Lisa Kaastra

They say that becoming a parent changes you, and while I couldn’t agree with that statement more… I can’t say that it’s all in a way even I would have expected. This last year has brought me into situations I have never even thought of, and sometimes, wish I’d never encountered, but for better or for worse (for information, and for entertainment), this is now the bullet summary of My Life:

• Bathroom calls and fussy babies don’t mix. Solution? I baby wrap my kid while I’m on the toilet. Because when she’s in the Ergo and it’s Time, you don’t mess with buckles and straps and tears. You just Do What You Need to Do.
• Bathroom calls and fussy toddlers don’t mix. Solution Part 2? Singing and clapping my hands to keep her dancing and happy while I’m on toilet because, frankly, I’m tired of ravelling up the toilet paper again.
• I now cry over every Huggies commercial. Every. Single. One.
• I now cry over every commercial that uses family, love, babies and/or pets to sell a product (Tim’s, Canadian Tire, Ikea, Tide, etc…) Every. Single. One.
• Snail Mail packages make me cry.
• Free Starbucks makes me cry.
• A full night’s sleep makes me cry.
• I do laundry, simply for the sake of entertainment (my baby’s, not mine… at least, not at first).
• Numerous prayers have begun with the words, “Jesus, please help my girl make a poopy diaper…”
• Where I shop depends on how large the carts are, and if they will fit a car seat.
• I get overly excited about large shopping carts and full diapers.
• Most of my conversations with strangers begin with, “Excuse me, your daughter dropped her shoe…”
• I am officially now a hugger. I have no idea what to do with a handshake.
• My daughter’s “fluffs” in the bathtub make me giggle uncontrollably. And she thinks that’s hilarious.
• The tv volume is permanently set below “5”, and I still think it’s too loud.
• Driving while singing at the top of my lungs isn’t because the song is great, it’s because I’m trying to keep the baby in the backseat awake until we get home for a nap.
• All meal prep requires a Disney soundtrack, a dance party, and one-handed cooking
• Time is now irrelevant, because no matter how many extra minutes I give, I will arrive late to whatever function we are attending. And I WILL blame it on the baby.

Sometimes I feel like I’m changing so much, and that my newly acquired tactics and hobbies will forever change the person that I am.

Yes, and yet…

I still like to read books over nap time, and drink too-sweet coffee in bed.

I’ll always write in caps when I’m Excited or Passionate, and use emojis far too often in texts.

There’s a stack of Cooking and Writing magazines under my bed, and a history documentary flagged on Netflix.

My dreams and ambitions continue to fill up planners and journals like never before.

I’d prefer to wear clothes that can be both comfortable and sticky-crumb free…

But today, my bangs are pinned back and I’ve got socks on inside my granny slippers. I’m eating the remains of a toddler-chewed banana, and heck yes, I’m crying over a commercial about instax printers (that little girl was so sweet to leave photos behind for her grandparents).

But there’s a first time for everything, and This is Motherhood.

And this is still Me.

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