Letter to a New Mom: I’m not exactly sure where you will be on your journey into motherhood when this letter finds you — your child may be one week old, or a month old or maybe even coming up close on a year. Whatever the case, by now I am sure you have realized, life as you know it has changed forever. Suddenly, you are responsible for raising this little person who will someday grow up to be a big person and leave their imprint on the world — their imprint, a direct correlation to the way you have shaped their hearts. You are part of the tribe now, Letter to A New Mom: No pressure. In exchange for this weight-of-the-world task at hand, you will be smothered in hugs and sticky kisses and covered in all sorts of grossness you’d probably rather not know about right now. It’s a dirty job, that’s for sure, but someone has got to do it. Tip: You may want to pack away all your white clothing for at least a couple of years … And someone up above has chosen you to be that person. It’s awe-inspiring no matter how you look at it. It will keep you up at night and cause you to wake far too early in the morning and sometimes rob you of your sleep all together. Tip: Whenever possible, go to bed by 11pm. Promise you’ll be a better Mom the next day because of it! Some days the tasks will seem insurmountable, but on other days … you’ll feel basked in love and glow from the precious thought of it all. You are part of the tribe now, there are women everywhere who can take just one look at you and know, truly know, where you are and where you are going. In only a few short years, you will cast those same longing glances at moments gone by and stop whatever you are doing to lend a helping hand to a new mother in need yourself. You will do it all because you know, because you remember and because you would give just about anything to do every single moment all over again. Tip: If you’re out and about and need help, seek out that Mom with the friendly smile and knowing eyes. I’ve been a mother now for seven years, and perhaps I am the exception? (but I doubt it), but I still have no clue what I’m doing. I’m doing it all for the third time, yet each morning is completely new and every situation, it seems, totally different from the last. I don’t think this is a gig I will ever feel completely prepared for, yet I have learned in these past 2,600 some odd days there is no one else in the world more qualified to raise these three particular children than me. Tip: Your kids think you are the greatest Mom who ever lived. Guess what? You are. If I could give you any advice at all, it would be to hold them as close as you can for as long as you can. I assure you there is nothing going on anywhere right now that is more important than this child — than that warm embrace or that gummy smile, those tiny toes, that button nose. Tip: If you haven’t started playing photographer yet, DO! Document those chubby cheeks and smooshy thighs and every other little bit as often as you can. Try cropping some photos to just highlight those sweet little baby parts and then take a peek at them in black and white — ADORABLE!! The rest of the world will wait, and will hardly even notice you were gone from the thick of it … but those moments you can spend building that bond and nourishing that soul outweigh any other accomplishment you will ever achieve. This is your biggest moment, this is your greatest gift! Embrace it all while you can, they will be as tall as you are before you know it. Seriously, time speeds up the moment you become a Mom, I am sure of it.