motherhood Archives - Page 21 of 33

4 Ways to Prepare your Toddler for a New Baby

Filed Under: big sibling, motherhood, toddler // October 4, 2018

toddler, new baby, baby, sibling, preparing toddler for new baby, toddler becoming big sibling

Having a baby is a big change. It’s therefore no surprise a toddler will be affected by the change from only child to older sibling. Here are four ways I think you can help prepare your toddler in his or her transition to big sibling:

1. Read big sibling books

Incorporate big sibling discussion into story time! Explain what a baby is and that you are having one. Explain that your toddler was once a baby who is now becoming a big sibling. Though it seems complex for them to understand, they are listening and know more than we think they do. Some of our favorites are (the following are affiliate links from which I will profit if a purchase is made) :

2. Explain there’s a baby in your belly.

Talk about the new baby. Explain that the baby in your belly (or elsewhere if you are not carrying the new baby) will eventually be in your arms. Forge a relationship between your toddler and your belly and the baby inside. Ways to do this are to encourage belly rubs, belly kisses and feeling baby movements. You can also use a doll to mimic the new baby and start showing your toddler how to hold, feed and play with a baby.

3. Spend alone time with your toddler because their time, and your attention, will eventually be shared.

A couple weekends before our baby was born, we decided on a whim to go to a play space with S so he could have some fun time with just the two of us. I am so glad we decided to do this because the baby arrived sooner than my due date. Other ways to spend time together are by going for walks together, to the playground together, doing crafts, and if you can, going on a little getaway to give your toddler undivided attention.

4. Show your toddler love.

Your toddler might not fully comprehend “I’ll love you just as much. You’re my baby, too.” They will feel your love, though. Give it freely and fully. Hold them and hug them. Smother them with smooches. I’m not saying your relationship with your toddler will drastically change but there will probably be a change in its dynamic so soak up your one-on-one time!

Why I Work

Filed Under: motherhood, working mom // October 3, 2018

office, office desk, woman sitting office, woman laptop, work, woman sitting office chair, office clock, clock, laptop, work, work from home

I could choose not to work and we could be a one-income family. In fact, we once were. However, like many Americans, work is a part of my everyday life. While being a working mom is challenging, it’s also rewarding. It is my hope that by sharing my reasons for working, I can help working moms feel better about your situations:

Mortgage
The most obvious reason why I work is to help pay our bills, namely our mortgage. While we could rent and live more comfortably, my husband and I were tired of renting and throwing our money away. I enjoy owning our own home but it comes with sacrifice, #1 being my need to contribute financially. If I were to tell you how much we pay in property taxes (some of the highest in the country), you’d understand better…

Self-sufficiency

My mom was a stay at home mom. I think she enjoyed the quality time spent with my brother and I and the fact that she didn’t have to commute everyday (to this day she doesn’t like the subway). But as I got older, she instilled in me a need for self-sufficiency. She’d often tell me it’d be good to have a career and money of my own. I now understand. My husband and I don’t separate our money much but it’s nice to know I’m a) contributing in a substantial way; b) can buy things without feeling like I’m using “his” money; and c) can be self-sufficient, if necessary.

Intellectual stimulation

I’m a self-proclaimed nerd. I love reading, writing (no surprise there), and learning. I live for a challenge. And that’s what work provides me with—a daily challenge to get things right and help people in the process. Whether it’s in the legal field or social media business realm, I am challenged daily and I enjoy it.

Emotional wellness

Having an identity apart from Mom and Wife is important to me. It helps me not get lost in the day-to-day happenings. Don’t get me wrong, while Mom is my favorite title I appreciate the time to myself and the adult interaction that work gives me. It’s sort of a self care practice of mine — who’d refer to work as that huh? If you’ve home with kids, with your 24/7 life revolving around them, you’ll probably get it. It’s easy to get lost while catering to everyone else’s needs. Work forces me outside of my home, outside of my homemaking duties and into a world of other responsibilities.

Along the way, my biggest concern is the time I spend away from my kids to work. I hope to eventually find a better balance but in the meantime, they are making great memories with my mom and I am hopefully setting a good example for them. I hope they’ll be proud of me one day.

Do you work? Why or why not?

Mama and Papa Bear

Filed Under: motherhood // September 19, 2018

This post is sponsored by Balmex. All opinions are my own.

Have you seen those t-shirts — the “Mama Bear,” “Papa Bear,” etc. ones? We have some (while writing this post I realized my hub’s wearing his in the photo above). Now, it finally makes sense to me why the design probably came to be and why they’re popular.

Because mama and papa bears protect their cubs, just as we protect our kids.

We try our best to protect them from boo boos and falls, from unsafe objects and situations.

We hope to heck we can protect them from bad people and bullies.

I wish I can protect them from heartbreak and sorrow… although that will likely be out of my hands as those are sometimes just a part of life.

One of the things we can protect them from or against is diaper rash. We do so by changing their diapers as needed and with gentle/sensitive diaper changing items. Because the products used matters.

Balmex is a diaper cream that protects your baby’s against the 3 leading causes of diaper rash: wetness, skin chafing and digestive enzymes found in dirty diapers. Did you know introducing your baby to solid foods typically increases the change and frequency of diaper rash? We know this all too well because our toddler’s diaper rashes really started after he started solids.

Balmex contains zinc oxide, the #1 doctor recommended ingredient for fighting diaper rash, plus Vitamins B5 and E to soothe irritated skin, and a natural ingredient shown to help neutralize digestive enzymes that are known to irritate a baby’s skin. It is clinically shown to reduce rash in just one diaper change!

Chances are your baby has had diaper rashes, too. If you could avoid the rash spreading, worsening and/or becoming long-lasting, you’d surely want to, right? Treating it with the right product is important. That’s why having Balmex handy is important.

Join Balmex on Facebook and Instagram for giveaways and exclusive offers! For more information on Balmex Complete Protection, please visit: http://www.balmex.com/.

Sunflower Mommy & Me Photo Shoot

Filed Under: motherhood // September 5, 2018

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

A Special Thanks to All of You

Filed Under: back to work, Maternity leave, motherhood // September 4, 2018

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!