We want our toddler to have some autonomy, so there are a few activities we let him do on his own. Things that I honestly feels he enjoys largely because we let him do them on his own. Brushing his teeth – Cole loves brushing his teeth, but I was concerned he was missing the insides of his upper teeth. I didn’t force brush that because I didn’t want to traumatize him into hating Read more…
So, I’m not a single Mom, but I am a solo Mom. When Alex goes to work, he’s working, but he’s also free from his child-rearing responsibilities for a few hours. As a solo parent, which is easier than being a single parent who stays at home, I’m on lockdown and under the thumb of my kids and their needs ALL DAY LONG! I’m a realist, I don’t think I ever believed any parenting could Read more…
Here is a brief list to help you inspire acts of kindness in your children. You may read and think of your own, feel free to comment with anything you do, or want to do to motivate your own kids to be kind. Pick up trash around town. Call someone who lives far away. Send a postcard or letter to someone who lives far away. Take food to a foodbank Buy a present for Read more…
We bought a leash for our child. The doctor and the behavioral evaluators that came to the house said Cole was behind in speech. What he’s not behind on is his physical aptitude. He basically plays at the physical level of a four-and-a-half year old. He’s fast, very fast, he climbs, he can do rolly-polys (sp) and anything else you might not picture a two-year old doing. He needed to go outside, but we had Read more…
Our two-year-old didn’t really sleep through the night until he was over one, but something I could usually count on was some sort or break while he napped. Around age two, when our newest was only two months old, he decided naps were no longer necessary. He started banging and screaming. We went to soothe him, and then it carried into his bedtime sleep, a ferocious disdain for sleepy time. It was awful for us. Read more…
Survey says….Not to yell…. I get off on some tangents here, so bare with me I was never spanked much as a child. It was the eighties though, so it happened on two occasions that I remember clear as day. I remember it largely because I disagree with why I was spanked. Today I whole-heartedly disagree with spanking for any reason. I’ve read countless studies and they all get to the same conclusion… spanking can Read more…
We have a two-year-old. He’s our world. When he’s sweet, he’s the sweetest person of all, but he isn’t always sweet. I would never say it to his face, but sometimes he can be an ass. He throws stuff, he kicks, he slaps, he can be generally unpleasant. He’s two. I don’t think he’s out of the norm in any way, but it still doesn’t make me happy with the behavior. He’s never been hit Read more…
10 Tips For Getting Your Picky Little Eater to EAT. We have a two-year-old. Our beautiful boy who would once eat whatever he was served, has now discovered enough autonomy that he now has opinions about foods. It drives…. me….. INSANE. I don’t let him see it, but in my mind, I lose my s#%T. I didn’t know what to do with the food he wouldn’t eat half of the time, because I didn’t know Read more…
I’m not very good at yoga. I’m the person tipping over in your yoga class….. every 30 seconds. I acknowledge that there are plenty of benefits though. It coaches the body to use a broader range of muscle groups, it teaches body-awareness, it teaches mindfulness and how to control ones own body. Theres a meditative factor. Off the top of my head, I can’t think of any reasons why someone shouldn’t do yoga if their Read more…
Before we had kids, the most I paid attention to breast feeding was people discussing whether its appropriate to breast feed in public or not. I never knew much else. What no one tells you is that its really, REALLY hard work. My first son didn’t want to nurse. He had no interest, and by four months, he would no longer even attempt to latch. For three more months, I pumped, so he would get Read more…
I know there’s a whole thing now where people have stopped saying “NO” to their kids. I agree that there are times where saying no might not be the appropriate response, but never saying no is ridiculous to me and here’s why. Society deserves better! Never saying no sets a precedent for entitlement. You CAN’T always do what you want to do when you want to do it. If our three-year-old hits his brother in Read more…
so credit is a tricky beast. Its a part of more parts of our lives than most people realize. Insurance companies set our premiums based on our credit, jobs may decide not to hire us if they aren’t impressed by our credit. It envelops our day-to-day and we need it to really shine sometimes. But what if your credit doesn’t shine? What if your credit sucks, or it isn’t terrible, but comes in short for Read more…
I saw this online a while back (I’ll look for the source this evening and post it), it was a blog post idea. I want to think that I identify with some amazing parent like a Candace Cameron Bure, Michelle Obama or a Joanna Gaines, but realistically, I’m probably more like an early Brittany Spears. I wouldn’t drive with my kids in my lap or EVER let my bare feet touch a public restroom floor, Read more…
By all accounts, the second semester is generally the “sweet spot” in your pregnancy. Morning sickness has usually lessened or subsided completely, you can still tie your own shoes with any luck and you can sleep in most positions without feeling like you’re going to suffocate, but its not necessarily roses in spring time. The second trimester comes with its own quirks. I lost five lbs in my first trimester, and at no detriment to Read more…
Last night, shortly after writing my last blog post I went into the hospital because I tested my blood pressure and it was pretty high. I had Preeclampsia after delivering my last son, so I knew it was a risk factor and decided to exercise extra caution because of it. It was high, and so the asked that I stay and be induced. At around 12:30 I had the pitocin installed in my IV, and Read more…
So our baby is due any day now… baby number two! I have no idea if we’re prepared or not, its such a different beast to expect baby number two than your first. In some regards, I’m sure we’re more prepared… we know what to expect from the delivery… we know better than to expect to ever sleep through the night again. We know more than we did before we had Cole with regards to Read more…
So I just scheduled a day to get induced. This was not my dream delivery. We were induced with our first. I accredit this to us having lazy babies that simply don’t want to do the whole “being born” thing. I had a dream with Cole of a pleasant water birth in one of the lovely birthing tubs at the hospital we use. The tub stopped the contractions during active labor last time. The Read more…
I clean a bit everyday and I have a child, so I do a certain amount of cooking every day. I also get up and make coffee and pack Alex’ lunch since he’s the only one working full-time outside of our house right now. I’m sure astute homemakers are cringing at the idea of reheating foods for your family, and others are asking why I’m packing lunch for a grown ass man, but it is Read more…
So we have a 20 month old. He’s insane and he climbs on everything and jumps on everything, and touches anything… firstly, anything that he is sure he is NOT supposed to play with. And then we have me… SUPER pregnant, third trimester, ridiculously exhausted and while I get bursts of motivation, they seem to be getting fewer and farther between as this pregnancy progresses. I was getting really, REALLY overwhelmed and feeling almost Read more…
Do you ever just look around your house and think “what the F%$# happened to my life?” I love my baby, I love my spouse, I love our unborn baby, but man OH MAN, did I ever have more control over my existence only three years ago. My life has always been formatted and I’ve always adhered to routines, but there was always “wiggle room”. There is no wiggle room in my life any longer. Read more…