Advice for New Moms

"The first year goes by SO fast. It's important to enjoy every moment."

If I hear that one more time, someone's getting a crying baby thrown at them.

That photo does not depict enjoyment. And the time he cried all night long?? Well that didn't seem to go by very fast.

My advice to new moms is to simply survive.

Don't do anything that you don't have to (including entertaining guests who stop by or laundry). 

Use paper plates. All mothers understand how hard the first few months are, even Mother Earth-- she'll forgive you.

Utilize online ordering. There are days where leaving the house just isn't an option-- pay a little more to get those groceries delivered.

Use the mantra, "this won't last forever". Which I repeated to myself for two days straight during Bradley's last growth spurt (when he wanted to eat EVERY HOUR.)

And don't feel bad if you don't enjoy every moment. Does this really look enjoyable??

This doesn't mean that I don't enjoy many moments. In fact, I enjoy MOST moments.

But not everything is cute and cuddly in a house with a newborn. Maybe in a year I'll forget the late nights and I'll corner young moms in the grocery store and order them to love and cherish every SECOND with their little one. But hopefully I'll remember that not every moment is meant to be enjoyed. And maybe I'll just tell that new mom to enjoy the good times and survive through the rough times. It's not always easy, but "this too shall pass" (which Chris says is just a nice way to say, "suck it up!").

And thank God he designed them to be so cute, it helps when all you want is 8 hours of uninterrupted sleep!