"Being a mom is so much better than I expected. Don't get me wrong, I wasn't thinking it'd be horrible, but I thought I'd be constantly exhausted, never have time to shower, neglect my husband, and be confined at home. But it's not like that at all!
The first few weeks of motherhood were incredibly hard. Recovering from giving birth, plus learning how to change a diaper, plus getting used to breastfeeding, PLUS dealing with insane hormones, equals crazy Janeal. I had to ask for help from family members several times. I'm so glad my husband was there to go through it with me. Still, I look at newborn pictures of Rowan and I miss it already.
Right now I'm a stay-at-home mom, and I love it. Watching Rowan learn and grow every day is amazing. I am blessed to be able to stay home with him while my husband supports us.
I love how happy Rowan is in the mornings. It's easy to wake up when I have a smiley baby cooing at me. He is a pretty content kid most of the time, but mornings are my favorite part of the day with him.
This may sound weird, but I also really love breastfeeding. It was so hard to get the hang of at first, and there were MANY times in that first month when I said I was giving up, but I have some very supportive people in my life, and they got me through it. Now, nursing is my special time with Rowan. It's the one thing that only I can give him.
There are three pieces of advice I would give any new mother:
1. Don't set your mind against something before you try it. Before Rowan was born, I said I would never use a pacifier. I heard all about nipple confusion with pacifier or bottle-fed babies, and I wanted to avoid that. I finally broke down and gave Rowan a pacifier when he was 2 weeks old, and I wish I had done it sooner! He had no problems with nipple confusion, and sucking on a pacifier put him right to sleep. I felt really stupid.
2. Take every piece of advice with a grain of salt AND realize that what works for one person might not work for you. These two pieces of advice go together. At my baby showers, I had a lot of experienced mothers tell me not to let the baby sleep in my room, or I wouldn't get any sleep myself. But I sleep with my baby in my room and have since he was born. I get plenty of sleep, too. Obviously that hadn't worked for the advice-givers, but it worked for me. Do what works for you and your baby, and don't feel guilty about it!
3. Take lots of pictures! It's amazing how different babies look from day to day, especially in that first month. You may not notice it, since you'll see your baby every day, but you'll be shocked looking back.
This may sound weird, but I also really love breastfeeding. It was so hard to get the hang of at first, and there were MANY times in that first month when I said I was giving up, but I have some very supportive people in my life, and they got me through it. Now, nursing is my special time with Rowan. It's the one thing that only I can give him.
There are three pieces of advice I would give any new mother:
1. Don't set your mind against something before you try it. Before Rowan was born, I said I would never use a pacifier. I heard all about nipple confusion with pacifier or bottle-fed babies, and I wanted to avoid that. I finally broke down and gave Rowan a pacifier when he was 2 weeks old, and I wish I had done it sooner! He had no problems with nipple confusion, and sucking on a pacifier put him right to sleep. I felt really stupid.
2. Take every piece of advice with a grain of salt AND realize that what works for one person might not work for you. These two pieces of advice go together. At my baby showers, I had a lot of experienced mothers tell me not to let the baby sleep in my room, or I wouldn't get any sleep myself. But I sleep with my baby in my room and have since he was born. I get plenty of sleep, too. Obviously that hadn't worked for the advice-givers, but it worked for me. Do what works for you and your baby, and don't feel guilty about it!
3. Take lots of pictures! It's amazing how different babies look from day to day, especially in that first month. You may not notice it, since you'll see your baby every day, but you'll be shocked looking back.
Before I had Rowan, I didn't know how many kids I wanted. In the first few weeks of his life, I couldn't imagine taking care of more than just him. Now, I can't wait to have more kids! I love being a mom!"
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