Welcome to the Circle, little sister.

(To one specific sister at the moment, though I mean it for all of you, and eventually my little brother, when he finds a good woman to settle down with...)

Welcome to motherhood, little one.  I know you're not all the way there, you still have some months to go before you get to meet that sweet little girl you're carrying, but even so, you are still a mother who is making the best decisions possible for your child every day.  Even before the baby arrives, you're learning about her and preparing a place for her in your life.  Sometimes that's almost as hard to do as it is once the baby has arrived.

I have so much confidence in how strong and amazing you are as a woman, and how great a parent you will be.  You are going to do a great job.  You were born to do this!

Motherhood is a great gift.  There is no other relationship you will have on this earth as amazing and special as the one you are entering into.  When you first look at your baby- when you see those little eyes and hands and feet for the first time in your arms- you know that child has your heart wrapped up in those tiny fingers, and your heart will feel so huge in your chest.  You'll know in that moment that you are superwoman, and that you'd move mountains and fight off wolves barehanded for that small baby if you had to.  Of course there will also be days when you don't feel so super.  There will be ups and downs, and some days you'll wonder if you can really handle this child, how you can possibly do it with so little sleep... and on those days you'll discover a different strength. 

Birth is an amazing and life-changing event by whatever means it occurs.  I believe that a healthy baby is NOT all that matters, and hope that the birth you have is not only the birth you want, but is also one where you and your baby are treated with respect and love and kindness to get you off to the best start possible when you meet that beautiful baby.  It is an intense experience to go through, and only you can go through it.  It's like running a marathon- all your friends and loved ones can support you to the starting line, hand out drinks and snacks while you're running, but only you can run the race yourself.  No one can run the race for you, and you're a different person at the finish line than you were at the starting line because of the experience.  Run that race how you choose, and know that I will be cheering for you all the way through. 

You will be swarmed with advice givers of all kinds the moment you give birth, if not before.  I have some advice for you myself.  So, here goes.

1.  No matter who is giving you the advice, you don't have to follow it (except for these four pieces of advice, because my advice is more awesome like that).  It could be a friend, a family member, a doctor, someone from church, some random stranger.  It doesn't matter.  If the advice doesn't seem right to you, or seems like something that you are not comfortable with, you can say no.  You don't have to do what everyone else says because this is your child, and you are a strong, capable person even if you are young and this is your first time doing it.  You get to make decisions for the first time about another person's life.  It can be scary.  You'll wonder if what you've chosen is okay sometimes, especially if everyone else seems to think it's weird or different... but if it feels right to you, keep going.  (this includes whether or not your baby wears socks, what you feed them, who gets to hold them, how much they get held, etc.)

2.  If you have a down day, or you have questions, or you just need someone to help you out, do not be afraid to ask.  Ask your friends, ask your family, ask your co-workers.  Do not hesitate to get people to help you in the first year or two- parenting is a challenge, and we were not meant to do it alone.  It really does take a village (just watch out for idiots in your village)!

3.  Don't be afraid of being imperfect.  Even when we do all the 'right' things, someone else thinks you're doing it wrong.  There is no such thing as a perfect parent.  There's what works for you, what works for me, what works for so-and-so, but no one thing will work for everyone... because your baby is yours. 

4.  Don't be afraid to learn more.  Every day more knowledge is added to the world about everything, and when we know better, we do better.  :-)

So, that's it.  I, of course have loads of knowledge on other things about birth and babies, and breastfeeding, and other stuff.  I'm here if you need me.  I'm only a text or call away.  Or skype.  In other words, even from nearly 1000 miles away, I'm backing you all the way to the finish line lady.

-<3, Me.