What you need to know before kids

I have been a mom now for a little over 5 years and honestly that is nothing, but in my short time of being a mom I have learnt some hard life lessons and everyday I feel like my kids teach me something. Prior to having kids I was a complete mess and didn’t know anything or how to even be a mother to anyone, thankfully this chapter in life has allowed me to learn, grow and mature. There are a few things I do wish I knew prior to having my girls, might have helped the journey be a little easier honestly.

T-shirt from: Average Little Weirdo

• Babies are gonna do what they want to, I remember going back to work 3 months after having Simi and just wanted her so badly to sleep through the night so I could be a little well rested for work. I logged into pinterest reading all types of articles about getting your baby on a sleep schedule, I tried and tried all the tricks and she just didn’t listen to anything I had to push on her, not until about 6 months did she start sleeping through most of the night. With Temi it was a completely different story and  with being a vet, I thought the second time around would be easier. But, the reality is babies are their own person, no matter how little they are they barely know you so why would they want to listen to a person they just met lol. So every time I hear new parents talking about they need to get their new born on this strict sleep and feeding schedule I laugh, because that baby will very soon teach them who the real boss is. 
• Everyone thinks they are the parenting expert, but the truth is no one is the parenting expert to your own child. I was lucky when I had both of my girls to be surrounded by so many amazing moms who really helped the transition both times to be easy. But one thing I learnt is everyone will have advice and ways they did things when they had their own children, but I had to learn to pick and choose what works best for me and my child. We live in a world where honestly EVERYONE and their mama, and grandma and even daughter thinks they know best for you and your family, even people that don’t have children seem to know what is the best way to raise your child. But, its up to you to listen to those advice and then take what suits you best. I even had to learn that some things that my mom would advice me, even though they were good advice and came from the very best place it just didn’t work for me because my mom raised a new born a very long time ago, some of the ideas she has just won’t work now in this present time so just know that everyone means well but, just cause someone tells you doesn’t mean its the best way even if you are a new parent. 
• Babies skin will act up, everyone always talks about baby smooth skin but they never tell you the struggle to get to baby smooth skin. With both girls we dealt with different skin issues, Simi’s was much worse than Temi. Thankfully after dealing with Simi’s skin issue I learnt this tough lesson and was a lot better with dealing with Temi’s skin. Most babies have really dry and flaky skin, and they will deal with diaper rashes, eczema, cradle cap, and all kinds of different things but its a phase and it honestly will go away. Simi had the worse case of eczema, like extremely dry skin we tried every type of lotion on her skin, used all types of steroids on her and nothing really helped if anything I think it was cause of the different things we kept trying on her skin that made the situation worse. Everyone will give you their recommendations of the best skin care product for babies, but you as the parent will have to figure out what is best for your baby. Thankfully we have found what works best for both girls skin and even till today we are still a Cetaphil family, but just cause Cetaphil worked for us doesn’t mean its going to work for your baby as well.