embrace the beauty of becoming a mother young.

.05/30 — what I’ve learned about life and love since having a baby at 21.

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Ripley has been sick this entire week, which means he’s been laying with me, loving me, all just a little more than usual. At least I’ve felt the affection radiating through his touch and words more this week. At first, I said to myself, “you’ve got to be kidding me. Now I’ll have no time for myself over the next few days,” but that was so foolish. There are only so many days left of my beautiful toddler wanting to kiss me, hug me, and sing with me whenever he feels like it. These are the days I will cherish until I take my last breath.

Looking back on my life, I vividly remember being the one who always claimed “they wanted to wait as long as possible to have a kid” because “what’s the rush?!” WELL, four years after finding out that I was 24 weeks pregnant and almost four years of my bubba being a part of my world {outside the womb, lol}, I cannot fathom why I ever wanted to wait for children. I hardly have energy now, so did I think my energy would INCREASE with age?!

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“being a young mom just means we met a little early & i get to love you a little longer” – the young mother I wish I could be, Kylie Jenner

This is so true. If you are in a place where you can provide a prosperous life full of knowledge, love, joy, beauty, and nourishment, being a young mother means experiencing your child’s journey with them for longer.

I am an entirely different person today than I was before, knowing I was going to be a mom. And I now can’t remember how I went so long being the person I used to be. I dislike that person. I love the person, the mom I am now.

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Having a kid gives you an entirely new perspective.

Life took on a new meaning, and I was able to see everything with a fresh set of eyes. Everything has so much more meaning. Hugs out the door are cherished, hearing stories of what they did during the day becomes the highlight of your day, routines are made that probably mean more to you than the kids, time moves even faster, yet sitting watching those little joys discover the world seems like slow motion.

It’s hard to believe four years have already gone by. I want to keep him young forever.

We were on a walk to drop a package at the USPS drop site the other day. We walked this route all the time at the beginning of the pandemic. But my health was growing worse, and suddenly there were no more walks. The hours Cristián works have changed, and Ripley goes longer hours at school. Life happened. It wasn’t until we were passing the three buses always parked by the sidewalk that I realized just how much time had gone by. Ripley was now zooming along on his bike, tall enough to reach the brake lights sitting down, when, what feels like just yesterday, he threw his arms up, requesting to be lifted to the height of the lights. He had a ritual of touching each one as we went by. The sad part is that he didn’t touch a single light. His mind was buzzing with new interests and the desire to get to the next speedbump. Cristián and I were both a little sad. {i’m glad he was, too, it made me feel better about the memory and the fact our little guy was growing faster than we wanted}

Raising Ripley could be a live rendition of “3 blind mice” because we are all growing and learning together. That being said — feel free to ask me any questions about being his mama or about life in general! I’m always open and willing to talk. I will post a “tips n tricks” post soon!!!

 

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All my love –

                                  xoxo, T ☺︎

CHECK OUT MY RECENT & RELATED POSTS BELOW:

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✦ CLICK HERE TO READ⌇day 1/30 – “30 days of being”

✴︎ CLICK HERE TO READ⌇don’t grow up; it’s a trap

✦ CLICK HERE TO READ⌇let go & let flow

✴︎ I ALSO RECENTLY STARTED AN EVENT PLANNING BUSINESS!! STALK IT HERE: ELEVEN 11 ATELIER