If you’re a mom, you already know the job description goes way beyond diapers, snacks, and bedtime routines. Somewhere along the way, we all got promoted to 'household medical secretary'....

I thought I had prepared. I read the books. I bought the swaddles. I went to prenatal classes. But nothing prepared me for the wave of anxiety that hit me after my first baby was born. In the beginning, it didn’t feel like the glowing “new mom” phase I’d been promised. Instead, it felt like I couldn’t breathe unless I knew exactly when she had last fed, how many ounces she'd eaten, how many minutes she had napped, whether she was too hot or too cold, if her cry meant something serious or not.

Lately, I’ve found myself lingering a little longer during bedtime snuggles. I breathe in the scent of my baby’s hair, memorize the shape of my daughter’s hand in mine, and wonder—could this really be the last time I do this?