Motherhood cliches

Now that I’m a mom, I’ve realized that the clichés I heard before the birth of Rowan are true. Well, some of them anyway. Others don’t quite epitomize my experience.

“My child is perfect and the most beautiful baby I’ve ever seen.” I used to get annoyed when new moms would wax poetic about how perfect their baby is and how he/she is the most beautiful baby they’ve ever seen. Yeah yeah yeah, you’re obsessed with your kid. We get it, but isn’t it hardwired into our DNA to think our child is the perfect specimen? I assumed this would happen to me and considered asking a trusted friend to let me know if such thoughts were delusional when it came to my son. Now I’m a hypocrite who really does think he’s the most beautiful baby I’ve ever seen and such a sweet, perfect little boy. So much so that I don’t think I’d believe anyone who tried to convince me otherwise.
“You’ll do so much more laundry.” Another true cliché is the amount of laundry that accumulates with a newborn (especially with boys who come equipped with a squirt gun). It’s a good thing I love to do laundry, and I’m especially glad that we have an in-unit washer and dryer. I can’t imagine being as pleased with this task if I had to go to a public laundry room now that I do 2-3 loads of laundry a day, versus the 2-3 loads a week pre-baby. I also know that I really shouldn’t get attached to an outfit (for him or me), since that pretty much guarantees it will get dirty within five minutes.
“You’ll know the right name for you baby when you meet him.” Before Rowan was born, many people asked if we had a name picked out. The party line was that we had a short list but had to meet him first. Even though we were pretty sure of our first choice, I was hesitant to definitively name our baby before his birth. I’d heard of parents being inspired upon seeing of their baby; I also knew there was a chance that as much as we wanted a certain name to fit, it might not be right for our son.  So I was hoping that this cliché would be true. It wasn’t. He went by “Baby Boy North” for the first 18 hours of his life before we decided that our first choice name was fit for him.
“He’ll be the center of your universe, and you’ll love him more than you’ve ever loved anyone.” As much as I love my son and would do anything for him, I can’t say that at this point in motherhood this cliché holds true for me. That honor still belongs to my husband. Rowan has definitely shifted my world for the better, and I’m ever so glad he became apart of it; however, we’re still getting to know one another. And for me, all-consuming love takes time to establish.
But he certainly has his foot in the door!