‘What Got Passed On To Me I will Never Forget’ Guest Post by Hannah Dobson

I had bragged during pregnancy about how easy it would be, I naively thought I knew what parenting was like, and I felt like I was ready for this second child.

‘You’ve got this Hannah, you’re an expert’ I whispered to myself. How wrong I was.

There I was, giving this day everything I had, in order to get out of the house with two kids. But…It ….just…..wasnot going to happen. Well, not on this day. Along came the tears, from the kids and then me.

Man, the first few weeks of motherhood with Audrey (my first) had been soul-crushing, but I truly believed I had done my hard time. I thought I had to be better at this the second time.

I remember reading a life-saving post from Constance Hall about how the first child is the hardest thing you’ll ever do, I reflected back to that. Surely this wasn’t as bad as my first, I can’t remember-….this had to get easier. I was disappointed that I was not flying through this with colors, a sleeping baby, nor had myself together like I thought I would.

Truth is of the matter, having a newborn again was not like riding a bike. You DO forget the constant demand and continuous feeding requirements. OH, and the crying …you forget that.

What do newborns do..? Not much I hear you say, and they don’t appear to, compared to that of a toddler. But the combination of hormones and the general lack of sleep makes Mumma one, tired, wired, sensitive being. And then the soul-crushing feelings return.

SO; the walls were closing in, and the dawning feeling that this babies survival depended solely on me sunk in. I had tried to get out of the house but I had failed.

‘No!!’ I thought…this was not going to get me. I was not going to wallow in tears and feel sorry for myself. I reached out for my fellow mums. I swallowed my pride and admitted I wasn’t was smashing this second child gig.

 

And what happened? Mothers group assemble!!! And there they were…

A fine-tuned, group of people that I have bonded with and love- my people. They just rallied up and around me.  You see when you’re part of a tribe something magical happens.

And so began the cooked meals, dropped off lunches, help around the house, gifts, chocolate, and just general support. How invaluable this help was, my village, my people- lifting me up and making sure I was getting by.

And you see my tribe, well I could never repay them all for their help, but that was the point. The point was to support me and for me to then to pass it on to the next in need. That simple. It made me believe in this philosophy and it made me feel passionate that I did my part to keep it going. It also confirmed that the village works, that we as mums need the support, a network, to help us through motherhood. So I ask you, can you reach out help each other? Lend a hand, pass it on, empower a fellow mother. Let’s bring the gang together, let’s unite the tribe. Let’s build the village..

Connect With Hannah

Her Website: thebabycinoclub.com

Facebook: facebook.com/thebabycinoclub