1.) Spit up and Vomit:
Growing up, spit up would gross me out only a little because I knew it was something totally normal for a baby to do. However, I never thought it would be something so "normal" that you judge if it's so much your (or baby's) outfit needs to be changed or will this amount be livable.
Vomit is a whole other realm. I could not be in the same room as someone who was throwing up, until I had my son. Now, I kick into MOM MODE and rush by his side to help him and clean the mess up. No matter how much or how terrible it smells, when it's your child, it's like it no longer can bother you. That doesn't mean I won't hop in the shower to clean off if he got some on me too, but I wouldn't dare leave his side while he's sick for anything now.
2.) Poop and Pee:
When you have a newborn, your life totally changes. One of the biggest changes I found is that you start to stress about poop and pee. You want to make sure your baby is pooping and peeing enough (some moms even keep charts). Just like with the spit up, you gauge if it's so much pee the sheets need to be changed right away or can you just sleep though the night with a towel down, and put them in the washer in the morning.You worry when the poop is a different color one day, or the texture changes. AND nothing is worse to you when your poor little one become constipated, and you seek advice from EVERYONE that will solicit it, just so you can make him or her feel better. You find that you will begin to have funny poop stories that your parents are only laughing at because they've been there before with you.
3.) Rotten Bottles:
This is one that first time parents must learn from "trial and error." There have been times where, probably due to tiredness, I had no clue a bottle was missing until a few days later when all you can do is smell it. Then, your only task is to find that sucker so you can either clean it or trash it. Yes, there have been times where I find it's not even worth trying to save. Then, you wonder how it got there in the first place and how you didn't realize the bottle was even missing - again, I blame being tired.
4.) Alone time?
There's no such thing as alone time when you become a parent. I literally had a conversation with my toddler the other day asking to just let me go to the bathroom by myself, and he of course said "no." It's rare to get an uninterrupted bath. Nap time and bed time become a treasured time of peacefulness in your house, if your not so tired that you join them (being pregnant, I'm usually napping at the same time as he does). Also, you look forward to this time to get simple tasks completed that are otherwise pointless when they are awake (like straightening up the house). Once in a blue moon, you get have a date night and some legitimate alone time with your spouse... You feel guilty the whole time that you aren't with your little one.
5.) Silence is golden, unless you have a toddler...
It's not often that my son has a chance to be totally out of my sight and get into stuff, but when he can... man he always does a doozy. Usually, I will be in the middle of switching the laundry from the washer to the dryer or cleaning a few dishes in the sink... and then, I realize he's quiet. Unless you know they are asleep, quiet = scary, with a toddler in the house. It's always the craziest and awful messes he creates when he's left to his own accord.
6.) Sleep
In the beginning, you won't remember what sleep is with your newborn... and everyone will tell you... "Sleep when baby sleeps"... but you will never get any housework done. I would occasionally sleep maybe an hour or two when Braeden was a newborn, but I never could sleep much longer than that because I kept thinking of everything I really needed to get done while the baby didn't need me. Then, your baby will finally get the days and nights right... but that first night he or she sleeps all the way though, you won't. I woke up at least 2 times to check on him because it was not the norm for him to sleep though the night. Later, you then become so use to getting to sleep though the night... and your little one gets sick and keeps you up.... You will feel like death the next day. It has happened a few times with me, and I swear it's worse than being up all night with a newborn (because you're expecting that).
7.) Daylight Savings:
When you were younger, you would get so excited to gain an extra hour of sleep or complain about the hour you were losing. When you have a child, all you do is lose sleep. There's no gaining and hour or losing for that matter. All that happens for you at this point, is the time changes. For your child, they stay on their own biological clock. This means, 10pm bedtime becomes 11pm in the Spring, and you have to work on getting them to go to be an hour earlier than they are use to.
8.) Leaving the house:
You will envy and miss those days when you could decide to go somewhere and just leave. Now that you have a child, you have to make sure you have the diaper bag with all the essentials stocked, a bottle or cup, the baby dressed, make sure you are dressed decent, and anything you may need. It takes about 10 minutes just to get out of the house. Once you have a toddler, it becomes a little easier, but there's still stuff you have to gather before you leave.
9.) Reading Material:
I was always an avid reader. Instead of fiction novels, I now read baby websites and magazines about various questions I have. It's rare that I have time to read a fun book now that I have a child, and that's totally fine with me. The key to these baby websites or doctor websites is to remember to take all of the information you read with a grain of salt. If you are worried your baby is sick with something, instead of just diagnosing them by reading an article, take them to their doctor and find out for certain.
10.) I LOVE YOU:
It's very true that you don't know unconditional love until you have your own child. I use to scoff at that notion until I had my son. I knew I loved my husband more than anyone in this world, until I held my son. I still love my husband just as much now, if not more because I have learned to love differently. I tell my son every night before he falls asleep that I love him... I have since he was a newborn and I still do today. The best moment in a mom's life is the day your child says "I love you mommy" in return. It's the best pay off a mom can have. Especially when you realize they understand what they are saying and not just repeating you. Every night now, he tells me he loves me and gives me a kiss. It truly makes all the sacrifices and all the crazy stuff we put up with totally worth it... those 3 simple words.
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