10 Things I Wish I Knew Before I Had Kids

10 things you need to know before you have kids

1. You’ll never sleep soundly again until the child is an adult. From the moment you leave the delivery room with your baby into the postnatal ward, you start to worry about what to do next.What to do after that and after that. Doctor visits, going early for immunizations, checking tiny heartbeats, checking even while baby is sleeping soundly, worrying bath water might choke baby, soap might hurt your baby’s tender eyes and so on.

   Sleep is gone out the window, even if the baby is a deep sleeper, I still cannot sleep. All through the years of my raising these kids, sleep deprivation has really dealt with me I won’t lie. The sign is clearly written on my dark eye circles, but now, thanks to good Foundations and concealers, una for run when una see my dark eye pictures.

    

2. Mummy brain, I don’t know if this too is caused by lack of sleep. Forgetfulness, keeping or hiding things and forgetting completely about them or unable to remember where stuff was hidden. 
3. I wish I knew it’s OK to make mistakes and not be too hard on myself while raising these kids and being too hard and stiff with the kids. Especially my first, she suffered small sha o, the others came when I had gained experience and known that being too strict on kids is not the way to raise good children. 
4. Wish I knew not to compare my child with anyone, not even a sibling. Wish I knew not to worry silently about my child’s inability to crawl yet, while her age mates are running around kicking balls. 
5. That I have natural maternal instincts. Yes! They are in each one of us and if we only can listen. Trust your instincts as a mother.
   
6. It’s ok when someone is watching my baby, whether they be my mom or mother-in-law. If they could care for and raise me and hubby, why shouldn’t they be trusted to watch the new born baby? 

   To let them care for their grandchild the way that they want and know how to, after all they raised me and hubby OR didn’t they? 

7. The laundry room will be my best friend, the laundry never ends especially on Saturdays. But now, all thanks to washing machines that have come to save us Nigerian women, our Saturdays can now be better spent instead of sitting on a stool all morning washing kids clothes while more continue to fill the just emptied laundry baskets. 
8. To care for myself, to take some time for myself and that it’s fine to be selfish sometimes and treat self first like have my bath and take care of me first before attending to kids.

   To be kind to myself and from time to time do things that I enjoy like read a book, play outdoors, jog on weekends, start and complete an interesting movie, manicure/pedicure.That taking care of myself makes me a happy woman, a better wife and mum.

    

9. The family and a mum’s career are always in competition, each demanding for more attention. 

10. That hubby will still need and demand for attention even after kids arrive. I wish I knew reality is different and tougher than what we see on the big screen.

    When you know these things before having kids, parenting becomes a lot more easier.