Well, it’s over. My twelve weeks of blissful baby snuggles ended with my return to work today. I have dreaded this day, not because I don’t want to go back to work, but because the thought of leaving the tiny human that has not been out of my sight for more than an hour since her invention with essentially a stranger is enough to break my soul. I spent so much time preparing my daughter for her first day at “school”, that I completely forgot one BIG thing I should have done to prepare for my return to work.VIEW POST
D-MER: My Ridiculous Experience with Dysphoric Milk Ejection Reflex {Depression When Breastfeeding} WTF
Leave it to me to find the most obscure and bizarre post partum affliction available. I hadn’t a clue that D-MER was even a thing until it happened to me. Oh what’s that you say… you’ve never heard of it? You’re in good company because basically 99% of the population hasn’t either. Who has ever heard of depression when breastfeeding?! Well now I have, so today let’s chat about D-MER, or Dysphoric Milk Ejection reflex, what it is, my experience with it, and what can be done about it.
My Hurricane Baby: A Second Time Mom Birth Story
I just love a good birth story. Maybe it’s my nosy nature, or maybe I just find birth that fascinating, but either way, when I see one pop up, I’m intrigued. In my last few weeks of pregnancy, I can’t even tell you how many times I searched “second time mom birth story”, as if the stories of others would somehow give me an indication of what to expect for my second birth. Spoiler alert: They didn’t. One of the things that you will hear from your care provider and doula the most is (annoyingly) that every birth is different. And they are. But alas, if you’re a momma-to-be searching for answers, or if you’re one of my nosy curious friends, then here is MY second time mom birth story of my sweet little hurricane baby.
Thoughts Before Baby Number Two
Thirty-nine weeks + one day pregnant as I write this and I don’t even know what I’m going to say. Sitting here ready to crawl out of my own skin, I just had to do something before I fidget myself into a mental breakdown, and I thought “random thought-vomit BLOG POST!” So here you go my friends… the unfiltered thoughts of a nearly insane, ridiculously pregnant woman, who is BEYOND over it. A.k.a. My thoughts before baby number two.
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What to Wear for Maternity Photos
Friends, I had a hard time with this one. Not only because it’s a great feat of physics to appropriately dress a pregnant body, but also because I’m fashionably challenged (that phrase is TM by me) even with a “normal” body. I looked at Pinterest for weeks trying to find something that I thought might be half photo-worthy. After searching for basically all of my second trimester, I’d resolved that I’d have to spend over $100 to get the flowy, comfy, goddessy style dress that my heart desired. Turns out I was wrong! Here is the dress that got my vote for what to wear for maternity photos, as well as a peek at some of our pics because I just couldn’t resist!
Crib to Big Girl Bed {My Biggest Parenting Blunder}
Exhaustion has been taken to new levels around here folks. I am now solidly 8.5 months pregnant and the struggle to sit, stand, and/or sleep comfortably is epic. In addition to that, being the parenting GENIUS that I am, I decided that now (40 days away from newborn) was the time to transition our two year old to her “big girl bed.” Turned out to be a big girl mistake.
What Your Pregnant Wife Needs From You
As I sit on my birth ball and type this, I am 26 weeks and four days pregnant. It recently occurred to me that though my husband is typically understanding, he is helpless when it comes to the impossible task of deciphering the intricate, delicate workings of his pregnant wife’s brain and emotions. I know there must be others out there in same predicament, so I thought I’d cut through the crap and tell you precious husbands straight up exactly what your pregnant wife needs from you.
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Gender Reveal & Choosing a Baby Name
By now I’m sure you’re all aware that I’m pregnant with baby number two, due June 28th. I have to keep double-checking this date to make sure that I have it right… With Lila I could have told you how many hours and minutes until I was due, and this time around I can hardly get the month right. #secondchildproblems Last week we FINALLY went for the anatomy scan and found out the gender! The baby gender reveal threw us me for a loop and now we’re scrapping the awesome idea that we had and are back to the drawing board for choosing a baby name!
What Makes You Happy? No, Really.
On Thanksgiving we announced to the social media world that I am pregnant with our second babe. I’m so relieved to finally be able to talk about it here on the blog. I’m certain that I’m not the only woman out there who starts growing a human and consequently begins to reevaluate ummmm, basically life as we know it. I look at my daughter when I’m rocking her to sleep at night and think, “she deserves better.” I go to work and I think, “this is not my dream.” I recall my interactions with the people I love on a daily basis and think, “this is not who I want to be.” Pretty heavy, right? I’m not saying I’m a terrible, miserable person (all the time), but I could do better and I know that. All of this recent reflection has led me to one conclusion… I need to know what makes me happy and then go for it. If someone asked you the question “what makes you happy?” What would your answer be?VIEW POST
How to Survive the First Year of Parenthood {Stuff for Baby’s First Year}
Welcome to the second installment of JSH Baby Time! In the first post I talked about some tricks to make pregnancy survivable, and now we’re going to talk about how to survive the first year of parenthood, a.k.a. Stuff for Baby’s First Year. I must tell you though, no amount of lists, planning, thinking, prepping, reading, washing, organizing, or car seat installing can honestly prepare you for becoming a parent. There’s no checklist that can make the full gravity of leaving the hospital with seven pounds of brand new human life that is completely dependent upon you any less terrifying. So, if you’re looking for that post, this ain’t it. This is, however, a list of the top things that I wish I’d known much earlier in my foray into motherhood, so here ya go… a list of sixteen things to help you Survive the First Year of Parenthood, also known as Stuff for Baby’s First Year!