Adjusting to life as a Mama!

It’s incredible that Piper is over 7 weeks old already! She is growing and developing in the most amazing ways. A couple weeks ago at her one month checkup she weighed in at 9 lbs 11 oz and measured 22.75 inches. That put her in the 98^th percentile for her length. ..WOW! She has outgrown her newborn clothes and is already in 3 months sizes (She’s got super long legs like her mama!).  She’s become so interactive in the past week or so and entertains us with a variety of adorable faces and sounds. She’s reaching for toys on her activity mat, recognizes voices and can lift her head high when we do tummy time. The best part is that she’s smiling like crazy! It melts my heart every single time! There is truly nothing better! And I don’t care how cheesy that sounds, it’s completely true.

 

In addition to Little Miss Piper changing, life for Chad and I has drastically changed too. Of course for the better but I must be honest and admit that this parenting gig comes with some challenges.  First thing, sleep! I expected my sleep to be less however I failed to realized that I wouldn't get a “full night’s sleep” for quite a while (especially since I’m breast feeding). She usually eats every 3 hours so I've learned to sleep in 2-3 hour intervals. It was rough in the beginning but now it’s just part my routine.  Even at 4am when I closely resemble a zombie as I feed her, the moment I look down and she flashes me a smile I’m reminded what a blessing this quite time with her really is. It’s also comforting to know that I’m not the only Mama awake in the middle of the night. Thanks to Facebook I see my fellow mom’s posting/replying to comments throughout the night too.  Don’t judge us…it’s not exactly easy to stay awake some times. In moments of desperation I have my routine of checking Facebook, emails, Etsy, 13 ABC news, Pintrest etc. Luckily my credit card is safely tucked away so I’m not making any late night purchases. It’s funny the things that appeal to me when I’m sleep deprived. I recently put a tie-dyed sweatshirt in my Etsy cart! Umm …really Courtney? Where in the heck am I going to wear a tie-dyed sweatshirt?!?!? Another new challenge is leaving the house. I imagine that this might get easier after your first child because I as a new Mom I pack everything  under the sun. I even had to go get a larger diaper bag because my original one just wasn't cutting it. This could explain why my arms don’t seem strong enough to balance all the goods and the carrier. (Side note: I aspire to be that mom that seems to glide so effortlessly from the car to the store with bags, carrier and smile without breaking a sweat. Let’s just say I have a long way to go because I’m sweating just thinking about packing things up!). In addition to that I’m adjusting to getting another person ready to leave the house. I've found that I've cut my personal “get ready time” down to 30 minutes (which will probably explain why I look like a disheveled mess the next time you see me. Please just be polite and not mention it. We both know it but there’s no need to discussJ). However to get this tiny little person ready takes me twice as long! Craziness! I could go on and on with the countless other things that we’re getting adjusted to but at the end of the day I can simply say that our lives have been altered in the most amazing and miraculous way ever. I've realized quickly that it’s important to carefully choose where I allocate my time now. There are so many things that I used to do habitually. It was so important for our house to be spotless, the laundry to be done and everything to be in order. I've found that those things aren't really important at all. God and my family are truly the most important components of my life. I need to strive to make sure that’s where my focus is always. The bible says, “So then, let us rid ourselves of everything that gets in the way, and of the sin which holds on to us so tightly, and let us run with determination the race that lies before us” Hebrews 12: 1b What do you need to eliminate from your life to make time for what's truly important?