To all my mommy friends...

So on this thing called being mom.  As I've spent a lot of time awake the past few nights with a teething baby I've been thinking about this whole experience of becoming a mother.  I've thought about the totally amazing, rewarding, wonderful moments but I've also had time to ponder on all the things I've learned from the challenges that come with this new experience.  I remember when I was pregnant and read all of the posts on facebook from my friends with babies and was so excited to start making memories just like the ones I was reading about.  I "knew" it was going to be hard but hey, I could handle anything.  I was superwoman. 

And then reality hit me like a ton of bricks.

Thud.

Squash.

Ouch.

OUCH!

Okay, so maybe it wasn't a ton of bricks, but when my precious little Aiden came along I realized there was a LOT I didn't know and it's nothing anyone can really prepare you for.  I had taken the classes, read the books, spent countless hours babysitting...but boy was I unprepared.  I wasn't prepared for the incredibly grueling nights, the eating cereal or a sandwich at the counter with a crying baby in your arms, the fast showers while you hope they stay asleep, the times when you just have to sit there and cry with your baby because your hormones aren't right yet and you are beyond exhausted, learning about the incredible sense babies have of when your head has just hit the pillow and they decide it's time to cry, the first time they are sick and you spend days in a stupor as you care for them, the diapers....diapers...diapers, the worry that you are doing nothing right as you sift through books and more books and websites and more websites and other mom's giving you advice and other never been mom's giving you advice, it's wondering if you can stay sane through it all and, and, and.......

And learning that it is

ALL

INCREDIBLY

WORTH IT

The first time they place your baby in your arms and you hear them cry, see their little scrunched up face, it's when you put them in the carseat, then in your car, then drive away amazed that you actually get to take them home, it's their soft smell, soft skin, wrapped in a soft blanket, it's their first smile, first giggle, the first time they reach out and touch your face, watching them figure out their world and it's the incredible love you feel for them that grows every single day.

So to all my mother friends out there who sometimes feel bad when they read a sweet post from a friend about their adorable baby and you've just had a tough night, or day, or week...just know that we have all been there and we are all normal.  Or as normal as normal gets :)

Aiden, I love you more than I can possibly put into words.  You are the light of my life and bring me so much joy.  Thank you for your adorable face, your laughs, and for that wonderful smile I get to see every morning.