My first year of motherhood has been the most surprising year of my life. I have surprised myself time and time again. I always knew I was resilient, but I didn’t know how patient and flexible I could be. I am a typical Virgo, I like things the way I like them, typically tidy and predictable. Two words not often associated with life with a baby. From Sami’s exit out of the womb to now, nothing has been as I planned or idealized. And yet it has all unfolded in an utterly perfect way. This venture into raising a human has stretched me in ways that impress myself. I have realized that the truth I held about myself is malleable, that I am malleable. And that a different reality than the one I envisioned doesn’t feel like a compromise or sacrifice.