Welcome to the Motherhood

Motherhood is an amazing thing. It’s one hell of a ride too! You may have heard different opinions and stories about motherhood. Here are some things no one tells you about motherhood. Welcome to the Motherhood, mama!

People are always quick to talk about the amazing aspects of motherhood. And its true, there are some amazing things that definitely take away from some of the harsh realities. Welcome to the motherhood journey, buckle up because it is one hell of a ride.

Now I’m sure you have heard it all by now, how birth is hard and painful, or babies are just so cute to dress up and snuggle.

While this is true, here are some things other mothers have said what motherhood is all about and what they have learned along the way!

You’ll Learn About Yourself

“Before I became a mama I had the picture that motherhood was the ultimate role as a teacher. In truth I associated motherhood as a power role. Something you became when you “arrived” as a certain point of stability and “adult-ness”. Fast forward two very strong willed kiddos I feel really different about motherhood. Becoming a mom was like starting a fresh. It’s taking on a new role that occupies every part of you, breaks you, rebuilds you and reforms you. Everyday as a mother I learn so much about myself! How I can flex my muscles of patience, how I can keep going when I am dead tired and how I can apologize when I mess up. I now see motherhood as a role of humility and learning. That’s not to say that there aren’t boundaries in our home and that I am not the manager of the house. It rather means that motherhood is really challenging but if you can learn to embrace that challenge, you will be the one who learns and grows. And also nothing, NOTHING can prepare you for the joy of laughing with your children.”

-Holly Peretz of https://otholly.com/

You’ll Question Everything

“no one told me that motherhood would be hard. That it would break me down to my core and make me question everything I thought about life. But, that through all the challenges and breaking apart, I would also be healing and opening to a love stronger than I could ever imagine. Yes, motherhood is hard. But it makes you strong, kind, compassionate and beautiful.”

-Suzzie Vehrs of https://shebirthsbravely.com/

Ditching the Long Baths

“Nobody told me that after becoming a mother, taking a shower in peace would be so hard. I mean if I ever get more than ten minutes, I am lucky. Long hot baths are now a fantasy so if you are a new mom, get ready to give up your long baths”

– Saima of www.asupertiredmom.com

It’s Okay Not To Be Okay All The Time

“Before getting pregnant, I heard so much about prenatal and postpartum depression. What if I had a difficult pregnancy or birth? What if I hated my new life as a mother? What if I regretted my decision? I was afraid to voice my troubles for a while. I was just having down moments, rough patches, some hard days. Did I really deserve to feel sad or mad or down when my pregnancy was easy and my baby sleeps through the night most of the time? I’ve got it made with a good, easy baby. But something no one ever told me about motherhood—it isn’t black and white. You might not get complete sunshine and rainbows, but you also might not have postpartum depression or anxiety. There is an in between in motherhood. Doesn’t everyone have a bad day? Doesn’t everyone feel tired or just not in the mood to do something? Yes! Even moms (maybe even especially moms, thank you hormones!!). It’s okay to not want to change 10 diapers, it’s okay not to want to rock baby to sleep for the tenth time tonight, it’s okay to want 10 minutes of peace and quiet where you aren’t worrying about another life. And even though these down moments are fleeting, they’re normal and its okay to talk about them.”

– Ainsley of https://mommamcgovern.com/

You’ll Gain Self-Confidence

“Everyone always talks about all the unknowns and uncertainties that motherhood can bring. Therefore, I felt quite prepared for how astoundingly lost I would feel at times. However, what no one really prepared me for was the flip side of that. I had spent so much time worrying about how bewildering this whole motherhood thing would be, yet it never really crossed my mind how in some respects, it would make me more self-assured than I had ever been about anything in my entire life. Of course I’m referring PARTLY to things such as how we mothers just somehow know what each of their little noises mean and can distinguish that “hurt” cry from 3 rooms away. Yes, I was surprised by how quickly those motherly instincts kicked in pertaining to my children’s physical and emotional need…BUT what really blew me away was how confident and assertive I became in other aspects of my life. The best example of this for me was regarding my career. By the time our son was born I had worked at my full-time job as a radiation therapist for about 5 years. I loved what I did and never saw myself leaving. That was until they laid that baby on my chest seconds after he was born. At that very moment I knew I wanted to stay home with him and would never feel the same about my career again. For about the next 3 years I spent almost every waking hour thinking about how I could possibly manage to afford to be a stay-at-home mom. Then our daughter was born which only strengthened my desire and certainty that I needed to stay home. So…a few months after she was born, without really having much of a plan, my husband and I decided I would put my career on hold in order for me to stay home with our children. Many people…friends, family members, coworkers tried talking me out of it.  It didn’t make sense to them that I would leave such a great job. However, I was ABSOLUTELY CERTAIN that it was the right decision for myself and my family. So…that’s what I did. I left my job of almost 10 years and have NEVER LOOKED BACK.”

– Jadyn Pretty of Mental Mommy https://mentalmommy.com

You’ll Learn Your Parenting Style

“The most unexpected thing about motherhood for me was how completely different each of my kids’ personalities would be! I have 3 boys and 2 girls, and each of them is so wildly different from their siblings. My husband and I joke that we have all of the factions from Divergent living under one roof! Realizing that I’d need to adjust my parenting style for each child has been a long path of learning for me”

-Jen Bradley of https://www.jenbradleymoms.com/

You’ll Have Mini Versions of Yourself

“No one ever told me that it was entirely possible to end up with not just one, but two, mini versions of myself when I became a mother. My daughters are 3 and 6, and it’s double the sass and double the trouble every single day. There are rare moments they are sweet as can be that make it all worth it! I love being a girl mom. (Ask me again how I feel about it in 10 years.)”

-Lauren Marano of http://alittleoflauren.com/

You Won’t Need All the Things

“While many parents are quick to recommend a number of products to make mom life easier, I wish someone told me upfront that I wouldn’t actually need that much stuff. I wish someone told me that I didn’t need too many onesies or cute baby shoes my son would kick off, but I did need more diapers and wipes. It was unnecessary to have a bassinet, pack-and-play, sleep positioner and a crib; one safe sleeping surface was all he needed. I wish someone told me I was never going to use the wipe-warmer or baby-food maker. Now, I’d recommend going more minimalist and seeing what your baby needs as he grows. While many moms swear by certain conveniences, most are unnecessary and add to clutter. I wish I knew that all my baby really needed were diapers, wipes, a crib, a carseat, and me.”

-Tori Leigh of https://tori-leigh.com/

So Much Gas

“The first thing, which actually brought me to tears on my birthday, was the fact that babies get gassy. I was not prepared for this. Seeing my little one wincing and hearing his cries whenever he would get gassy, was extremely stressful in the early weeks, until I found a method that worked to relieve him. Secondly, nobody told me that showers would no longer be a relaxing part of my day, but instead, a rushed necessity, due to anxiety of my baby waking up and needing my attention. Being anxious at times, is a normal part of life, however, nobody told me that motherhood would make me become anxious about everything related to my baby- from whether he is getting enough breast milk, to whether his poop is normal, and whether he is achieving his milestones. One thing that everyone told me however, was to sleep when the baby sleeps, but shockingly, nobody told me that that it would hardly be possible”

-Daynia Sawyers of https://mommyslay.com/

You’ll Miss the Chaos

“What no one told me about Motherhood is that it’s the most exhausting yet fulfilling thing I’ll ever do. That doing ANYTHING alone would be a luxury, but when I am alone, I’ll miss the chaos.”

-Tonya of https://vivaciousbibliophile.com/

They Can Eat like Grown Adults

“No one ever told me how much children demand to eat. For being such small beings they are capable of eating like grown adults. You wouldn’t think your grocery bill would significantly increase with each young child you have – I thought we had until the teenage years before they became human garbage disposals. Not to mention, the irrational times young children ask for food: such as nap time, bedtime, or when mom is using the bathroom! The sheer number of times moms are asked to open snacks while using the bathroom certainly wasn’t in any baby book I read…”

-Samantha Smart of http://theparttimemama.com/

So Many Questions

“OMG no one told me how many questions I would have to answer in one day LOL! Why? Why? Why? I recently read somewhere that on average, kids ask about 280 questions per day… per day! Though I think my son hits the world record and asks well above this haha.. Like I don’t understand why kids feel the need to ask questions, even if they already know the answer. My 7-year old son could watch me pour myself a glass of orange juice and still ask “what is that?” … like really?! The wonders and joys of being a mother.. apparently include me answering 300+ questions per day, which no one told me I would, smh.”

-Lucy Reyes of https://cheerstolifeblogging.com/

Hire Some Help

“I really wish others would have told me to hire a maid or house cleaner. They all kept telling me to sleep when the baby slept because I would always be cleaning or taking a few moments to myself when it would have been beneficial to hire a cleaner that came in biweekly or monthly and did a deep clean of the house. This would have allowed me more time to sleep and relax to where I would only have to focus on the day to day things such as laundry and dishes for the most part. Instead of trying to clean the floors almost daily and toilet’s weekly”

-Ashley Havecker of https://irishtwinsmomma.com/

Picky Eaters

“No one told me how difficult it is to feed a toddler! Mine seriously won’t eat anything unless it has cheese in it; Mac-n-cheese, cheese quesadilla, cheese by itself. You’d think she’d be completely constipated and miserable, but nope she just wants more cheese!”

-Josephine of https://momteachesmindset.com/

So Much Pee

“I had no idea being a mom would require wearing so much pee. I peed when I laughed while pregnant. I pee when I sneeze postpartum. And if I’m not peeing on myself, my son is peeing on me!”

-Camille of https://homegrownhappiness.co/

So Little Time

“I didn’t realize how little time I would actually have when my baby was born. I naively thought that being on maternity leave would be sort of a vacation! The reality is that after an exhausting pregnancy and delivery, that’s when the real challenge begins. Even though you’re weak from being postpartum, you’re constantly doing baby related things from feeding the baby to changing diapers to burping. What little remaining time you have left is spent cooking food, eating it and sleeping. Usually, there’s only enough time to cook food and not eat it. Or you can sneak in 30 minutes of sleep, but never get into the deep sleep cycle your body needs to recover and rejuvenate. If any issue comes up like having difficulties with breastfeeding and you have to research and learn new information, there goes your sleeping time.”

-Jacqueline Gilchrist of https://www.mommoneymap.com/

So Much Energy

“One thing no one told me when I became a mom was how active a toddler can be! I have a 20 month old and he will happily walk for miles (without being carried). It still shocks me. And we get home from our walk and he is happy to keep playing— he’s like a mini Energizer Bunny!”

-Sarah of https://snugglebuglife.com/

So there you have it, from multiple moms perspectives. The things they didn’t know about motherhood, so now you can be prepared!

If you are still pregnant and would like some help preparing for postpartum depression, click here for my top items you will NEED after having your baby!

Cheers to you mama, welcome to the motherhood!