Parenting

Surprise: You’re Doing Everything Right (Probably)

Last week I shared an emotional and moving guest post by a friend of mine who’s story really got me thinking. Her journey has been a long one, and having arrived at the shared destination of “motherhood,” it struck me that her challenges aren’t over. Far from it, they now look a lot like mine. These shared post-mother struggles are something I not only live out on a daily basis, but are something I see playing out on Facebook feeds and blog posts across the world, as I watch friends navigating the tricky waters of parenthood. The baby isn’t sleeping. The baby isn’t eating. The baby might be possessed. The baby bites the cat. The cat bites the baby. The baby locked me in the bathroom and I said shit approximately 1,000 times. I LOVE THE BABY! The baby the baby the baby. (more…)

-GUEST POST- The Pathway to Parenthood: On Love, Loss, and Not Giving Up

We did not have an easy time becoming parents. Thank God. We have the family we were always meant to have because of our struggles. It is perfect and we are so happy for the little ones we get to love and raise, no matter if our family grows by more or not. (more…)

A Big F-You to Mom Guilt and Enjoying Every Second

Mom Guilt. It’s everywhere, weaving its sticky tentacles in and out of everything we need to do, want to do, and end up not doing, all because some nostalgic Hallmark mom keeps pointing out, “It goes by so fast! Treasure every second.” Well I’m here to give Mom Guilt the swift kick in the ass it deserves, before it convinces yet another mom to give up on doing something she loves, just so she can spend every waking second with little Junior, lest she miss him finally figuring out where boogers come from. (more…)

“I Survived The Daily Shit Show”

You’ve probably heard of the show, “I Shouldn’t Be Alive.” It aired on Discovery or something a few years back, and chronicled stories of people who survived crazy situations where, you guessed it, they shouldn’t be alive to detail their experience. Stories like people being stuck in cars buried in snow banks for 5 days in subzero temperatures, surviving off a couple of old jelly bellies for food and using a box of maxi pads for warmth. (more…)

Choose Your Own Adventure: Getting A Toddler Out Of The House Within 2 Hours

Good morning! You’ve made it through another night. Barely. It’s choose your own adventure time! Now wipe that drool off your cheek, and pull on your go-to maternity yoga pants (Yes, that’s a thing. No, you’re not pregnant). You have plans with a friend in 2 hours, and your toddler has been wearing the same pajamas for 4 days. (more…)

Goodbye, again.

Everything is temporary. This is the mantra I’ve been repeating over and over to myself the last few days as I try to digest the news of my sister’s now imminent departure from where we reside in the Pac Northwest, back to our home state of Colorado. Hearing she is leaving has left me breathless as I play mediator to my head and my heart, who are pumping out very different messages. (more…)

Weaning, Because Learning To Nurse Wasn’t Enough Of A Punishment

I am a survivor. Over 40 hours in labor? Check. Months of colic? You betcha. Nursing woes, complete with more blood, cracks and blisters than every runner of the New York Marathon combined? Uh-huh. Hormonal issues post-baby that left me weak, nauseous, and scary moody? Yessir. A baby who didn’t sleep through the night until she was 17 months old? Yeppers. I did it. I got through all of this crap, and survived with a smile on my face (at least most, OKAY, some of the time). But recently that smile has turned into a frown. A giant, ugly, pouty face frown. Why, you ask? Because I am trying to wean Baby 1.0, and it is the hardest thing I have ever done in my life. (more…)