WHAT CHANGED WHEN YOU HAD YOUR KIDS??

A dear friend of mine asked me this when we were having one of our reunion lunch date. I stared at her and smiled not knowing where to begin! Her question truly made me think and I realized that my sons turned my life around in a good way.

So here it goes:

1. I no longer jump in shock when they enter the bathroom while I am taking a bath. Something I never would have been comfortable with when I was single! I use to hate it when people bother me when I am taking a bath, now my kids and I chat while I shampoo my hair!

2. I now know how it is to feel extreme pain without “actual” physical pain. I feel extremely HURT every time I know my kids are in pain! Seeing my kids hurt or in pain tears me up inside, I can’t describe it! 

Miguel just after his final Urinary Corrective Surgery, he was such a brave boy! I'm sure even braver than me, I was so scared!

3. I used to never drink from other people’s glass and use other people’s utensils. My closest friends know this and they ridicule me for it. But now that I am a mom I eat and drink my kids leftovers and yes sometimes I eat food they spit out!! Come on admit it you’ve done that too right?!? 

I was the one who finished Jaime's half eaten, sloppy and soggy ice cream cone! Something I never thought I would be able to do when I was single!

4. I now believe that a bond and love so strong could exist between a mother and her children, it’s unexplainable.

5. I have truly become a superwoman! I can dress up, put my makeup on, reply to at least ten emails and PM’s, pack my orders and be out the door in under an hour. Since I've become a mother I have developed talents I never knew I had! I used to breastfeed while replying to my emails and pump milk while processing my orders!

6. I have become a GERMAPHOBE! I spray alcohol everywhere and anywhere I know it will stick! The grocery cart, high chairs and public playgrounds freak me out! Now I make sure everything they touch is clean! Jaime is a thumb-sucker so I need to make sure his hands are always clean.

These grocery carts are cleaned "hospital grade style" by Yaya and me before we let the kids use them!

 

7. I am now afraid to die! I used to say I am always ready to go anytime, that I am not attached to anything. I used to be fearless, now I am a worrywart! I take care of myself now not just for me but for my children so I can live longer and be with them.

I want to be a part of every special memory and spend as much time as I can with these two boys!

8. I now know and accept that FREE TIME no longer exists! That long baths, hours of uninterrupted reading and long naps are a luxury! Yes it’s all about baths for me! 

Books on my bedside table, I hardly find the time to read them since I am busy with other things! :)

9. I am now thinking of someone else! It used to be just all about ME now it’s all about THEM. I mean this in a good way.

10. I never believed in love at first sight, now I do! I fell madly and deeply in love when I met Miguel and Jaime!

The pictures on the left are first pictures taken right after I gave birth to my boys! Miguel (top) and Jaime (bottom) I fell in love with them the first time we laid eyes on each other! :)

Everyday I spend with my boys is a gift, a surprise and an experience, I will never exchange for anything! Yes EVERYTHING changed when I had my boys, but I wouldn’t have chosen my life to be any other way than how I am living it today.