Sometimes I’m tempted to turn all the comments you wise, wonderful and deeply funny women leave into a book.
Seriously, you people are smart. And you write hugs that deserve to be passed on.
So, today I give you my 50 favorite pieces of parenting advice for new {and seasoned} moms – as shared in the comments of this blog.
Read, laugh, be blessed and pass it on to anyone who needs a girlfriend to sit with her, laugh with her, cry with her and pass her another slice of chocolate cake.
Advice for new moms – from those who’ve been there and survived that!
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Remember that days will often seem slow, but years fly by. Angela Mackey
- The best thing you can do is love your children, love their daddy and love yourself. Lisa
- It does get easier…sleep does come and you do eventually emerge from the fog and begin to feel normal again. Judy
- Date Night: Take some time for a little romance. Despite the exhaustion, postpartum-pimples, and stretched-out Mommy-belly, you are still a beautiful woman! And you need to remind yourself of that. Teri @ StumblingAroundInTheLight
- Whenever I forget to ask for help, my little brood and I all suffer. ibebetter
- The neat thing about being a mother – is that someday you get to be a grandmother and great-grandmother as I am now and loving every minute of it. And you get the reward of seeing your own kids become wonderful, loving parents because they were taught by the best–you. You can do this! Jo Ann Taylor
- It’s OK to cry, actually it’s good, it’s scientifically proven to make you feel better. Jenn
- I finally learned to ask the Lord for enough sleep to get through the next day–nothing more, nothing less. Judith
- Just breathe, and be…stop trying to do everything so prettily. Renee
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If I went back 30 years I would have more of the snowball fights …we had in the house. Chris King
- My dad calls this time The Glory Days and I know he knows more about kids growing up than I do so I’m constantly trying to slow these wonderfully imperfect Glory Days down. the nester
- Wherever your baby sleeps is fine. As long as you are both sleeping, it doesn’t matter if they’re in your bed, in your arms or on the couch. Mel
- It gets better. All of it. It just gets better, so hang in there. The 2am (and 4am and 6am) feedings will pass, you will sleep again, and you will miss those quiet moments in the dark with the baby God has so graciously given you. Dara Shultz
- We fight so hard to not compare ourselves to others, and sometimes, what we are comparing ourselves to, is not a true picture of what is really happening. Lynnet
- Be as kind to yourself as you would be to others that were feeling overwhelmed. Nicole
- Grace: accept it from God and others. Give it to your kids, your husband, and everyone else. Casey
- Laugh: when you think your house can’t look any worse and your kids cannot be any less responsive or obedient. Find anything small about which you can laugh every day. Laugh with your kids and laugh at yourself. Casey
- Having fun is more important than following the imaginary rules. Natalie
- Stressing the small stuff is never worth losing your calm. Katherine
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Ponytails are technically a “hair-do.”
Natalie
- Celebrate the small victories. Have they been fed? Put to bed? Are they clothed at all? {Dirty, clean, matching…it doesn’t matter.} Are they chattering, smiling, maybe even singing? If the answer is yes to any of these, you’ve done something right. Scooper
- When I have had one of “those” days hubby has said “At least the kids are alive and supper is made.” Country Girl in the City
- I believe that we compare our worst traits to others best traits and that is no way to treat ourselves. micaela
- I tell myself, “Someday, I’m going to miss this.” And I mean it. No matter how hard it is. Someday, I AM going to miss this. Alyssa
- Failures teach you about Grace. Understanding Grace is foundational to your entire life. Natalie
- Say yes to your children as often as possible. Janna
- While pancakes for supper may be an easy out for me, they look forward to the switch. Sabrina
- As hard as it is to get your head around … don’t ever, ever forget: your kids (and God Himself) think you’re beautiful. Natalie
- I would say not to fret over letting them watch *another* movie, especially on those hard days. Kristen@Chasing Blue Skies
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Cry whenever and wherever you need to. No shame. Liquid Prayers. Natalie
- This is thee most important job you will ever have…please enjoy it..enjoy them and know that God has made you a mom and will always be there to listen. Vonnie
- It’s okay to ask for help. Emily
- Choosing kisses and book reading while the laundry is around us waiting to be put away was way better. Rachel Bowen
- Your worst critic is yourself. No one is judging you as much as you judge yourself. Natalie
- Messy house, messy kids makes for messy but delightfully happy family. Estelle Emond
- They won’t care what the house looked like or what kinds of meals they ate. They will remember how they were loved. Cheri
- Keep on encouraging each other – it makes all the difference in the world to really know that you’re not alone. Diana Trautwein
- Anyone giving advice about surviving the toddler years, and making them sound neat and pretty, is no longer in them. (Or has a personal assistant.) Seriously. Amara
- My children will not be scarred because I am not doing it all. Miriam
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There is no Fairy Godmother handing out gold stars to the Super-Mom-Of-The-Week. Stop trying to earn them. Natalie
- You won’t be sorry about the drive-through in a few years, but I promise you’ll wish you would have taken your salty, french-fry lips and kissed the baby fat on his neck. Amara
- Give yourself grace. God does, and your kids do, too. Cheri
- It’s so much easier to just store all the children’s shoes in the van anyway. We can always find a matching pair that way!! Brenda Brough
- You are not a bad person if your attempt at scrap booking remains nothing more than a pile of photos, paper and stickers collecting in a plastic bin. Natalie
- I would go back and tell myself that my in-laws prefer happy, smiling children to those that have been worn weary by cleaning at mother’s ‘command’ in a clean home. Jenna
- Choose your battles wisely. Kim in VA
- Including in a routine the things that are important to me (like showers). Alexandra
- I would say who cares if they haven’t combed their hair in days. Most other people just aren’t gonna notice! Kristen@Chasing Blue Skies
- When you fail to do any or all of the above in a day, give yourself the okay to start again tomorrow. Casey
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The Internet isn’t going to go anywhere, but my children don’t stop growing. Stephanie
This is great Lisa Jo and crew! Love this so much, love you, and love being a mom.
Nell
Thank you Lisa for these beautiful reminders. I pinned this, so I can read these over and over again
Good list for veteran Moms too! Thank you for the reminders!!
Oh these made me laugh, and cry, and feel a whole lot better about this parenting thing! I guess it’s ok that my 4 year old spent the morning eating oatmeal with chocolate chips in it while wearing a cinderella dress and watching strawberry shortcake?
Sounds like first class parenting to me! :)
Love! Moments like that feel crazy beautiful and make me fall even more in love with them! And their whole take on life! It’s just not complicated!
Love this. A book in the making, this is. Thanks, you.
What an AMAZING list! I probably need to read this once a week!
Thank you for this. After a long day with the feeding specialist (where I cried almost as much as my little one) I needed this. I needed to know that it will get better and the reminder that these precious days only last so long and the little things like the mountain of laundry or pile of dishes will still be there when he’s grown. So Thank you.
I will be making a list of these and posting it on the fridge :). Thank you a million times over (I say through a tear-stained face). God Bless.
What a great idea!! Thanks for the shout-out, too.
Such a timely reminder to me today and especially as I needed to hear my own words (#50) back at me today and of late. Thank you for sharing and reminding.
Just wanted to let you know that this was lovely to read. I am a single mother of 8 amazing, talented, throughly exhausting children. My life revolves around my precious gifts everyday. It was nice to be reminded that it is not perfection I am trying to obtain, but grace and love for the parents of my future grandchildren. Believe me, they have gone I public dirty, disheveled and mismatched more often then I can count, giggling all the while!!! Keep up the good work mommies!
I love this blog. I love every blog you write. This was something I needed to read for sure this week. Thanks for all your inspiration and encouragement to all these moms out there!
These definitely touched my heart and made me cry, and I am like a hallmark card crying over the easiest things (and my son is 13 months it doesnt go away haha). thank you for this!
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Thankyou so much for sharing these tips. I really needed the encouragement today – bless you!
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