Gone are the days of only thinking about yourself. Now you have to think about your LO in everything you do. Going shopping? Forget the closest parking spot. Park next to a buggy corral so that you can grab a buggy while getting out of the vehicle as well as dropping it off and not having to walk so far with the car seat (or leaving baby in the car).
Before leaving the house, forget your cute little handbag, the huge diaper bag is your new accessory. Double, triple check it before you even think about leaving. Make sure you have a bottle and plenty formula (if you are bottle feeding) as well as bottles of water. The last thing you want is a baby screaming for a bottle and you don't have one (been there done that). Also think about how long you are going to be gone and pack diapers accordingly. Don't forget an extra (or two) change of clothes in case of accidents, as well as burp cloths and a bib or two. You might also want to take some Tylonel for your sore muscles after carrying around the baby and the heavy diaper bag.
When getting in and out of the car you must remember GET THE BABY! Don't leave the house without her, and don't leave her in the car while you go in. This was hard for me in the sense that the first time I went somewhere without her, I was lost, thinking I had forgotten her. Mommy brain makes you forget and get confused quite a bit.
You can also forget going to the bathroom by yourself. As with other things I will be listing, the LO knows exactly when I need to go to the bathroom and will scream her head off. Now, if it's a quick trip in and out, she's ok to cry, but if I have an upset tummy and have to stay in there a while, she has to come with. The bouncy seat or her fold and play has to come with us so I can bounce/rock her while I sit.
Cooking supper, yet another activity that will change. You will either have to cook around her bottle time and/or crying fits, or hold her while you cook. Both are very difficult. One night LO just was not happy. I put her in the carrier on my chest and literally had to bounce up and down while cooking, just to get her to stop screaming at the top of her lungs.
Taking a shower or relaxing bath is also altered. Yet again, my LO could be in a sound sleep and as soon as I jump in the tub she starts crying. I can't relax and enjoy the hot water for the crying, so it's a mad dash to hurry and finish so I can dry my hair, get dressed, and console the cryer.
Intimacy....now this one is tricky. I will admit sometimes I feel like a bad mom. We will continue where we are if she starts crying. I mean, she's right next to the bed, so it's not like we can't keep an eye on her to make sure she's ok. But yet again, she knows when we start and she wakes up. Good thing we don't take that long...haha!
The worst of all is sleep. You can forget it. Until the LO starts sleeping at longer stretches, be prepared to get up every 2-3 hours. Especially if you are like me and the SO doesn't wake up at night when the LO cries. They say to sleep when the LO sleeps.....yeah, that doesn't work, at least not for me. I can't sleep in the daylight, although I am getting a little better at it. And if I slept every time she slept, I would never get anything done around the house. I would be sleeping all day. And for the first week or so, that's all you are going to want to do. Recruit help, with anything and everything you need done. I had a cousin do my laundry, two friends from church cleaned my kitchen, another cousin took down my Christmas tree, and a couple people brought over some food. The SO did really well while I was recovering, but once he realized I could do most everything I could before again, he kinda stopped. But don't be afraid to ask for help. I was, too proud to ask, and I regret it, although I was ashamed of how messy my house had gotten....when you are in the last month of pregnancy, you are pretty darned tired and don't want to do much of anything but rest.
The most fun change is that you become paparazzi. Make sure you have plenty of space on your cell phone to make all kinds of pictures; that silly grin as they sleep, that cute little spit bubble, the naked bum in the tub. Word of advice, from the girl with the small memory phone: download the Flickr app on your phone and transfer all your pictures to it, that way it clears the memory up on your phone. I've taken probably 300 pictures on my phone since she was born, Jan 8th.
There is a lot more that changes, and I'm sure I'll cover them over these 18 years of my LO's life. Oh what fun days I have ahead of me! I wouldn't trade them for a thing!
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