The Things I Learned in the First Year of Motherhood
You appreciate sleep so much more.
The one thing I miss most from life before babies, endless quality sleep. 🤣
You don’t need to buy all the expensive toys and gadgets.
Your kids favorite toys will be things such as the tv remote, a spatula, a tissue box, a whisk, anything that shakes and makes noise, a broom. Save your money and find things around the house for the baby to play with.
Thrift shops for baby clothes are where it’s at.
Especially when baby grows so quickly, getting second hand clothing is so much more affordable. Same goes for when you want to sell some of babes old clothes, or clothes that you never used. My favorite local shop is Little Bird Co. in Tucson. Selling, trading and buying used is always a mom hack.
Never forget about quality time with your significant other.
Make time for day dates, date nights, one on one time without baby!! This is so very important, especially now that you have a baby and your time and attention is mainly focused on that small adorable human. Remembering time for each other is key. Even if it’s just a fun night in at home. Check out my post here for date night ideas at home! Surprise each other, write each other small love/appreciation notes, schedule someone to watch babe and get out every now and then.
Self care over everything. More importantly, never forgot to take care of yourself first.
Making time for yourself DAILY is so important. Whether that means something small like reading a favorite book outside while baby naps, watching your favorite show, painting your nails, or something bigger like going to get your nails done, or a massage, or a solo trip to Target. Whatever your fav forms of self care is, do it often! I try my best to do small ‘me’ time daily, and one bigger ‘me’ time weekly. This helps give you that much needed break.
Finding your mama tribe keeps you sane!
I am lucky enough to have found some awesome mamas that I can relate with, vent to and just hang out with while bringing my crazy child along for the ride. Need help finding some other mamas in town? The Peanut App is an awesome resource to find other mom friends, or joining a local Facebook group of things you like to do such as Tucson walking/hiking with kids, Tucson moms, etc.
Mom brain is a real thing.
First comes pregnancy brain, then comes mom brain. 🤷🏻♀️ There is no way of avoiding this one. 🤣Breastmilk is fucking amazing.
That is all.Messes are temporary.
Embrace it! It’s okay that your house isn’t ever fully clean.
Baby led weaning is hard and messy at first, but it’s so worth it in the end!
This is something I will definitely recommend to other new mamas. We happily have an independent non picky eater now that’s to BLW. 👏🏼It definitely takes a village.
Rely on everyone in your life that you can. It is okay and necessary to ask for help. Parents, family, friends, co-workers, neighbors, other moms. If they offer to help you cook, clean or watch the baby while you nap or workout or do whatever you want/need to do, take them up on it. No guilt. No shame.
You’ll spend money on more than just baby stuff.
That coffee and wine budget is going up, too. 🤪
Take photos, but be present.
Your camera roll will have about 3,459,873,298 photos of your baby and that’s okay. But sometimes I catch myself being on my phone too often, or trying to pull out the camera for everything he seems to be doing. Especially being a stay at home mom, it can be easy to do. I’ve made a rule for myself to have a couple hours of phone free time every day, where I am completely present during play time and my phone is put away. Be as present as possible. Soak in all those moments!
Finding a new routine takes time.
Hi, type A person here! Yes, it will take some time, but eventually you will get back into a new sort of schedule. Once your baby is hitting those nap times on the dot, you’ll start to notice things start to flow and it will relieve some stress off of you. I am a lists person, and one thing that’s helped me a lot is making a daily check list on my phone to ‘try’ and get my everyday things done daily. It helps me stay organized and makes my type A personality happy checking off things to stay on track. Also, if you haven’t discovered this section of your iPhone notes yet, it’s a game changer.
I learned a brand new type of love for my husband.
I’ve always loved my hubs, of course! But after having a baby, I saw Zach in a whole new light. He became the best father right before my eyes. From the beginning, holding our tiny bundle of joy in his arms and smiling down at him. To watching him become the king of giving baths and bed time. Watching both their faces light up once dads home from work. There is so much love that I see from them daily. I never knew I could love my husband so much.
All parents are WARRIORS.
Mamas, dads, grandparents, all the parents of any kind- you are amazing. Parenting is hard work, it’s a 24/7 job. It takes patience. It takes a lot more coffee and a lot less sleep. It consumes almost all of your time. But it’s the most rewarding and beautiful job there is. And we are so damn lucky to have it. Just one last reminder- You’re awesome, and you’re doing great.
I can’t wait to see what year two of motherhood teaches and brings me!
“365 days of lovin’ you,
my son. ”
