I don't know about you, but one of the most significant changes after having a baby in 2014 was in how little time I had to read. I have always been a voracious reader, but unless you count all consults with Dr Google, I barely read at all the first six months of SweetPea's life. So my goal for 2015 was to read more. And I did. I went to the library, I reactivated my Kindle. I even asked for a few books for my birthday. It's a trend I hope to continue this year! Not surprisingly, a lot of what I read was about raising kids. So without further ado, here's the best of the parenting … [Read more...]
How to Handle Parent Mistakes with Compassion
Last night I blew it. Big time. SweetPea was nursing, and she bit me. At 10 months old, she has 8 knifelike teeth in her little mouth. Though she rarely bites, it sometimes happens when she is a little overtired. Usually I handle it by giving her a teething toy. But tonight I was just too tired to get up and get one from the living room. (I don't know about you, but my worst parenting moments always happen when I'm tired or desperately trying to get something done.) So I offered her a blanket to chew on. That seemed to do the trick; she chewed it for a few minutes, then came back to … [Read more...]
Can Kids’ Misbehavior Be An Opportunity To Connect?
What do your kids do that drives you crazy? Do they whine, refuse to come with it's time to leave the playground, argue over who's turn it is to take out the trash? How do you handle these behaviors? Does this restore good feelings to everyone, or do you all feel worse afterward? The good news is we can influence whether we are more connected after a conflict. People are hardwired to see people as either threats or allies. When we try to control (through punishments, bribes, comparisons, false praise) our kids perceive us as a threat. They may go along with us to avoid the … [Read more...]
What I wish I knew about breastfeeding before I had a baby
I thought I was completely prepared for breastfeeding. I read the books, even attended a class. I knew that breastfeeding often doesn't come naturally, requiring learning from both mother and baby. I'd even seen The Magical Hour and let our birth team know that we were planning to let our baby take her time to find the breast on her own. But breastfeeding is complex. Expecting to be completely ready for it before baby is a bit like expecting to be fully competent at a new job the second you walk in. And we all know that's not the case! Here are some things I learned along the way that I … [Read more...]
It’s ok to nurse your baby to sleep!
I wish just one person had told me this when I was pregnant! I spent our early weeks with Sweet Pea lulling her to sleep with long walks, bouncing, and singing to her. I diligently tried to lay her down "drowsy but awake" only to have her pop awake and need to go through the whole process all over again. Exhausting. I began to dread nap time! Read almost anything about baby sleep (and nearly every new parent is busy looking for answers on sleep!) and the one nearly universal piece of advice is to not let baby fall asleep nursing. And it really is good intentioned advice. If baby falls … [Read more...]
Three Hours of Sleep
Wearily I roll over and check the clock. Three hours. Sweet Pea slept three whole hours! For most people with a 5 month old, three hours of sleep would be a major regression, but we'd gone on for almost two weeks with her waking up Every. Single. Hour. Three hours was a luxury! I'd given myself a two week deadline to wait out this latest sleep challenge before considering some form of (gentle!) sleep training, and she pulled through with two days to spare. I'm really not sure if I'd have actually turned to sleep training, or whether I would have waited some more, but giving myself … [Read more...]