Monday, March 24, 2014

10 Things I’ve Learned About Being a Stay-at-Home Mom (SAHM)


Today is Buddy Boy’s half birthday!  Oh how the time has flown.  It’s so cliché, but I feel like it was just yesterday that I was drinking my apple juice in an attempt to get a bang-for-my-buck in the clear liquids department before going in for my c-section.  I have learned a ton about being a stay-at-home mom in the past six months, including the following ten items:

1. Shower and get dressed every day…*
Do it! Even if I feel like it’s pointless because I’m not going anywhere and no one is going to see me. It makes me have a much better outlook on my whole day! *Yoga pants are acceptable and makeup is optional.

2. …but don’t wear anything too nice.
I will more than likely get spit up on, peed on or pooped on (or maybe if I’m lucky, all three in one day!), so I leave the prom dress in the closet.  As I mentioned previously, yoga pants are perfectly acceptable, but I usually try to cut it off at three days in a row!

3. Eat regular meals.
As anyone who knows me well will tell you, I am a snacker; I love to graze.  Rather than committing to a whole meal, I would much rather just have six bites of that and four pieces of this.  However, I do try to make myself eat at least two regular meals in between diaper changes, clothes changes, nursing, etc.

4. Make lists
If I didn’t make a list every day, I would die.  Okay, maybe that’s a bit extreme, but I do make a list every day because it’s really easy to get to 4:00 and not have done anything productive during free time nap time. 

5. Go for walks as often as you can.
This was the absolute winter from hell, and I love winter!  It was really hard to be cooped up for four solid months without seeing the light of day for weeks at a time except for perhaps the occasional trip to Target.  We bundle up and take a walk when the weather is halfway decent; some days it saved my sanity!

6. (Try to) stick to a routine
While this is not always easy, for me it has proven crucial.  It is really beneficial to know that, at roughly the same times every day, Buddy Boy will be asleep or eating or playing or whatever.  I’ve hopefully learned in the past few weeks not to be as anal, and to have a bit of flexibility.

7. Clean the house
This just makes me feel better all the way around!  I’m going to be spending the majority of time in my home, so who wants to look at a pigsty all day long?

8.Wake up really early and go to the gym.
Waking up early has never been a problem for me, but now it is truly a necessity because this is the only “me” time I really get.  It makes me a better person, wife and mom.  Everyone wins.

9. It’s harder than it looks.
Staying at home all day is the most isolating and challenging position I’ve ever accepted.  I’ve always been the type of person who’s on the go; not anymore…especially in the winter.  Some days you are just sick of yourself, sick of your house and sick of being “on” all the time.  However…

10. It’s easier than it looks.
This is also the most rewarding and fulfilling position I’ve ever accepted!  It may not be for everyone, but I love that I get to hang out with my baby boy all day long.  I am forever grateful for this time we have together. My mom always told me that being a mom is the most important job, and now I get it! J

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