I am a mom now... a MOM. And, despite having that title for seven weeks plus nine months, the revelation of that new title is only just beginning to set in. It is a rich and full title and one that I fully embrace and love. Christian and I have found parenting to be all about exchanges - the most beautiful exchanges really. We have exchanged sleep for cooing and cuddling a little one, exchanged freedom of schedule for a schedule based on every third hour when Allie needs to eat, energy and clarity of thought for a lovely sleepless overly-delighted in our daughter stupor by which we only semi function. It is the most wonderful thing in the world. Allie is now seven weeks old and we have discovered new rhythms as a family, a new beat, a new dance. It is truly beautiful. All of it.
I truly believe that so much of becoming a Momma or Daddy has to do with exchanges - beautiful, wonderful, gladly made exchanges. Our perspective regarding these exchanges shapes our transition, marks our identities and paves the way for our experience as parents to be full and rich. In fact, it is our perspective that influences our experience of all of life. Perspective is a BIG deal. We always have a choice - a choice to chose between two experiences, two interpretations - sometimes it is delight or frustration, kindness or impatience, gladness or bitterness, or many other combinations. This blog post - just to get to this point - has taken three hours. I could be frustrated because I was interrupted when she woke up ready to eat or when, after changing her diaper and getting her dressed again she blew out the new diaper and covered her outfit in poop. I could be impatient with her while she peed in the midst of putting on yet a new diaper. Or when she had too much snot in her nose to breathe well and I had to suck it out with the nasal aspirator and then hold her while she calmed down. I could be annoyed that rather than returning to finish this blog post during that next nap, I had to wash poop off clothes she wore for five minutes. OR, I can chose to delight in my daughter, laugh at the timing of the blow out and thank God for the opportunity to be a comfort to her and hold her. I can chose a blessed perspective, joy because I get Allie as a gift in my life, joy because changing diapers is a part of that gift, joy because a new timeline for my day allows me to practice the Presence of God in a whole new way, joy because I get to understand grace and the nature of God, the extraordinary in the mundane, and all the fullness He has for me as a Momma.
Perspective changes everything. Ladies - our perspective about our new bodies after babies - CHANGES everything. It really does. I chose to receive gladly the marks of motherhood on my body as a glorious blessing that marks me as a mother. We can look at our post baby bodies and discourage ourselves by comparison (comparison against others and against our own pre-baby body), negativity and judgement. But that isn't heaven's perspective! That's not God's intent for our mindset regarding our bodies! The post baby body is gloriously marked by the blessing of life, by the identity of motherhood - it is a most beautiful marking. As are the markings of age. Wrinkles, gray hair, thinned and not as tight skin - these are the marks of a life full of experience, a life lived fully, years of opportunity to gain insight, wisdom and experience. They are beautiful. Remarkable. Lovely in all they are. Let's call them such and not chose a negative perspective toward them like much of society does. ; )
Let's enjoy our exchanges, chose joy-filled perspectives and love our experience of life ; )
Aren't these toes the cutest?
