Having Babies

No one can prepare you for it even though they are going to try! You will get advice from everywhere, even people you don't even know. Complete strangers will come up to you, rub your belly, and explain how to change a diaper properly. They will quiz you on sleeping positions for baby, feeding schedules, umbilical cord care, etc. It's all a bit overwhelming! You spend 9 months reading books, magazine articles, asking friends and your mom for any tips and bits of advice. You read things online, and pray for guidance. You soak it up, file it away, and hope you remember all the tidbits when you need them.

When you finally do get to the hospital, you may be feeling fairly prepared. The car seat is installed correctly, the nursery is all set up, you have your diaper bag ready to go, etc. Everything is neat and tidy since you've nested in the past several weeks. You have the baby, which is a whole other post in itself, and you spend 1 or 2 days in the hospital. The nurses are wonderfully attentive and helpful, allowing you to sleep a bit while they watch the baby. They help you feed the baby and are a reassuring presence as you clumsily change the first diaper. And then they send you home.

Yikes. The reality of what has just happened sinks in. You're a mother. For some strange reason beyond your understanding, those nurses and doctors thought you were going to know what to do, and they sent you HOME ALONE with the baby! Every bit of advice you received in the months leading up to this have flown out the window. You look at your precious little one and wonder what to do next. It doesn't take long for the little one to decide what he/she wants to do next and will let you know by crying. Soon you are trying to figure out what each cry means and how to satisfy the demands.

No one can prepare you for your new-found responsibilities and the feelings they bring in the first few weeks and months of your baby's life. But, there is something else no one can prepare you for. Your intense love for this child. All of a sudden, you are a mother. Someone who nurtures, protects, loves, and prays. You are so much in love with this little bundle that you would do anything for them. Even stay up late into the night, every night for weeks and months. Even change 15 diapers a day. Even sing "Jesus Loves Me" over and over simply because your child loves it. Eventually the initial overwhelming feelings of "I-don't-know-anything" fade away, but this love just keeps on growing.

Through all of these things, I would be completely lost if it weren't for my husband. God gave me a gentle, loving, and thoughtful husband who goes through this entire process with me. If Greg were writing this blog, he would put a totally different spin on it, talking about not being prepared for the financial responsibilities and the price of diapers. But, he would also share about his love for his children that goes deeper than he ever thought possible. I love seeing Greg with our newborns, he's so calm and relaxed. A very good quality I need in those first few weeks.

I am so thankful that God has allowed me to be a mother. I am truely blessed and cannot wait to meet this new little girl He is giving us. And I know when we bring her home, I am going to have moments of, "What? They think I know what to do?" (Just because I have done this before doesn't mean I have all the answers.) Thankfully I have all the help I need. A loving Father who does have all the answers, a wonderful husband, and many others just a phone call away. Now, lets get this show on the road!