After college, the pressure is on. As women we’re expected to hit the ground running and land the perfect job, lock down a man and prepare to procreate as soon as we hop off the other side of that stage, degree in hand.
The thing is, having a baby isn’t easy. In fact, it’s completely and utterly terrifying. You’ve got just nine short months to grow up, get it together and prepare to take on the responsibilities of parenthood and all the joys and stresses that it brings. Being the first of your friend group to take that plunge is especially terrifying.
You’ve got to trade long nights at the club with your besties for long nights in the nursery and the only bottles you’ll be poppin’ from here on out will be filled with milk. Friends fall off and well – let’s face it – parenting doesn’t get any easier!
Because we know and respect this struggle, we’ve decided to break it down for people who don’t quite get it.
Check it out.
After days, weeks or perhaps even months of battling with occasional nausea, monster mood-swings and calculating over and over again when your period should have been here, you crack and submit to a pregnancy test…
Once the initial shock wears off, you decide to take it to the board. It’s officially time to break the news to your crew…
Initially they’re totally psyched, and rightfully so – they’re about to be aunties!
Naturally, every woman’s first instinct is to shop. Besides, who could say no to all the adorable clothing options for tiny humans?
They spend months gushing over sonogram pictures, trying to decide who s/he looks more like (Hint: No one. Sonogram pictures are hardly an indication of what your child really looks like).
Although they won’t understand why on earth you’d want a cast of your belly (or what you’re going to do with it)…
…your search for the perfect pump…
…why you insist on playing Mozart for your baby…
…or how real this fear actually is…
they’re always there to talk you down.
Then, it happens: BIRTH!
You send out a mass text to everyone who’s anyone, update your status, upload to Instagram and shoot out a tweet for good measure…
Naturally, the love starts pouring in from all fronts. Your friends are both grossed out and totally amazed by your birth story…
…but fall in love as soon as they pop by to pay you and baby a visit. Motherhood. Is. Awesome!
Then…shit gets real.
Your little one starts growing right before your eyes…
…They start crawling…
…walking…
…talking…
…and teething *shudders*…
Your friends slowly start to realize that your quiet, sleeping baby has grown into a crying, pooping, hair-pulling machine…
…You see more & more “I’m never having kids” tweets…
…and everyone who once said, “I’ll baby sit! Any time. Just call me,” is singing a much different tune.
Things definitely start to change in your social circle…
…and it becomes more and more apparent that there is a great divide between you and your BFFs.
While their long nights look like this…
…yours have become this.
Your girls get totally pumped whenever there’s a sale at Nasty Gal…
…meanwhile you’re psyched on scoring a cute outfit for your mini me.
Meeting up with your posse becomes a lot more difficult. You spend 90 percent of any given outing trying to keep your tiny tot from tearing the place apart and the other 10 percent hoping they haven’t pooped (and they probably will).
Eventually you’ll find a free weekend and hit the club with your girls, just like the old days! This will go one of two ways…
…you’ll either find that the club is totally not your scene anymore…
…or seriously overdo it…
…and trust me, hangovers hurt so much worse when you’ve got to get it together for real the next day.
Eventually friends will fall off…
…despite your best efforts to keep in touch…
…and you’ll experience FOMO to the max, stalking Instagram and Facebook…
But you’ll find that even with all its trials and tribulations, being a mom is the coolest job you’ll ever have.
SOURCE: Giphy
