Being a Mom

Next In Line posted some interesting questions on her blog today so I thought I would answer them on mine.

The Biggest Surprises

One of the biggest surprises is that even though he is over nine months old I still can't believe Jackson is actually ours. Before he was even here I remember looking in his empty crib and thinking that it would soon be his bed. Now, each night when I put him down in his crib I still look down and can't believe the crib is now filled with this amazing little boy.

I also can't believe how much sleep you don't get but somehow your body keeps on going. There are days where you just feel like a shell of a person and you go through the day on auto pilot. Sure, you hear about how you don't get sleep but we didn't really understand the lack of any downtime. There is always something that needs to be done.

Things that totally would have grossed me out before I don't even think twice about now. I've had every imaginable bodily fluid on me and on my clothes. I changed the rankest of diapers, washed god knows what out of my hair and I can't even begin to count the number of times I've been peed on. Through it all I haven't gagged once or wanted to change anything.

My Most Unglamorous Mama Day

Without a doubt this was the time of "The Sickness". Amy was up here in Toronto and Jackson and I were going it alone in Austin. A stomach bug had taken out Jackson's entire daycare class but I still held out hope that he wouldn't get it. Unfortunately, I wasn't so lucky and it was 48 hours of changing diaper after diaper while breastfeeding more than normal to keep him hydrated. I didn't know how I was going to make it through but then I got "The Sickness".

It was hard enough just trying to look after Jackson while feeling like absolute hell but to make matters worse our house was on the market and we had people coming through the house. I will never forget strapping Jackson into his car seat that I covered in a towel to protect against any mishaps and tossed the dog in the back seat next to him. We then drove around the corner to wait it out. Jackson was thankfully entertained by the dog as I sat in the front seat throwing up into garbage bags I brought with me. After 20 min of waiting, the people who ended up buying our house left and Jackson and I crawled back into the bathroom to play in the fort we had created there.

Favorite mama and babies activities

Bedtime Breastfeeding

Jackson is not one of those snuggle, cuddle babies. When he nurses during the day he's constantly distracted, sitting up, laying back down, twisting backwards because he heard a noise. But at bed time he's all mine. I'm his sole focus and I LOVE IT. He snuggles in close, pats my face, and puts his palm up to my mouth for me to give him kisses. No matter how hard of a day it's been that moment makes up for everything.

Bathtime

Amy's favorite part of the day is bath time with Jackson. That is their moment to play, be silly and just be together one on one. It's so much fun to hear them splashing and laughing from the other room.

My advice for other moms

The best advice I ever heard and will give here is that if you survived the day with everyone still alive it was a successful day. It is so true! You can stress about how much or what the baby should be eating, where the baby should be sleeping and for how long or should the baby be crawling/talking/walking but ultimately if you survived the day, it really doesn't matter what you did to get there. Sure the baby took all his naps in the swing, it's okay if the baby drinks formula, and just because your baby isn't crawling/talking/walking when they are "supposed to" doesn't mean they are less intelligent than other babies that are. Are you all still alive? Yes? Then you did a great job today.

Now it's your turn. What about you? What advice do you have? what was your most unglamorous day? What surprised you the most and what has been the most fun?