Having a baby

Ok so having a baby is very different to what I thought it'd be like... which I guess shouldn't surprise me. But it did. I thought I'd share some of the things that did surprise me - while not spoiling the really good surprises for those still to have bubbies!

1. I am actually a better housekeeper now. No, I'm not kidding, really! I am doing stuff which I never used to do before - like making the bed hehe! I think I've figured out why. It's because before there would be a chore to be done and in your head you could think "oh I'll do it later". Now there is no later. If the baby is asleep you'd better get every single thing you need done, done, because there's no guarantee that baby will ever sleep again ;)
2. Breastfeeding hurts. Especially to start with. Bah to the books that say it will feel pleasant for the Mum. 'Nuf said.
3. I had no idea how much coffee we would go through. We buy it almost every week now - before once every couple of months. No I'm not drinking extra coffee (I don't even drink coffee) this is on account of all the visitors we're having - thirsty visitors it would seem.
   
4. It is actually possible for me to forget to eat. They tell you this in antenatal - I didn't believe it, not me, I eat all the time I'd never forget. But I do! Not so much now I'm into a routine but in the beginning definitely did, you'd look at the clock it'd be 4pm and you'd start thinking about what to have for dinner then realise "hey, I didn't actually even have lunch yet!". It is hard to eat when you've got a baby who is awake in your arms, you're limited to things that can be grabbed and shoved in your mouth. Pretty much just fruit and museli bars. Even toast is out because that requires buttering and that's a two hand job!
5. My shower length has changed considerably. Either I have super quick showers if I'm home alone with Joshua (mostly because I swear I can hear him crying, see 6, below), or super long showers if Darren's home and he's watching him while I'm in the shower. Hehe sorry Darren but I am going to steal an extra 5 or 10 minutes to myself!
6. I hear crying ALL the time. Especially if there's a bit of background noise that could potentially be hiding some crying I can hear crying. I'm constantly asking people "can you hear that?". Although my super sensitive Mum hearing now I am always the first one to hear him when he does make a noise.
7. Babies are dumb when it comes to sleeping. They are in their bed, they are yawning, they are even starting to cry a bit because they're so tired. SO JUST GO TO SLEEP! It doesn't seem to occur to them. Dumbasses ;)

Ok that's about it for now. Notice I didn't say anything about sleeping through the night - that's because Kirsty had me very well prepared for that. her daughter Eloise used to have her up every 2 hours or so, so I'm just glad I get 3 or 4 hours out of Joshua!

:)
Mindy