Am I Ready to Have a Baby? These Are the Questions I’m Asking Myself

So here’s the million-dollar question: Am I ready to have a baby?

And the honest answer? I have no F**king clue.

Some days I feel totally at peace with the idea. Other days I see a mom wrestling a toddler into a car seat in the Target parking lot and think, maybe not yet. And then there are the nights I scroll through videos of baby giggles and Amazon stroller reviews like, Okay, definitely maybe. But, is anybody really ready to have their first baby? You can ask friends and family, look online, talk with your partner until you’re blue in the face and I don’t think anybody knows with 100% certainty that they will be ready.

I’ve been with my husband for about 5 years now and we got married (technically in December of 2024) but our wedding was in Mexico in March 2025. We’ve been talking about kids and starting a family well before we were engaged and we are very excited to start this next chapter of our lives. But man, do I feel nervous sometimes… which … I know it is normal but, the world doesn’t always make it feel like being nervous is an OK feeling to have.

This is the brain loop I live in lately. Am I ready and when? What about the work trips and vacation plans? I have large projects and some significant work events all through 2026. I have aging parents but young in-laws. I have friends with babies, friends trying to have babies, and even more friends that don’t want babies. I have a dog, two cats, and a tortoise. We live in a world that is so unkind, yet still so beautiful. So instead of pretending I’ve got it all figured out, I thought I’d share some of the actual, real-life questions running through my head, and maybe somebody can relate. 

Meanwhile, as I’m writing this, my dog (Reggie the good boi) is asleep next to me on the couch and I keep stopping to take picture of him to send to my husband (Cody) who is just right upstairs working … already mom behavior.

Which leads me into my first major question … 

Do I have time for kids?

How to parents find the time? Honestly! Most days, I wake up (usually late), check my emails and Teams chats, get ready, take Reggie for a walk … already stressed out for what the day has in store for me … make coffee and maybe breakfast and then go upstairs to my office and start my 10 to sometimes 12+ hour work day. By the time I am out of calls, have answered all my emails, force myself out for another walk and grocery shopping and another exercise and prepping dinner, it’s already past 8pm. If Cody is in the office that day, he usually doesn’t get home until around that time, we sit on the couch, eat dinner, watch some TV (currently watching ER) and eventually go to bed. I make sure to get at least one lesson of Duolingo in and I do some type of Peloton workout. Wake up, rinse, repeat. HOW do I do this with kids when I don’t even have time to have a life without them?! SOS

Am I mentally ready for this?

This is probably one of the biggest questions and fears that play over and over in my mind. “Am I mentally ready”? With how drained I am already, I sometimes can’t even imagine doing all that with a baby, or a toddler, or two! I’m nervous that I won't have any time for me or Cody. That I will lose myself fully. That I’m not mentally strong enough to put up with the sleepless nights. But, when I really think about it deep down, my fears lie with my current lifestyle and I know I would reprioritized my current schedule so I could support a baby and my family. 

I already know I will need help from family and friends to get through these mental hurdles. To help me figure out the balance. Tips, tricks, any advice? I hope to be able to share my own on here one day. But until then, I’ll be collecting all the advice I can get my hands on!

Fitness … I don’t want to give it up

This comes back to the whole do I have time thing again, and could probably be it’s own dedicated series. Maybe I’ll call it, Honest Moms Bootcamp haha! The truth is, I have struggled my entire life with health and fitness. I’ve never been unhealthy so to say, but I have struggled with my weight since I was a kid and I have been recently diagnosed with hidradenitis suppurativa (auto inflammatory disease). I have major anxieties over not having enough time to prioritize health and fitness and feeling uncomfortable in my own skin. I’ve struggled a lot with this over the last 3-4 years and it’s weighing heavily on my mind (not just my stomach).

I think this will be a frequent topic and journey for me on this platform. I’m starting a new program called BFT (Body Fit Training). We are really hoping to love these classes and find a good and supportive fitness community. I’ve been wanting to find a strength-based program prior to getting pregnant so that I can continue during pregnancy and build up that community for postpartum support. 

Honestly … does anybody ever figure it out beforehand? It’s all our first time living.