A few weeks ago my dear friend Lesley wrote about her words for 2012: mercy and flexibility. While I already made a list of to-do’s and not-to-do’s for 2012, I love the idea of choosing a few words to guide me through this next year, especially one that is bringing about so much change. After giving it some thought, I’ve chosen four words for 2012:
1. Balance – As I transition from working wife to working mommy, it’s hard to imagine what my new day-to-day will look like. Right now in my head it just looks like a lot of diapers and not enough sleep. I know it will take us a while to get into a routine, and that balancing priorities is going to be difficult this year. It is my hope and prayer that I won’t let any big things slip through the cracks, like my relationship with Christ, my marriage, my sense of self, and my friendships, despite living in the “new mommy bubble” that will undoubtedly consume me for a while.
2. Flexibility – I promise I didn’t just steal this from Lesley. I want to be flexible in 2012, and that starts right now, even before the baby comes. As the type-A, obsessive-compulsive planner of the family, flexibility doesn’t exactly come natural to me. But if I’ve learned one thing watching my friends have babies over the last year, it’s that flexibility is necessary for survival. Flexibility with your schedule, the cleanliness of your house, and even (dare I go there), your BIRTH PLAN (more on that later).
3. Patience – Please stop laughing. I know. I’m the self-proclaimed least patient person on the planet. But again, I know motherhood will require this of me, so I better just suck it up and relax. Breastfeeding might be hard. This baby might not take naps. I might have to leave the grocery store if he starts screaming and won’t stop. These things require patience and I am determined to learn it in 2012. Because Lord only knows, if I continue to let my head explode every time I get easily frustrated, this baby’s first word will be “psycho”.
4. Joy – There it is again, one of the most overused words on this blog. I don’t care, I’m sticking with it. Don’t get me wrong—there will be a lot of difficult moments this year. Moments when I don’t think I can push any more (literally – gross), moments when I want to give up, and moments when I completely freak out and lose my mind. But in the midst of those unavoidable challenges there will be baby smiles and baby giggles and the first time he wraps his tiny perfect hand around my finger. Those are the moments I want to focus on in 2012, and those are the images I want to remember when Brett starts begging for baby #2. Yes, begging. It will probably happen the same day I shed the last pound of cheetos.
What are your words for 2012?