Tomorrow is the big day. Tomorrow afternoon, my husband and I will head to the doctor’s office for my twenty week appointment. We will get to see our sweet baby and hear his or her heartbeat and find out if we are having a baby girl or a baby boy.

I am so excited. I feel like finding out the gender of your child makes it seem real. Then you can really plan and decorate and give that little peanut a name and talk to it and get everything they will ever wear through their first year monogrammed with their initials.

Disclaimer: Finding out the gender of my child is a personal choice. I like to plan things and not knowing would drive me crazy! I have great respect for people that do not find out. I know it is one of the few surprises left in life. But I am not one of those people.

It really hit me the other day that in five months I am going to have another little nugget at home to take care of and parent and love and keep alive. I panicked for a bit. But I know in the end it will work out.

I can do this. My family can do this. I will survive on no sleep. I will survive insane amounts of laundry and blown out diapers and bottles and crying and smiles and adorable baby snuggles. All while my toddler runs around like a tiny maniac singing songs and trying to give the dog a hug.

Then I started thinking, well shit, I am also responsible for making sure these little humans turn into good people. Do I talk to my toddler enough about what makes a good person? Do we have long conversations about what I hope he does in the future?

Hell no. I can’t even get the kid to sit still long enough to put on his pajamas.

So I thought I would write it out. So I don’t forget. And so one day I can read it to him and Baby #2. And so in ten years I can go back and remember how crazy and trying and frustrating and scary it was to have a toddler and a newborn. And that I survived. Hopefully. Or I could be reading this from a mental institution. Either way it will work.

So here goes:

1. Don’t ever quit. If you start something, you need to finish it. Quitting will only make you regret not following through. I don’t care if it’s a sports team or a school project. Always see it out to the end. Most of the time, it will show you that you are capable of more than you ever imagined.
2. Be nice to everyone. I don’t care who it is. People are people and they all deserve to be treated with kindness and respect, no matter who they are.
3. Always try your hardest. Don’t ever half ass anything. If you are going to do something, go all out. You only get so many chances in life.
4. Don’t take anything for granted. Be grateful for all the things you have and have been blessed with. You are extremely fortunate whether you realize it at this point or not.
5. It’s okay to be scared. That is usually a sign that something great and exciting is about to happen.
6. Laugh. What’s the point of anything if you don’t have fun doing it?
7. Don’t get your belly button pierced. This is really just if this baby ends up being a girl. I followed the trend in college and now have a gaping hole in my pregnant belly. It’s not attractive.
8. Don’t settle. You are seriously awesome! Don’t ever settle for mediocrity. You deserve the best!
9. Work your ass off. Hard work pays off. And you will never be successful if you don’t work for it.
10. Chase your crazy dream. Your mom and dad both chased their crazy dreams and if we hadn’t, we would have so much regret. I don’t care if it’s playing a sport professionally or owning a business or breaking a record. Just go for it. Unless your dream is to be a drug kingpin. Then don’t chase that dream.
11. Pray. Whenever you are happy, sad, scared, worried, concerned, thankful or bored. Say a prayer and everything will be better.
12. Don’t lie to your parents. They will find out the truth. Always. I hope.
13. Don’t ever watch a live video feed for a week waiting for a giraffe to give birth. It’s not worth it. And in the end, do you really want to see that happen?

This is just the start. Being a good parent is hard. I hope I can raise good kids that turn into great adults. It’s a lot of pressure but I’m up for the challenge.

Until Next Time,

Jamie