Tag Archives: motherhood

Baby Update

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Baby update: The boys and I are slowly adjusting to life together. It’s definitely been an uphill battle. Routines have changed and the vibe in the house is very different. Even the dog is thrown off. 😂 But it’s a good different. Literally each day has a new challenge to work around and learn from. 👍🏻

Trying to get Cam and Ryder up and taken care of each morning definitely isn’t without its battles. They are both in a demanding stage and need so much of my attention. Also, a clean house isn’t the easiest task now. So I do my best just to make sure things don’t pile up. Showering is done if I’m lucky. I have to beg someone to watch the boys just to be able to rinse off. God only knows when I’ll be able to find the time to wash my hair again. Dreadlocks may be in my future! 😂

By no means am I complaining. I love the new changes in our life. And despite Ryder’s annoyed faces he gives Cam, I think he will settle in soon and realize Cam isn’t a threat. If my over possessive dog can be ok with Cam I know Ryder will be too (eventually). 🐶

When people ask what I need, my only request is positivity. I just need everyone to be positive and happy around me. If others around me are happy and positive, it helps keep my energy levels and positivity up. I focus more on the good and less on the things upsetting me or stressing me out. And trust me, with 2 little ones under two, the feeling of stress and being overwhelmed comes quick!

First vacation away from the little guy

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We are off to Cabo tomorrow! I’m excited but also a little uneasy. Not because I don’t like traveling or anything. It’s because I hate leaving Ryder. I love spending every minute of every day with him so it’s really hard when I have to actually go DAYS without seeing him.

I know it’s healthy to have time as “adults” and take a break for yourself. But it’s just so hard! I feel like something is missing when I’m not with him. Plus everyone is always saying “enjoy it while it lasts.” I know there’s going to come a time where he doesn’t want to be around me all the time and will want to be off with his friends or on his own. So I feel like I need to take advantage of it now and soak up every minute with him while I can.

Lucky for him when we leave, he has 4 full days of fun planned with his grandmother. I literally think she has every minute of the day planned out with little adventures for them like the aquarium, Playstreet, etc. I know he will have a blast and be well taken care of.

I’m trying to remind myself that this time away could be good for him too. He gets to spend time alone with Gramma, which I never got to do much as a kid since one of my grandmothers passed very early and the other lived far away.

Letting go is hard. Even if it is just for a few days. Thank god for FaceTime!

Injury flashbacks

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The other day when I was dropping Ryder off at our gym daycare, a little boy about his age fell while playing outside and busted his nose. There was blood everywhere. The child was screaming of course out of fear and I’m sure pain. I knew it was going to freak ryder out a bit with people rushing around. He seemed ok so I left.

A few minutes later I heard the siren for the paramedics. I immediately went right back to the daycare. I knew when ryder saw those paramedics he would have a flashback to his accident a few weeks ago and freak out.

When I got to the daycare I found ryder hiding in a corner of the room. He wasn’t crying or anything he was just hiding and looking at everyone with a nervous look. When he saw me he walked over and just hugged me. I stayed until the paramedics left. I wanted him to know they were ok and there to help, but I also wanted him to know I was there to help make him feel safe.

After everything settled and I left, they said he did great. He went back to playing like he does every day. Did I have to go back in there when I heard the paramedics? No. But the accident he had a few weeks ago there is still fresh in his memory and I want him to be comfortable at daycare and not scared of it or of paramedics.

Call it coddling or babying, that’s your opinion. Everyone handles situations differently and this is how I chose to handle this one. To each their own. But having my 1 1/2 year old scared because he remembers his own first major injury is just not something I wanted him to be alone for. 💙

Temper tantrums and meltdowns

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My child has hit the stage of temper tantrums and meltdowns. It’s his new thing these days. I’d say we have at least one a day right now. Does this mean he is a bad kid or is spoiled? Absolutely not!

Tantrums and meltdowns are symptoms that a child is struggling with emotions they can’t relate to. When a child is overly stimulated this can cause a meltdown. There’s so much going on that it just becomes too much for them. This can be anything like sounds, visuals, feelings, exhaustion, etc.

Currently my child only has a few words in his vocabulary. So he isn’t fully able to vocalize his wants, needs and feelings. That has got to be incredibly frustrating. You kind of can’t blame him for breaking down and losing it some days. 😂

When Ryder has one of his temper tantrums or meltdowns, I just walk away. I give him his space and I busy myself with something else. After about 30 seconds to a minute he stops. He will look around like ok I’m over this, and go find a toy. It’s like he needed to get out an emotional release. Once out, he’s back to his normal self. I know what you’re thinking…..why don’t you hug him and make him feel better. Tried that! He wants no part of it. During a temper tantrum or meltdown he does not want to be touched. Hence why I give him his space.

If you see a child having a meltdown or throwing a tantrum, don’t automatically assume they are a bad kid. They may just be overstimulated or not able to vocalize their needs. It’s all a learning process. They grow out of it eventually (sort of).

The next time you see a parent who’s child is having a melt down, instead of looking at them like they’re a bad parent, try taking pity on them. It’s not easy, or fun when the meltdowns happen. Each parent is just trying to do their best to get through it and help their child learn from it.

Gift idea for a new mom

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Have a friend who is having a baby, just had a baby or is adopting a baby and you need to get a gift for them? Here is a list of gifts that are must haves and greatly appreciated by new moms! 🙌🏻

🔹Electric nail filer (instead of clippers)

🔹Wipe warmer (Nothing is worse than the scream of a child from a cold wipe)

🔹Cute bibs (Some baby’s drool a lot)

🔹 Simple onesies (With diaper blowouts, you can sometimes go through 3+ onesies a day)

🔹Bottle Warmer (Safer than the microwave and stove)

🔹Diapers (You can never have too many)

🔹Baby books (My son loves to look at the pictures)

🔹 Sound machine (Drowns out surrounding noises to help baby sleep)

These were all my must haves after I had Ryder. I literally couldn’t have done without any of them! All are practical and not ridiculously expensive! 👶🏻

Cravings

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I’m 18 weeks pregnant this week! I feel like my belly is getting bigger by the minute. 😂 I’ve put on 10lbs so far. My doctor tells me that’s the perfect amount for someone my size and age. 💪🏻

I’ve been careful about my weight gain. You don’t want to gain too much, but you also don’t want to not gain enough. While I do monitor how much I’m gaining, I have been enjoying myself. I keep up with my workouts but I don’t deprive myself of any food I may be craving at the moment.🍔

I’m not one who gets a consistent craving. I sort of wish I was. I always wanted to get one of those weird cravings some women get. A friend of mine craved cucumbers her whole pregnancy. She would literally eat a cucumber like a corn on the cob. Another craved pickles and peanut butter. I have a new craving every day. It’s never anything crazy. It’s things like an apple with peanut butter, popcorn, ice cream, avocado toast, eggs, sandwich, etc.🍦

I still have 22 weeks left, so there’s still hope for a crazy craving! 🍩

Travel Season

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Travel season is here! For me at least. I’m right in the thick of cheerleading season. Im judging roughly one competition every other weekend. I’m traveling a little less this year than last year because of the new baby and Ryder. It is incredibly hard to sit at a competition for hours on end while pregnant. My back starts to hurt and my legs and feet swell from non movement. Not to mention sitting makes you tired and you’re already so tired from being pregnant as it is!

It’s also getting harder to leave Ryder. He’s becoming so aware of things. He knows when I leave for short periods and long periods. It’s one thing to leave him with a grandparent for an hour and come back to him. It’s a totally different feel knowing I’m leaving him for a weekend. It’s so hard to see his sad little face when I go.

How working parents and parents who travel for work say goodbye to their child every day is beyond me. You guys have some thick skin! Y’all deserve a medal. I’m such a weenie. There’s no way I could do this regularly. I’d be crying and just all out of sorts daily.

The Dreaded Workout

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Have you ever dreaded going to workout…..got yourself there…..and come out thinking, yeah that still sucked? 😂 That’s not what you thought I was going to say was it 🤪 But seriously. Some days when I am not feeling the gym, I drag myself there and afterward I’m like oh yeah that was great I’m glad I went. Other days I think to myself, that was horrible and I’m still annoyed I’m not just sitting on my sofa.

We all have our days! Today was one of mine. I just had zero motivation. I finished my workout and still felt no motivation. I would much rather have been in sweatpants sitting on my sofa with a hot bowl of pho.

I’m sure my body is grateful I went to the gym, it’s just not letting me know it yet. The movement helps increase blood flow which reduces my risk of blood clot during pregnancy. It also reduces my leg and foot swelling so I have less aching during the day. There’s so many amazing benefits of workout during pregnancy. So for now I’ll just be grateful I made it through the workout despite my lack of motivation. I know there will come a day, last time it was right at 9 months, when I almost physically can’t workout due to size even though I’ll be dying to.

Get Your Iron!

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You’re supposed to keep up your iron levels when pregnant. So what better way than a steak from Del Friscos! Ok yes there are other sources, but when this is an option you know I’m going to take it!

Women need 18 mg per day of iron. Pregnant women need about 27 mg. An 8oz filet contains roughly 4 mg of iron. Spinach, oysters, broccoli and legumes are great sources of iron as well if beef isn’t your thing.

Unfamiliar with what iron does in the body? Here’s a short explanation…..iron is a component of hemoglobin, the substance in red blood cells that helps transport oxygen through the body. Iron is also necessary in helping maintain healthy skin, hair and nails.

Keep your body strong from the inside out! Make sure you’re getting the proper amount of iron each day!💪🏻

Getting your body back

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I think it’s funny when I hear someone say “You’re going to have to work harder to get your body back after this second baby.” It makes me laugh every time I hear it. Is my body going somewhere? Did it get lost? 😂

Having a baby doesn’t mean you LOSE your body. Yes your body changes but it’s still there! People keep telling me it’s harder to get back to your old shape after baby number two. Is it really? Or is that just an excuse we use?

I actually liked my body better after I had Ryder. It took me some time to lose the extra baby weight but I like to think I bounced back pretty well. I wasn’t one of those IG moms who got back to pre baby size in 5 months. It took me a full year. But I did it and I was beyond proud of myself and loved how I looked. No I don’t have my 20 year old body. I probably never will and I’m ok with that. But this 33 year old body is pretty resilient and it’s been good to me.

I think this time around I’m going to enjoy myself (and food). I was so paranoid while pregnant with ryder, that I wouldn’t get back to my original size. I put so much stress on myself mentally, that I don’t think it was very healthy. Now I know I can get back to a good size with a bit of hard work. So I’m not going to stress this time. I don’t plan to go overboard and eat everything in sight and skip workouts! But I will treat myself if I want! And if my body is too drained to workout, rather than force myself to go to the gym, I’ll rest. I can try again the next day. Everything in moderation and at my own pace.💙