Hello, Today’s Parent. My name is the Mommiologist and this is my audition for a featured blog. Is this thing on?
Motherhood is a beautiful, disgusting, hilarious, difficult and rewarding experience. On the one hand, I have been pooped on, spat on, coughed up on, cried on, hit, kicked, and puked on. I have teared up at her first smile, word, step, giggle, and day at day care. I expected the extremes of disgusting and sublime. What I did not expect, is how she would fascinate me so.
I am a scientist. My transition to motherhood meant a large adjustment to my career track, but I couldn’t turn off my brain that easily. I became a scientist because it allows me to explore the world with a constant sense of wonder, because it meant that I can have that feeling of having my blinders removed, again and again. It’s indulging the feeling of turning a new corner, every now and then, and being able to see the world in a new way. In many ways, it’s choosing to see the world through my daughter’s eyes – eyes that are always curious and full of wonder.
When you think about it – about how improbable the development of a human being from its humble origins – how could motherhood not be full of wonder? Two simple cells unite, and through a highly orchestrated series of events, give rise to a completely new human, whose personality, talents, shortcomings – even her face – is a random mix of her parents. It made me wonder how babies see the world when they’re first born, why they’re attracted to music, and how they learn language. Even the disgusting aspects of being a parent are fascinating. Why do pregnant mothers get morning sickness, and what’s in a baby poop? I write about science, and motherhood, and the crazy world I live in. I think it’s pretty entertaining.
