I called a dear friend this week to congratulate her on her first pregnancy. We laughed about normal pregnancy things, and she joked, "How did you do this TWO times?" It's funny how your body forgets the physical sensations of pregnancy as time goes on. It's what I like to refer to as pregnancy amnesia - you conveniently forget the crappy parts, otherwise you would never voluntarily do it again. I was a pretty calm pregnant person with straightforward pregnancies. I learned to trust … [Read more...] about Why The First One Was Hard
#10yearsaparent
10 Things I’ve Learned in the 10 Years I’ve Been a Parent
As my oldest son recently turned ten, I was feeling pretty damn good about being a parent. It's like after years of struggling, doubting, and worrying, I finally hit a bit of a stride. It's still not easy, but it's feeling less and less like being continuously pummeled by blunt objects. That's a good thing, right? I figured that I should relish this moment of confidence as it's soon to disappear into thin air as we barrel toward the tween and teen years. I've learned enough after ten years to … [Read more...] about 10 Things I’ve Learned in the 10 Years I’ve Been a Parent
Even When It’s Not Your Thing, It Can Still Be A Thing #10yearsaparent
The flyer came home from school on a Thursday. All of the flyers for various events, activities, calendars, and sign-ups arrive in the Thursday folder. I understand the school's intent to streamline the amount of paper and flyers that get sent home, but the brimming Thursday folder pushes my stress meter right into the red zone. It's not the sorting and organizing. I find great pleasure in going through the piles of pastel colored paper and dividing them into Keep and Recycle. Interested and Not … [Read more...] about Even When It’s Not Your Thing, It Can Still Be A Thing #10yearsaparent
The Real Reason I Stay At Home #10yearsaparent
I could tell you that this was the plan all along. That I always knew that this is how we would raise our family. But that isn't how it happened. A series of choices led our family to this place, but underneath the practicalities and the logistics there was a feeling. A feeling of insecurity in my own childhood that I wanted to keep my own children from having. I've built my life around my kids' schedules. I put my sons on the bus in the morning and work from home while they are at … [Read more...] about The Real Reason I Stay At Home #10yearsaparent
Identifying A Highly Creative Child #10yearsaparent
#10yearsaparent is back! Here's a little humor to get your creative juices flowing. Now that the kiddos are back in school, you're probably starting to wonder... How long until Ms. Teachy-teach starts noticing what a creative genius my child is? How long until my darling is recruited to be in the special program exclusive to following-in-Steve-Jobs-footsteps kind of kids? How long until all those hours of sitting on the floor pretending I like pretending pay off? If your child … [Read more...] about Identifying A Highly Creative Child #10yearsaparent
A Note from the Baseball Bleachers from Your Mom #10yearsaparent
Hey #6. Watching you from the bleachers, you look like a big kid smacking on Big League Chew wearing your uniform that includes a belt. You never wear a belt. Your face is mostly serious, concentrating on the next play, what you'll do if the ball makes it to you. Then you run and jump, just messing around, and you look like a nine-year-old boy again. You may be tall and look old for your age, but you're still a boy, and there are a few things I want you to know about baseball. You … [Read more...] about A Note from the Baseball Bleachers from Your Mom #10yearsaparent
The Evolution of Homework #10yearsaparent
Way back when, a cave mom gave her cave girl the assignment to go out and gather dark blue berries, and the cave girl came back with purple berries resulting in many cave people dying from eating the wrong berries. And because their population was significantly diminished by this mistake, something had to be done. The elders met and decided it would make sense to write all future gathering assignments down and make the cave girl's parents sign it. But without written or spoken language, this … [Read more...] about The Evolution of Homework #10yearsaparent
Lose the Cape #10yearsaparent
I recently read the new book Lose the Cape: Realities from Busy Modern Moms and Strategies to Survive by Alexa Bigwarfe and Kerry Rivera and was also a guest on Alexa's podcast (you'll hear more about that later). Reading this book made me think A LOT about letting go of the idea of Super Mom and doing it all. Because I have. I have completely let go of expectations and obligations and have really focused on only doing the things that work best for me and my family. I think there's a … [Read more...] about Lose the Cape #10yearsaparent