Sharing Our Story

Last night I got to be the "been there done that" mama which was every bit as fun as I thought it would be when I first received the invitation from Chinyere (our previous childbirth instructor) on Monday.  Her current group of beautifully preggo mamas and proud papas had it's last class last night and Eric and I were invited (along with another couple) to share our childbirth experiences (Eric couldn't go though).  Since I've been living and breathing everything baby related for the past 7 1/2 months, I jumped at the opportunity to be surrounded by a group of people who might actually be interested in topics like magenta baby poo and pureed peas.  Not that my current group of friends doesn't--everyone has been amazing while I spew all things baby 24/7--but I guess it was just nice to be somewhat of a guru in the way that Libby was for me and as such, to tell those who are getting ready to head down that path, hey, your birth might not go exactly as you planned it, but it doesn't make you a failure (might sound extreme, but I battled that feeling for a while because of that stupid pitocin stuff I had to have which completely threw off MY PLAN), and also, you might be ridiculoulsy angry post childbirth and that's normal too. Side note to the husbands: don't fuel the fire.  My advice is similar to what all mother's say: take care of yourself when you can, sleep during every opportunity that presents itself, let people feed you and clean for you, and ENJOY as much as humanly possible.  In all, motherhood has been an amazing journey in which I've had the opportunity to learn things about myself that I never would have learned otherwise, and the opportunity to get to know a new person from the very second that they entered the world is crazy and amazing.  I bitch and moan a lot about my bundle of joy being a screaming, anti-sleeping, hyper-active, daddy-obsessed little terror, but that's just because that's my style. I'm a bitcher and a moaner because I think it's funny.  But the majority of the time, the little screamer is screaming with delight because I'm rolling my eyes around my head (she LOVES that for some reason and is always trying to catch my eyes--note to self, keep a safe distance from clawing baby fingers) or because I make the best fart noises with my lips or because my karate-kung-fu-I'm-gonna-get-you dance is pretty much worthy of an Oscar (or whatever award would apply....). And being able to make her laugh is more rewarding than any career kudos I can think of.  She is, afterall, a much more demanding boss.

Nothing about the birth or motherhood was what I'd expected and planned for, and I'm not gonna lie and say it was all better than that, because sometimes it's not. The high points are higher than I could have expected, and the low points are lower than I ever anticipated.  I suppose that's life in a nutshell.

So yeah, it was a really fun night.  Thanks to Chinyere for inviting me and for the expecting parents for accepting me!