children
Children: Our most valuable natural resource.
The Dark Days of Motherhood
There are so many dark days of motherhood. And for me, there have been a lot of them in the past few weeks. This week being particularly bad. A couple of days ago, it was one of those days where you have to put your child in their crib and let them cry. Because if you don't, you feel like you just might lose it. And you know what I did during the 20 minutes I let my beautiful one and a half year old daughter cry? I sat in my backyard and sobbed into a towel. Feeling like a fucking failure. Because she had been crying for six hours, and nothing I had done made her feel any better.
By Shana Nizeul8 years ago in Families
My Induction Horror Story
Every pregnant woman will tell you the last few weeks of pregnancy are the longest. You want to meet your baby so badly, and you are so, so, soooo tired of being pregnant! I was huge. I was ready. I was four days away from my due date. We woke up early on October 27, 2009. We had stayed up all night talking about our baby and how nervous/excited we were to meet him and I should have been tired but I wasn't. I was completely full of energy for the first time in months.
By Felicia Hippler8 years ago in Families
My Story
25 years old. Single mom to two amazing children. Trying to figure out life and feeling like a failure. That’s where I’m at with my life; wondering where all my dreams and plans that I had in high school went, wondering where the happy-go-lucky 17-year-old about to start college, majoring in teaching, went and where this 25-year-old adult struggling with depression and anxiety came from. Somewhere along the way, life had other plans for me, and I’m still trying to figure out exactly what those plans are.
By Rachel Smith8 years ago in Families
The Toddler Life
No one told me sharing or teaching a toddler would be hard. You know what, scratch that, no one told me raising a toddler was going to be hard. I figured it would be a breeze. I thought raising a toddler would be something like off a TV show. I had this little world where my son would listen to me, finish every meal, and have no problem eating his fruit and veggies (we're working on this). Raising a toddler isn't that bad, if you figure it out. Every toddler is very different in their own little personality way, but I try to make the best of it in our own little lane. Our good outweighs the little satanic tantrum moments. I'll give you the greatest moments, since learning how to raise an in-tune human being.
By Gayle Lebus8 years ago in Families
My Life
Just take a deep breath, calm down. I repeat that to myself at least 10 times a day, or tell myself it will get better. Life can’t possibly be this crazy all the time. I am a stay at home mom and well, basically I feel like I could go insane at any given moment. I know you other moms know how I feel. Some days I feel like a complete failure cause I can’t manage to get things done; sometimes I feel like super mom and get everything done. My son is four with the attitude of a teenager and energy like the Energizer bunny. My daughter is almost 10 months old and in a stage where if I’m more than 2 feet away from her she completely freaks out! I love that she’s a mommy’s girl, but some days it’s impossible to get anything done, which goes back to why I feel like a failure. My son is just now becoming jealous, so he’s always doing something to get attention. When we first brought her home he always wanted to hold her, help feed her, didn’t want anyone having her, and now he hurts her, sometimes on purpose but he still wants to hold her and doesn’t like her out of his sight. He’s a sweet kid and loves his sister but oh my gosh he’s non stop with the questions, back talking, bothering his sister, etc... When I tell him "no" he says, “well, I said yes,” or if I tell him I’m going to take his tablet, he replies with, “I take your phone.” Don’t get me wrong, I love being a mom, and I am glad I get to be home with them but sometimes I need a break, something my husband doesn’t understand. He means well, as I’m sure most men do, but in reality, any stay at home mom NEEDS A BREAK! We don’t ask for much, we would just like to make it through a shower without being needed or maybe sit down and eat our food while it’s hot, not get up to get everyone something they forgot to ask for or wipe a butt. Not even going to lie, days that have been completely crazy, after dinner I go hide in the bathroom, LOL. Sometimes you just have to. I’ve tried being the “Pinterest” mom— setting schedules, trying different activities, and baking. But I’m human and so are my kids, so it just didn’t work out like I had hoped, but that’s life. Kudos to those moms who can make it work. My life is chaotic and messy, some days I don’t know how I’m going to make it through and just want to scream, others I love on my kids all day long, when they let me. My son says he’s a big boy, so his hugs and kisses are rare. At the end of the day, I’m glad and proud of who my kids are; they make my world go around and drive me crazy, but I love them and I couldn’t imagine my life without them. I dread the day they don’t need me anymore. I may complain until I’m blue in the face, but I love doing for them and will always do for them. Being a mom is a blessing; I didn’t really have one growing up so a lot of my efforts come from what my dad showed me what a parent should be and what I wish my mother would have done.
By Brianna Brookshire8 years ago in Families
The Professional Mommy
Wife. Four children. A ten-year career in human resources. Two businesses on the side. I know it sounds like a lot, but there is more. I describe myself as a serial entrepreneur. My brain gets bored easily and I love innovation and learning new ways of doing old things.
By April Stephens8 years ago in Families
I'm Naturally a Sh#$$y Mom
Every woman's dream is to get married and be financially secure enough to stay at home with their children and put their careers on hold until the kids reach school age. Being a stay-at-home mom is a full-time job without a paycheck. I guess you can't really put a price on being home to witness every little milestone your child reaches. Being a mother is a natural instinct we just have, right? WRONGGGGG!!! I might be the only one but I have to work very hard to be a good mom. It doesn't come natural to me. I love my kids, that's not what I'm implying at all, it's just I'm not naturally good at it.
By Karlee Demrow8 years ago in Families
5 Tips to Getting Back Into a Routine
It's that time again. The holiday break is over and your kids have to make their way back to school. Secretly, you're ecstatic about this transition because you've had them in your face for the last two to four weeks. But that doesn't mean it will be a smooth transition.
By Samantha Reid8 years ago in Families
Picture Schedules and Our Family
I used to dread telling my son to do anything that required more than one or two step directions. Because he is autistic, has severe ADHD, Sensory Processing Disorder, and a bunch of other acronyms, anything beyond a single direction is a fruitless effort.
By Keila Carvalho8 years ago in Families
The System Is Broken
When I was 15 I fell in love with a total douche bag. (As "in love" as a 15 year old can be.) The fact that he was a total douche bag was part of the appeal back then. I came from an upper middle-class family. We lived in a 5 bedroom house. We even had a library room. Both of my parents have double Master's degrees. I was taught by my snobby mother when I was growing up that no college education meant the person was trash. If we ever went to McDonald's, she would say loudly, "This is where you'll have to work if you don't go to college." Thanks to extensive orthodontia, both my sister and I had gleaming, straight pearly whites.
By Katie Carter8 years ago in Families
