well-meaning advice...

I was talking to my cute little sister yesterday, who is expecting her first baby in December, about the LAME things people say to you when you are pregnant. Things such as, "Are you sure you want to be a mom?" or "Oh, honey, you think you're tired now!" or "Just you wait! They'll puke and poop everywhere!" or "Having a baby is the worst decision I ever made," or "Seriously, this is not what I signed up for," or "Well, get used to never sleeping again," or "I hope you're not going to nurse - you'll never be your own person again."

What do you say in response to that? "Oh, you are probably right: I really don't think I want to be a mother - what the %@** was I thinking?"

Melissa, what all those mothers should be telling you is this: You will fall in love with your baby every time she looks up at you and smiles. You will cry yourself to sleep out of gratitude for this little person in your life. You will laugh yourself silly when she poops five times in a row - and your cute husband is changing the diapers that evening. You will find it not only possible but often times necessary to put her needs before your own. You will cherish the mornings when she wakes up happy and wants only you. You will awe her tiny toes and fingers, especially when she wraps them around yours. You will smile to yourself when well-wishers tell you she is beautiful because you know she really is. You will love motherhood.

My only complaint about motherhood is that it didn't happen to me sooner - and, actually, I'm over that one, too.