Smarter?

I was checking my e-mail tonight, eating miniature candy bars (thank you Hershey's -- miniature makes my tummy think I can eat more than a few). I received a weekly e-mail about Meredith's developmental progress and saw a very interesting link...."How being a mommy makes you smarter."
Of course I clicked on it!

Lately, I feel the brain cells going down the tubes. I watch cartoons or dramatic series - I read children's books or decorating magazines (Yes, I have read a few books in the past months, but for some reason, I am not excited about the ones sitting on my nightstand). I don't think of how to change the world. I really don't think that a person on the street would meet me and think I am one of the adults with higher education, much less a Master's Degree that I received with my eyes closed. They see me as a young mom that doesn't know how to control her kids. I misprounounce words, forget necessary descriptive vocabulary, and speak in slang. I think I most noticed that after a visit from my friend, Carla - she would ask Lucas "What would you like?" So polite! So educated! I get right to the point with "Whaddu you want?

Anyways, the article speaks on a book that is about the increasing intelligence of mommies. Being smart is defined in many different spheres, and in terms of a mommy, she gains strength in perception, efficiency, resiliency, motivation and emotional intelligence. I am still working on the efficiency one, but hey, I am a procrastinator at heart! And interestingly enough, I did my senior project on emotional intelligence in preschoolers!

Even more interestingly, statistics show that you lose at least 700 hours of sleep during the first year of your child's life! Maybe I can catch up on those 1400+ hours once Rich comes home... And you feel tired because your child is stimulating a part of your brain that you typically don't use. The joys of children!

Reading this really makes me feel better about myself for the time being....