My First Mother’s Day

May has been such a special month for me. My son turned 3 months (goodbye “fourth trimester”), I returned back to work, and I celebrated my first Mother’s Day.

A woman’s first Mother’s Day is typically very special, and mine was nothing short of it. I truly felt loved and appreciated for being a mother, and carrying a blessing into this world. The gifts were great, but the shared recognition for the countless sacrifices that mothers make felt even better.

The past three months with my son have been quite life-changing. The woman I was before I gave birth to him is nowhere near the woman I am today. This motherhood journey has led me to develop a new level of respect for all moms and parents in general. It has also shown me how much more I need Jesus.

My son Seth is one of my greatest blessings, but taking care of him—like any other child—-has not been easy. Between losing hours of sleep, sacrificing my body to breastfeed and pump, changing endless diapers, and trying my best to keep him from getting sick, I have found myself praying “God help me” or “Lord give me strength” almost every few hours of the day.

When doubts flooded my mind about this motherhood journey during my pregnancy days, the Holy Spirit constantly reminded me that He is “an ever-present” help (Psalms 46:1). And a few months into this “forever-hood,” I can truly testify that He has been just that.

There’s another scripture in John 16:13 that says how “the Holy Spirit guides us into all truth.” During my early days of motherhood, I experienced a period of “baby blues.” It was really hard for me to get through the days. I would wake up happy, then go to sleep really sad. My emotions were all over the place. My mornings became nights, and my nights became mornings. But over the course of weeks of repeated simple prayers, encouragement from my husband, and talks with other moms, I felt like I was finally getting to a place where “I could see the light.”

Having your whole life upended by a newborn can be challenging and it was for me, but looking back I saw how the Holy Spirit was guiding me into all truth and snatching me from becoming another case of postpartum depression. For example, when I was struggling to breastfeed, the Holy Spirit would encourage me to keep going and to keep meeting with lactation consultants. When I had persistent migraines after leaving the hospital, the Holy Spirit guided my mother-in-law —who’s a nurse practitioner—-to consult a colleague who suggested a simple solution like drinking Pepsi to alleviate the pain. When I literally couldn’t handle another cry from Seth, the Holy Spirit would nudge my husband to see that I was exhausted and my husband would take over even though he was tired too. I can look back and see the hand of God guiding me to mentally stay in a place of truth and not lies from the enemy.

So my first Mother’s Day was full of joy and gratitude—I mean I have the cutest little 3-month old boy whose smile can light up any room—-but most importantly I have a big God on my side cheering me on each day and night, and early morning to remind me that I’m doing a great job and that He’s helping me every step of the way.

I’m so honored to be a mother, especially knowing that it’s not an easy journey to become one but it is worth every sacrifice. I’ll close out with this scripture that the Holy Spirit recently revealed to me about motherhood: Psalms 92:14 “Even in [motherhood] they will still produce fruit; they will remain vital and green.”

Until next time,

Beautyoluwa