Ten things I wish I'd known before I became a mother

Let me wipe away some of the cobwebs from my brain before I begin. It has been a lot of years since my children were small and now I have grandchildren to try to keep up with.

Number 10 - I wish someone would have told me that my sleeping habits would be interrupted dramatically. The sleepless nights didn't just occur when my children were babies, but as they got older and experienced nightmares and flu viruses, I spent many nights comforting them. Once they were teenagers, I can't tell you how many nights I paced the floor until they came home. 

Number 9 - I never knew that as my children got older I would become more old fashioned. It seemed that mom was a really cool person when they were young, but it didn't take them long to find out that I wasn't really too hip on all the latest fads. They've outgrown that, but I think I'm still old fashioned.

Number 8 - I didn't know that I would be cooking dinner for a neighborhood every night. With more and more moms working, our house became the place where my sons' friends would just show up at dinner time. I learned to cook extra.

Number 7 - I never knew that before my kids graduated high school I would attend and cheer for more sporting events than anyone in the history of the world. I think I still have blisters on my fanny from sitting on the bleachers.

Number 6 - I would have invested in stock with Johnson & Johnson if I would have known that over the years I would purchase more than a ton of Bandaids.

Number 5 - I wish I'd known that my heart could be broken over and over because of my sons. It was broken numerous times over their behavior or something unkind that they said, but many times it was broken because someone hurt them. 

Number 4 - No one ever told me that I would be going back to school when my kids got on the bus everyday. I had to learn right along with them as I helped them with their homework.

Number 3 - I didn't know too much about pets before I had children. I learned about the care and feeding of baby parakeets, rabbits, kittens and puppies. 

Number 2 - One of the most difficult things I learned as a mom was saying goodbye. No one told me that my children would fly away from the nest and leave my husband and I grieving and lonely.

Number 1 - My relationship with God grew exponentially because, as a mom, my prayer life took on new dimensions. When you have children, you discover that you can't raise them without the help of a gracious, loving God. He has helped me and continues to be there for me as I watch my sons grow into manhood.