Here are a few facts about my life since having my baby (9 months ago).
Our house will not stay as clean as it was before.
-I have a really good cleaning schedule at our home. Laundry on Mondays, floors on Tuesdays and Saturdays, etc. It helps keep our house clean for the most part, but we have toys now. They stay out all the time and they are all over the place. I have been mysteriously finding my plastic spoons and spatulas thrown about the house as well as tupperware. Honestly, I love it. I love that my house is clearly lived in. My sweet baby made that mess and therefore I love it.
We will not be able to watch a T.V. show or movie without hitting pause for…the foreseeable future.
-This one is a shame. It takes us 2 hours to watch a 1 hour long show and sometimes we don’t even get to finish it until the next day. Thank goodness for DVR, right?
We will not have an uninterrupted meal.
-We take turns tending to Hamp while we eat. He hates it when we eat and aren’t paying him as much attention. He also decides he is hungry again every time we sit down to eat. Gotta love him. Hopefully this will get better with time. It’s just an attention seeking phase…right, moms? Anyone?
I will never take enough pictures.
– Ryan laughs at the amount of pictures I take of our son. I can’t help it. I want to remember everything. There are some things I’ve already forgotten like his first couple of months. It is all a blur and I don’t know what I would do without all of the pictures I took. I want to remember every face, look, smile, cry, and laugh.
Date nights are needed often, but don’t happen often.
-Before having Hampton, we could do and go wherever we wanted when we wanted. After having him, our date nights are not as often (naturally) but we now take full advantage of them. Before, we took them for granted because we saw each other all the time. Now, it is a treat and something we look forward to.
I will never travel peacefully again.
– When we went to Orlando, I left Hampton for the first time. I cried and cried. It was so tough for me to enjoy the trip without constantly thinking of him and wondering what he was doing or if he was okay. Did I forget to leave something for him? etc. When we left him for the second time while we were in Chicago, I had the same thoughts. It wasn’t as bad that time because we stayed so busy, but the plane rides were rough. By the time we got home, I was so anxious to see him. I’m hoping this will also get better with time.
I have a new-found confidence and less fear.
-I have lost some of my fears because having a baby does something to you. It makes you strong in ways you never were before. Motherhood also brings about new fears. Obvious ones. Of course you worry about your child constantly, but you will also grow and mature in a whole new way. You no longer get to be the child. You are the mom. This tiny person looks to you for comfort, food, and security. That gives you strength.
Some months I feel like I’ll never sleep again.
-Hampton is 9 months old, but he still goes through phases where he wakes up many times a night. I don’t know when this will get better. I am constantly wondering when we will sleep again. Sometimes he does great. He will sleep through the night for 2 or 3 weeks and then just when we feel like we have it all figured out, BOOM. He wakes up 4 times in one night and then it begins again. He won’t sleep for weeks. It goes back and forth. Can you tell I haven’t slept much the past 3 weeks? Can you tell by this sleepy rant? (haha okay, done)
We will not ever experience a love like this again…
-…until we have another child, of course. Hampton has filled my heart with so much joy and love since the moment I found out I was pregnant. Since he came into this world, it feels like my heart is crawling around our home. He is so precious. I can be in a terrible mood and he looks at me and smiles or does his sweet little chuckle and I forget about it all. The world around me fades and everything is better. He is the biggest blessing to mine and Ryan’s lives and I can’t imagine life without him now that he is here.
Bottom line, it’s worth it. To all of my friends and followers who are expecting their first child, cherish this time with your spouse. Things change so much once that little one comes into the world. You will have tons of time to focus on your little one, but you only have a limited time left to spend with your spouse like this. Go on dates now. Don’t wait. Children are a huge blessing from God and they bring so much joy to you and your home. They are worth it. Hampton is worth every T.V. show I haven’t watched. He is worth every bite of my dinner I didn’t get to finish, he is worth every day I haven’t been able to shower and every frustrated tear from a very tired mother. He is worth everything.
What changes have been made in your home since having children? How often do you go on a date with your husband?
