Ever wonder what it’s like to be a full-time mom? Or are you a full-time mom and want to know what it’s like for other moms? Do they have the same struggles as you or do they just somehow have it easier? With social media it’s hard to tell if you’re alone on bad days or if all mom’s experience the same hardships. Do we all experience mom guilt at some point or are there some moms that just somehow have everything together and are able to do this parenting thing with ease.
Well I’ve decided to share little snidbits of two weeks into my life as a full-time mom with my husband being out of the country for the military. Even full-time moms need a break from time to time and even with an extremely busy husband like mine, I’m really feeling it while he’s gone.
I hope if nothing else that I am able to relate with other moms out there so you know that while I may choose to share the highlight real most of the time that I am a mom just like you with daily highs and lows but still nothing but love for my baby boy! So lets get right into it, shall we.
Day 1: Got peed on today. I knew Mason’s diaper was getting full but I was pushing it hoping to finish up my stroller strides class before having to change it. Mason was fidgeting a lot and wanted to be held so I was carrying him on my hip (forgot his ergo) while pushing the stroller only to have some pee seep out the side of his diaper onto my shirt. #momfail The rest of the day was uneventful in comparison. Mason was a good errand buddy and I was able to get food shopping done as well as drop off some clothes for consignment.
Day 2: All smiles and giggles today which was much needed. The weather was beautiful so we were outside a good portion of the day. We walked into Capitola Village, did our usual people watching, ate lunch on a bench at the beach, and did some window shopping. Mason always gets compliments on how cute and happy he is and also how cool his stroller is. I also was able to snack between lunch and dinner so no low blood sugar for mama which was good! Put Mason down to bed a little early because he was tired.
Day 3: Did some volunteering in the morning and brought Mason with me. He was such a hit. Everyone stopped to say hi to him so I really didn’t end up doing much work. When I got home I tried to get some cleaning done around the house while Mason was in his activity jumper but he quickly figured out what was going on and was having none of it. All he wanted was to be held, so I held off on cleaning and just enjoyed cuddling with my little guy.
Day 4: Last night the pups were barking at something outside at 3am and not only did they wake me up but they also woke Mason up. Thankfully I was able to nurse and rock Mason back to sleep but I unfortunately could not go back to bed. So I was a zombie this morning while Mason was peppy and ready to play. In the afternoon Mason gave me a little bit of a scare when his breathing sounded off. I got really concerned and called the doctor. Luckily I was just hyper-sensitive and he was fine.
Day 5: This morning we had a little incident between Jackson and Mason. Mason was crawling towards Jackson from behind and Jackson turned around and snapped at Mason. Jackson snarled and barked but thankfully did not make contact with Masons face. He just startled and scared Mason. I had to really scold Jackson and hope he will not do that again. I’m just thankful he didn’t bite Mason in the face!
Day 6: I took Mason to Big Sur and Carmel today with my mom. The ride to her house was miserable. Literally Mason was screaming and crying the whole way there and I hadn’t even had my latte yet. I had to transfer his infant carseat and base from my car to my moms since I had the Leaf and wouldn’t be able to make the drive to Big Sur. Mason was struggling so hard to nap in the car even after the transfer, but half way to Big Sur he finally passed out. Once we got there though it was a beautiful day and he was super happy. Only issue, we lost his Micky!! Thankfully he seemed distracted by his other toys and window shopping in Carmel after our lunch in Big Sur. Both he and I were so tired after our long day out that we both slept really well at night.
Day 7: My mom came over to help with Mason so that I could get some work done. He’s always so happy to get out for long walks and so my mom took him out for a few hours so that I could have some peace and quiet and catch up on my emails and get my blog post for Friday done. He didn’t take his usual long nap during their walk so he was extra tired in the late afternoon. Bedtime was a little earlier than usual because he was just so fussy, rubbing his eyes, and yawning so I figured why not put him to bed a bit early.
Day 8: Mason woke up with a minor fever (99.8). I was a little worried since he was super fussy and restless the night before and he seemed to be very hot to touch. He was acting normal, eating fine, and having a normal amount of wet and dirty diapers. My mother-in-law ended up offering to watch Mason for a few hours so I could get some things done during the day. I was able to do two loads of laundry and have a legit shower. It was so nice and much appreciated!
Day 9: Went to stroller strides in the morning with Mason because while he still felt a little hot it wasn’t too bad. We got coffee and avo toast after class with some mom friends. When I got home Mason took a nice little nap but when he woke up I noticed he was really hot again. I took his temp and now he had a fever of 101.6. I gave hime some baby tylenol and ended up putting a cold towel around his neck because he was so hot. I could tell Mason was uncomfortable and was trying to sleep but couldn’t. Thankfully after the tylenol kicked in and I brought him outside his mood got better and his temp slowly came down. We got to FaceTime with Justin and Mason’s face just lit up when he saw him and heard his voice!
Day 10: So happy we were able to FaceTime with Justin today for Father’s Day. In the morning, I ran to the local party store to pick up some balloons and I was able to somehow snap a few pictures where Mason didn’t look like he was bawling, even though he was. I just wanted to get a cute picture to send to Justin from Mason for his first Father’s Day but with a baby, sometimes or really almost all the time, they have plans of their own that do not involve sitting still and looking cute for the camera while mom snaps away trying to get the perfect picture for dad for this first Father’s Day. His fever went down a bit which was good but overall he’s still not himself and definitely fussy, tired, and uncomfortable.
Day 11: Had a rough night sleep again and woke up late for our Stroller Strides class. I was super bummed because I really needed the class this morning but instead I was cooped up at home taking care of my little Mason who had red splotches all over his face and up past his hairline. Yesterday, I had tried a little cheese (been trying to re-introduce dairy slowly) at my parents house and so I was hoping it wasn’t related to that. We had a good day, though it was slow and very uneventful. I did make a target run to pick up more of Mason’s teething crackers and decided I’d finally give in and try cereal for him. I’ve been doing eggs in the mornings, avocado, or banana and a tiny bit of toast.
Day 12: Another crappy sleep and this mama now has a red, sore throat! Changed Mason’s diaper this morning to find a rash on his stomach below his belly button. It’s like I just can’t win right now. Tried the cereal this morning before getting him ready to head to grandma and grandpas house and boy was it messy. Over half of it ended up on his face not in his mouth not to mention he kept trying to put his hands directly into his cereal bowl. Oh but in more exciting news, Mason has now learned how to get back down from standing!
Day 13: My poor mama heart broke today when Mason fell face first after having been standing and holding onto his Mamaroo. He was doing so good so I gave him a little more space and before I knew it, his forehead hit the hardwood floor. That cry pierced my heart. All I could do was nurse him since nothing else was calming him down. Called his care team and thankfully he wasn’t showing any signs of concern to them. But my mom guilt was eating at me. How could I let him fall. I know more falls are in my future but I’d love to prevent them as much as possible.
Day 14: Had Mason’s 9 month check up this morning and he is developing right on schedule! His head is finally in the 1% (on the charts baby!!) and his length is in the 7%. His weight, can you guess it, he’s 19 lbs .5 oz now and is in the 36%. It’s so crazy to me because Mason looks totally proportionate to me and I can’t imagine his head any bigger or his body longer right now. He’s already starting to get harder to cradle. We took off right after his appointment for a mini vacation to Paso Robles with my mom. Again, I needed to transfer Mason’s carseat and base into her car. I really need to just transition over to Mason’s convertible carseat (I’ve had it for weeks sitting in the box in our house) but I’ve been lazy and haven’t done it yet. I was so excited to get a change of scenery, and wanted to get going as quickly as possible, so I didn’t want to mess with trying to install the new one in her car. PS more to come on Paso later 😉
Does any of this sound like your day? I’d love to hear from other mamas. What are some of your daily struggles and what are your triumphs?
