While I take some time to bond with my little man, please enjoy guest posts written by moms and moms-to-be from some of my favorite blogs. Today, I’m happy to introduce Claudia from Aux Petits Oiseaux!
Hello Bunny and Dolly readers!
I’m Claudia, and I live in Montreal (Canada). I enjoy writing about motherhood on a blog called Aux Petits Oiseaux (a French expression that stands for a sentiment of great joy). I recently gave birth to a baby girl named Alice.
Like most pregnant women, the thought of not being ready to take care of a child haunted me regularly. Until the very end, actually 3 pushes away from Alice’s birth, I said to the nurse, “When you put her on my chest, you have to stay next to me since I’m not ready to hold a newborn!”
Welcoming a baby, especially a first child, obviously implies a lot of adaptation. You basically dive into unknown waters. I don’t consider myself an experienced mother, after all, Alice is only 14 weeks old. However, I would like to share with you a very personal realization that made my life much enjoyable.
When we got home with Alice things went pretty smoothly. I quickly had a well established routine and, lucky me, I could easily understand her needs. That being said, taking care of Alice also brought some frustrations:
“You want to eat? But I’m too shy to breastfeed at the restaurant!”
“ You request a clean diaper? But I just started to eat lunch!”
“ You need attention? But I’m talking with my friends!”
“ You are not sleeping? But it is 5:30 am!”
Now that I think about it, I’m pretty sure that during that time, I was not ready to let go of my old life…my more “self-centered” life.
One day, I looked at Alice and made a strong commitment to her. I was going to be ready for her, in my actions but mostly in my attitude towards those actions. This initiative allowed me to fully accept my new role as a mother and now I know that I’m 100% ready! Even at 5:30am, when Alice is not sleeping, I wake up with my bed head and my bags under my eyes, and I smile. Yes, I smile at Alice because I made a commitment to her, and I fully intend to respect it for the rest of my life.
And after 14 weeks, I fully mastered the fine art of eating lunch, with my friends, while breastfeeding, in a restaurant 😉
When did you feel “ready” to be a mother?
{image from Claudia’s personal collection}
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