Everyone says that motherhood will change you, and 3 months and some odd days into it, I have to admit they're right. What they don't tell you is how it changes you. So, for all the moms to be out there, here is my list this short time into the journey. I'm sure it will continue to grow.
1. Your life will never be your own again.
Before becoming a mom, I had mental lists I would run through that went something like this, "pick up the drycleaning, figure out dinner, get Chris' laundry into the dryer, stop by the store for milk and dog food, call to make a dentist appointment..." Now, my list sounds more like this, "Run a load of whites, get the bottles cleaned for tomorrow, figure out what I'm going to wear to work, figure out what Hayden's going to wear to school. Do we have any clean diapers? Find out if we have clean diapers. If not, run diapers after whites. Oh, shoot. Store. Have to get to more diaper cream, and see if I can find one of those little pacifier-holder thingys. I wonder if it's going to be cold tomorrow? Maybe she shouldn't wear the little dress, maybe we need some pants. Do I have any clean pants for her to wear? Ok, whites, diapers, clothes..."
2. Your brain quits working. QUITS. Goes on strike. Nada. Zip. Gone.
Before becoming a mother, I'd sometimes walk into a room and forget what I'd come in there for. Now, I step into a kitchen, see a bottle on the counter that I'd meant to pick up an hour ago, and then realize I don't know why I'm in the kitchen now. Did I come in there for something, or was I on my way to the living room? Was I going to the living room for something? Was the bottle what I'd come after? Oh, shoot! The bottle! I was going to do something with that... What was it? Oh, yeah! I was going to put it in the diaper bag. Speaking of, where is the diaper bag? Is that why I was going to the living room? Living room? Was I actually going to the living room, or was it the bedroom? Or is that where I came from?
And on, and on... by the time I get through that thought process, Hayden's crying, the bottle never gets moved, the diaper bag never found, and an hour later I'm in the same spot having the same conversation with myself!
3. [Note to Dad, and anyone with a weak stomach, skip this one...] [Seriously, skip it.]
Vomit and poop (at least that of your baby) cease to faze you.
Unless you're a mother, and have been there yourself, you cannot imagine what happens inside a baby's pants when they refuse to eek out even the tiniest fart for 3 days, much less a poop of any kind, and then decide to let loose. Of course, this will happen at the most inopportune time... let's say, at dinner in a public restaurant. And, just for future reference, there is not a diaper known to man that can accomodate a 3-day poop. Before, the sight of poop at the dinner table may have sent you gagging into a bush outside. As a mom though, you scoop up the baby, whisk them off the the bathroom for a diaper change/clothing swap/sink bath, and sit right back down to your steaming bowl of chili as you balance the baby on your lap and calmly clean the remains of the day from the carseat with the other hand. Never bat an eye...
4. You will take multitasking to a whole new level.
I still remember the amazement in my friend Katie's voice when I told her that I folded and stuffed diaper while Hayden nursed. That? That, my friend, is nothing! My multitasking skills soared to a whole new level when Hayden arrived. Just my list of things I can do while nursing is pretty impressive. Shower? Piece of cake! Sweeping the floor? No problem. Shopping for appliances? I can do that AND talk to my mom on the phone while nursing! I don't know if it's just motherhood that does this, or adding motherhood to my full time job AND finishing a house that has so finely honed this ability to juggle multiple tasks at once, but darnit, I'm good.
There begins my list... I'm sure I'll have more to add. If I can remember them long enough to post. If I can, you can bet I'll be doing at least a couple more things whilst I type!
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