This is not what I signed up for...

I remember the moment I first found out I was going to be a Mommy. I remember the exact place. I remember the first people to know. I remember literally trembling as my brain tried desperately to process the news. A baby?! I was going to have a BABY?! And I remember vividly the moment I found out I was going to be a Mommy for the second time. Much sooner than I ever would have planned {you know, if I were a planner. Which I most certainly am not!}. Even more shocking the second time around!

Jeremy and I have been absolutely blessed. We have never {as of yet} had to struggle through the pain of infertility. We have never even had to anticipate pregnancy, praying every month for a positive test. We have never suffered the heartache of losing a child, as so many women that we love have endured. For some reason, the Lord has seen fit to bless us with not one, but two very big surprises! And we do quite well with surprises around here...go figure!

I knew I wanted to be a Mommy when I was a kid. I considered it my "career choice" when I was in high school. I've thought about motherhood. Dreamed about motherhood. Anticipated motherhood. But this mothering thing...it's not what I signed up for...

No one can be totally prepared for motherhood. You can't just learn about it from a book or a blog. You can't even learn from friends or from babysitting. But you can guess. And you can get a pretty good feeling for things when you're exposed to other children and families. I knew there would be long nights. I knew there would be dirty diapers. I even knew that sometimes things that should stay in diapers end up ALL OVER YOUR CLOTHES! So I guess I sort of signed up for that stuff when I entered the Mommy Club.

But I didn't sign up for all of it. What about the mounds of laundry that such a tiny person can produce? Yep, I expected that. What about all of that crying?! Yeah, I kind of figured that was coming. And how messy my house seemed to be? Oh yeah, no big deal. It's like that anyway! So I guess I knew all of that was coming too...

But let me tell you what I didn't sign up for...
These little people that call me "Mommy"...they are the most loving people.
They are kind.
They are funny. 
They are so smart!
They are the joy of my heart.
They are my favorite little people on the planet.
They make me laugh.
They make me cry.
They make me humble.
They make me proud.
They make me think.
They make me be less hard on myself.
They teach me, even while I am teaching them.
They love me...unconditionally! Even when I am just so mean!
These babies light up every single second of every single day.
They test me and challenge me and make me be a better person.

So is this mothering thing what I signed up for? No...it is so much more.