I Can't Wait to Meet My Daughter

Valentine Tees in the Shop Now!

By Megan Launchbaugh

I bet every mom spends nine months (or more) thinking this thought: I can’t wait to meet my child.

I know I did. Just today I caught myself wandering down a thought trail that led me to just that place: I can’t wait to meet my daughter.

Except my thought today was possibly a bit unique. Because my daughter is nine months old and was sitting right in front of me. In fact, looking at her was what inspired me to think it in the first place.

Sure, I spent nine long months (more, actually!) waiting to meet this little human. I thought when she arrived, that would be it, the magic moment! And it was.

But what I wasn’t prepared for was all the moments of meeting her that came after. Shortly after her birth I met my smiling daughter. I met my snuggling daughter. I met my crying daughter. Down the road I will met my teething daughter. I met the little girl who loves stuffed animals so much she smushes them to her face whenever you hand her one. I met the little girl who is one of the most ticklish humans on earth. I met the little girl whose eyes light up when she sees me. Or her sister. Or her dad. Or her grandma. Or a human in the grocery store.

And as I was sitting watching her play today, I realized that stretching out before me is a whole lifetime of meeting her. Before long I will meet the walking girl, the running girl, the talking girl. Every day she unfurls like a new leaf on a new branch on a new tree. The possibilities of who this little human might become are infinite. Every day of this life, she will change and be changed. Each day she will be slightly different than the day before. Slightly more. And I have a front row seat to this lifetime of magic.

I can’t wait to meet my daughter.

Megan Launchbaugh

Megan is a Nebraska native who is still trying to figure out what she wants to be when she grows up. She spent eight years working in the education field before studying to become a Licensed Massage Therapist. Most recently she has begun exploring stay-at-home-mommyhood while raising her two daughters in a blended family with her amazing husband. She loves taking pictures, ordering books from Amazon, wishing she could play the guitar, and planning what she will go back to school for next. She blogs about authenticity and raising authentic children and, when she isn't cleaning up toys or folding laundry, she can be found writing in her own little corners of the Internet. Keeper of the Snacks: Mommyhood Unedited http://www.keeperofthesnacks.wordpress.com/ Connect with Megan: Facebook http://www.facebook.com/keeperofthesnacks Twitter @keeperofsnacks

What Will I Do When You’re Not Always Here?

In: Child, Kids, Motherhood

Mother holding son on beach, black-and-white photo

What will I do when you’re gone? In my not-so-finest moments of being a stay at home mom, I’ve fantasized about how wonderful life will be when my 2-year-old goes to school. To be honest, how much “better” I’ve convinced myself life will be. And if I’m extra honest with you? I’ve verbalized to my son how “I can’t wait for you to start preschool” in moments of sheer exhaustion. RELATED: I Need You to Nap But I Miss You When You Do Nevertheless, I fantasize. Oh, the chores I will accomplish. Oh, the exercising and years worth of self-care...

Keep Reading

What I Wish I’d Known As a New Mom

In: Kids, Motherhood

Being a new mom can be overwhelming, can’t it? This is especially true the first time around, but each time we bring a new baby home it’s almost like starting fresh. If I could have given new-mom me a little heads-up back then, it would have lightened my load for sure. Here are some of the most important insights I would have shared: Do not obsess over every minute detail about your baby’s nursing, pee and poop, and sleep schedules. I filled notebooks with these details. I worried about forgetting to write something down. I stressed about my baby eating...

Keep Reading

Every Time I Leave My Child With Autism in the Care of Someone Else, I Worry

In: Kids, Motherhood

Two boys playing together, black-and-white photo

Every single day when I walk my son Beckett up to his school and relinquish his hand over to a para, or teacher, or therapist, I find myself holding my breath. Every single day. Not because of the specific person he is going with, but because that person isn’t me. You see, with nonverbal Autism comes a whole list of worries. Food intake. Health and wellness. Overall safety (indoors AND out). But the number one thing that worries me each day is the fact that my child cannot speak up if he is being mistreated. We did the research before...

Keep Reading

Sometimes Stepparents Put the Broken Pieces of a Family Back Together

In: Kids, Marriage, Motherhood

Growing up, I never pictured marrying a man whose past involved a previous marriage. I never imagined my first daughter having grown in my heart, but not in my womb. I never thought the first time someone called me “Mom” would be from the lips of a girl who was also so scared that she would receive backlash from her “real mom.” But here I am, six years into raising a beautiful and smart young lady, who is now a teenager coming into her own. And despite all the challenges I never saw myself enduring through, she is worth every...

Keep Reading

I’m Fighting My Way Into His World

In: Kids, Motherhood

Mama grief runs deep. It creeps in late at night, when she can’t sleep because she’s worried about every little detail from the day. The time she lost her temper. The show-and-tell item she forgot to pack. Rather than believe we’ve succeeded, we question every move we made, how we spent every minute, every chore we didn’t get to. And if grieving the day weren’t enough . . . every winter, grief sneaks in like a looming storm cloud. Maybe it’s the holidays, maybe it’s the earlier sundown—all I know is every winter I spend my nights lying in bed,...

Keep Reading

You’ll Never Stop Being My Everything, My Son

In: Kids, Motherhood

For now, I’ll be your everything but someday that will change, my precious son. Someday you’ll find another who will change your world and become your everything. For now, I’ll hold your little hand, but one day your hand will be bigger than mine and you’ll cling to hers instead. For now, I’ll hold you tight when you don’t feel good, but someday you’ll run to another’s embrace to comfort you. For now, I’ll take all the wet, mushy kisses I can get because one day, kisses from mom will be replaced with kisses from her. RELATED: Dear Son, When...

Keep Reading

So You’re Raising a YOLO Daredevil

In: Child, Kids, Motherhood, Toddler

This is not going to be an I see you story. I mean, there is a need for those posts, but this is not it. This is for the moms of daredevil, no fear, no limits, no pain, no gain kids. The moms of the YOLO toddlers who think they are invincible. The moms who say, “I’m not calling 911 if you get hurt.” And then pray like crazy their kid does not get hurt but also wondering if an injury bigger than a Band-Aid fix would help tame their wild child’s spirit. RELATED: In Defense of the Wild Child...

Keep Reading

Postpartum Depression Happens To Foster Parents, Too

In: Kids, Motherhood

Feelings of sadness, worthlessness, hopelessness, and guilt. Changes in sleep patterns. Extreme fatigue. Difficulty concentrating. Restlessness and irritability. Loss of interest in activities previously enjoyed. Changes in eating habits that resulted in weight loss. A list of symptoms noted in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders 5 (DSM5) and used by mental health professionals to tease out a Major Depressive Disorder. If the symptoms start following the birth of a child, it’s categorized as Postpartum Depression (PPD). Perhaps the form of PDD I struggle with doesn’t get a shout out in the DSM5; perhaps no one has ever...

Keep Reading

A Mother’s Prayer For Her Strong-Willed Child

In: Kids, Motherhood

Young boy walking down sidewalk, color photo

A prayer for my strong-willed child: I first need to pray for my patience as your parent. As the one who should keep her cool when you stare at me in defiance and stubborn demeanor. A mom who gets on your level and searches to understand your heart and need for independence. RELATED: My Strong Willed Child Challenges Everything, and One Day it Will Serve Her Well I pray you grow up strong in your beliefs. I pray we can model our lives in a way you are convicted when you see wrong and choose to do right. I pray...

Keep Reading

Raising a Perfectionist Requires Grace

In: Kids, Motherhood

It didn’t take a psychic to predict what was about to unfold before me. My 8-year-old son had just struck out in his little league game. While I attempted to brace myself for some ugliness, it was just too late. In the dugout where he returned, a hat and bat went fiercely flying in the air. An angry mouth bore some ugly words. The kid was irate. Although my son is a great baseball player, he does occasionally strike out. In fact, every single person who has ever participated in the game has had it happen. It’s not a great...

Keep Reading

To My Parents... I Thank You

Journal

To My Parents... I Thank You

Antisocial Media

Journal

I Can’t Wait to Meet My Daughter

Megan Launchbaugh

What Will I Do When You’re Not Always Here?

What I Wish I’d Known As a New Mom

Every Time I Leave My Child With Autism in the Care of Someone Else, I Worry

Sometimes Stepparents Put the Broken Pieces of a Family Back Together

I’m Fighting My Way Into His World

You’ll Never Stop Being My Everything, My Son

So You’re Raising a YOLO Daredevil

Postpartum Depression Happens To Foster Parents, Too

A Mother’s Prayer For Her Strong-Willed Child

Raising a Perfectionist Requires Grace

free email bonus

5 Ways to Connect with Your Kids

I Can’t Wait to Meet My Daughter

Share this:

What Will I Do When You’re Not Always Here?

What I Wish I’d Known As a New Mom

Every Time I Leave My Child With Autism in the Care of Someone Else, I Worry

Sometimes Stepparents Put the Broken Pieces of a Family Back Together

I’m Fighting My Way Into His World

You’ll Never Stop Being My Everything, My Son

So You’re Raising a YOLO Daredevil

Postpartum Depression Happens To Foster Parents, Too

A Mother’s Prayer For Her Strong-Willed Child

Raising a Perfectionist Requires Grace

Previous Post

Next Post

You May Also Like

5 Ways to Connect with Your Kids