FivePointFive

Five and a half weeks later and here is what I’ve learned:



Having time to shave my legs is a luxury.

When I get ready to brush my teeth at night, there is the startling realization that I never did it that morning.

Poop and gas has never been as funny as it is now. It’s amazing how much I don’t care if I get poop, pee, spit-up, or any other bodily fluid on me.

I'm lucky if I know what day of the week it is…or what month I'm in.

I am so exhausted I can’t remember anything and I incorrectly do things I’ve been doing most of my life…like putting on my underwear…except now I manage to put it on inside out. Not the first time this has happened, but certainly the first time that the mistake wasn’t caught almost immediately. Instead, inside-out underwear gets worn for a full day.

I can go an entire week without stepping foot outside the house. Not even to get the mail.

The list of people wanting to come over to visit keeps getting longer and it’s becoming overwhelming. It’s not that I don’t want to see my friends or hang out with anyone, but it’s just such an effort to make it through the day without having to coordinate a visit around nursing/naptime especially since I’m trying to get Elizabeth in a set routine. I’m also so jealous of any time I have to myself at this point that it’s hard for me to give up that time just yet, especially when my house hasn’t been vacuumed in two weeks, there’s a mound of dishes in the sink, and no matter how many loads of laundry I complete, there’s always more lurking around the corner. I will eventually catch up with the other friends/moms in my life, but I need Elizabeth’s routine and my own routine to become stable before I attempt to visit or have visitors. It stresses me out just thinking about it and I hope my friends know it is nothing personal. I’m not one of those moms that has a baby and then has it all together by 6 weeks postpartum.

You find that you and your spouse have little to talk about except the baby.

Brent coming home from work at the end of the day is the highlight. Not because I’m ready to pawn of Fussy McFarlin to him, but because I enjoy knowing that I have the backup if I need it.

Trying to eat healthy is a challenge. Dinnertime is the easiest/healthiest meal to prepare because I have Brent here to help. However, some days you just don’t have the time to prepare something great and nutritious for breakfast or lunch because you might not get a break!

I have become one of those moms that lets 90% of her status updates be about her kid!

No matter what, the baby will always begin to cry as you put the first bite of breakfast, lunch, or dinner in your mouth.

Even though I fit into all my pre-pregnancy clothes, I have yet to take a shower and put any on (unless I’m being forced to go out of the house). My day is just so much easier in a pair of pajama pants and one of Brent’s T-shirts. (If I wasn’t nursing, I would probably wear normal clothes. For now, it is just too much of a hassle).

When you have a baby, you join an unofficial club. I can’t even begin to tell you all of the old friendships that have been rekindled because we share that one thing in common. I have enjoyed catching up with long-lost friends.

The one time in my life I actually need a day at the spa is the one time in my life I can’t afford it.

Last, but not least…..as all of my friends told me when I started this journey, it has started to “get better”. I’m not there yet, and I don’t expect to be any time soon, but what a difference five and a half weeks can make!