You know where you’re trying to go. You thought you were on the road that would get you there, but suddenly everything looks wrong and your intuition is confirmed when the know-it-all voice of the GPS on your dashboard barks, “RECALIBRATING!” You took a wrong turn and the lady inside your GPS is frantically trying to get you back on track. For a blogger, I have surprising Luddite tendencies. I … [Read more...]
Dear Moms, Don’t Hate Yourself for Liking Social Media
We're always hearing about the dangers of being plugged in. It’s so easy to get too attached to our screens. To be looking down at our phones when we should be looking up at our children. I get it. It’s so hard to have a healthy balance and not let the internet and social media take over our lives. It’s a very real danger to be, in the words of T.S. Eliot “Distracted from distraction by … [Read more...]
The Motto of the Working Mother
A guest post by Molly of Molly Makes Do: A perfect little house with just enough space to be comfortable and cozy. A yard big enough for adventures and exploration. A gaggle of smiling children. The ability to put real, wholesome food on the table for every meal. Hours spent living and growing in our lives together. A comfortable existence where every need is provided for and wants are … [Read more...]
Two Parenting Epiphanies I Wish I’d Realized Sooner
I've had a couple of valuable epiphanies since Baby Gwen (our third) arrived. After an easy-going season for four-year-old Benjamin, the addition of a new baby seemed to throw him for a loop. His frustration wasn't ever directed at her, his "sweetheart", but at me. We just weren't clicking. It felt like he was a black hole of needs and I was in the throws of postpartum sleep deprivation with … [Read more...]
Stop Doing, Start Being
From the day he was born, Benjamin, my four-year-old, has fought sleep. No season of my life has been as difficult as the newborn days of exhaustion we faced as we attempted to care for an infant who never slept. He had to be sleeping on one of us or sleep simply wouldn’t happen. When he was awake, he was crying , because he was just so tired. After reading a great piece by Auntie Leila over at … [Read more...]
I’m a Mother, Not the CEO of My Household
The other day I was taking a walk with my almost 2-year-old, Lucy while wearing a sleeping Baby Gwen. The September sky was deep blue through the pines and the wind was blowing away the corners of the oppressive blanket of Florida heat. Lucy was carefully choosing spots to sit down on the nature trail and let the sand run through her fingers. She found leaves, flowers, and butterflies and asked me … [Read more...]
7 Books for New Moms
A Note from Haley: While we're enjoying vacation with no internet connection in the NC mountains with our extended family, my favorite librarian mama and dear friend, Katherine of shouting hallelujah, is sharing some of her favorite books for mamas. I may have a not-so-secret hope that Baby Gwen and Katherine's young Pip (see below) decide someday that it would be a fine idea to marry. Ahem. Enjoy … [Read more...]
I’m Trying Not to Be the “Just Wait” Mom
I am the mother of a newborn, a toddler, and a preschooler. When my friends who are first time moms tell me about their parenting challenges, two words try to creep to the tip of my tongue: “Just wait.” When a friend says, “I just can’t take the baby to the grocery store, it’s too stressful!” What I want to say is, “Just wait. Try taking THREE kids to the grocery store! Taking just the baby … [Read more...]
Praying with Your Feet
Sometimes I make the mistake of separating my spiritual life from my vocation as a wife and mother. I see my children as distractions from prayer and spirituality, rather than an opportunity to love God. On a particularly trying morning with a very fussy infant at church, I spent almost all of Mass outside holding my crying baby and watching Mass through the door. Afterwards, I lamented to a … [Read more...]
Any Expectant Mamas Out There? Check Out From Maiden to Mother
I'm three days overdue with Baby Gwen (Lucy was 10 days late) so I'm starting to lose my mind a little. I really gave all my natural labor induction methods a good try yesterday, including acupuncture, spicy Thai food, long walks, etc. but to no avail! One more weekend pregnant just sounds UNBEARABLE. C'mon Baby Carrot! I'm doing my best to distract myself from the fact that I'm still … [Read more...]
