I was rocking my youngest son today before his nap and it hit me. It hit me just how much I enjoy this quiet time with just him and me. It hit me that even though he is two years old, I love that he loves to be snuggled, rocked and sung to (even with my most horrible of singing voices).
I realized as I was rocking him that there are so many things that surprise me daily about being a parent. Here are some of my surprises:
1. Being a parent is hard work. I don’t think anyone is fully prepared for just how hard it can be. I know I wasn’t. I also know that on a daily basis I am reminded just how hard of a job this is. Teaching behavior-disordered students was a piece of cake for me; parenting isn’t quite as easy!
2. It is incredibly rewarding. I know, I just said it was hard work. Parenting is tough, but man, is it ever rewarding. I don’t think until you actually have that baby and are able to watch him change daily that you realize just how rewarding being a parent is. I love seeing the changes in my boys as they are growing. It also makes me sad, because they will never be this young again. It doesn’t matter though, because everyday I am rewarded just from being their mom. They are truly, besides my husband, the loves of my life.
3. Vomit really isn’t that catch-able with your hands. If someone could explain to me how it is possible that every time my boys throw-up, I stick my hands under their mouths to catch it, only to have it go on my hands and then all over the carpet. What is the point, and why do I continue to do this? I know better, me catching it really doesn’t do much to save the carpet, yet I do it anyway. What surprises me about this? The fact that before I had children I would just about vomit myself when someone else threw-up, and here I am- catching it!
4. Just how much fun is it seeing things through my children’s eyes? I am constantly surprised at how much joy I get from this. I love hearing my four year old do math problems. Who knew this would be so amazing to me? Math problems? I am just tickled every time he figures one out. I love watching him try new things. My two year old seems to take great joy in every small thing. His tone of voice when he tells me he took his socks off by himself it just full of pride. He is so thrilled with something as small as this; he acts like he just found a cure for cancer. That is how excited he gets over every little thing. I love it.
5. I am a parent. I can’t believe it some days! Pretty sad, huh? It sometimes hits me as I open up the fridge or am kissing a boo-boo, that I am someone’s Mommy. Me, a mom? I am not sure why this is surprising to me. I have wanted to be a mother for as long as I can remember. There are just days when I can’t believe that I am even old enough to be married and have two children. There are days when I am surprised that I am responsible for these two little lives. I feel like I literally blinked, grew up and now I am a mom. It doesn’t seem possible that this is where I am in my life. I still feel 20. Some days I just can’t believe how fast everything in my life has gone by, and boom..I am suddenly a parent!
Parenting has been full of surprises for me. I wouldn’t change a thing about it! What are some of your parenting surprises?