Pregnancy

UPDATE: This giveaway is now closed.

Congrats to:

Emily (remiersma@…)

I will email you to get your information!

During the months leading up to Nora’s birth, I spent a lot of time researching different products for babies and new moms. I borrowed many items from friends and family, and also did a lot of shopping on Craigslist to find rock bottom prices on gently used items for the nursery, for the baby, for our house, etc.

And while I am thrilled with the frugal choices I made and all the money I saved, I really wanted to find some high-quality nursing clothes brand spanking new — just for me!

Since I am planning to nurse for several months, I wanted a few nursing tank tops that I could wear every day and that would allow me to discreetly nurse.

In my many online searches, I came across Glamourmom.com — which is an awesome company that specializes in high-quality, “glamorous” nursing and maternity apparel for every size and shape.

I’ve been wearing their Nursing Bra Long Tanks almost every day for the past 3 weeks, and I absolutely LOVE them! I might even continue wearing them after I’m finished nursing!

{in my Glamourmom Nursing Tank just hours after Nora was born}

A few reason why I love this tank:

• They are really long — which means they fit my long torso and I don’t ever have to worry about my stomach hanging out {and I’m sure most new moms don’t really want their stomach to be visible!}

• They are SO comfortable. I wear a nursing tank every single day under whatever I’m wearing so I’m thrilled with how comfortable they are.

• They are slimming. There is just enough spandex in these tanks to really “hold you in” — which is something my post-baby-belly is very thankful for

• They are very modest. Although I’m definitely NOT one to nurse in any type of public setting, it’s still nice to be able to nurse without baring all — even when I’m just at home! As you can see by the image below, these tanks make it almost impossible to tell if you are nursing or just holding your baby.

• They look like a “normal” tank top. This may sound trivial, but when you know that you’ll be wearing nursing attire for the next several months of your life, it’s nice to have things that look normal and don’t scream “I’m wearing a nursing top”.

The Giveaway:

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Today, one lucky Simple Organized Living reader will win a Black Glamour Mom Nursing Bra Long Tank — perfect for any nursing mom! 

How to Enter:

1. Leave a comment. What is your favorite product for new moms or new babies?

2. Like Simple Organized Living on Facebook, and then leave a separate comment letting me know you did {or that you do already}.

If you are reading this in your email or feed reader, please visit the actual blog post to enter. Email entries, Facebook comments, and Twitter messages will NOT be counted.

Prize:

(1) Glamour Mom Long Nursing Tank as described above.

This giveaway ends at 10:00 pm on Monday, 12/19/2011 and is open to all U.S. residents 18 years or older. I will use And the Winner Is to select the winning comments at random. Winners will be notified by email and noted at the top of this post. Winners must respond within 48 hours of notification to claim their prize or I will choose a new winner. Please see my full disclosure policy and contact me with any questions you have. Good luck!

63 comments →

I’m back! 

After being on maternity leave for almost 3 weeks, I’m back; and I have a mountain of new tips and ideas to share with you! But first, I thought I would take a few moments to share a little about Nora’s birth story, update you on the last 3 weeks of my life, and answer some of the MANY questions I’ve gotten via email, facebook, twitter, and blog comments.

Seriously – isn’t she just the cutest!

Nora’s Birth Story:

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Nora was born on Tuesday, November 22, which was 4 days after my LAST due date… so I think it goes without saying that I was more than ready for her to be born!

Dave and I woke up at 5:30am and I soon realized that my stomach was feeling a little “crampy” — and that those crampy feelings were coming about every 8 minutes. I told Dave to go to school but to be ready for me to call.

I knew Nora would be born that day! 

I quickly did a load of laundry, cleaned out the fridge, showered, finished packing the hospital bag, and tried to clean out my Inbox as much as possible!

By 9:30am the contractions were every 5 minutes and at 10:30, Dave decided to come home. It was absolutely perfect timing for Dave because he only had a half day of school on Tuesday and then the rest of the week off for Thanksgiving — so he didn’t even have to deal with sub-plans or getting behind with his grading and lesson plans!

We got to the hospital just after noon — and by that time, the contractions were getting pretty strong. It took about 45 minutes for me to dilate from a 1 to a 4 so they quickly moved me to the Labor and Delivery room around 1:00pm.

About 2.5 hours later, Nora was born! And just like that, we were a family.

{Nora at 10 days old}

Life with Baby:

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Wow — where do I start? Life with a newborn has completely rocked my world — more than I ever thought possible {feel free to say “I told you so”!}

Obviously I knew my life would never be the same {believe me, about 462 people have told me this!} I knew I would get less sleep, I knew I would be less productive, and I knew it would be a challenge… but even still, there was absolutely nothing that could have fully prepared me for being a mom!

Yes I had a bunch of meals and snacks in the freezer, yes the nursery was completely ready, yes we read a bunch of baby books, yes my Christmas decorations were up, yes I had a bunch of my Christmas shopping done… but all that planning ahead still didn’t prepare me for how totally overwhelmed I would feel when we brought Nora home on Thanksgiving Day.

The fact that this tiny baby was totally dependent on ME for everything was just so overwhelming — especially since I felt like I had absolutely no idea what I was doing.

Add in the fact that I’ve never NOT been able to schedule my days, I’ve never NOT been able to sleep through the night, and I’ve never NOT been able to “do my own thing”… and it was a recipe for a complete melt-down!

Thankfully Dave was absolutely wonderful. He put up with my tears and continued to reassure me that I was doing a great job. Our families have also been really supportive by making meals, inviting us over for dinner, watching Nora for a few hours, and even staying the night once so we could sleep. Without them, I’m not sure I would have made it.

The last week has been much better, Nora is sleeping more at night, she’s growing and gaining weight so I’m not as worried about how much she’s eating, and I’m slowing feeling like my days have more of a schedule… which I so desperately need.

Praise the Lord!  

I know we still have a long road ahead of us, and I’m hoping things will only get easier as we start to develop more of a routine and get used to living with a baby; but for now, I’m just happy that Nora is healthy and happy {for the most part!}

Q & A’s:

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As you can imagine, I’ve gotten lots of questions already — so I’ll answer a few of the most common ones below.

What was the worst part of your labor?

Definitely the contractions! My labor went so quickly that I never had time for an epidural… so I felt all the contractions. I have a pretty high pain tolerance, but by the time I started pushing, the pain level was close to a 9 or 10 for sure!

What were you most surprised about during labor?

When my water broke. I was always so worried that I wouldn’t know when my water broke and every time I felt a drop of wetness I would think — could that have been my water breaking? However, when my water did break {like 10 seconds before I started pushing} it was SO much water! I kept thinking, what if that had happened at church or in the mall, or in our bed at home! 

Also, I was surprised and how little pain I had during the actual delivery. Everything I was told made it sound so extremely painful but I honestly only felt pressure… no real pain.

{brand new — only one day old}

Where you instantly in love?

Honestly, I don’t really even remember what I was thinking or feeling when they put Nora on my stomach after she was born. I remember thinking: how on earth was she inside me? and then thinking: she’s mine… she’s perfect… but what should I do now?

Later that evening when Dave and I were talking, he asked me if I felt like a mom yet, and I said “not really”. It was still so surreal; and although I’m totally smitten now, I honestly would not say that I was “instantly in love”.

What do you remember most about your labor?

Like I mentioned earlier, it was just so quick — but I definitely remember the feeling when the doctor said, “one more push and you’ll be parents”. I pushed and literally felt my stomach “deflate” and all of a sudden there was no pressure any more.

Also, Dave got to cut the cord so I’m sure that’s something he’ll remember forever.

How was your hospital stay?

It was amazing. We delivered at St. Mary’s Hospital and were SO impressed with their staff, nurses, doctors, and facilities. I’ve never been a hospital patient before so I didn’t know what to expect, but we were pleasantly surprised. We even celebrated our first family Thanksgiving in our hospital room — and actually had a really good Thanksgiving dinner, complete with pumpkin pie!

Why didn’t you let your sister be your nurse?

One of my sisters is actually a Labor and Delivery nurse at St. Mary’s hospital so while she was definitely around during our hospital stay, she was not my nurse. I know a lot of people thought that was crazy, but I just didn’t want my sister to be my nurse. I wanted her to be a sister and an aunt… and I’m happy with that decision.

What is the best part about being a mom?

When she smiles!

What is the most overwhelming part about being a mom?

Oh boy, where do I start! Probably the fact that this little girl depends on me for everything. The lack of a daily schedule is also extremely overwhelming for me… and while we are starting to see sleeping/eating patterns, it’s still nothing like my pre-baby ultra-structured days!

How are the international students doing:

I don’t think they are really that interested in the baby — which is fine. We talked with them a lot before Nora was born and made it VERY clear that we did not expect them to babysit or be responsible for her in any way. We also said that they were welcome to hold her if they wanted to, but they didn’t have to.

The girls say they can’t hear Nora crying at night, which is good — no sense in all 5 of us being up!

How is Dave doing?

He’s a natural… honestly! He’s so patient {both with Nora and with me} and SO helpful. I know he’s tired too, but he’s always so excited to hold Nora when he gets home from school — even if she is crying and a little cranky.

So that’s it for now. Our lives are just a little different than they were a few weeks ago, and while I do miss my schedules and crossed off lists, I think I’ll be able to adjust.

Plus, she’s just so darn cute — a keeper for sure

Thanks to my friend Jodi for the amazing newborn photos! And thanks to all the amazing moms who wrote guests post for me while I was on maternity leave. Such great motherly advice!

19 comments →

Due to the recent birth of our beautiful baby girl, Nora Faith, I’ve rounded up an All-Star list of moms who effortlessly seem to manage work, home, family, life, and everything in between! You can read all their words of motherly wisdom here, as well as how they manage to “do it all” while still living a life they love.

I’ll be sharing my own thoughts and baby updates soon enough, but right now, I’m simply soaking up their trusted advice while cuddling with my new baby girl! 

The following is written by Karen from Abundance on a Dime:

When I was pregnant with my first child back in 1997, there was absolutely no question in my mind that I would breastfeed. I mean, I was a health professional with a master’s degree in nutrition – how could I not? I knew there were so many benefits to breastfeeding: improved health for the baby, increased bonding between mother and child, and incredible money savings, just to name a few!

Like many first-time moms, I had a very idealistic view of breastfeeding.

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I thought that because it was the natural thing to do, it would be “no big deal”. But a few weeks into my breastfeeding experience, with cracked, bleeding nipples, mastitis, and a clogged milk duct, I was nearly at the end of my rope and wondering how this could possibly be happening to me, of all people!

Fortunately, I did stick it out for those first difficult months, and I went on to have extremely satisfying and long-term breastfeeding relationships with both of my sons. Those early days aside, my nursing experiences are some of my most treasured maternal memories.

I’d like to share some of things I wish I had known back when I began my breastfeeding career, that would likely have made my early days as a nursing mom a little smoother and much less frustrating:

1. Learn as much as you can – before you give birth!

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As a first-time mom, I spent hours reading about pregnancy and childbirth – and very little time at all learning about breastfeeding. You’re going to be spending a lot more time nursing than you are in labor, so it makes sense to learn as much as you can about this important topic before the baby arrives. Your midwife or obstetrician can likely recommend a few good resources with accurate information about the more technical aspects of breastfeeding.

In addition, reading about the nursing experiences of other new moms can give you a better understanding of what to expect as a newly nursing mom. The Breastfeeding Café is a wonderful book filled with women’s breastfeeding stories (both the joys and the challenges).

2. Don’t expect overnight perfection.

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As the saying goes, “breastfeeding is perfectly natural, but not naturally perfect.” You’re learning a brand new skill, and that usually means some trial and error. Be easy with yourself and try to relax as much as possible (I know that can be hard when you’ve got a screaming baby trying to latch on!)

It may seem hard to believe in the beginning, but you (and the baby) will get the hang of it, and it will get easier and less stressful with time.

3. Establish a breastfeeding support system.

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Having a number of different people available to provide assistance and support when you need it is extremely invaluable in the early weeks of breastfeeding. This could include a local La Leche League leader or group, a midwife, a lactation consultant, or a friend or colleague who’s an experienced breastfeeding mom.

Ideally, there’s at least one person in your support system that you can call for advice any time of the day or night, since breastfeeding issues are not limited to the daylight hours!

4. Don’t compare your baby to other babies.

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Babies have different nursing styles, so don’t think that just because your baby doesn’t nurse the way your cousin’s or neighbour’s did, that something is wrong. My older son liked to latch on and stay on the breast for about half an hour at a time; my younger son usually stayed on for just a few minutes at a time and liked to pop on and off frequently.

5. Expect to spend a LOT of time breastfeeding.

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Breastfeeding is “on demand” and feeding times can be very unpredictable. For the first few months of your baby’s life, this is going to be one of the major activities of your day, so keep your schedule as flexible as possible.

6. Create a breastfeeding station in your main living space.

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Since you will be spending hours every day nursing, it’s important that you have a comfortable place to do it. Good posture while breastfeeding is crucial for avoiding back, neck and shoulder pain. A nursing pillow is invaluable; you may need other pillows handy for back support as well.

Having music or DVDs handy can help you relax as well ward off boredom if you’re home alone all day with the baby.

7. Learn a variety of nursing positions.

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Alternating positions at different feedings can help reduce the chances of milk ducts getting clogged. In addition, the sidelying position is invaluable for nighttime feedings as it allows you to nurse the baby while lying down in bed.

You can find photos of some of the more common nursing positions here.

8. Get to know your breasts.

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Most of us aren’t accustomed to paying a lot of attention to our own breasts. However, it’s a good idea to check your breasts daily for any signs of a clogged duct starting to develop, or a crack starting to form in a nipple.

Addressing any problems early on can help prevent much bigger problems down the road (trust me, mastitis is no fun).

9. Keep the lines of communication open with your spouse/partner.

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Breastfeeding can be really stressful for new dads, too! If you’re struggling, he is likely feeling scared and powerless to help you. Make sure you let your partner know how you’re feeling, and what he can do to help support you.

10. Be patient.

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One of the most important things my midwife ever told me was that it could take up to three months for lactation to be well-established. Many women give up before they get that far!

In fact, I did find that once I hit the three-month mark, breastfeeding had become much smoother sailing, and I was well on my way to a satisfying nursing experience with my son.

What are your best breastfeeding tips?

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Karen McLaughlin is the mother of two tween/teen boys with voracious appetites and the author of the forthcoming book Cheap Appétit: The Complete Guide to Feeding Your Family for Less Than $400 a Month (While Eating Better Than You Ever Thought Possible). She writes about living a joyful, rich life on any budget at Abundance on a Dime.

2 comments →

Due to the recent birth of our beautiful baby girl, Nora Faith, I’ve rounded up an All-Star list of moms who effortlessly seem to manage work, home, family, life, and everything in between! You can read all their words of motherly wisdom here, as well as how they manage to “do it all” while still living a life they love.

I’ll be sharing my own thoughts and baby updates soon enough, but right now, I’m simply soaking up their trusted advice while cuddling with my new baby girl! 

The following is written by Amy from The Finer Things In Life:

Congratulations to Andrea on the birth of her sweet baby!

Knowing Andrea and her diligence and careful preparation, there may not be much about pregnancy or birth that surprised her, but some of you may be in the throes of your first pregnancy, or may be reading this with your sweet baby snuggled on your chest, thinking Why Didn’t Anyone Tell Me? about one thing or another.

During my fourth pregnancy I put together a series answering some of those questions. I hope it’s a help to you or another new mom you know!

Why Didn’t Anyone Tell Me?

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…that wanting to conceive a baby doesn’t always result in actually conceiving a baby?

Infertility is heart-wrenching, and often unexplained, but there is certainly hope. After a three-year trial with our own infertility, my four children are proof.

… that how I treat my body during pregnancy matters?

No, I shouldn’t eat whatever I want. Yes, my weight does matter for the health of my baby and myself.

… that pregnancy is uncomfortable!

The aches, the pains, the hemorrhoids! It’s not all bad, and most discomforts have a somewhat effective solution.

… that I would desperately want to stay home with my baby, and that (in most situations) it can be done!

Going from two incomes to one is a tough decision, and with it comes many sacrifices and lifestyle changes, but with determination and creativity, it often is a healthy choice for the family.

… that I have birthing options.

That I don’t have to follow the status quo, which often leads down a slippery slope That I need to educate myself and be an advocate for my own healthy birth.

… that checks down there are often unnecessary and rarely helpful.

Yes, really!

… that I can have a healthy, natural birth in a hospital.

Just because you elect to birth in a hospital doesn’t mean you have to have a lot of medical intervention. Prepare yourself!

… that breastfeeding would be so difficult.

But so very right for my baby and rewarding for me. Obstacles are common, especially for first-time moms, but they can be overcome!

It’s endless, right?

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The questions, the concerns, the Why Didn’t Anyone Tell Me?

You know what else is endless? The love. The snuggles. The joy. Pregnancy is such a gift.

Babies are the most incredible of blessings. It’s good to be informed. It’s important to be an advocate and do our very best for our little ones. In the end, though, just enjoy. Love. You’re a fabulous Mama!

What do you wish someone had told you before you had a baby?

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After teaching sixth grade for eight years, Amy traded the chalkboard and classroom germs for dirty diapers and the joys of living on one income. When she’s not nursing a baby or fixing Saturday morning breakfast for her husband’s football team, Amy’s blogging about Embracing the Extraordinary in Every Day over at The Finer Things in Life.

2 comments →

Due to the recent birth of our beautiful baby girl, Nora Faith, I’ve rounded up an All-Star list of moms who effortlessly seem to manage work, home, family, life, and everything in between! You can read all their words of motherly wisdom here, as well as how they manage to “do it all” while still living a life they love.

I’ll be sharing my own thoughts and baby updates soon enough, but right now, I’m simply soaking up their trusted advice while cuddling with my new baby girl! 

The following is written by Kim from Art of Domestic Living:

I had heard about the baby blues, and I had likely seen a special on Oprah or some other talk show, but I didn’t give it much attention. For the most part, I felt like I was an average woman who experienced “minor” PMS symptoms, and for the most part, was able to keep my emotions intact.

But this all changed once my daughter was born.

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Actually it started about nine months before she was born, before I even knew I was pregnant!

A few days before I suspected that I might be pregnant, I was at our neighborhood home improvement store, buying some lumber for a window treatment. A sales clerk helped me fit the long piece of wood into my Honda Civic. It was a rather long piece of wood, so it had to be strategically placed from my front windshield diagonally through the trunk.

I drove about two yards when the windshield decided to crack from the pressure of the wood. I went into the store to see if they could do anything. I talked with the manager, but because I had driven a couple of yards, they were not responsible.

I started crying and then I called my husband and I cried some more. Shortly after that I took a pregnancy test and it was positive. I told my husband and his response was, “I guessed it after you broke down at the store.”

Fast forward nine months.

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I’m lying in the hospital bed getting ready to bring my newborn home from the hospital. My husband calls to tell me he can’t figure out how to get the car seat strapped into our car. (We had just bought a new car and didn’t have time to get the car seat attached.)

After that phone conversation, I was crying to the nurse and telling her I didn’t think I would be able to bring my daughter home. She assured me that I would be taking her home!

Back at home.

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We did make it home from the hospital and everything seemed to be going just fine. My parents were visiting from Pennsylvania and my husband was enjoying his last day of summer vacation before heading back to school (he is a teacher).

However, my daughter decided she didn’t want to sleep during the evening hours, which meant I wasn’t sleeping and my husband wasn’t sleeping. It was a very frustrating evening with our newborn. I was worried about my husband because his first day of school was the next morning and he got very little sleep. In addition my parents were planning on heading back to PA and I was going to be alone with this child for the first time!

My husband knew I wasn’t doing very well and begged my parents to stay another day. Thankfully they did! But every time I looked at my Dad, I started to cry. I just couldn’t look at him without becoming a crying mess.

Finally my husband was home from school and I thought I could handle things, until the doorbell rang. A friend dropped by to see our baby and bring a gift. I walked to the door, opened it, turned around and went to my room to cry. I didn’t say a word. I’m so thankful my family was able to cover for me and my actions.

My husband sums it up the best, “I never believed in the post partum baby blues until I saw it first hand!”

Thankfully the emotions didn’t last that long and two beautiful daughters later, we are able to enjoy many laughs about my “crazy days”!

But believe me, they DID happen and they WERE real!

Please be real and honest with those around you!

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Having the “blues” could be a very real part of any woman’s post-pregnancy.

When your doctor asks if you have been “feeling down” tell him or her the truth! They are there to help you! You need to take care of yourself first, so you are able to take care of your newborn!

Did you deal with Post Partum Depression or Baby Blues?

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Kim Brinks married to her wonderful husband, a mother of two darling elementary age girls, AND a part-time teacher.She enjoys cooking and taking care of her home — all of which she blog about over at Art of Domestic Living.

1 comment →

Due to the recent birth of our beautiful baby girl, Nora Faith, I’ve rounded up an All-Star list of moms who effortlessly seem to manage work, home, family, life, and everything in between! You can read all their words of motherly wisdom here, as well as how they manage to “do it all” while still living a life they love.

I’ll be sharing my own thoughts and baby updates soon enough, but right now, I’m simply soaking up their trusted advice while cuddling with my new baby girl! 

The following is written by Sarah from Clover Lane:

When I set out to write a post about having a baby I thought of all the important advice I could give ranging from diapers to breastfeeding to managing on little sleep.  I thought of all the neat products I used — which I am sure are outdated now!  I could fill up pages with everything I’ve learned over the last 17 years. 

I’ve had five children.

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The first born, a surprise when I was 24, ten months after our honeymoon! The fifth born, heartbreakingly tried for when I was 39, and panicked from the potential loss of fertility I never before contemplated.  All my five babies had very different personalities and temperaments - ranging from easy- peasy to 16 hour-every-day-colic.  I‘ve read dozens of books on all sorts of different parenting practices, and asked and listened to advice from many friends and relatives.

And no doubt, I’m not the only one who is filled with advice.  There are many mothers out there who did things different than the way I did — and it worked wonderfully for them, their babies, and their families.  They made different choices, bought different products, chose different birth plans, had different schedules, and different views on everything from feeding to diaper changing to sleeping.

No one of us is right or wrong, and that’s good because we all had different babies!

It took me a long time to have the confidence and the experience to realize this, but these are the three most important concepts I have learned about being a mother:

1. No one but you will know and love your baby MORE than you do.

Not the nurses at the hospital, not your mother, not your best friend, and certainly not me.  Trust your instincts!  Read, ask, learn… but then put it all aside and listen to your mothering heart.  You and your baby… you are connected by that heart forever and no one else can claim the same.

2. Walk bravely the path of internal and maternal growth and change.

Form a close bond with your baby by opening yourself up to the incredibly intense, almost scary emotion of mother love. Let go of the control, let the world fall aside from the moment you are handed your baby and then for the days and weeks afterwards.

I think many times today we try to compartmentalize all our duties and priorities we have as women, and sometimes I see the same being done to the role of mother.  We are afraid to let it go because we feel we have to be the ones running things, keeping all the balls juggling, staying on top of the game of life.  We have to keep up with what it means to a woman in today’s world, which in essence means doing a dozen things really well, while raising our tiny innocent dependent babies on the side.

When they place that baby in your arms, let the world rearrange itself. Let YOUR world rearrange itself.

This is scary!  What you thought was so important might plummet to the bottom of the list.  Let it happen, and don’t fear change.  You will become someone new — the birth of your baby is also a rebirth for you.  Be open to that.  Often I hear the lament about motherhood “I feel like I lost myself.”  Yes, you will become someone new and different, a new better version of your old self if you are willing to change.  You will become selfless and generous.  You will become confident and secure.  You will become tender and patient.   I will bet that some of things you will lose won’t even compare with the worth of these qualities that you will gain if you let yourself.

3. Remember the little things, but don’t forget the big picture.

Here is what a baby NEEDS:  a mother, a father, food (you come with a free supply, isn’t that cool?), soft clothes, blankets, and diapers.

I can’t believe how much stuff is now considered necessary.  Sure, some of it is convenient but most of it just seems to be invented for the pure sake of making our lives easier, making the pace of our lives faster so we can do all that multi-tasking.  A mother could get away with not touching her baby all day!  There are swings to rock them in, carriers to set them in, back pack to stick them in, gadgets that sing to them, and for goodness sakes, there are strappy things that hold a bottle so you don’t even have to feed them!

Baby’s needs are very simple and not at all materialistic – food, warmth, and tender loving care.  A mother can supply all of those without ever setting foot in a store.

Becoming a mother is the best thing that ever happened to me, and the hardest journey I’ve ever had to walk.  It isn’t easy and I don’t mean to gloss over the hard stuff {leaking breasts, sleepless nights, and never-ending worry.} But one day, when you are paging through photo albums, you will look with wonder at that tiny wrinkled little newborn and wonder where the time has gone.

Enjoy every moment, the good, the bad, the easy, the difficult… and know that you have been given the greatest gift ever — the opportunity to be a mother! 

What is most important thing you learned after becoming a mom/parent?

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Sarah is a mom of five, ages 3-17, which means she is giving driving lessons and potty lessons and everything in between, all in a day’s work. She loves babies, clean floors, writing, photography, good books, orderly piles of laundry, and old-fashioned values. She blogs at Clover Lane.

7 comments →

Due to the recent birth of our beautiful baby girl, Nora Faith, I’ve rounded up an All-Star list of moms who effortlessly seem to manage work, home, family, life, and everything in between! You can read all their words of motherly wisdom here, as well as how they manage to “do it all” while still living a life they love.

I’ll be sharing my own thoughts and baby updates soon enough, but right now, I’m simply soaking up their trusted advice while cuddling with my new baby girl! 

The following is written by Brenda from A Farmgirl’s Dabbles:

In my family, I am the oldest of three girls. To this day, we joke with Dad about how lucky he is to have four women (including Mom) in his life. I’m not sure that “lucky” was how he thought of it during our teen years, but he did manage to gently plow through all of our emotional messes and come out on the other side, still his jovial and unfaltering self.

Since having two girls of our own, I’ve been touched with a newfound appreciation for the meaning of daughters. And I give huge credit to my husband for that, because watching his relationship with them has blessed me more than I ever imagined possible. When I found out that Andrea and Dave were going to have a baby girl, I was instantly smiling at my computer screen.

I gave Blake a little book on Father’s Day a number of years ago called “Father to Daughter – Life Lessons on Raising a Girl”. It’s a sweet little cube of a book comprised of quotes from dads about what they’ve learned in bringing up a daughter. Some quotes make me giggle. Others tug real hard on my heart strings, bringing tears to my eyes.

Of all the things these dads shared with the book’s author, there was one common precept…

It was, and is, important to be involved in their daughters’ lives.

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The quotes that especially stick out for me, after watching my own husband and girls, are the ones where the dad’s actions encourage a girl’s healthy self esteem. Where a girl gets wrapped up in her dad’s unwavering love, and learns to stand tall, feel beautiful, be courageous, and believe in herself.

Here are a few of my favorites from the section that encompasses the early years:

Sing to her while you’re rocking her. She’ll love hearing your voice – and it’s a great way to pass the time at 1 a.m.

When you get home from work, hold her as much as possible. This is for your benefit as much as hers.

Ask her about her day, every day. Share her wonder.

Tell her from day one that she can accomplish anything. And believe it yourself.

Make her part of your world – let her see you shave, work, read, and relax. She’ll love you, no matter what you’re doing.

Have tea parties with her. Nibble on whatever she puts in front of you. Tell her it’s delicious.

Play with her, tickle her, give her piggyback rides. Show her how to have fun.

But never, ever, make fun of her.

Keep her secrets. Teach her what it means to be able to trust a man.

Praise her often. Let her know you love her the way she is.

Encourage her to try new things while she’s very young, and she’ll be more willing to try new things when she’s older.

Encourage her to trust her instincts, especially when her safety is involved.

Display her artwork in your office. Prominently.

Don’t miss a recital, play, game, or any other performance of hers. Not now. Not until she graduates.

Dance with her always. She’ll never be too young. Or too old.

Be her hero.

Be her first love.

Andrea and Dave, I pray that you treasure every single moment with your new little girl. And I hope that the smallest of each daddy-daughter interaction sparks an awareness of the incredibly important job you two have as parents. May you always feel on-your-knees grateful for this awesome responsibility.

I am so excited to watch your family grow together. Congratulations on your beautiful baby girl!

Brenda Score is the blog author and photographer at a farmgirl’s dabbles, where she shares stories of family and fabulous food. You can find Brenda at www.afarmgirlsdabbles.com, on Facebook at A Farmgirl’s Dabbles, and on Twitter @farmgirlsdabble.

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