I still remember clearly the first time we knew the presence of life in my tummy after that first pregnancy test back in June 2014 at 5 am in the morning. I stared at the wall for 2 minutes thinking if the pregnancy test was reliable. But my joy was beyond anything I’ve imagined. We waited for our first little angel for 2 years to be exact and she came in God’s prefect time!

First thing I thought of – “I’m a Mom!” and didn’t know how big the word MOM was until a year and months passed. My love and appreciation for mothers became deeper and lovelier.

Everything is still so clear to me – the moment we brought our baby girl home from the hospital (how we slowly did things to keep he from waking up, so monitoring the temperature of the room every few minutes, and just checking her if she’s okay) to the days and months after. I wish I could remember every single moment but the exhaustion  from the excitement, delivery, and physical healing and little sleep we had was also a big challenge.

Sometimes me and my husband just stare at our baby and I know our thoughts included – “how will we take care of this tiny baby..so fragile, so helpless. How will we keep this tiny baby alive?”. I guessed we did it really well as first time parents.  We did our best that’s for sure.

Since we wanted to be so hands on, we didn’t get any help yet until when our baby was 9 months and I was 3 months pregnant with our 2nd child. Things went by so fast. I quit my corporate job since I was 4 months pregnant and everything after that was focused on the family. I didn’t expect that being a housewife was the most challenging work one can do. Managing a home and family is not a joke or easy. Thank God for my parents for being my “Google” whenever I need to ask the littlest (maybe silly) questions about the home. It is the best rewarding job I ever did in my entire life.

I was a career-oriented person a few years back and motherhood transformed me to be better and stronger. The opportunity to be with my children 24/7 is a great blessing and not everyone can be given the chance to do this so I treasure every moment everyday with them. I’ve seen life in a different perspective.

In a few days, we will be parents of 2 kids in 2 years (yes,that was fast!) and life changes again for the better, even best! We can’t wait to have a newborn around again, this time a baby boy! Our Francesca Paula and Matteo Paolo are going to see each other soon (counting the days..) And new experiences and adventures up ahead!

Motherhood is not a just a chapter in my life, it’s actually a whole new book! Every day brings new surprises and learnings. Now I see my first born growing up really fast, being more independent each day, I can’t seem to imagine letting her go in time and let her fly on her own. Oh well, we all need to let go and let everything takes its course. I don’t want her to grow up, but I know she will and we would have to trust ourselves on how we brought her up. But for now, every single moment is a wonderful memory.

Motherhood is amazing and unbelievable. I can’t seem to fathom how mothers sacrifice so much for their kids and family. Motherhood brings selflessness into a whole miraculous level.

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Motherhood has taught me important things in life:

• Don’t try to do everything or try to do all things perfectly. It will get the best of you.
• Lack of sleep, exhaustion can make you go crazy. Yes it can but enought support will make you a million times better.
• For first time parents, even how much you read or attend seminars on having a baby, you will never be that prepared. You have to follow your instincts, knowledge from reading, and feel what your baby needs and wants. You will connect with your child in ways you’ve never imagined.
• Experience is the best teacher. So seek help from your parents and parent-friends and family.
• You can possible follow a routine day by day or make a to-do list when you take care of your children. Be flexible and adjust gracefully.
• Breastfeeding is a challenging journey with your child but an excellent bonding experience. It attaches you emotionally to your child too.
• Do not stress in all little things. Babies are more resilient and stronger than we think they are.
• Don’t forget to take care of yourself too. Take breaks, breathe, so you won’t get overwhelmed.
• Try not to feel frustrated when your children have tantrums. You are not a bad parent. Try not to feel that everything you do will affect your children’s behavior.
• Every child is different so don’t compare your child to others.
• In things, you will learn to value function over style.
• All mothers just need a kiss and a hug and everything will be okay and the tiredness will go away! 🙂

We will be forever thankful for the challenges we encountered and will encounter in the future. God is great and powerful and will never leave us.

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This year we’re on a staycation this mother’s day with our little girl as a family before I pop! A pre-birthday celebration for me too and an advance 4th year wedding anniversary. We’re staying in the hotel where we stayed before our wedding. So many memories here (including a modeling thing back when I was in high school, night-before-the-wedding surprise bridal shower by my friends and my bonding moments with my mom and sister before the wedding day) and building more as our family grows too 🙂

Left picture: me, June 2, 2012 our wedding day

Right picture: me and my little Chesca, May 7, 2016 almost 4 years after June 2, 2012

Moms are the best here! Because they simply are. They have so many activities lined up for mom’s day tomorrow. I’ll write about our stay more in another post. For now, we will try to relax and enjoy our stay in Discovery Suites’s spacious rooms and friendly staff! This is one family hotel I recommend to everyone who wants to have a relaxing staycation.

Happy Mom’s Day to all the moms, moms-to-be, dads who are moms, and to those who act as moms to others! 🙂