On your mark, get set, go!

I can't remember a time when I didn't want to be a writer. Like all good stories, my life and my plans took a few detours along the way, but the voices in my head telling me to write just won't shut up. They say the rule is that you should write about what you know. So here goes: I know a little about a lot of things and a whole lot about nothing.
 I know about being a motherless mother. I know about trying to raise three kids without your mom's advice. I know about finding yourself in a situation you feel totally unprepared for. I know about being a veterinarian who decided to give up a career that I loved to stay at home with my children. I know about depression, postpartum and otherwise. And, last but not least, I know about horses. Barrel racing is the passion I pursue when my life allows.
So this blog is an outlet for me, a place where I can remind myself and others that no one's getting out of this thing alive. We may as well learn to laugh at ourselves and enjoy the ride. I hope you will get a giggle out of my adventures in motherhood. I promise to share the good, the bad, the ugly, and the positively insane.
My children are the greatest source of joy in my life. They are also the reason that I find myself looking around and wondering, "How the hell did I get here?" Before I became a mom, my body was my own. When I was tired, I rested. When I was hungry, I ate. When I wanted to ride my horse or travel, I just did it. There was no need to plan a trip weeks in advance or hire a small army of babysitters. I could sleep and pee in peace. I didn't forget things every single day. I could listen to a news story and move right on to the next thing without thinking, "What if that were my child?" There are things that happen to you emotionally and physically when you become a mother that no one can prepare you for. I don't care how many hours you've spent babysitting Sally Sue down the street, it's not the same as being a parent.
And while we're on the subject, to my girlfriends who had kids before I did: you all SUCK. None of you warned me about the things that were about to happen to me. None of you explained that I would now be losing control of my own body, not just for 10 months (and it is TEN months, by the way) but basically for the rest of my life. No one told me about all the "joys" of pregnancy. You know, things like your body doesn't just snap back into shape like a rubber band after the baby is born (and if yours did, trust me, I don't want to hear about it.) Or the fact that when someone calls their child a "pain in the butt" they meant that literally. For those of you who don't know what the previous sentence means, have a baby and you will. I read "What to Expect..." Here's my version: Expect to be reduced to a ball of quivering human goop. Your body, both literally and figuratively, is about to become human jello. This tiny, precious newborn who has already begun to suck the life out of you will continue to do so slowly until you die. Congratulations!
All that said, please understand that I am MORE than grateful for my three healthy children. Becoming their mom is without a doubt the best thing I've ever done. But anyone who says that motherhood is all rainbows and butterflies is a fan of modern pharmacology.