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When you're pregnant, everyone tells you how wonderful it is to be a new mom and all of the joys you precious little bundle will bring you. You even get some of the horror stories such as sleepless nights, projectile vomiting and exploding diapers. These are tales that have been told for generations and are common the world around. Although this is important information to have and be forewarned about, there are a few day-to-day things no one ever tells you that can come as quite a surprise to any new parent. Here are just a few I wish someone told me.

1. Laundry I have to say this was my biggest surprise. No one ever told me that I would be doing more laundry in the first three months of my child's life than the rest of my life combined. Between the leaking diapers messing up his outfits, the spit up all over his clothes and bibs and the receiving blankets used I was doing laundry every day. That's a lot of washing for one person who weighs less than 10 pounds and is under two foot tall. I don't mind doing this chore, I just didn't know I was going to have to do it so often.

2. Boy parts Being a new mom and a female, no one ever told me that to help avoid leaky diapers you need to point your little man's parts down. Each time I changed his diaper I just put on a new one and off we went. Five minutes later there would be a big wet spot on his tummy. Finally my husband told me that you have to "point it down" so that it doesn't shoot out of the diaper. Who knew. That would have been good information to give out during the child care class I attended.

3. Diapers I tried to stock up on some diapers before my son was born but of course you never know how much to buy or which brand you'll like best. Most people told me to stick with size 1 because babies aren't in the newborn size very long. Although that is true, my son was only 5 pounds when we brought him home and I used the newborn diapers for awhile. However, his diaper was leaking constantly and we couldn't figure out why (even though I was pointing his little parts down). Finally, a friend suggested using a preemie diaper. That did the trick. Although he only used them for about a week, they were small enough to fit him without causing leaks. I just assumed preemie diapers were for really tiny babies. I never dreamed I would need them for a baby that was born at term.

4. Personal Space Before my little one came along my husband and I had a decent looking house that I decorated in my own personal style. After my son was born, I still have my nicely decorated house, it's just hidden behind all of the baby gear. I guess I should have realized this fact after our baby shower with all of the stuff we received but in my naivety I just assumed it would stay in the baby's room. I wish someone would have told me that it spills into every room in your house and that anyone who walked in my front door would know I have a newborn. There is a swing, a pack n play and toys all over the living room; baby bathtub, wash clothes and hooded towels in the bathroom; bottles, formula and a bottle warmer in the kitchen; and miscellaneous bibs, burp clothes and clothes all over the rest of the house. Again, that is a lot of stuff for someone who is so small.

Every day I find new things I wish someone had warned me about, but these were just a few of the bigger surprises I found in my first months of motherhood.

Learn more about this author, Dawn B.
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