There are some things I knew about motherhood before joining the mom club, and there are other things I learn as I go through the journey. These are honestly the things that no one told me about, I learned myself and I am sure they will resonate with some of you! Let’s get right into it.
1. If I want my clothes stay clean, I have to wash my toddler’s shoes.
It’s actually not just my clothes. It’s my car, the entryway, the diaper bag and everything else. Livvy gets dirt on her shoes all the time, especially rain boots. When she asks me to pick her up, my white tee won’t stay white if I don’t clean her shoes. I try to wash her shoes after every soiled outing. It’s a quick wash, takes two minutes. Just to get the dirt off of her shoes. When I have time, which is rare, I also give my shoes a quick wash so they don’t look like they went through a muddy puddle.
2. If I want to look nice when we go out, I have to wake up before Livvy does to put on makeup.
When we head out for a big day, we usually leave pretty early in the morning. So if I want to look nice in the photos I anticipate to take, I gotta wake up before Livvy does to put on makeup. With her around, doing anything (in this case putting on makeup) takes way longer and not efficient.
3. I have to upgrade all my winter gears.
I was never an outdoor person. Before Livvy, I went from our garage to the office parking lot or the mall parking lot. I never needed any hardcore winter gears. I love my wool coats but they are pretty useless in -10 winter weather. I had no need for rain boots, winter boots, snow boots nor rain jackets. Now with Livvy, I am outside all the time. I got tired of being cold, caved and got a pair of winter/snow boots this winter. Still no rain boots or waterproof shoes though. I am working on that. I’ve also told myself that I need more parkas for next winter because the only parka I have is just not ganna cut it.
4. I am ALWAYS buying apparel for Livvy.
And I am not just buying cute clothes. I am buying clothes that are necessities for her! Not only do these little humans grow quickly, they need a variety of outfits for different occasions. To stay warm in winter, I had to get her mittens, snow boots, waterproof shoes, insulated pants, muddy buddy, snow suits, toques…etc. That’s just winter. Now that spring is around the corner, I have to start getting her ready for warm weather. Tips: start shopping early in the season because nothing will be in stock by the time you need it.
5. Sun protection is even more important now that I am always outside.
Uh, I look tired enough as is! I don’t need all that extra UV rays to age my skin. Baseball caps and bucket hats are my bff in summer. I also wear lots of linen light layers to block off sun in the summer because I don’t want to be slathering on sunscreen every day.