Now a days the house is quiet in a different way. It’s a softer hush; tiptoed walks, the soft thunk of a Medela, and the quiet sleepy coos of a new baby. Becoming a mother 20 days ago is literally the craziest thing that has ever happened to me, and even with the sleepless nights, the missed meals and the constant smell of milk, I’ve never been happier.
When I started planning 9 months ago (but really 2 years ago) I knew life would look a lot different. Nothing in my life would ever be as important as this baby girl. I knew that my hobbies would fall to the wayside, but I also knew that my main hobby of reading was an important factor to my own mental health and I needed to find a way to continue reading in a way that worked for me and my new schedule. While my Goodreads challenges have always been a strict competition against myself, I loosened the reigns and expectations this year and set myself a smaller, more reasonable goal.
So many new moms told me that I’d have more time than I thought in these early weeks, or at least time to listen to audiobooks while feeding in the night. But I’ve found I waste away the hours staring at my daughter (not actually a waste), and also love the quietness of the nursery in the early hours and hate to sully it with Netflix or sound. The first few days I struggled to stay awake during the night feeds but have found a great balance recently using my phone or kobo propped up in front of me to slowly read a bit each night. While the two of us cuddle and rock together I’ve found a way to stay awake and alert while maintaining our perfect nighttime environment.
I’m happy to put aside hobbies at this amazing time in my life, but mental health as a new mom is SO important. I’m so glad I’ve found a way to read a little bit each night. Check in on your new mom friends and see how you can help them maintain one of their favourite hobbies. It may not look the same anymore, but it may help brighten their day and lift their mood; so important as a new mom.
Do you have kids? What did you do for yourself in the early days?