post-partum check in

Whelp, I went and saw the lady parts doctor today.  TJ was so good until right at the end, when he had a wet diaper.  That kid cannot stand wet diapers. He can sit in a poopy diaper all day but if he's even a little wet, it's the end of the world.  The doctor said you can barely tell I had a baby.  Um...right.
Anyway, here are a few updates on mommy:

• Healing - I had an episiotomy that resulted in a "2nd, almost 3rd" degree tear, according to my doctor.  After about 3 weeks, I was feeling pretty normal.  The bleeding had slowed/stopped by then, but my stitches didn't dissolve until 4 1/2 weeks after TJ was born.
• Body - I had gone back to my pre-pregnancy weight after only 2 weeks.  Breast feeding really is the best weight loss plan! ;)  It took about 5 weeks for my abs to pull back together, which minimized some of the post-baby flubby tummy.  I've still got a bit of mama pooch, but I've never really had a flat stomach anyway.  I didn't get a single stretch mark during pregnancy, but afterwards I got shrink marks on my stomach and hips. Maybe they'll fade? 
• Sleep - Believe it or not, you really do get used to waking up at all hours.  My body, at least, just acclimated to sleeping in three-hour stretches.  The hospital stays set us way back with getting TJ to sleep through the night, but we're working back that direction. Now that we're bottle feeding, Tyler does at least one feeding a night.  I usually try to take the bulk since I can nap during the day but he can't. 
• Mood - I don't think I ever really felt bluesy, I was just sad my baby was at the hospital and not at home.  In fact, now that we are home, I generally feel happy.  I am having so much fun being a mom.  When I don't eat (which is often) I get super grouchy and crabby, so usually around 5 or 6 I'm a nightmare.  Poor Tyler.
• Marriage - Other than me being a crab when Tyler gets home every night, things are great. For the most part, our relationship doesn't feel that different.  Tyler and I are still very much in love.  We love being parents together.  Our fights are more intense, because they are usually about parenting and we are both tired and extra stressed, but they don't occur any more frequently than they did before TJ was born.
• Overall - This is great.  Everyone told me how hard it is to be a new mom, but nobody told me how fun it would be!  Although the hospital stays were horrid, they really put everything else in perspective.  Just being home with TJ seems so easy now, and I am so grateful that I get to spend my days with him.  Even when it's the middle of the night, I am so happy to hold him and see him.  I am so glad we live in the age that we do - without modern medicine, my baby would be dead twice over.  Remembering that helps me cherish every moment with my sweet boy, even the frustrating ones.

When I was five and they asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up, I said "a mom."  That never changed.  Now that I have a temple marriage and a sweet baby, I have everything I have ever wanted.  I am so blessed.

-Mrs. Smith