Navigating new motherhood one cold cup of coffee at a time
As the countdown to my next childbirth draws near, I've been thinking, asking, talking, and listening on all things labor and delivery. I'm blessed to have a large support network of mothers in this community who have such varying experiences and wisdom, in addition to a well-rounded care team of midwives and my doula. I've… Continue reading The one birth affirmation that is excluding women
I'm that girl who is ready for Christmas in August. It's my favorite time of year. Not just for the cookies, music, decor, shopping, and the whole Jesus birthday thing, but because of how it fills my cup spiritually. There's an extra dose of love in the air that ripple effects from our communities into… Continue reading Why I will continue asking my husband for Christmas gifts now that we are parents
I read another blog recently that clicked with me. This woman talked about how her identity as a person didn't diminish when she became a mother, even though she admitted that motherhood was all-consuming. Instead, she proposed that motherhood was something that encouraged her to find more of herself. I love that. Motherhood gets a… Continue reading To the mom worried about losing your identity …
Motherhood is loud. Very loud. Both from within ourselves and in our every day surroundings. It's a beautiful chaos that we learn to love. Even though I gave birth to my son well over a year ago and have grown used to this beautiful chaos, I catch myself in recurring conversations with fellow new moms… Continue reading Giving new mothers a blank slate
There is a hilarious video circulating the Internet of a mom showcasing the differences in how she prepared for the birth of her first child vs. how she prepares with littles already running around. It pokes fun of the contrast in the glamor that we create around first-time pregnancies – and how this glamor abruptly… Continue reading The real reason second-time moms “care less”
The books will define toddlerhood as a phase that starts at 12 months, but so long as mine has his squishy cheeks he'll always be my baby. That said, there are hilarious differences as we navigate year two – the first year of this thing called toddlerhood. You know you have a toddler when: Instead… Continue reading You know you’ve started toddlerhood when…
Our first duty station was Hawaii, and I gained so much from our time there. I was ambitious, young and impressionable. I was starting my career, pursuing this thing called love; I couldn't have been in a better place for this chapter, where the community leads with Aloha – a powerful outlook that set me… Continue reading What I didn’t know when I married the military
I officially hit the third trimester of this second pregnancy. It's surreal that we will meet our daughter in a few short months. Last pregnancy, there was this constant looming and enormous news that we were going to become parents, and it made us one giant ball of nerves. Now that our days are already consumed… Continue reading Third trimester turbulence
As a stay-at-home mom, the ways in which I use and rely on my smart phone have certainly evolved from when I used it in the workforce as a reporter and online communications strategist. But out of habit, I held onto this sense of urgency that was embedded in my work of needing to have… Continue reading Four traumatic things that happened in 24 hours without my phone
"Remember, you didn't have a normal birth." I was told this in recovery by my care team as I was trying to grapple with what just happened to my body, why nurses were physically punching me to help get my baby out, why my baby wasn't breathing, why my recovery was taking forever, why it… Continue reading My redemption birth: I am enough
