These were words we heard from multiple people during the pregnancy.
They all told us how drastically our lives would changes, etc.
So while feeding Collin today, I thought about this and thought I would play a game of true or false.
1) You will never get any sleep- FALSE
Actually I am getting about the same amount of sleep as I was pre-prgnancy- I slept alot during my pregnancy 10-12 hours a day! I love sleep and maybe that is why Collin does too. Remember with my job I woke up every morning at 5 am and was asleep by 9 pm.
Yes I wake up at least once at night but all and all it is not that bad and sometimes I get a little 30 minute cat nap in.
2)Your social life will change- False
I can honestly say that we have not declined an invitation to anything we have been invited to including a wedding in Florida. Yes most of our friends have kids so we find ourselves doing more things during the day but this is how it was also before he arrived.
3) You will fight more- False
I actually find that we are communicating more now than we did before.
Most of this is because we need to with Collin and Clemson,
but in alot of ways it has been good for us..
Not that Joe and I have even been big fighters to begin with.
4) You will never have any time to yourself- True and False
I feel this during the day when I am home with Collin, sometimes not eating lunch or not being to take a shower without worrying if he will start crying. It is hard being home with him during the day because you do not really have any time to yourself. That being said Joe and I have worked out a system to allow us both us time- I get Saturday mornings for my long run and then one night a week to run errands that I can't do with Collin. Joe gets Sundays for school work, and Friday nights fir his runs.
5)Breastfeeding is the greatest bonding ever-False
So obviously I am pumping and not breastfeeding and when I tell people this they normally ask "Don't you feel your are missing out on the bonding?" My answer- NO! I have found other ways to bond with him which are just as special as our baby massage we do in the morning or our after tummy time on my belly, etc,
6)You will do so much more laundry-False
At first I was doing laundry twice a week but now I am back to once a week. I find I have two loads of colors and one load of whites- this is pretty similar to what we had before. I know this may change when he starts eating solids but for now once a week works for us.
7) Babies are expensive- False
While we are still waiting for the medical bills to come in for Collin, I can say that Collin himself is not that expensive. Most of this is because we have such generous family and friends and we received or were loaned almost everything we needed- including diapers. To this date we have purchased 1 huge box of newborns which he finished using 4 weeks ago and now we are to size 1 which we are finishing up some leftovers from a friends an then have two huge boxes that we were gifted. We also have a huge box of 2's we were gifted for the later months. Since I am breastfeeding- food is free! We also saved a huge amount of gift certificates which have come in handy for the couple things we needed - like more swaddles, more Lily Padz, more Baby Oxiclean, and Lanolin for me. Joe and I tend to view ourselves as minimalist so I do not see this changing a lot however, diapers will come into play when we run out.
8) You will totally love being a mom- True and False
Just like every Mom I have my days- today is a good day, Friday was a bad day.
It is an adjustment and while he is still in his "blob" form as I call it, I am ready for him to start interacting with me more.
9)It will take you twice as long to do anything with a baby- False
To get out the door with Collin it takes me an extra 10-15 minutes, and it takes a little more planning but it is not terrible!
10) You will have moments that you lose it- True
I have had three moments so far that I can remember
1) When I was in the ICU and they told me they were keeping me another night
2) On postpartum day number 14 when I had Collin screaming at me while I was trying to teach him how to breastfeed again- this was the day I decided this was a battle I was not going to win and pumping was what was going to work for us.
3) Week 6-7 when he was having a growth spirt and woke up every 2-3 hours for three nights straight. Again this is not something Joe and I were use to!
That being said I have been screened multiple times for Postpartum depression by both my provider and the peditrican and I have passed with flying colors. All and all I am adjusting.
11) Your relationship with your spouse will be different- True
To be honest I now have more respect for him than ever. He is a great dad already and loves Collin so much and supports me in the decision I make since I am handing all the finances, health care, work issues, etc. I feel he has stepped up to the plate but I am not surprised by this as he has always wanted children. It is true we have less time together, but now that Collin is going to bed at 8 we at least get to spend an hour alone even if it while he is doing homework and I am doing all the things I do =0)
We do have to try harder to make time for ourselves but my parents are awesome and are even taking Collin for an over-nighter on our wedding anniversary! SO EXCITED!!!!
All and all- yes our lives have changed but I am not so sure our world has been rocked!
Clemson on the hand might have a different of an opinion but he is settling down and starting to love his new brother who he brings his toys to and hangs out with whenever it is bottle time.
