The Hungry Caterpillar Effect
Ain’t motherhood great!
Sure there are plenty of crappy bits: sleepless nights; cold tea; and the complete and utter insanity of it all. Not to mention the ton of actual crap you have to deal with on a daily basis.
But let’s not dwell on that right now, let’s focus on the positives.
The cuddles; the smiles; the edible little toes (I’m talking baby toes here obvs, if your kid is 25 then chances are their feet are hideous). When the good stuff’s going good there’s no emoji in the world that can truly sum up how AMAZING it feels to be a mum. I love it! Best. Job. Ever.
So I’d like to take this opportunity to write about some of the lesser-discussed benefits of motherhood. The good stuff no one tells you about at NCT. First up is a concept I like to call ‘The Very Hungry Caterpillar Effect’.
You heard it here first folks.
I’m sure there are better analogies, but as this is the only book I’ve read from cover to cover in recent months, it’s the best you’ll get from me. And anyway, it’s a classic, so why the hell not?
(Cue several incredibly tenuous links. Oh and from now on I’ll be referring to The Very Hungry Caterpillar as HC. He won’t mind, we go way back.)
My journey through pregnancy was pretty similar to the first few days of my pal HC. Out and about, feeling good, doing my thang, eating healthy and hanging out on leaves.
No wait, not that last one.
Then I got to the point where I thought WTF? This 5 a day ain’t cutting the mustard. So I did what any massively pregnant woman/hungry-as-hell caterpillar would, and stuffed my bloated face to the point where I could eat no more.
Then came the stomachache.
I’m not sure if it was as painful as contractions, I’ve never heard his side of the story. Damn, if only he’d blogged about it. But it was painful enough for him to know that something big was about to happen and it was time to batten down the hatches.
Then the cocoon bit.
I probably shouldn’t compare giving birth to what took place in the cocoon that day. All cocoon stories are unique to the individual, plus what really happens is pretty bizarre and this blog post is strange enough as it is. So let’s just say sh*t went down and move swiftly onto the big reveal.
Ta da!
We emerged as beautiful butterflies! (My cocoon story may have involved drugs at one point, can you tell?).
Unlike HC I didn’t experience a full-on metamorphosis, although physically I’ll never quite be the same again. But metaphorically speaking I was a New Me.
Not the New Me I declared I was every 2nd of January and most Tuesday mornings. A New Me that had been through such a life changing experience that things would never be the same again. Like, EVER! HC knew it too. Just check out his eyes. Off his flipping rocker. Shocked to the core. I’d love to know what happened to HC next. Did he become the perfect butterfly? My guess is he was winging it like the rest of us. (Groan. Hey cheesy one-liners aren’t just for dads you know).
For me this life-changing experience was opportunity to become a new and improved version of myself. Not a total transformation, as some things stay with you forever. I’ll always like drinking too much, saying inappropriate things and singing Sexual Healing on karaoke like a woman possessed (not sexy in the slightest in case you were wondering).
Motherhood has given me the chance to become the person I always wanted to be but was too afraid. To do things I would never have done before. Go on mum dates; join a (mama) gang; pose awkwardly for photos sober; wear dungarees; and write insane blog posts about caterpillars. Why? Because I want my son to look up to me as the mum that gives things a go, and not just the mum who’s a bit bonkers and embarrassing.
So what about you? Has motherhood given you the wings you needed to try something new? Has your life been transformed in ways you’d never imagined? Or have I completely lost the plot? I’d love to know what you think.
Thank you for reading!
x
Sure there are plenty of crappy bits: sleepless nights; cold tea; and the complete and utter insanity of it all. Not to mention the ton of actual crap you have to deal with on a daily basis.
But let’s not dwell on that right now, let’s focus on the positives.
The cuddles; the smiles; the edible little toes (I’m talking baby toes here obvs, if your kid is 25 then chances are their feet are hideous). When the good stuff’s going good there’s no emoji in the world that can truly sum up how AMAZING it feels to be a mum. I love it! Best. Job. Ever.
So I’d like to take this opportunity to write about some of the lesser-discussed benefits of motherhood. The good stuff no one tells you about at NCT. First up is a concept I like to call ‘The Very Hungry Caterpillar Effect’.
You heard it here first folks.
I’m sure there are better analogies, but as this is the only book I’ve read from cover to cover in recent months, it’s the best you’ll get from me. And anyway, it’s a classic, so why the hell not?
(Cue several incredibly tenuous links. Oh and from now on I’ll be referring to The Very Hungry Caterpillar as HC. He won’t mind, we go way back.)
My journey through pregnancy was pretty similar to the first few days of my pal HC. Out and about, feeling good, doing my thang, eating healthy and hanging out on leaves.
No wait, not that last one.
Then I got to the point where I thought WTF? This 5 a day ain’t cutting the mustard. So I did what any massively pregnant woman/hungry-as-hell caterpillar would, and stuffed my bloated face to the point where I could eat no more.
Then came the stomachache.
I’m not sure if it was as painful as contractions, I’ve never heard his side of the story. Damn, if only he’d blogged about it. But it was painful enough for him to know that something big was about to happen and it was time to batten down the hatches.
Then the cocoon bit.
I probably shouldn’t compare giving birth to what took place in the cocoon that day. All cocoon stories are unique to the individual, plus what really happens is pretty bizarre and this blog post is strange enough as it is. So let’s just say sh*t went down and move swiftly onto the big reveal.
Ta da!
We emerged as beautiful butterflies! (My cocoon story may have involved drugs at one point, can you tell?).
Unlike HC I didn’t experience a full-on metamorphosis, although physically I’ll never quite be the same again. But metaphorically speaking I was a New Me.
Not the New Me I declared I was every 2nd of January and most Tuesday mornings. A New Me that had been through such a life changing experience that things would never be the same again. Like, EVER! HC knew it too. Just check out his eyes. Off his flipping rocker. Shocked to the core. I’d love to know what happened to HC next. Did he become the perfect butterfly? My guess is he was winging it like the rest of us. (Groan. Hey cheesy one-liners aren’t just for dads you know).
For me this life-changing experience was opportunity to become a new and improved version of myself. Not a total transformation, as some things stay with you forever. I’ll always like drinking too much, saying inappropriate things and singing Sexual Healing on karaoke like a woman possessed (not sexy in the slightest in case you were wondering).
Motherhood has given me the chance to become the person I always wanted to be but was too afraid. To do things I would never have done before. Go on mum dates; join a (mama) gang; pose awkwardly for photos sober; wear dungarees; and write insane blog posts about caterpillars. Why? Because I want my son to look up to me as the mum that gives things a go, and not just the mum who’s a bit bonkers and embarrassing.
So what about you? Has motherhood given you the wings you needed to try something new? Has your life been transformed in ways you’d never imagined? Or have I completely lost the plot? I’d love to know what you think.
Thank you for reading!
x
