Celebrating mothers

There’s a moment when Mother’s Day stops being just a holiday and starts to mean something more personal – when you’re no longer just celebrating your mom, but you’ve become one yourself.

 

This year, several Daniel Island and Clements Ferry women will be celebrating their very first Mother’s Day as moms. From sleepless nights to the sweet firsts, they’ve already learned a lot in just a few short months. These women open up about the reality of new motherhood: the joy, the chaos, and the magic.

 

Building confidence with baby steps 

When Kate Neubert gave birth to her son Bryce last November, she felt a wave of relief, but also uncertainty.

“Part of me was elated that I wasn’t pregnant anymore…but the other part of me was anxious because I felt out of my element holding him, giving him a bottle, putting him in a car seat safely,” she said.

 

“I knew I would get to a place of being able to do these tasks over time, but I wanted to be confident immediately.”

 

Her turning point came when she stopped consuming fear-based parenting content.

 

“I was used to seeing these ‘how to handle this issue’ posts and expected at least one of these problems would happen to us. Realizing that this type of content was more detrimental than helpful, I changed my algorithm,” Neubert said. “All that worrying didn’t help or prepare me.”

 

Thankfully, Bryce has been an easygoing baby.

 

“I don’t want to sound like I’m bragging, but we’ve still been able to do the things we love: walks on the Battery, early dinners on Daniel Island, festivals. We haven’t felt deprived.”

 

Support made a difference; Neubert’s husband took 12 weeks of military family leave. “He’s the most hands-on father and truly does everything,” she said, noting that friends and family also pitched in to provide relief, meals, and encouragement.

 

Motherhood has shifted Neubert’s worldview, saying, “It makes me realize we need to do more as a country to help people and make their lives a little easier. Paid leave, universal health care, free school lunches – kids should not go hungry or without care.”

 

She’s also discovered a powerful new skill: intuition.

 

“It’s only been five months, but I can solo parent while working from home part-time,” she said. “Planning ahead and giving myself time has made all the difference.”

 

Her advice to new moms: “Be honest about how you’re feeling, even if it’s overwhelmed or isolated. It doesn’t make you a bad mom; it shows how much you care.”

 

From military to motherhood

Emily Diamond didn’t just become a mother last year – she also left behind a 17-year career to raise her daughter full-time.

 

“I chose to quit my job of 17 years and commit myself to (my baby daughter’s) care and development, as we are lucky enough to be able to live on one salary,” she said. “Both quitting my career and having a kid are shocks in themselves, but both at the same time were a lot to deal with, mentally and emotionally. I don’t regret it for one second, even though some days I wish to have a kid-free day.”

 

A military veteran, Diamond assumed she knew what exhaustion felt like. “Having served in the military, I’ve had my fair share of interrupted nights. That was nothing compared to parenthood,” she laughed. “There is this new human who cannot communicate but through cries, and it’s 100 percent your responsibility to interpret those cries.”

 

The newborn stage was a whirlwind of recovery and hormones. “I was bouncing between overwhelming joy and rage,” she said. “Thankfully, that has all passed, and my body mostly normalized by six months postpartum.”

 

The hardest part for Diamond? Isolation. 

 

“We had a baby that didn’t want anyone else. She only wanted me or my husband,” she said. Still, the new mother leaned on her supportive cul-de-sac, daily walks, and her hands-on partner. “He steps in when I’m about to crack,” she said, adding that motherhood has revealed unexpected strengths. “I can carry that baby far longer than my husband can, and I do it without much effort. My ability to go into stealth mode when I need to be quiet? Never thought I had that in me.”

 

Her advice to new moms:“Everything is a phase. Try, with every ounce of energy you have, to enjoy every single moment. And if the weather’s nice, go outside! Pram, stroller, wagon, baby wrap, or just hug it out – we all need fresh air.”

 

The emotional reboot of motherhood

For Celena Richards, the newborn phase was the toughest part of motherhood.

 

“I could hardly get anything done in a day,” she said. “I wasn’t productive until after noon most days. It was rough.”

 

As a therapist, she was able to take time off to adjust, but “the newborn stage was the hardest for me,” she said. “It was also my first baby, so I was learning everything at once.”

 

Two years later, Richards reflects on the deeper emotional transformation. “I’ve had to be present, to regulate myself so I can show up for my son,” she said. That personal growth has involved therapy, dance classes, and weekly acupuncture. “Time for myself has to be scheduled now, and it’s non-negotiable.”

 

Motherhood also changed her physically and mentally: “My brain and body changed. I still don’t have the energy I had before pregnancy,” she said. “Even things like alcohol affect me differently now. My executive functioning isn’t quite the same – it’s like I had to re-learn how to feel like myself again.”

 

And when a broken leg added another challenge, she said, “It made us rethink how far we live from family. But we’re lucky we have a strong support system. My husband has really stepped up, and our relationship has deepened in a way I didn’t expect.”

 

Emotionally, she feels things more deeply than ever before: “I can’t hear sad stories about kids without crying now. Even if I don’t know the person. Motherhood has made me more tender, more open.”

 

Sleep deprivation took a toll, too.

 

“My son didn’t sleep through the night for nearly two years due to undiagnosed asthma. I was running on four hours of broken sleep while working full-time. I didn’t know I had that strength, but I did it because I had to.”

 

Her tips to fellow moms? “Find your people. Therapy groups, mom meetups…anything where you can share the load. And always regulate yourself first. When I take care of me, I’m so much better equipped to take care of my son. Sometimes, that means stepping away from a tantrum until I’m calm again. And that’s OK.”

 

The common thread: Community, courage, and connection

Whether rocking babies to sleep or strolling through Waterfront Park, new moms on Daniel Island and Clements Ferry are learning that motherhood is both personal and universal.

 

They’re tired.

 

They’re stronger than they thought.

 

And they’re not afraid to say some days are really, really hard.

 

But they also light up when they speak of joy: gummy smiles, baby giggles, milestones reached, and the quiet awe of shaping a tiny life.

 

And if they could say one thing to other moms this Mother’s Day, it’s this: You are not alone.