, hearing him say "Mmmmm-mah" (his kiss sound) after I tell him I love him is pretty darn awesome, too.
• Nobody ever told me that watching any movie where kids are in danger would affect me so deeply after having a child.  I have become so sensitive to movies, TV shows, and especially news stories involving children and am moved to tears on many occasions.
• Even after a year, I still get tempted to wake my kid up in the middle of the night just to see him and squeeze those cheeks.  But every mom knows better after trying it once!
• Nothing beats a freshly bathed child in pajamas... oh how I love that baby shampoo smell!
• Knowing that my body can house, build, and deliver a child makes me so much more forgiving of myself.  Sure, I may never be bikini-ready again, but I have embraced my post-baby figure more than I ever did my pre-baby figure.  Although the second-pregnancy figure is something that I'm having a harder time coping with!
• Trying to keep a little boy clean is an uphill-battle.  I've come to accept that no matter how cute his outfit was, he will inevitable be covered in either head-to-toe dirt or food by the end of the day.
• Dressing a toddler (or changing a diaper) can be a full-on workout.
• Kids understand humor at a very young age.  My son already thinks he's funny, which is something that we know might get annoying in the future if he ends up not actually being funny.  
• It doesn't take as long as one might think to memorize a storybook.  I think my brain is up to about five now.
• Going anywhere without your kid is a luxury, but it sure is weird.  It's like going out in public naked.
• Baby's naptime equals mom running around frantically trying to get a whole day's worth of chores and to-do's done in an undetermined (but too short) amount of time.  Things we used to enjoy (like blogging) are the first things to go it seems!
• A house doesn't need to stay nearly as clean as one might think.  The mess will just be back tomorrow.
• True fear is turning around someplace and realizing that your child is no longer within your sight.  Even if you're in your very own house.  Hearing a crash or a thud in the next room only intensifies that awful feeling.
• Kids heads are really made of steel.  And yes, their bodies are truly made of rubber.  It never fails to amaze me.
• The art of the temper tantrum is learned far earlier in life than I would have ever imagined.
• It doesn't matter if dad is closer... a kid with sticky, dirty hands will inevitably reach for mom.
• Poop, snot, blood, and spit are not all that gross when they come from your own child.  Vomit, on the other hand, will always be disgusting.
• When a grape goes through the drier, it really does become a raisin.  I feel like I should've figured that out on my own by now.
• Motherhood brings on a whole new level of exhaustion that you didn't know even existed before kids.
• "Before Kids" is that part of life that you really don't remember.  And thankfully, once you have a child, you don't really remember your life without him or her.  I feel like I've always known my Jake, and in my heart I always have.  My life would not be anything remotely close to what it is today without him, and I don't want to imagine life without him.

I could go on for days, as could any mom.  It sounds so cliche to tell someone that they won't understand it until they have a child of their own, but then you get here and it all becomes so very clear.  They were right all along.  And at every stage of life I think to myself, "this is my favorite," which is truly God's design.  I am so thankful to be a mom, to know what those other moms are talking about, and to truly understanding the meaning of unconditional love.  I know some people worry when having their second child that they won't love that child the same as their first, as it would be impossible.  For me, I haven't worried about that for a second.  My heart expanded in size the day Jake came along, and I know there's plenty of room left for it to happen again.  There is no greater blessing and no greater job on the planet, and that's enough of a mother's day present for me.

God bless all of you moms out there... I hope you're enjoying the journey as much as I am.  Even on the hard days.  :)