15 Lies I told myself

Before I became a mom, I had my own imaginative way of parenting my future kids. Laughing over the parental memes, I totally ignored all the old wives’ tales I’ve heard about parenting.

A year into motherhood, I admit I was absolutely wrong. I believed in the lies I told myself all these years before my baby arrived. 

1) I’ll never lose my patience

Babies are the most adorable creatures on earth. Why would I lose cool and scream at an innocent baby?

Yet, here I am, a mother now, and I’m guilty of screaming and yelling at my baby in the middle of the night when she just can’t go back to sleep, or pulls my hair.

2) I’ll not buy too many toys

I had a gut feeling that I wouldn’t spend too much on toys.

I accepted a challenge too, and I’m not ashamed to say “I lost”.

Even though I know babies love to play with anything other than their toys, I can’t stop buying more.

3) I’ll never buy candies when my baby throws a tantrum in the mall

If there’s a prescribed age to start chocolate munching, I guess my baby still hasn’t reached it, when she threw her first tantrum in the mall.

Yet, when she kept pulling me back towards the candy stall in the mall and throwing herself down on the candy jars, I couldn’t resist from fulfilling her sweet little wish. It was a satisfying moment for me, being a first time mom.

4) I’ll not give random foods until my baby crosses infant hood

Puking and pushing away healthy veggies and fruits made me try just any random food to check if she likes it.

I was surprised to see how she enjoyed the foods she wasn’t supposed to eat – Maggi, Ice-cream, Chocolates.

5) Screen time is a strict No

That’s what I promised myself. 

One fine morning when my baby refused to eat her food, I tried showing her a video and it worked like magic.

I changed this rule to 5-10 mins screen time per day, which eventually went up to 30-60 mins per day.
I totally didn’t give up on this rule yet, but I’m minimizing the time as much as possible, without blaming myself.
One day at a time, mama!

Update: She loves reading books while eating now. I’m happy with this update.

6) We’ll go out for evening family walks with baby  in the stroller every day

When I was pregnant, my husband and I went for everyday evening walks. During our baby discussions, I suggested we continue these walks with the baby. 

We go for walks, but that’s hardly once a week. Not bad!
But, they’re slowly coming down. Not good!

7) I’ll not buy too many baby clothes

I was well aware that babies grow up quickly. So, I promised myself I’ll not buy too many clothes.

Being a real mom now, I keep receiving Firstcry deliveries every other day. Special thanks to the irresistible offers and adorable outfits.

8) I’ll keep the house clean every single day

Having a scavenger baby calls for a freshly mopped floor all the time. 
I thought I’ll have enough time to schedule it every single day.

I console myself with this statement now – “Let her immunity increase.”

9) I’ll hand wash baby clothes always

Oh well, I did, at least for a few months. Then, I started putting them in the washing machine.

There are still a few I choose to hand-wash, but most of them go to the washing machine for a bath. And I’m not guilty.

10) I’ll never force-feed my baby

When I saw people forcefully feeding their babies, I promised myself that I’ll never do that. 

Yet, here I am, running after her around the house for 2 hours per meal, distracting her with toys, birds and trees just to make sure she eats her food. But, in vain!

I’m working on it, by letting her eat how much she can in 30 minutes. Saves a lot of drama and a good amount of time. Super saver pack. Ha-ha!

11) I’ll never miss attending church on a Sunday

When I saw people giving excuses for not coming to church, blaming their kids, I thought I’d never skip attending church on a Sunday.

But when she had chickenpox, I had no other choice but to stay indoors with her, and missed church for two consecutive weeks.

I realized it’s not a blame-game, but situations don’t just work in our favour all the time. And it’s absolutely okay!

12) I’ll not have a crazy first birthday celebration

Throwing a crazy party on a child’s first birthday, and ignoring the rest of the years seemed irrational to me.

When it came to our child’s first birthday, umm… we decorated and celebrated big! Happens! But, no regrets.

13) I’ll never let my baby fall off the bed 

Maybe, I was that person who didn’t understand the Scripture – “A mother may forget her child…”

I totally understand now that I cannot have my eyes on my child 24×7. 

14) I’ll put my baby in the crib to sleep

The crib was all set with a new mattress, fitted sheet and bed cover. We decorated it with stickers and the nursery was ready.

My little darling is 16 months now, but the crib is still empty.

Update: She sleeps in the crib now and here’s how we did it.

15) I’ll never let my baby scribble on the walls

Keeping my house clean means keeping the walls clean too. 
When we moved into our rented apartment, we complained that the walls were dirty. (Oh! We didn’t have a baby then.) The owners were so kind to get them cleaned for us.

Recently, when my baby started scribbling on those white walls, my heart almost sank. But, since that’s a child’s way of exploring the world and getting creative, I cannot hinder her from those developmental updates.

Life turned upside down but the view from here is more pleasing and delightful.

Do you have similar stories? What lies did you tell yourself before becoming a parent? Let me know in the comments below. Wouldn’t it be satisfying to know I’m not alone? 😛