Before becoming a parent, it is easy to make judgments on parenting styles and decisions. One can be quick to make statements such as, “Oh, I would never (insert action here)!”

Then we become parents and everything changes.

When I was pregnant with my daughter, my husband and I had a few “rules” that we ended up breaking. The needs of our baby were more important than our pre-conceived ideas of parenting.

Before we became parents, we said we would never co-sleep.

There were several reason we had made this decision. There were risks involved. It could be dangerous. It would put stress on our marriage. We wouldn’t get any sleep. All legitimate fears and concerns.

However, after several months of getting up every 2-3 hours, every night, I was getting exhausted. By the time I fell asleep, it was time to get up again. I was getting resentful.

Then our daughter got sick and would not sleep unless she was held. We caved due to exhaustion and pity.

And we finally got some sleep.

I found that I enjoyed co-sleeping quite a bit. I wasn’t constantly getting up to nurse and I woke up feeling more refreshed. Not to mention, I got to snuggle with my baby all night.

Eventually, we moved our daughter back to her crib. Once she became more mobile and started moving around in her sleep, it become too much of a risk for us. She now sleeps soundly in her room.

Bending the rules on co-sleeping taught me that you cannot make judgments on parenting situations before you are in them. You can attempt to predict how you will handle it, but don’t be surprised if you change your mind when you are in the midst of circumstance.

What did you say you would never do as a parent?

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This post was inspired by Mama Kat’s Writer’s Workshop.
{photo credit}

Today is my first official Mother’s Day! (Last year I was anxiously awaiting the birth of my beautiful daughter after being on bed rest for over a month.)

I have to admit that the first year of motherhood is not a walk in the park. However, it is worth the tears, sweat and every sleepless night.

Below is a small sample of what I learned my first year of being a mom…in no specific order.

1. Cloth diapering is worth the extra loads of laundry.
2.  Both moms and babies benefit from babywearing.
3.  Growing “mommy legs” is harder than it looks.
4.  Sometimes we don’t feel like dressing, but most days we should get dressed anyway.
5.  It is possible to function on less than 4 hours of sleep a night for quite a long time.
6.  Learning to cherish each moment with our children is extremely important.
7.  Breastfeeding as a new mom doesn’t come naturally, but it’s worth the struggle.
8.  Moms pray ALOT! Or at least we should…
9.  It’s the little things that can bring the most joy.
10.  God’s grace is sufficient when we make mistakes.
11.  Reading books with our babies is a great way to spend quality time together.
12.  Children have a small handful of favorite books that you read over and over again.
13.  Starting solids doesn’t have to be complicated.
14.  Making homemade baby food is fun!
15.  You can have “mommy time” without leaving the house.
16.  Moms shouldn’t judge other moms.
17.  Sometimes motherhood makes you ache.
18.  You can do housework with a baby.
19.  Did I mention that sleep was overrated?
20.  Silly faces result in baby belly laughs.
21.  Moms never stop being moms.

There are so many more lessons I could add to this list, but I would love for you to contribute some of your own by leaving a comment.

Happy Mother’s Day!