Informal Parenting

If you've never read this, you totally should.  It's so true, it hurts.  The woman finds her husband to be distant and acting strange, and takes every late response or quiet moment as something wrong.  She blames herself for his distracted behavior. I don't know about you, but I've been this woman before.  In the beginning of my relationship to my husband, Joey, there were often times when he'd be distant and distracted.  I always thought it was something that I did wrong.  It was hard, at first, for me to accept that "babe it's not you, I promise" was really true.  I always blamed myself.  Maybe it was just me being self-conscious, but whatever it was, I was putting a lot of blame on my own shoulders.  Because of that, I would get upset.  And because I was upset, he'd be upset that I was upset and he didn't understand why.  It was a never-ending loop of crap. One day I found this hilarious meme, a diary entry of...

Even if you're a first time mom, putting together a baby registry is easy.  There are hundreds of lists just like these all over the internet - Pinterest, Youtube, Baby Center, you name it.  They are EVERYWHERE.  I'm sure by the time you've gotten to my list, you've already read a few others. Everyone's list is going to be different, because different things are important to different people.  Some people recommend getting a changing table, and others (like me), think they are a waste of space.  I'm going to give you my list of must haves, wants & desires, and things I left off on purpose, but I'm also going to tell you why.  Hopefully it'll help you make choices that fit you better when putting together your registry online or in store. I have to start this list with things I already have - my sister had a baby about a year ago (he's having a Where the Wild Things Are themed birthday party next weekend, and the cuteness is overwhelming)....

Babygaga wrote an article titled, "12 Dangers of Breastfeeding for Too Long Most Moms Don't Know" last month on June 28th.  Here's the  link  if you want to read it yourself. If a mom is still breastfeeding past one year, do they deserve criticism for it?  Let's take a look at the 12 'dangers' that Babygaga is warning about. Prepare yourself for a ride, because this isn't a short post. 12. Can Cause Infertility While a quick google search can confirm that babies born to mothers who conceived less than six months after giving birth have an  increased risk for premature birth or other birth complications,  you don't have to wait 2 solid years before you conceive again.  The study recommends waiting 18 months for better outcomes.  I conceived within the first year after I had my first child - the second baby was just fine.  Babygaga is using this as a scare tactic.  A reason why you should quit breastfeeding if you're trying t...

A great deal of my day consists of listening to my kids repeat themselves.  If you don't answer them fast enough, it's OBVIOUS you didn't hear them. Hayden: Mom, can I have a snack? Mom? Snack? Can I have one? Can I have a snack? Mom? Me: YES YOU CAN HAVE A SNACK. Rylee: Mom can you help me with the juice? Mom, can you help me?  Me: Ye.... Rylee: Mom, can you help me with the juice? Me: YESICANHELPYOUWITHTHEJUICE.   Sometimes, my husband and I turn it into a game.  One of my kids will ask me a question from another room.  We'll sit back and count how many times they repeat themselves until they get up to finally come ask me in person. I think Rylee made it to 15 times once.  His dedication is inspiring. It does stress me out.  Sometimes I answer more sharply than I mean to.  After all, I'm not DEAF, and no matter how many times I remind them of that, they still insist on repeating themselves if I don't answer in th...

This is Lilly.  After a year or so of begging for a pet, we finally broke down and adopted Rylee a pet for his birthday.  Which, in reality, means I adopted a pet rabbit for myself.   The first thing I do every morning is clean the rabbit cage, fill her water and food, and give her love and adoration.  Rylee likes to hold her throughout the day, much to her dissatisfaction, but look at the joy on his face.   Eventually Rylee will be in charge of all things Lilly.  Cleaning, feeding, petting, training, etc.  For now, though, it's my job to make sure she stays alive and stress-free.  The things we do for our children.

Welcome to my blog!  This is me and my husband, Joey.  He's my best friend in this world, and the most loving father I know.  We have two kids, boys ages 8 and 9 years old, and a little girl on the way.  What is informal parenting?  Informal is defined as " having an unofficial style, manner, or nature."  It's pretty fitting for how I live my life as a mom.  Let me explain.   I'm currently a member of a September Babies group on Facebook, a community of about 50 or so women who are due to give birth in September.  I see a lot of first time moms already obsessing about being 'the perfect mom.'  How much caffeine can I have while I'm pregnant?  Where do I start pre-registering for preschool?  How many Mozart cd's should my fetus listen to daily? And look, moms, you have to chill.  Collectively, we all have to chill.  In the land of social media, there's always someone who APPEARS to be doing a better job than...