You Know You're a Mommy When...You are willing to put your need for sanitation, and your issues with claustrophobia aside to take your one-year-old down the McDonald's slide! (Oh the things you see in the McDonald's slides!)
Friday, January 29, 2010
You Know You're a Mommy When...
You Know You're a Mommy When...You are willing to put your need for sanitation, and your issues with claustrophobia aside to take your one-year-old down the McDonald's slide! (Oh the things you see in the McDonald's slides!)
Mommy Lesson of the Day
Mommy Lesson of the Day:
Don't let your baby wear white socks when he's in his crawling stage (or else have EXTREMELY clean floors and carpet). I just had to throw out a ton of white socks because they are now beige!
Don't let your baby wear white socks when he's in his crawling stage (or else have EXTREMELY clean floors and carpet). I just had to throw out a ton of white socks because they are now beige!
Monday, January 25, 2010
Festivities for Buhba's 1st Birthday
Buhba had his first birthday last week and I have to say that the festivities were a success! I'm so glad that it all worked out, and everyone had fun. However in hindsight, the realistic side of me asks, "really, other than pictures (and video), will Buhba actually remember this day at all?" Well, the answer is obviously "no." However, when Buhba is naughty I will remind him that his mommy stressed herself out over his first birthday party, but would do it all again for her little guy because she would do anything for him. This includes spending way too much time on making a cake, decorations, and food for a party of nine people who came to celebrate with us.The Decor!
We (and by we I mean, my husband with me bossing him around) decorated the house with a sports theme (if you know my husband, you'd know that this was the only option), complete with signs that said "concessions" in the kitchen, "rest rooms", and "Heath Stadium" on our front door. I also used a picture of Buhba when he was a week old as the center-piece on the table, with Nerf footballs, baseballs, soccer, and basketballs surrounding it. I was pretty happy with how it looked.The Food!
To top off our sports-themed night, we served appetizers that you'd have at a sports bar: chicken nuggets, wings, mozzerella sticks, fries, pigs-in-a-blanket, and raspberry lemonade. I got a yummy chicken nuggets recipe off of Betty Crocker's website (it's also where I got the idea for my cupcakes!)
http://www.bettycrocker.com/recipes.aspx/favorite-chicken-nuggets/ddaea4d6-b3f2-414d-8daa-1d6f410ebe31
The Cake!
As for the cake, I used a football-shaped tin (that I got in February last year, just for this event!), and baked a devil's food cake in it. After that, I sliced the cake horizontally down the middle and filled it with a mixture of caramel, marshmallow fluff, butter, and crushed oreos. Then, I frosted it to make it look like a football. I also made white cupcakes and mixed in chocolate chips into the batter (which was a huge hit!), and frosted the cupcakes to look like soccer, basketball, and baseballs (well, that's what they were supposed to look like anyway!) I covered a piece of cardboard (off of a Huggies' box) with tin foil, then spread white frosting across it. I then put coconut (which was dyed green with food coloring) down over the white frosting to look like grass. I put the cake and cupcakes on top.Please note, that I am really not normally domestic at all!!! I guess that it's true that mommies will do anything for their kids! The whole time I was doing this, my husband kept saying, "Who are you???! This isn't normal!"
Yes, Buhba's birthday was a success, and now I know why birthday's only come once a year!
Balancing Working from Home and Being a Mom
I write articles about job searching, etc. for Hound.com, and today I wrote this article about moms working from home.
How to Balance Working from Home and Being a Mom
Brooke Heath
When I first realized that I would have the opportunity to do the majority of my work from home while raising my one-year old, I thought, “perfect!” Little did I know that while working from home can save in baby-sitter fees, it’s not always the picture-perfect scenario that I envisioned. Trying to chase around a toddler while doing work (thank goodness for laptops!) can be difficult to say the least, but at the same time, very rewarding and worthwhile. Through trial and error, I have learned the following tips on how to find a balance between my career at home, and raising my child.
Set New Priorities
Before my son came into my life, I had no problem keeping my house very clean, and completing my work. However, once he came, I realized that my time (and sanity) didn’t allow for everything to be my version of “perfect” anymore – something had to give. Sadly, there are days when my husband comes home from work and the dishes are piled up, and the baby’s toys are scattered through out the house. However, I find satisfaction knowing that I attended to my two main priorities for that day: keeping my child happy and healthy, and completing my work duties. I had to set new priorities, and unfortunately, while other things are still important, keeping my house clean, have dinner on the table, and laundry always caught up, they are no longer at the top of my priority list.
Get Organized
In the last year, my new best friend has become the notepad on my nightstand. Each night, I make a list of the things that I need to accomplish the following day, and make a schedule of when I will do them. Of course, as any mom will tell you, with kids you have to expect the unexpected, and no schedule is foolproof. So, allow for some wiggle room in your schedule. However, even if something comes up, I have an overview of what I need to do for the day, from start to finish, which helps in my productivity for the day.
Keep Multi-tasking to a Minimum
I know this sounds crazy to any mom, because we depend on multi-tasking. But when you’re trying to work from home, multi-tasking can actually cut into your work time, and/or even distract and hinder you from getting your work done. It can actually be more productive to set aside dedicated work time, rather than attempt to do work all day, all the while chasing after kids, doing laundry, and all of the other tasks that moms do. For example, I like to dedicate several hours just to work. I put on my blinders to cleaning, and everything else that can wait. Also, during this time, I set my child up with toys, and let him have some time dedicated to self-play (of course checking on him regularly!). I find that so much more gets accomplished this way.
Take Advantage of Naptime!
Naptime is a magical term to any mom, but this part of the day can be especially helpful to moms working from home. Work to have naptime be a set time each day, and use this time to accomplish work tasks that can’t be done with the kids awake. For example, follow up on phone calls (which is soooo difficult with kids screaming in the background), have a web conference, etc. It can be so tempting to join the kids for a nap of your own, but utilize this precious time to accomplish important tasks!
Enlist Help of Others
There are some days when my workload is so huge that I need to enlist the help of others. Sometimes, I’ll take my baby to my husband’s office and drop him off, call my neighbor, or ask my mother-in-law to come over, so that I can get work done without chasing around my little guy, and repeating the words, “please don’t touch that,” or “we don’t eat dog food!” every minute. If you don’t have friends or family close by to help on especially overwhelming workdays, consider hiring a sitter or nanny to be on-call just to help in those dire times.
Don’t Procrastinate!
A huge problem with working from home can be a lack of self-motivation, and procrastination. Not because it’s intentionally done, but because there are so many other things that can get in the way and distract us! Referring back to your schedule, focus on what absolutely needs to get done that day, and don’t let other less important things distract you. (The laundry will still be there when you’re done.)
Allow for “Mom Time”
When you’re a mom, there’s almost no time for yourself. Add to that having work responsibilities that are pressing you for time, and you can say good-bye to any “mom time.” However, it’s important for your sanity, for your career, and your family, that you do take a few minutes out of the day for yourself. For me, this time is my “Diet-Coke-run time.” I grab my baby, load up the car, and drive down the road to grab a drink. It doesn’t (and shouldn’t) take too much time out of your busy day, but allowing yourself your own “mom time” will help to rejuvenate you, and allow you to go back to whatever you’re doing with a new sense of motivation, and focus (especially when you’re having “one of those” days).
Those Days…
There are “those days” when I’m feeding a baby with one hand, and typing with the other (like now) and I think, “those moms who work outside of the house, and can be productive for hours at a time and get work done are so lucky.” But then I watch my little guy (who just started walking) toddle across the room to give me a hug, and I realize how blessed I am; I get to share in the milestones of my son’s life, while at the same time work at a job that I really enjoy
How to Balance Working from Home and Being a Mom
Brooke Heath
When I first realized that I would have the opportunity to do the majority of my work from home while raising my one-year old, I thought, “perfect!” Little did I know that while working from home can save in baby-sitter fees, it’s not always the picture-perfect scenario that I envisioned. Trying to chase around a toddler while doing work (thank goodness for laptops!) can be difficult to say the least, but at the same time, very rewarding and worthwhile. Through trial and error, I have learned the following tips on how to find a balance between my career at home, and raising my child.
Set New Priorities
Before my son came into my life, I had no problem keeping my house very clean, and completing my work. However, once he came, I realized that my time (and sanity) didn’t allow for everything to be my version of “perfect” anymore – something had to give. Sadly, there are days when my husband comes home from work and the dishes are piled up, and the baby’s toys are scattered through out the house. However, I find satisfaction knowing that I attended to my two main priorities for that day: keeping my child happy and healthy, and completing my work duties. I had to set new priorities, and unfortunately, while other things are still important, keeping my house clean, have dinner on the table, and laundry always caught up, they are no longer at the top of my priority list.
Get Organized
In the last year, my new best friend has become the notepad on my nightstand. Each night, I make a list of the things that I need to accomplish the following day, and make a schedule of when I will do them. Of course, as any mom will tell you, with kids you have to expect the unexpected, and no schedule is foolproof. So, allow for some wiggle room in your schedule. However, even if something comes up, I have an overview of what I need to do for the day, from start to finish, which helps in my productivity for the day.
Keep Multi-tasking to a Minimum
I know this sounds crazy to any mom, because we depend on multi-tasking. But when you’re trying to work from home, multi-tasking can actually cut into your work time, and/or even distract and hinder you from getting your work done. It can actually be more productive to set aside dedicated work time, rather than attempt to do work all day, all the while chasing after kids, doing laundry, and all of the other tasks that moms do. For example, I like to dedicate several hours just to work. I put on my blinders to cleaning, and everything else that can wait. Also, during this time, I set my child up with toys, and let him have some time dedicated to self-play (of course checking on him regularly!). I find that so much more gets accomplished this way.
Take Advantage of Naptime!
Naptime is a magical term to any mom, but this part of the day can be especially helpful to moms working from home. Work to have naptime be a set time each day, and use this time to accomplish work tasks that can’t be done with the kids awake. For example, follow up on phone calls (which is soooo difficult with kids screaming in the background), have a web conference, etc. It can be so tempting to join the kids for a nap of your own, but utilize this precious time to accomplish important tasks!
Enlist Help of Others
There are some days when my workload is so huge that I need to enlist the help of others. Sometimes, I’ll take my baby to my husband’s office and drop him off, call my neighbor, or ask my mother-in-law to come over, so that I can get work done without chasing around my little guy, and repeating the words, “please don’t touch that,” or “we don’t eat dog food!” every minute. If you don’t have friends or family close by to help on especially overwhelming workdays, consider hiring a sitter or nanny to be on-call just to help in those dire times.
Don’t Procrastinate!
A huge problem with working from home can be a lack of self-motivation, and procrastination. Not because it’s intentionally done, but because there are so many other things that can get in the way and distract us! Referring back to your schedule, focus on what absolutely needs to get done that day, and don’t let other less important things distract you. (The laundry will still be there when you’re done.)
Allow for “Mom Time”
When you’re a mom, there’s almost no time for yourself. Add to that having work responsibilities that are pressing you for time, and you can say good-bye to any “mom time.” However, it’s important for your sanity, for your career, and your family, that you do take a few minutes out of the day for yourself. For me, this time is my “Diet-Coke-run time.” I grab my baby, load up the car, and drive down the road to grab a drink. It doesn’t (and shouldn’t) take too much time out of your busy day, but allowing yourself your own “mom time” will help to rejuvenate you, and allow you to go back to whatever you’re doing with a new sense of motivation, and focus (especially when you’re having “one of those” days).
Those Days…
There are “those days” when I’m feeding a baby with one hand, and typing with the other (like now) and I think, “those moms who work outside of the house, and can be productive for hours at a time and get work done are so lucky.” But then I watch my little guy (who just started walking) toddle across the room to give me a hug, and I realize how blessed I am; I get to share in the milestones of my son’s life, while at the same time work at a job that I really enjoy
Thursday, January 21, 2010
A Wean-away, A Wean-away!
There's been a lot of weaning going on at our house lately! :) On January 12, I had a work conference that I had to attend that was three hours away, and eight hours long (and not kid-friendly, of course!). So, with this deadline in mind, the second week of December, I started cutting out Buhba's second nursing of the day (around noon-ish). This went pretty smoothly. My milk supply seemed to adapt pretty easily, and because Buhba's eating pretty much "normal" food now, he was fine with it too. I did this for a week. Then, the next week, I took out his third nursing of the day (around 5pm). Again, nothing too difficult about it. I did this for about two weeks, because honestly, I was a little sad that it wasn't more of a challenge, and that Bubha could do without me so well! So, up until the new year, I only did morning and night feedings. But, feeling the pressure of the deadline, after the new year, I cut out the morning feedings too. Again, Bubha was fine with this change, but my "feeders" on the other hand had a difficult time adjusting. For a week, I avoided hugging people, or sleeping on my chest. (Now you know why I gave you an awkward high five, if you were one of those people attempting to hug me... ha ha) It was just too painful! But, I made it in time for my deadline, and even though mentally it was hard for me to be away from my little man for so long, we both did fine.
While we're on the topic of weaning, I decided that we may as well get rid of the "bink" at this point too. We never let Buhba have a bink very often anyway, except for when he'd take naps, go to bed at night, on the occasional car ride, and when we were in public and needed him to be quite (ie, church, etc.). With this said, I didn't think taking it away would be difficult. But then it hit: Christmas visits gave us more than just toys, it also gave us huge colds. How dumb was I to try to wean my poor kid from his bink while he was miserable? But, because I was so determined to wean him from his bink and the boobs, I still tried. But, after a few days of a sad, miserable baby, I gave in and gave the bink back. He would NOT let it out of his sight for about two weeks! This may be because of the lack of nursing, or because he was so sick, or both. Or maybe he knew what was up a head, and he wanted to get his bink good-byes in. Anyway, once he was better, I took it away, and neither of us ever looked back! Good bye, old friend!
Back to the nursing: Bubha had his first birthday last week (I'll post more on that later). And I know that the "norm" says to stop nursing at this point, I can't quite bring myself to wean either of us from the late-night nursing session. I never thought that I'd like nursing, but I like the time that it gives us to bond, and I like that he is still dependent on me for something - with all of the new milestones he's hit lately, I feel like he doesn't need me anymore (not true, but that's how I feel!). And the other reason, though very vain, is that I really like that nursing helps me lose weight (I'm not nine pounds under my pre-pregnancy weight!). So, for these various, and possibly ridiculous reasons, I want to keep nursing for a little longer. Is is so bad if I keep going until he's like five? I wonder if his kindergarten teachers would mind me interrupting class because it will time for Bubha's nursing... hmmm. (I'm totally joking...)
Hubby and I are going on a cruise in March (Buhba-free), so for all of you who think I'm totally wacko, I will be completely done nursing by then. So, I'll keep you all posted on how I deal with that... :)
While we're on the topic of weaning, I decided that we may as well get rid of the "bink" at this point too. We never let Buhba have a bink very often anyway, except for when he'd take naps, go to bed at night, on the occasional car ride, and when we were in public and needed him to be quite (ie, church, etc.). With this said, I didn't think taking it away would be difficult. But then it hit: Christmas visits gave us more than just toys, it also gave us huge colds. How dumb was I to try to wean my poor kid from his bink while he was miserable? But, because I was so determined to wean him from his bink and the boobs, I still tried. But, after a few days of a sad, miserable baby, I gave in and gave the bink back. He would NOT let it out of his sight for about two weeks! This may be because of the lack of nursing, or because he was so sick, or both. Or maybe he knew what was up a head, and he wanted to get his bink good-byes in. Anyway, once he was better, I took it away, and neither of us ever looked back! Good bye, old friend!
Back to the nursing: Bubha had his first birthday last week (I'll post more on that later). And I know that the "norm" says to stop nursing at this point, I can't quite bring myself to wean either of us from the late-night nursing session. I never thought that I'd like nursing, but I like the time that it gives us to bond, and I like that he is still dependent on me for something - with all of the new milestones he's hit lately, I feel like he doesn't need me anymore (not true, but that's how I feel!). And the other reason, though very vain, is that I really like that nursing helps me lose weight (I'm not nine pounds under my pre-pregnancy weight!). So, for these various, and possibly ridiculous reasons, I want to keep nursing for a little longer. Is is so bad if I keep going until he's like five? I wonder if his kindergarten teachers would mind me interrupting class because it will time for Bubha's nursing... hmmm. (I'm totally joking...)
Hubby and I are going on a cruise in March (Buhba-free), so for all of you who think I'm totally wacko, I will be completely done nursing by then. So, I'll keep you all posted on how I deal with that... :)
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