Five Lies I told myself before I had a Baby

Our son entered this world  and lovely Anguilla in July 2015. In that moment, I became the mommy of this little baby boy.

Our newborn baby

Prior to this, I read books, did tons of research, read blogs from HuffPost Parents, Scary Mommy and so many others, laughed at the new parent memes and listened willingly and unwillingly to the advice and tales from mothers. However, nothing quite prepared me for the realities of having a newborn baby. My baby quickly turned my world as I knew and loved it upside down. However, the view is beautiful from here and he shows me every day why motherhood is so special.

In a few short weeks, he has stretched me emotionally, mentally, physically and spiritually and taught me so much about myself. I have also honed my sense of humour because honestly sometimes you have to laugh through it all.  These precious yet tiring days will be gone before I know it and I want to remember them with a smile. Here are five lies I told myself before having a baby.

1) I need six to eight hours of continuous sleep in order to function effectively.

Since the baby, if I get two hours of uninterrupted sleep, I feel like a Rock Star. Let’s rock baby!

2. 24 hours in a day is more than enough time to get everything done.

….said no mom ever. In my pre-mom days, if it did not get done, chances are I was just procrastinating. These days many things are left undone because babies are so demanding 🙂 🙂 and that is A-Okay!

Tiny feet

3. I am an adult and perfectly capable of getting myself and a baby out of the door.

I saw a great meme prior to giving birth called 27 steps to leaving the house with a baby and I chuckled. The last step was giving up and deciding to try again another day. While my first attempt at leaving the house alone with the baby was not as eventful as the meme (I did give up), I quickly learned that it is much easier and less stressful to just stay at home and have a nap as sleep is golden when you are a new mom! If staying home is not an option, having help is the next best thing. Thanks hubby and Mom!

Nash and baby

4. I will never want to leave my baby’s side.

While I commend moms who always have their babies with them for the first few months of life, it felt awesome to run to the store alone or to have lunch with ‘adults.’ I had a great lunch at Davida with the team of bloggers for #CaptureAnguilla when Xavi was under a month old and it felt good. I knew that Xavi was in good hands because he was at home with his father. I came home to my baby rejuvenated because I missed him so much. Truly distance makes the heart grow fonder.

Team from #CaptureAnguilla

5. I would not become a crazy, scary Mommy.

In reality, this little boy has captured all of my heart and I will do everything within reason to protect him. Prayer is definitely my most powerful strategy and it has already helped me through much.

As I look over at my baby sleeping peacefully, I know the peace will be interrupted very soon. He is stretching and cooing and looks so adorable. While I may not be able to sleep-in again for many years and I will have to make many sacrifices in other areas, I already know it is so worth it.

Are you a mommy or daddy? What lies did you tell yourself before having a baby?

Xavi is of course an integral part of our life and will be part of our Anguilla experience. Check out my belly painting blog and photos during pregnancy. Do follow us on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter for more on My Anguilla Experience. We look forward to exploring Anguilla and bringing you more stories on island life with a baby. We will also be doing more lifestyle blogs on fitness (must get back in shape post baby) and my natural hair journey.

Follow us on Twitter @MyAxaExperience and Instagram and Facebook at My Anguilla Experience.

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Have a wonderful day!