Thoughts On Baby Time

I’ve been surprised by what I’ve found to be one of the more challenging aspects of motherhood. Dirty diapers and spit up don’t faze me; I’ve never been squeamish. The lack of sleep has been trying, but I think I’ve made it through the dark days as a sweet friend described the first weeks of motherhood. For me, adjusting to what I call “baby time” has proven to be the most unforeseen challenge.

I knew life would naturally become very different once Franklin arrived, and it’s a no brainer that my time is not my own anymore. But unlike other life transitions I’ve experienced before, I believe nothing can adequately prepare you for baby time. Now that I am staying home, my days are scheduled around naps and feedings every three hours. Here’s a picture of me utilizing nap time to work on this post. Most days with Franklin fly by, but then every so often, I look up and it’s only 9:30 a.m.

I was recently thinking about how I used to jet out on a whim and run endless errands or make last minute plans. I’d be lying if I said I didn’t miss that season sometimes. I don’t think that is bad or means that I don’t utterly love and adore my son. Life is just different now and requires more planning and babysitters. I’d be remiss not to mention my husband and parents here. These folks do more than I can describe in a sentence let alone a blog post. So rest assured my days of aimlessly wandering the aisles of Target solo are not over yet.

Currently at the Mandel house we are on roll over watch as Franklin is so close to rolling onto his tummy. I love how almost overnight, life morphs into a season where you’d relinquish all your free time for the rest of eternity just to sit and wait for your child to roll over. In this new season, how I spend (and don’t spend) my time has changed, and yes at times it is challenging, but with that challenge, I’ve experienced unimaginable joy. So yeah adjusting to baby time may have been the first sneak attack challenge of motherhood for me, but I am confident it will not be the last. I hear potty training is loads of fun.