Adjusting to motherhood is a lot harder than you’d think!
It’s beautiful and amazing having this little person to love on and snuggle all of the time, there is no doubt about that. But, there are some ‘kinks’ that us “new moms” have to work out before we feel 100% comfortable in our “new mom skin.” Literally. Postpartum recovery takes a toll on your body. We have these lovely new bags under our eyes and maybe a few new wrinkles from lack of sleep. Nothing a little face mask can’t fix.
Then, there is wanting your body to magically transform back into the figure you once had after the baby pops out and…it’s just not going to happen, and WHO CARES?! You just had a baby. Take your time and stop comparing yourself to other ‘instamoms’ who edit their waistlines.
Lack of make up…I definitely have learned to condense my hair and make up into a quicker ‘throw on what you can as fast as possible’ routine, because half of the time the baby is going to need something and it’s going to take you 5 hours longer, if you don’t just throw it on quick.
Mentally you have to remember to give yourself a break. Everything takes a little longer, days seem shorter and the last thing you want is to look back and regret that you were vacuuming and cleaning your house for hours while you could have been snuggling your little newborn while shes still this small in your arms.
Embrace the ‘real-life struggles’…they’re not as bad as you think. Yes, our emotions and hormones are fluctuating, too, so if you just feel like crying because you’re so dang happy, then let it out!!
Realizing that life has changed forever is also a little shocking, but I feel like my husband and I have done a pretty good job at getting into a new groove with little Lily joining us for all of the fun, even if it means we have to go home early so she can go to sleep.
We did just have our first ‘date night’ out without Lily…it was only 2 hours, but we had fun at the St. Jude Wine Tasting event. Of course, we talked about Lily most of the time 😉
Feeling overwhelmed happens from time to time, but we are so lucky to have such wonderful parents and family that is close by to help us whenever we need it.
I’m excited about our new normal and what the future holds for our little family, even if there are little challenges along the way. Mommy life is the best and it’s all soooo worth it!
<3 Katie Ryan