Why I love being a mom
I’m putting together a Family post together on post-delivery body, and in the meantime wanted to bring you a very special post from my friend Emily. I’ve had the pleasure of hanging out with Emily before, and she’s just as amazing as you’d imagine from reading her blog. She has been a great resource for me throughout my pregnancy and now as a new mom. Her baby is Cullen is absolutely adorable- Olivia is excited for some blog baby playdates in the future 🙂
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Hi Fitnessista readers! I’m Emily, from Daily Garnish. First off, many many congratulations to Gina, Tom, and beautiful Olivia. In the past 11 weeks, I have discovered that there is no greater gift than the opportunity to become a mom. I am sure Gina is discovering that in these first few precious days and weeks with her little one.
I’ve been doing the mom thing for a little less than three months now.
And during that time I have come to realize just how much I love being a mom, for a number of different reasons…
Being a mom has taught me the value of time.
I used to spend all day making lists, checking things off, rushing around, making plans, and planning what comes next. Now? Instead of jumping out of bed in the morning, I pull Cullen into bed with me and snuggle for as long as he lets me. The day can wait.
And if he falls asleep nursing, instead of putting him down I will just let him sleep on me, sometimes sitting there just looking at him for hours. Now that I’m a mom, I can’t think of a better way to spend my time.
Being a mom has taught me that there is no better moment than watching your husband become a father.
Casey and I have always had a very strong and close relationship, but seeing him as a dad has magnified my love for him in ways I didn’t know were possible.
I spend all day at home with Cullen, and I can read his expressions and emotions pretty well by now. There is a distinct change in his smile when he looks at his dad, and it melts my heart every time I see it.
Being a mom has taught me to have a new respect for my body.
Back in 2009, I ran my fastest marathon to date in 3 hours, 50 minutes. Ever since then, I have considered that to be my biggest accomplishment and the moment where I felt most proud. I worked for over a year to get my body into top physical shape, and when I crossed the finish line I felt truly amazed that I was able to do something that meant so much to me.
And then my body did something else…
And I learned that pride and accomplishments don’t always come with finish times or age group medals. My pregnancy is, and always will be, my greatest achievement. And with motherhood has come a new body, and the challenge of learning how to combine my new role as a mother with my old love of fitness.
Most of all, being a mom has taught me about love.
I love my mom and sisters deeply, and I love my husband in ways I can’t describe. But when I look into the eyes of my son, I feel something I never knew existed.
He makes everything in my life shine a little bit brighter, and even on my worst days, I go to bed with my heart feeling so incredibly full.
I feel so lucky that I get to be a mom. I had no idea that I would love and embrace motherhood this much, and I can’t imagine my life any other way.
Many, many congratulations and well-wishes to Gina as she discovers all of these things herself. Thanks for letting my stop by the Family page! To read more of my adventures with Cullen, you can find me on Daily Garnish!
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I can’t take all of these cute babies!!! 🙂
LOL me too. they need to stop before I skip my birth control today.
If I could “like” this comment a la Facebook, I would, because that’s exactly how I feel! Darn that baby fever!
What a beautiful post! I can resonate with every single thing you said. Motherhood is indescribable…and morning snuggling is the best. Ella’s 8 months and I still hope she wakes up extra early so we can snuggle in bed a few hours before work.
What a beautiful, beautiful guest post. Thank you for sharing this, Gina and Emily! I certainly am not ready to be a mom anytime soon, but in some ways, I can’t wait. I’ve always loved children (especially babies) and I definitely look forward to that part of my life.
Great guest post. Cullen and Olivia can be blogger baby bffs 🙂
Most beautiful post, Emily <3 Your words gave me goosebumps as I know exactly what you're talking about. Congratulations on your new little blessing. <3
Thanks Erica!
That is such a CUTE baby!
Wow, what a beautiful post!! I love seeing dads and their kids- there really is nothing like it!!
And Cullen has the most piercing blue eyes I’ve ever seen!! What a handsome little guy!!
I went through five years of infertility before I got pregnant. I was in disbelief at first but when I heard his heartbeat for the first time I remember the tears flowing. I cherish every moment with my babies and love being a mom more than anything else I’ve accomplished. It is truly a blessing to be a parent and one that some don’t appreciate.
Oh my goodness, Cullen’s little smile is adorable. He is too cute!!
Such a beautiful post Emily. It melts my heart to see your love for your son. Thank you for sharing!
Yay for more pictures of Cullen! I’ve loved reading both of your journeys, you are both such incredible moms!
This post was so amazing to read. I read the Daily Garnish too. I especially love reading your pregnancy posts since I am now pregnant myself! I should comment more often 😉 Cullen is soooo cute!
Thanks Amber! Congrats to YOU! 🙂
Aw thank you 🙂
Ooh I think I’ve found another blog love <3
I love Emily — her blog is another one of my favorites. This post made me want to cry. So happy for all the happy, expanding families!! <3
Thanks for the post! Those Aden & Anais bamboo swaddlers are the best (I have the same orange and blue ones). Keep them in good shape, because they are AMAZING for all seasons and ages. My toddler has one wrapped around her, laying on top of her, dragging behind her etc etc pretty much 24/7.
We use them for EVERYTHING! I want one in my size – so so soft!
Daily Garnish is another of my favorite blogs.. I love that you both know each other & I am able to see more pics of cute baby Cullen hehe.
I recognized Cullen’s cute little face (on fb) and knew Emily was writing this post.What a sweet post Emily! I cannot wait for they day to come when I will be a Mom!
This post has so much love. What an adorable little guy. Motherhood sounds absolutely exhausting, like learning to walk all over again, but all of you lovely women do such an amazing job of putting out the simply reminders of the pure, unconditional love that comes along with it.
I simply cannot wait.
my two favorite blogs!!! maybe cullen and olivia should be baby boyfriend/girlfriend, like YHL’s clara and Bower Power’s will!
but seriously, i love emily and so enjoy seeing cullen over on daily garnish. so much fun to see them over here.
I love that idea. 🙂
Love this. And agree with everything to the T. Motherhood, though can be rough at times, is an amazing journey. I love every moment of it, even when I feel like I don’t at 3 am 😉
You have such a great ability to express in words and pictures the feelings and emotions that come along with being a new mom. Loved this post!
Thanks Emilie! 🙂
Melts my heart 🙂
Just started reading your blog and I am so happy to see Emily here. I love her blog and I love this post. I am not a mom yet, but reading this makes me excited to think about the day that I do become one. Congrats to you both!
BEAUTIFUL post!!!
@ Ginger hahahah i love that. So true lol 😛
Such a nice post! And cute baby! <3
Cullen is growing up so fast! I love this post and for all the sweet things you shared and for the lessons learned as a mom. I agree with all of them, especially seeing your husband as a father makes you fall in love with them in a different and wonderful new way, doesn’t it.
And yes, marathons are nothing compared to 40 weeks of pregnancy, birth, and the early days of nursing…I agree, that was my greatest physical accomplishment, too!
I love Emily and her blog. And the fact that her little man is the cutest baby boy I have ever seen is a plus. I think you should arrange a marriage! Can’t wait for your postpartum post. I also might email you about doing research on how working out during pregnancy improves labor outcomes (time spent in labor, complications, time spent pushing). Since I know you were very active during your pregnancy (which is GREAT) i would like to get a feel for that before I decide to go balls to the wall with my research topic.
Gina, thanks for asking for this guest post!
Emily, as a first time mother to a ten-week old, your post really moved me to tears. I love my son dearly but I am often so distraught by the loss of me-time, my desperation to get back into shape (even though I am only a a little way off pre-preg), and the demands/challenges of breastfeeding that I wait until he falls asleep to go go go and do ‘my’ stuff. Today I read to him for the first time, showed him the water, sky, and birds on the balcony and really spent time with him until it was nap time, and found that I still was able to do all the things I wanted to do for myself. Thank you for your positive perspective. You’ve got a new Daily Garnish reader 🙂
Aw thanks Azka! Congrats to YOU! I totally know what you mean, and I have struggled with a lot of the same things. It’s hard to figure out how the old life fits in with the new, but it gets easier week by week. Hang in there!
Beautiful post! I couldn’t agree more, falling in love with one’s baby is most incredible kind of love. <3 And Cullen is a cutie pie.
Two of my favorite blogs combined! Woot!*
What a beautiful and touching post Emily..seriously crying right now 🙂 I can not wait to be a mom!
Emily! You warmed my heart. There is something about Motherhood that I will never understand until I am a Mom, but until then, I love reading about it. The complex relationships are so wonderful, and I love hearing about all of the blog mama’s adventures. xoxo!
Such a beautiful post!
Wow what an incredibly sweet post. Thank you so much for such a beautiful insight into motherhood, Emily! Your little boy is very lucky to have such a loving and positive mum, I hope so much to be the same.
Thanks Lisa!
Ahhh, two of my favorite blogs in one. I’ve been following Emily/Daily Garnish/Cullen for a while now. Imagine my surprise and delight when I saw she was guest posting here. We want to start trying for a family in the fall so I love reading about both of you ladies and your journey to motherhood. Very inspirational.
I love seeing Emily writing over here! I’m loving these posts from you new moms! I”m 23 weeks along now, so reading all of these gets me super excited!
Wow! Such a special post! Thank you so much for sharing. Things really do change when you have a baby, don’t they! Amazing.
Being a mom is definitely something undescribable. I tell me girls all the time they are the loves of my life. I never knew I could love someone or something so deeply it makes me teary eyed.
Thank you Emily for your awesome post! And thank you Gina for “introducing” Emily to me, lol. I really connected with her story (more so than your other guest posters). Thanks again!
Thanks Heather!
As both a loyal reader to Daily Garnish and Fitnessita, I loved this post! Thanks for sharing Emily. It makes me even more excited to become a mother myself some day (hopefully soon!!!).