“A mother is she who can take the place of all others but whose place no one else can take.” ― Cardinal Mermillod Read More
Tag: mothering
Maternity in Photos & Words
“The life of a mother is the life of a child: you are two blossoms on a single branch.”
– Karen Maezen Miller
Are We Going To Tandem Nurse? That Is The Question, Isn’t It…
Photo Credit: Javier Mantrana
And The Answer Is…
As with everything experienced in our breastfeeding journey, there’s no predicting what direction this nursing relationship will take with MaiTai once his little womb-dwelling brother needs sustenance ‘on the outside.’ MaiTai is currently older than three years old and will turn three-and-a-half when his baby brother is born.
And he’s still nursing… technically.
A Mother You Know
She who becomes a mother is wild. She brought new life and energy into the world and fights so fiercely to keep it here.
Within her, a ready wildness was so great and brimming that it manifested into an entirely new human being prepared to take on the world with her.
Now that this woman is a mother, she’s gained a discernment of where to devote her wild energy, a special kind that wasn’t present before. Her definition of wildness is her own, decided by her now, and it need not always rebel against others to prove itself .
This is a woman we all know.
10 Things To Do Before Your Child Turns 3
If you’re anything like me, you’ve got a million To Do Lists.
On my 2.5-year-old’s one To Do List:
- Get Mama to buy all the things wherever we go.
- Open and close doors. All of them.
- Count all fingers (“One…two…three…six…ten… yep, all there!”)
- Exercise all possible levels of auditory volume.
- Make a mess, pretend to clean it up, and wait for praise.
I don’t mean to minimize the daily accomplishments and radical personal changes experienced by a turning-three child. He’s been even busier than his Mama, actually. The three-year-old himself has gotten a lot done by now.
He’s a nimble walker, leading the pack whenever opportune, usually in the opposite direction of his caregiver’s liking. He has probably experienced a language burst by now — once he starts talking, he won’t stop (hardly an exaggeration). He knows the difference between a sheep and a goat (you’d be shocked how many adults don’t know this). He has made definite conclusions about the physics of ceramic plates shattering upon contact with the kitchen floor, specifically from a toddler”s height and pitching speed.
You see, he’s learned and managed to do quite a few things for themselves in a short three years. But don’t forget, Mom (and Dad) helped a bit…
By the time a child turns three, his primary caregiver has attempted plenty of fun play dates (and ran half an hour late to all of them), cooked many a favorite breakfast (and lunch, and dinner, and second dinner), and celebrated more than a few milestones with raucous, unapologetic pride (and too many pictures… way too many). By this time she’s a master at juggling the overlapping To Do Lists dedicated to her child’s security, well-being, and constant stream of happy-inducing entertainment.
So I want to remind you, primary caregiver, of a few things you may have forgotten about. Here are 10 things that deserve a spot on any one of your To Do Lists before your baby turns into a big kid and then perhaps… perchance… probably… the best of opportunities may pass you by.
My Dear Toddler, I Want To Tell You Something You Already Know About Breastfeeding
Photo Credit: Yvette Michelle for the Normalizing Breastfeeding Project 2015
I want to tell you I love you. So I say it,
and you hardly look up from playing
with your trucks. My words are hardly heard,
you are so busy. Then soon enough you ask to nurse
on the couch, you request, and we curl up together.
You teach me that actions do speak louder than words.
_________________________________
A Good Mom Cleans Her House… Or, Does No Such Thing
Is a messy house a sure sign that it’s owners are headed for an appearance on “Hoarders” or is there actually some truth to the above quote, especially for stay-at-home parents like myself? Let me tell you a quick story.
Our dishwasher broke just before the holidays. Both sinks, most counter space, and some floor space now accommodate a thick jungle of dirty plates, pots and pans. The cupboards sit hollow and bare, vacant as they were the day we first moved in, as every dish we own has migrated into one of the many indefinitely soiled, Tetris-style stacks.
The Designated Dad and I determined to hand-scrub a certain number of dishes each day until the mess of ceramic and glass fully cleared. This approach worked for, oh, about a few hours — we managed to clean just enough to be able to cook and eat dinner, then those meticulously-scrubbed dishes went right back into the dirty pile as if by boomerang.
Our food was salted by tears that evening, I’m certain.
It’s Great That Baby Likes to Suck, but Breastfeeding Straight-Up SUCKS!
If breastfeeding had remained static in all the physically burdensome, emotionally draining, and psychologically-testing aspects as it were in the first six weeks or so, then would I still be nursing?
Well, yes!
But I say that only because I grew a whole other heart for breastfeeding as time progressed. Breastfeeding may have helped shrink my uterus back into its petite pre-partum shape, but it created something else entirely to take its place. Something knitted of emotions, and big enough to house a whole growing child.
Of course, the answer that makes more sense is… No.
