I Wouldn't Trade a Single Puddle
Guest Blog by Diane Miller
Days like today bring true clarity to motherhood. When I was an idealistic 20 years old and discovered to my delight that I was pregnant, my rose tinted glasses were two inches thick. I envisioned tiny, black-haired babies with a continually pleasant odor. My sweet dream babies were well mannered from birth. They slept during all hours of darkness, they were remarkably intelligent, and they were naturally obedient. My visionary babies never had messes that leaked out of diaper bounds. I didn't picture sickness, frustration, bone-marrow weariness, and occasional desires to flee. I naively told my husband that we needed to have a baby to make messes so that I would have something to do with my time. I was picturing the occasional perfect tiny hand print on a window and some scattered teddy bears.
As you can imagine, reality was like a cruel shock. My first little girl was born basically bald and well over 9 lbs. I couldn't even squeeze her into the tiny newborn size outfits that I had so carefully selected. That was just the beginning. She cried - a lot! She wasn't interested in nursing. She was strong and willful. Diapers seemed like a pointless waste of money; nothing stayed in those things. Suddenly I felt completely unsure that I knew the first thing about motherhood.
Today I find myself a mother of three little girls that are very different from the neat Victorian lasses that I thought I would always dress in white frocks. Along with the hard edges of reality, I have discovered something else. Even the rosiest dreams of my girlhood are dim compared to the moments of pure sweetness that my real children bring me.
Spring is here and between my daughters, Cherie and Remi, I have constant bouquets of daffodils and dandelions brought to me. Lindey is such an observant little thing and every time I pull out a maternity dress that she hasn't seen before she says, "You looks beautiful, Mama". Any pregnant woman knows that such complements are worth pure gold...
Listening to my girls talk about life makes priorities seem so simple and clear. They believe that the sunshine is there so that we can have picnics every day. Flowerbeds are for picking, mud puddles are for splashing and food is for spreading on the table.
Today when Lindey pottied on the floor for the umpteenth time, I was standing right beside her and I felt the splashes hit my feet! This was not a part of reality that I was going to accept! I started groaning, "Lindey, why, why, why, must you wet on the floor?" She looked at me with her hands and face covered in honey and peanut butter and said, "Don't be sad, be happy. Don't cry, mama, be happy". What was I to do but laugh and kiss her sticky cheeks?
Motherhood has many cons that I never factored into my life. It has also changed me for the better in more ways than I can count. I wouldn’t trade a single puddle on my floor for a different life.
Visit Diane's blog for more encouragement.
posted by Crystal Paine at 3:43 PM
2 Comments:
Wow! Thanks...so timely to be reminded of the precious moments.
Crystal,
That touched my heart. It really puts motherhood into perspective. It may not be as we anticipated it, but it's So worth it. I hope that one day I'll be a mother too and that " I wouldn't
trage one single puddle on my floor for a different life'' either. ;-)
♥ Samantha
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