Tough Moments in Motherhood

I feel blessed to be A's mom. And I am lucky to be able to to stay home with him. Although I am busy 24/7 I am so much happier than when I was working.

However, there are moments that are tough. In the beginning there was constant feeding, stomach cramps (luckily they resolved when I changed my diet) as well as adjusting from being my own person to having someone depend on me pretty much 24/7. Now it's growth spurts, development leaps and teething. Sometimes I do feel overwhelmed, and frustrated, but the difficult times pass and I have a happy baby again.

In those times I have learned to tell myself the following:

1. This too shall pass
   It will, eventually he will stop crying fall asleep/ stop feeding. It will not carry on forever.
2. Live in the moment
   I used to stress about the things I can't get to because I've been holding/feeding the baby for so long. But I see how quickly he is growing up and one day he will not need me. So I want to enjoy holding him while he does need me. And if sometimes the dishes have to wait till morning, that's ok.
3. His need is real
   Sometimes, especially in the middle of the night, I might feel a bit frustrated and think "Oh come on, what is it now?" and secretly wish I could just cry it out. But he is just a baby and what he is feeling is real and so is his need for me. I am the adult and I can suck it up.
4. Don't sweat the small stuff
   Like I mentioned before dishes can wait. If I need to have a pajama day so be it. Nurturing my baby is the most important task. And to add to that "Those who mind don't matter, those who matter don't mind."
5. Relax and be positive
   Naturally I do worry if my baby is sick and about general safety. But I don't want to stress about every little thing. There is no perfect parent or the perfect way to parent. Homo sapiens have been around for 200 000 years, civilisation for 50 000 and we have got this far.