Moments of Musing

Sunflower Mommy & Me Photo Shoot

Filed Under: motherhood //

If you’ve been around here for a while, then it’s no surprise I LOVE summer. It’s my birthday season and my favorite weather. I was surprised then to find out that I had no idea that sunflower season occurs during my birthday month of August. I think you can figure out what I did then. I decided I needed photos to commemorate one of my absolute favorite summers with my littlest loves of my life.

There weren’t many staged smiles from either baby because it was a scorcher that day — in the mid-90’s. We rushed in and out but still had a blast! Life is about making memories. I saw a quote recently that read, “Be the mom you want them to remember.” I am trying to be that mom everyday for them.

sunflowers, sunflower maze, august, summer, end of summer, photo shoot, mommy and me

sunflowers, sunflower maze, august, summer, end of summer, photo shoot, mommy and me

sunflowers, sunflower maze, august, summer, end of summer, photo shoot, mommy and me

sunflowers, sunflower maze, august, summer, end of summer, photo shoot, mommy and me
sunflowers, sunflower maze, august, summer, end of summer, photo shoot, mommy and me
sunflowers, sunflower maze, august, summer, end of summer, photo shoot, mommy and me

sunflowers, sunflower maze, august, summer, end of summer, photo shoot, mommy and me

A Special Thanks to All of You

Filed Under: back to work, Maternity leave, motherhood //

sunflowers, sunflower maze, august, summer, end of summer, photo shoot, mommy and me
Sunflower Photo Shoot sneak peek – you can see the rest in my blog post tomorrow

Thank you — to you and you and each and every one of you who is reading.

Due to your support of my blog and social media, I was able to extend my maternity leave to be about one month longer than my leave after having my first child. You are probably wondering how you have personally helped me.

Well, my job offers a step-down (pay decreases week-by-week) partially paid family leave. The first eight weeks are paid but the remainder is unpaid. I decided when I was pregnant that I would like to take at least 16 weeks. It is how many weeks I deemed would be necessary for me to feel comfortable leaving my second baby and going back to work. (Due to our family situation at the time, our first baby was lucky enough to have my husband home for the first nine months.)

Your support helped me to land some pretty amazing projects that enabled me to still contribute financially while I was on leave. And so, today I go back to work. It is not without anxiety and sadness but it is with much less anxiety and sadness.

I owe much of that to my extra time at home …and also to Abby’s lesson on perspective.

Happy September and kind of unofficial fall, everyone!

Balancing Kids’ Screen Time

Filed Under: motherhood //

This post is sponsored by Oxford University Press. All opinions are my own.

Admittedly, I struggle with balancing my toddlers’ screen time. We had a strict “no screen time” for most of his first year, and then starting introducing kids movies and shows. He was interested in them and it gave us some time to do things we needed to around the house.

My least favorite mechanism for his screen time is the cell phone because it can be difficult to take away from him without causing a tantrum. A trick I’ve learned to use is to pretend the phone has died and needs to be charged and then move on to his play room, go outside, or partake in an educational activity. Balancing his screen time is something I deal with daily.

What is screen time? How much screen time should kids receive? Is any screen time actually good?
Tech Generation: Raising Balanced Kids in a Hyper-Connected World by Mike Brooks, Ph.D. and Jon Lasser, Ph.D. answers those questions and more. It is a helpful guide for parents to teach our kids how to benefit from technology use while also preventing its negative effects. The authors are psychologists with experience working with kids, parents, and teachers. 

Regarding screen time for toddlers, the AAP advises against screen time for kids under two years. The AAP discourages screen time (other than video-chatting) for children under 18 months. If there is screen time, it is recommended an adult interact with the child during it. Letting them use media by themselves should be avoided because interaction is crucial to kids’ development.

For kids of any age, maintaining relationships and in-person communication is important. The pull of technology can hinder those so it is important parents are aware of their kids’ technology use and manages it. Therefore, recreational screen time should be kept to one or two hours for kids over two-years-old. Of course, as parents, we have to practice what we preach. That means balancing our own use of technology, which is something I am constantly working on.

Some other helpful tips I learned from Tech Generation are:

  • Turn off ringers and notifications to avoid distraction and constant gravitation to our technological devices.
  • Keep TVs, computers, and gaming consoles out of bedrooms to enable you to best monitor your kids’ technology activity and to avoid disruption of their sleep.
  • Avoid allowing your children to become early adopters of new technologies that they are not developmentally ready for, i.e. social media.
  • Do not allow screen time during car rides, though there can be exceptions for long trips, because there is value in quiet time.

If you are at all concerned about your kids’ use of technology, you should read Tech Generation. I highly recommend it. I found the book to be extremely informative and helpful. It is particularly timely since we all stay indoors more after summer ends. 


Child/Baby Safety Month

Filed Under: Uncategorized //

This post is sponsored by Ameriwood but all opinions are my own. 
I feel like I say this every month but August sure does feel like it flew by. I can hardly believe it is almost over. I recently saw a quote “August is the Sunday of summer” and it’s so true. Like I said in my last, however, we have a fun fall lined up so I’m not too sad… besides the fact that I have to go back to work. I will miss my boys so much. 
Speaking of fall, September will be here next week! Did you know September is Baby/Child Safety Month? Here are some tips for baby safety via Baby Safety Zone:

  1. Choose and use age and developmentally appropriate products.
  2. Read and follow all manufacturer’s instructions, recommendations for use, and warning labels.
  3. Register your products and establish a direct line of communication with the manufacturer.
  4. Actively supervise- watch, listen and stay near your child. 
  5. Frequently inspect products for missing hardware, loose threads and strings, holes, and tears.
  6. Monitor your child’s growth and development and discontinue use when needed.
Therefore, when buying furniture like this stylish Novogratz Addison 4-Drawer Dresser, it is important to adhere it to a wall. The dresser comes with a wall anchor safety kit.

It is important to anchor it to a wall as soon as you set it up. This will prevent it from tipping or falling over and causing injury. Children love to climb things and jump. They do not understand the consequences of their actions. It is up to us parents to keep them safe. Thankfully, Novogratz helps by providing us with that wall anchor safety kit.

Live life now…Not later, not tomorrow, not next year

Filed Under: life //

Lately, I’ve been thinking a lot about my cousin Abby, who passed in March of cancer. This time last year we were getting back from a last-minute family vacation to Disney. The group of 15 of us pulled it off because Abby wanted to go. I didn’t know if my husband and I could make it work but we did.

This past weekend, I wanted to make the most of it since summer is winding down. On Saturday, we planned to go to the zoo. However, when I started thinking about the 2 1/2 hour round trip drive, I thought maybe we should leave it for next year when both boys would be bigger and able to enjoy it.

Then, I realized next year is a long time away. Why wait for a whole year to pass by? Why not enjoy the zoo and life with my little guys in the stages they are now? And so, that’s what we did. We went to the zoo and we had a lot of fun, all four of us.

On Sunday, we went to a water park. Again, I had my doubts at the outset. I thought the kids would not really enjoy it since they can’t go on most of the rides. But we went anyway and once again, we all had a blast. The kids section was pretty extensive, Seb loved the wave pool and sand by our cabana, and Raf enjoyed the nice breeze — the cold water, not so much. It was a good mix of fun and relaxation for everyone.

This was all a reminder that life is meant to be lived now. Not later, not tomorrow, not next year. That’s why we have quite a jam packed fall of fun coming up. We’ve decided really recently to head on a tropical vacation because why not? We could all use it.

Abby’s passing reminded me that life is wild ride that sadly is not limitless— we all have a limited number of days and there will unfortunately be an end for each of us. On the flip side of that, she taught me to make the most of the time we do have. She sure did.

We all should, too.

(We miss you, Abby.)