Jill is the creator of Lune Vintage where she writes and sells beautiful pieces in her vintage shop. She lives with her beautiful family, including her two children in Canada. Jill is such a beautiful, free-spirited person and I'm so thankful that she was willing to share a little snippet of her life and wisdom about being a mom. Thank you, Jill!
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Greatest Challenge as a Mom
Having a family hasn't slowed us down when it comes to going out, spending time in our city, and enjoying traveling. In fact, since we became parents we have really stepped it up in the traveling, camping, and exploration departments. However, I sometimes miss the days of being able to just pick up spontaneously and spend a night out. I realize now that I never fully appreciated those quick dates with my husband. These days when we are able to arrange childcare, it feels like a mini vacation. On the flip side, I suppose I really do value a rare restaurant meal where all the cutlery and condiments don't need to be piled on my side of the table, and no drinks are spilled in my lap.Greatest Joy
My greatest joy in becoming a mother is how much my understanding of "love" has grown. When you are a child, you understand love as it applies to your caregivers, friends, and (hopefully) yourself. As a young adult you suddenly understand an overwhelming new romantic love, and its discovery changes your life forever. When you become a parent, you are blessed with a brand new and incredibly consuming type of love that belongs between a mother and their child. Again, it changes who you are beyond measure. Like many parents, I had a faint worry in the back of my mind that I couldn't possibly have enough love in me to give another child, but when our daughter was born, that concern vanished into thin air. Being a mom had expanded my capacity to love and transformed me more than I could have ever hoped for. More than I even knew I desired to change.
This summer (2013) we took a road trip together to Banff & Jasper, AB. It was the perfect family trip. Everyone got along so well despite two weeks of staying in single hotel rooms and traveling for long hours in a tiny car. We got a ridiculous amount of fresh air and learned so much together, from close encounters with the bones of many towering dinosaurs, to touring a century old coal mine, walking among mountain goats, climbing up an ancient glacial ice field, hiking and boating, and marveling at thundering waterfalls, to towering above the world on Sulphur Mountain. Seeing my kids (and husband) so fascinated and absorbed in the wonder of every day that vacation made my heart sing. I'm looking forward to so many more adventures together.
A Word of Advice
There is no doubt that becoming a parent is a huge, life changing decision. It's so frightening passing that threshold even when you are certain it is what you want, because you know there is really no way of going back. Your life as you once knew it will never be exactly the same again. Things will be harder in some ways. You'll find yourself waking up earlier and earlier, and having less time to relax or some days even to take a deep breath. But what you do have a say in will be how you choose to value yourself as an individual. Continue to make something that nourishes you as a person a priority. You might have to take a little break from it for the first 3 months or so, but I promise, it always gets easier. You provide your children with a valuable example by showing them that sometimes it's necessary to wait for what they want, and that they are not the centre of the universe (although they secretly are the centre of yours). A healthy and satisfied spirit means you'll be a happy mom who has so much to give to her kids.
5 Resources You LOVE as a Mom
1// Our favourite Apps are Endless Alphabet and Endless Reader by Originator Inc - $0.99. They are excellent for young kids. My daughter is two and a half and already knows most of her letter sounds and I have a feeling that the colorful, silly animations this app offers has a lot to do with it.
2// Palmers Cocoa Butter Stick has smoothed my babies' cheeks and rough spots for 8 years. It's wonderful.
3// I wish I would have known what a wonder baby wipes are before I had kids! They remove makeup in a flash, and are perfect for hair dye cleanup! I use them to clean up spills and remove marker from little hands. I plan on always having some in the house, even though we are pretty much done with diapers.
4// We have cold winters here in the Canadian Prairies, so warm boots are a necessity for 6 months of the year. It's a challenge to keep boots on a baby or toddler's feet - but a BC company called Stonz as a great solution for warm, waterproof, drawstring, soft booties that reach up to toddler sizes. They almost look like bags for your kids feet - but are so easy and useful. Eve wears a pair and they have held up very well. I would suggest this brand to any new parent.
5// Two words : Frozen Grapes. During Luke's second summer, my sister in law met us at a wading pool with a bag of snacks. It was a real scorcher of an afternoon. She pulled out a baggie of frozen grapes and I discovered that they are completely delicious! They stay frozen but aren't hard like ice, but rather slightly slushy and chewy. It's hard to describe, but if you haven't tried it, it's the perfect hot day snack to cool everyone off. Half them if your child is young enough to choke on a whole grape, it works just as well.
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