Tag Archives: mothering

Cool Mom Moments

We all have our moments of parenting failure. Do you have cool mom moments? Cool dad moments? What do they look like? Today I had an atrocious headache. I finally resorted to taking some painkillers, and all I felt like doing was sitting on the couch sitting vacantly at the closest screen. Heck, even a wall would have done the job. Of course, being the parent of a preschooler means that you’re not really allowed to be out of commission for long. In desperation, I must confess to grabbing the closest bar of chocolate (ok, there was only one) and … Continue reading →

Resisting the Urge to “Mother” Your Spouse

This morning, as I was waiting for the bus with my son and our neighbors, it was pouring rain. While my son and I were under umbrellas, my poor husband was going back and forth bringing out four barrels of recycling (we generate more recycling than we do garbage). He was wearing his good coat with a hat and hood, so that offered some protection. Still, his pants were pretty wet at the shins and cuffs. Seeing him like this, I offered to run into the house to fetch another pair of pants that he could then change into when … Continue reading →

Finding Contentment Without Complacency

My current calling is a Relief Society teacher, and I teach on the fourth Sunday. My assigned topics for this month are the wonderful talks that President Julie B Beck gave at conference in October. Unfortunately there were a lot of people who took offense at her words. Personally as I read them I felt a great sense of peace, comfort and purpose in my role as a woman in the church, and in my role as a mother to my children. President Beck focuses on the need to defend families and to create a home environment that allows our … Continue reading →

“I’m a Bad Mother!”

This is a cry that I hear from literally hundreds of mothers, both in the course of my counseling experience and simply from comments dropped by friends, acquaintances and even complete strangers. But it is a particularly poignant cry from mothers who are experiencing emotional upheaval, often chronic in nature, and who also have the added responsibility of caring for children as well as the minefield of mental illness. No matter what the life experience of the mother, whether it be depression, post-partum depression, bipolar disorder, or an anxiety disorder, the concern is the same. “I’m not good enough!” or … Continue reading →

The “Breast” in Breastfeeding

Did you see this? It’s the cover of Baby Talk Magazine full of breast and feeding. To be exact, only about 1/8th of the cover is full of breast. The rest of the cover is technically the infant suckling at the breast. But whatever. It caused outrage. People are grossed out by watching someone breastfeed. In case you are not familiar with Baby Talk magazine, it is a free magazine whose readership is mostly expecting mothers. This is one of the free information sources you get when you go to visit your obstetrician, go to have your sonogram or some … Continue reading →

Stress in the Toddler Phase

Mothering is a limited time offer. When it comes to being a mother of a toddler, stress is a given for you and your toddler. Your toddler is going through a huge amount of change. They are developing their independence and they are changing on a day-to-day basis. They are learning, they are exploring and redefining your job description as a ‘parent’. Learning Curve As a parent, you are constantly learning on a curve and being graded on a curve. You just master a stage or behavior, your little one takes a hard left, hard right, u-turn or completely diagonal … Continue reading →

Nursing Nuisances: Plugged Ducts

Occasionally, the milk ducts in the breast (small “tubes” that carry milk from the milk making cells to the areola) get plugged. The result is a tender, and sometimes red lump in the areola. A plugged duct is caused by the breast not being “emptied” effectively. Most often, plugged ducts occur in the early weeks and months of nursing as your body is getting used to meeting the demands of your baby. If your body makes too much milk and your baby doesn’t drink it all, a plug can develop. Regardless of why you have plugged ducts, they can be … Continue reading →