Tag Archives: parenting

Baby Sleep Woes

When Ruth was a baby, my husband and I would wonder what all the fuss about sleep deprivation and babies was about. She was already sleeping five hours a night when we brought her home from the hospital. She was sleeping eight hours by two months, and twelve by four months. “We are the best parents ever!”, we congratulated ourselves. “All of those parents that don’t sleep at night must be doing something wrong,” we smugly opined.

Then, Rose was born. She wouldn’t sleep for more than three hours at a time until she was four months old. Our faith in our parenting abilities was shaken. That was the longest four months of my life. Until Wren was born. read more

Top five unexpectedly good things about having babies close together

When Ruth was five months old, we found out we were pregnant with Rose. When Rose was about seven months old, we found out we were pregnant with Wren! Having children this close together is not for the faint of heart, but it does come with some unexpected perks. For example,

1) None of your baby stuff is in storage. That’s right! No need to send your husband up to the attic for all that baby junk that has been up there for a few years and worry about cleaning off the mold, dust and spiders. It is all still out! In fact, there is still a baby in it. Don’t get too comfortable in that exersaucer, baby. I’m counting on you learning to walk in the next few months. And soothe a newborn. read more

When are you going back to work?

I get asked this all the time. I usually stammer some awkward explanation about being on perpetual maternity leave because I feel like “I AM working, and when the kids grow up and leave the house, I will be enjoying my well-deserved retirement,” isn’t quite the answer they are looking for.

As an aside, I feel obligated to mention that if you are looking for a discussion on whether “working” moms or “stay at home” moms are better or have a harder life, then look elsewhere. I have never been a working mom, so I am not going to presume to speak on something about which I have no knowledge. read more

When mama is sick

I woke up with a fever of 102 racking my whole body. I staggered into the girls’ rooms to change their diapers and get them dressed. Putting out two bowls of Cheerios and two sippies of milk, I turned on Sesame Street and promptly (and accidentally) passed out on the couch.

I was awoken from sleep by a kiss. My eyes snapped open, horrified that I had fallen asleep. I was staring into Ruthie’s enormous eyes. “Mama, you sick?,” she inquired. “Yes, baby,” I answered. Before I could stop her, she planted another big kiss on my lips. “I make it all better, mama.” “Thank you, baby.”, I told her, realizing how the whole “kiss it and make it better” thing had really backfired on me from a hygienic standpoint. read more

That time my humble blog post went viral

I have a very humble blog, which before I wrote this post had about four readers, one of which was my mother. But a few days after I wrote that post, my email inbox was flooded with notifications that people had commented on it. I was floored. I had no idea such a post would resonate with so many families. Apparently that lady in the elevator and I were very much not alone in having to bear rude and impertinent comments from (sometimes well-meaning) strangers about our very personal decisions regarding our families. read more

Give a Mom a break!

Mommy judgmentalism. This topic has been weighing on my mind a lot lately. I sincerely enjoy following other moms’ blogs and Instagram feeds, just to support them and commiserate, if need be. But most importantly, each mother experiences motherhood uniquely, and I find that fascinating. But when some of these mothers share their experiences, they can be inundated with a barrage of judgments and vitriolic comments from their fellow mothers! It blows my mind. Motherhood is one of the most difficult journeys we as women can undertake, as evidenced by all of the risks that come along with pregnancy and childbirth, psychological afflictions only associated with motherhood, and not to mention the enormous responsibility of this helpless human’s survival depending entirely on you. If there is ever a calling that needed endless solidarity and support, it is motherhood! And yet it is in mothers that we find the most divisive and discouraging behavior toward their fellow mothers! read more