Every now and then I think about my pre-baby life. While no part of me actually wants to go back to our days before Kaiden, I do run through all the things I would’ve done differently had I known how much life would change with a little human in tow.
I can only speak to my own experiences, but pre-baby Par did not use her time wisely! More than anything, I would tell her to relax more and not worry about ticking every last thing off her to-do list. Enjoy your mostly carefree life, woman, enjoy it!
Life with baby is joyous and fun, but your time is no longer your own. As much as I believe in happy mama equals happy baby, baby always comes first. This essentially leaves me with 1.5-2 hours where I can do the things I love – read, blog, workout, etc.
I was curious to know what other mamas would put on their pre-baby bucket list, so I reached out to some of my favorites and compiled a little list. Here are our collective responses…
- Travel more – near and far
- Sleep in whenever possible and leave the guilt behind
- Learn how to cook
- Read for fun as much as you can
- Go to the movie theater (with your s/o, your girlfriends, by yourself!)
- Be more spontaneous (i.e. go out to dinner on whim)
- Start an exercise routine and/or work out more (I can personally attest to how helpful this is post-baby)
- Establish a yoga practice to bring out your zen side (which you will really need post-baby!)
- Spend more meaningful (aka put your devices away) time with the people who truly matter
- Utilize weekends better
- Take advantage of “free-time” and fill it with the things you love to do
- Learn how to go with the flow more
- Live more mindfully in the present moment
The underlying message is to use your time wisely and fill it with the things you love. By no means am I (or the other mamas) saying you will never get to do these things again. You will. But it’ll be different – lots more planning, possibly some guilt, etc.
Oh, motherhood! 🙂