this one's a "feely" post

Britton and I have had a fantastic day today. And to make it so, I made one big change. I turned it around. Just like that. I woke up this morning with the decision made that today would be good. And I told Britton in no uncertain terms that I would be taking over, being the mom here, and make sure I did everything she needed me to do. This mom thing is scary. No one tells you how to do it right. And I reached out to my friend Rachel, who came back with the answers I needed. I've come to realize that when you doubt yourself, you'll come to one of two conclusions: (1) I'm doing it wrong, or (2) I'm not doing it well enough. I don't think Rachel would mind if I shared a very inspiring part of her email:

she's your little one, and you do what you have to do to take care of her. she'll go through little growth spurts, so if she's crying... when in doubt feed her. she'll be fine. have more confidence in yourself. you're going to do so many wrong things to this child, so get used to it. you can't please her all of the time, and once you realize that's not your fault... sometimes they just need to cry... you'll feel much better.

Britton didn't like her Baby Bjorn when I tried it out. But her need to stay upright for 20 minutes after every feeding was wearing out my back. So I made a simple change - I turned her around.




And she likes it. That's what I've got to keep doing. If Britton doesn't like one toy, offer her another. If she wakes up every two hours one night, chalk it up to fussiness and try again tomorrow night. If she wants to feed again one hour after feeding her, go with it. And if she throws a fit in the middle of the mall, realize she isn't the first and won't be the last.




I figured out one very important aspect of parenting. I won't always do it right, I won't always know what to do, but I will keep trying. Because she's amazing and the most incredible thing I will do in my life. And she's worth it.