Happy Mother’s Day
This post was written by Mommy
(I’m writing this a few days late since I didn’t get a chance to the other day, but that seems very typical “mom” so it makes me laugh!)
Becoming mom (giving birth) was the hardest thing I have ever done physically, but “being” mom so far has not been as hard as some other things I’ve experienced. To be honest, getting through college was harder. The first few weeks with Patrick were like….finals week. For art majors, it was also finish-five-projects-for-three-different-classes week. I’m sure I’ll probably change my statement some day, thus the emphasis on “so far.” But you know what? I have a really chill baby, so being chill myself, and being married to a pretty chill guy….makes for a pretty chill baby experience.
I used to think that life would be completely different once Baby was born, and I think a lot of it had to do with social stereotypes of babies. “They are fussy, colicky, always pooping, you will always be tired, you will this-or-that blahblahblah.” You know what? I think we need to stop complaining about babies! They really aren’t THAT bad, especially if you actually use your head and think what is best for them (another topic), it actually makes life easier. so…nope, my life hasn’t changed all that much in a drastic way. I still have a life….I still see friends (so what if most of them all have kids too, and that’s all we talk about sometimes? haha!) I take him everywhere I go and it really doesn’t bother me (going by myself is nice too, though!) My life hasn’t drastically changed, just slightly adjusted. The best adjustment is that now there is this awesome little person who grins the biggest, bestest smile at me each time I walk into the room, with big blue eyes that look just like his daddy’s that say, “I LOVE you soooooo much! You make me so happy and you are my FAVORITEST person in the whooooole world!! GIVE ME MILK! RAWWWR!” (seriously – “rawr” – he says that.)
There are probably other things we have done that haven’t made life so drastically different. We didn’t get a whole lot of those huge baby toys. No swings, no seats, no exersaucers, no play pens, not a lot of battery-operated junk that doesn’t do much for babies’ senses, no huge plastic whatcha-ma-callits. Our reason for not getting – or really WANTING – those things is 1) Babies should be held! And interacted with! (And kept an eye on!) It’s soooo good for them! 2) Ugly. 3) Expensive. 4) Takes up too much space. When you stop and think about it, none of it is really necessary, it’s all just convenience. And I’d take a healthy, happy kid who sees and learns with curiosity over a baby who gets pushed aside to zone out in a swing while mom and dad do their own thing in the house. I’m NOT saying you’re a bad parent if you have one of these things, ok?? (see paragraph below) Some people get way too worked up and think everyone is “judging them” just because someone suggests there might be a better way – especially if they are guilty of the example here: letting their kid zone way too much and not interacting with them. I totally understand needing somewhere to set your baby for a bit to keep them safe and happy. We did borrow a little seat from a friend for a few months and it was nice to have so he could watch me while I was getting back to cooking dinner on a more consistent basis. (I probably would have just worn him if he hadn’t been so dang HEAVY! He’s outgrown the seat anyway…and now we can return it without having more junk lying around, lol.) Back to the topic….oh yeah, simplicity. Every time I see people with diapers in their cart or even just go past the diaper aisle, I think, “oh my gosh, I am soooo glad I don’t have to buy diapers!” I PROMISE you, cloth diapers are EASY and if you know someone using them, you do NOT have to be impressed by them. Not buying (literally) into the everything-is-disposable-and-costs-lots-of-money deal makes life simpler. (Also – you WILL get free baby clothes thrown at you from every direction and there is no need to buy any….it’s also true that they say to leave the tags on, as much as it is a hassle to return or exchange them. Don’t even bother keeping anything sized as “newborn” because it’s a ripoff, unless you have a preemie.)
Now I have to put this disclaimer because some people are supersensitive and think I’m being judgmental of them as parents, or bragging because I don’t spend money on diapers, or just have a general I’ll-do-things-my-way-and-you-do-things-your-way attitude (the attitude of the foolish). I’m not saying any of those things that way! If you thought so, you read it wrong, and you need to get over it. That’s a really good motto for a lot of “offenses” that occur to us, isn’t it? I’ve definitely learned from Matt over the years to “just get over it.” Why be offended over every little thing? (I still definitely have a ways to go sometimes!) Also, a person can still be concerned for another child’s well-being if their parent is doing something like the example above [not interacting with them]. That doesn’t mean they think the parent is a bad parent. Got the difference figured out? Good, now apply it to other situations where you’ve been offended when you’ve felt that way.
I have to say, last year Mother’s Day was a bit more exciting for me. For one, there was the suspense of not knowing whether we were having a girl or boy, or what our baby would look like, or what his or her personality would be like. Then how we celebrated – Golfing and Nonna’s – good times. 
Last year, it really bugged me (one of those get over it things that’s hard for me to actually do!) when people said “Next year you’ll get to celebrate mother’s day too!” Next year. As if being pregnant didn’t qualify you as a mother yet! How ridiculous! And how much does it make a new mother feel as though everything she’s doing for her child to take care of it in her womb doesn’t matter?? Isn’t that what a mother does – take care of and nurture her children? Just because the only evidence of her baby’s existence is the growing bump on her belly doesn’t mean she isn’t a mother yet! So so so stupid….yet another thing to add to the pile of ways we demean rather than uplift and give confidence to new mothers who might be scared and nervous. At any rate, I was already pretty stubborn in this opinion about already being a mom, so I ignored those comments and we celebrated Mother’s Day. This year…hopefully tomorrow….my few-days-late present is a new fitness swimsuit to replace one that is several years old so I can work out in the pool! And get ready for the Aquathon this summer, which I promised myself I would do all in the three-week series this year after having a baby!
I guess that’s about all I have to write now. I’m going to crawl in bed with my boys and go to sleep! (co-sleeping….one more way to make life simpler with a frequently-nursing baby!)
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Tags: baby, matthew p block, Patrick Henry Block, rebecca block