You never forget the moment you become a mother. Ready or not (I’m guessing not), it’s an instant that will forever be etched in your life. Every woman’s experience is unique, but here are a few things I learned in those first moments of motherhood.

1. How to love my husband in a new and completely different way
I remember the first time I looked over at my husband right after I gave birth to our first child. It was like I was looking at a different person. He wasn’t just my husband anymore. He was a father. He and I had just experienced one of our greatest miracles together and not only did I see him in a new light, but I could feel our relationship strengthen as we started a new chapter together.

2. I can do anything
Women are tough! I know some who went through 24 hours of hard labor or others whose abdomens were pounded on for half an hour after giving birth because their placenta didn’t come out. I know women who tried for years and suffered countless heartaches before becoming mothers. These are no small feats. You are amazing, my friend!

3. This is NOT what I expected
Sorry to break it to you, but that birth-plan you’ve dreamed up and devised for the last nine months? Not going to happen. It rarely works out perfectly. But there’s some good news! It doesn’t matter. When you look at that slimy little miracle, you begin the start of your own story.

4. Instant recognition
I spent nine months dreaming about what my son would look like. Would he have my husband’s big blue eyes, or my olive skin? As overly excited parents-to-be, we even played around with a silly website that took our pictures and generated an image of how our baby would look (ugliest thing ever!). But of course, the moment I saw him I thought, “Oh yeah! That’s him.” (And he was beautiful.)

5. Greater self-worth
I instantly crossed a bridge from being my own independent person to being a source of life and total dependence for another human. I am his whole world. I am his mother.

6. All the feelings
Doubt, worry, fear, nausea, pain, confusion, confidence, guilt, pride, happiness, love—just to name a few. You’ll feel opposite emotions in one single moment and then they will change in an instant.

7. Slow down
Those precious 9 months seemingly start and end in the blink of an eye for anyone except you, but once your little one arrives, it’s a different story. Savor those early moments because they’ll be gone before you know it.

8. God has a plan for me
Whether your pregnancy was an unexpected surprise or you’ve been waiting years for this moment, it’s all part of His plan. God knows you. Trust in Him.

9. God never leaves me
I have no idea how I would get through the small and simple moments of my life without Him—let alone a major one like this. Take advantage of God’s love and mercy. It’s there when you think you won’t make it; it’s there when you inevitably do. He will never leave your side.

10. God loves me more than I could ever imagine
The times I have seen the greatest glimpse of God’s love for me is when I meet and fall in love with my own child. I can’t fathom a love greater than what I have for my family, but I know it’s incomparable to His love for me. 

Welcome to motherhood! It’s a new world. It’s full of ignorant bliss. And although you may not know what to do, or how to do it, it’s where you belong. You are home.

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