HELP!-Baby Concerns

It seems that every time I go somewhere, I get asked questions about babies. Have I become the go-to person for new moms?

Usually when you have a newborn, its hard the first several months. You become sleep deprived, irritated, happy then sad but most of all joyous to have a little munchkin in your arms.

When I had my baby girl who is now 1, I was not myself, I was sleep deprived becasue my husband went back to Germany to clear from his post. She cried so much during the night that I had a hard time waking myself when it was time to pick my other 2 kids from school. Eventually, I got a routine and she became more settle and calm during nights. The beginning was rough but after she turned 2 months, she was soo easy to handle and I began to get some much needed rest.

Ahh! time passed and she was 6 months, 9 months, then 1 and she is the happiest baby ever.

Here are a few things that helped me when I had my babygirl.

1. Sleep when the baby sleeps(for self) but to get your newborn to know the difference, try to stay active during the day and more quiet during nights.

2. Get a routine that you and the baby are familiar with.

3. If you(mom) is a stay-at-home mom, try to help the father transition into his role when you are asleep.(It will help he and the better adjust to each other if you are there to help him in his role)

4. It is best to gradually introduce your newborn to apples and vegetables between the stages of 3-4 months old depending on the babies intake. (Go to Gerber.com) for more information

5. DO NOT GIVE A NEWBORN 0-11 mos regular MILK!!!!! )It is not healthy for their immune system and can't digest it properly)

6. Take a night or day out with your significant other at least once per month, if its not possible, at least have date night evey other month without the baby.

FINDING HAPPINESS

When you are unhappy with people around you, STOP, to look within. Once we dig deep,we find that the answers lie within and we realize that we are unhappy with ourselves.

Everything in your life, revolves around you but sometimes we lose track of what's important and lose focus of ourselves. Take time to find happiness with yourself, then you can be happy with anyone else.

Here are a few tips,
1. Take yourself on a date. (If you cannot sit alone with yourself in public, you need to work on YOU).

2. Stick to things you enjoy doing. (If you like to bowl, hike, read, play sports, or hang out with friends, do it)

3. Don't be afraid to take a chance but go at your own speed.

4. Take a chance at love. (Do not be afraid of yourself and allowing your walls to come down) IT'S OKAY

5. LIVE life as you would like people to remember it by.

6. LEARN from your achievements and mess ups. (That's the only way you will learn because just when you think life is over, you flip the page and your life continues with the next chapter.

Until next time,

LIVe, LOVe, LEARN-Lesson Learned

Change

NOTHING IN LIFE REMAINS CONSTANT.

We all start out in life as a seed. Some of us get plenty of water and sunlight and some of us get very little. The ones who survive have something built within their seed which gives them the drive to keep growing and grow their flowers to bear the fruit.

We have the choice to make ourselves into the person we want to be. It all starts with that little seed. It all starts with that inner determination to keep moving forward and flow with the air as we breathe.

It's easy to go with the flow but its even harder to go against the current. Only the strong minded will find their final destination becuase with moving forward comes change. There may be a shift in the wind or a chnage in the current but if you can make a way without the proper water and sunlight, you can adapt through any change in your life.

Change is always for the better even when it doesn't feel that way at the time. We go through life breathing day to day. Some of us not living but remain dormant in a life filled with air. Even I sometimes have a hard time with change as the Earth moves me into one direction, I stay focused on what the goal is and keep moving forward because life is not about how many times you fall, get pushed down or get moved,but it's about what you do when you are faced with change. Do you get back up and keep moving? or do you lay there crying in hopes that someone will pick you up or take your body where it belongs?

Before you try to change others, we must first change ourselves. If you want to grow in life, you must change. You morph into a flower that was once a seed

Until Next time.

LIVE, LOVE, LOVE-Lesson Learned

BREASTFEEDING?

Are you Breastfeeding or considering breastfeeding your infant or child? Most of us instantly know whether we will do what is best for our unborn or do what is best for ourselves.

From experience, I breast fed all three of my kids until the age of 1. Well for my boys a little over the age of one. However, they never got sick or any ear infections or normal things that babies get when exposed to the environment or other babies, adults, and kids.

I KNOW THERE ARE MOMS WHO BASH OTHER MOMS FOR NOT BREASTFEEDING THEIR BABIES. Well I'm here to tell you that it's okay not to make the same choice as other moms. Do what's best for you. Maybe you work and are not able to breast feed your infant. Maybe your body doesn't produce enough milk and its not enough. Who knows!!!!!Don't let other "rude" moms deter you from being a good mom just because you make a decision to not nurse.

But if you can make the healthiest choice for your baby, you save them from so much pain in the long run. I tell you. I don't know how many stories I have heard from moms and dads who had little ones that they were not nursing. Oh the stories are horrible but I am so happy that I did not have to go through a lot of the pain of seeing my kids in pain.

ARE YOU A NEW MOM? Okay I will be honest with you, the first few days, your nipples will hurt. It's normal though. Once you begin to nurse, you may want to try a couple of positions to see which one works for you. Sometimes the position that the nurses show you may be a little uncomfortable but if you take the baby and hold him in your arm like a football player holding the football, it makes it appear much easier. Take your breast and hold it gently around the oriole and place it in your baby's mouth.Usually, most babies will take it that way over the awkward position.

Usually, the nurses will tell you to hold the baby-head facing you and their body towards your back while holding his head with the same hand and place the nipple in the newborns mouth.

REMEMBER: When you are uncomfortable, it makes the baby uneasy as well. So whatever makes you feel comfortable, go with it.

ALSO REMEMBER:There are more than one way to be a great mom. Breast feeding alone doesn't make you a good mom. Breastfeeding just means you made a natural and great choice for you newborn

Putting God 1st

As moms, we get so busy that we become overwhelmed by things that don't matter or belong in the core circle of our lives.

How do you view yourself?, your friends, and your family and where do you place them on the layers of your inner life? and where do you think God wants them to be?

I know that most of us would place our kids first within the core, our parents next,our spouse, then friends within the same circle as our spouses. In reality, God should be placed first, your spouse next, then your kids and Friends and acquaintances should be on the outside layers. Think of the layers of circles as your home. Do you allow your friends and family member to live in your kitchen? Your kitchen-is the core of the house which is where God should always be. That's the place where you sit, talk, cook, prepare meals, and sometimes eat meals-It's the center of the house;which is the center of your life.

Translation-God is the center of your life. When you decided to marry the person you are/were in love with-you have become one; which meansand that's the person who should come next in your life. I know it's hard to acknowledge that your kids would come second to your husbnad but that's the way God really wants them positioned.

I know, I know this sounds so off-key because us moms tend to adore our kids more than anything or anyone on the planet and we would leave our husbands/spouses for the satisfaction of our kids.

Placing God first in everything you do, will help you align yourself and the people close to you in the place God wants them to be.

Take the time to get to know yourself and know God so that you can be able to satisfy and be happy with yourself as a person, a mom, wife, friend, etc. I know it's so hard to reposition people and things in your life because you have been living your life by convenience instead of dealing with the reality of your cards that's in your hand.

Change is uneasy and have an overwhelming feeling of not being settled. However, we need to be shaken and moved so that we can figure our way back to Him.

Most of the time, we wonder why things are going so wrong for us, its because God is trying to get your attention to go back on the right path we are destined to be. We lose track of our goals and what He has in store for us because we get wrapped into the social life of having friends and being "best" mom of everything.

We have to realize what's important and weed out what's not. Sometimes we figure it out the first time and sometimes, it takes a tragedy to occur for us to realize who is important and why and who our true friends are(not even a hand-full).

Take time to nurture your soul so that you can nurture your spouse, kids, and friends and family.

Until Next time,

LIVE, LOVe, LEARN-Lesson Learned

Take time to Breathe

Today I attended a mom coffee social and it felt amazing to be amongst other moms. Sometimes we don't realize that we need a break until we actually get the hour or two to ourselves. It's okay to take a break from time to time when you need it. It's a challenging task to be a mom and we all go through similar things in our lives at different times. So take time to breathe.

Question?
Have you ever felt like you were going to go crazy and just wanted to yell or cry or curse at your kids because your body has been craving self attention? Guess what, you're not alone. There have been many times where I just wanted to yell and say "SHUT UP" just because my brain needed mental silence to catch up to the needs of them. Actually, just the other day, I told my kids "SHUT UP, SHUT UP, Just SHUT UP!!!!" I couldn't believe I said that because in my house shut up is a "bad" phrase to say but I couldn't refrain from saying it. I could no longer be too nice and continue to ask them to be quiet because mommy was not feeling well. My body was hurting so badly and I began to feel an emotional drainage and it felt like every piece of energy was draining out of my body as if I was the tub that accumulated water then the plug was pulled and all the water began to empty into a hole.

If you ever feel that way, take the time to tell your kids that you need a break whether its 10 or 20 minutes and no matter how old they are, they will understand. I've learned that being open and honest with my kids is the best way for me as a mother so that I don't have a snapping moment.

I know that I can't be a "perfect" mom 100% of the time and I've accepted that. When I feel my body needs a moment to breathe, I allow it to happen and I tell my kids that "Mommy needs a break, I've had a long day today and if you could give me about 15-20 minutes, I am all yours." They are more understaning to your needs when you let them know what's going with you.

Just last week, I started my monthly and I was a bit crabby and grumpy for two days, I told my kids that its that time and that I may be a bit cranky for a few days, so don't get upset if I'm a little crazy and irritable.

My sons were so understanding and they both knew to stay out of the way and to just be more calm for those couple of days until I felt normal and less irritable.

SO BEING HONEST WITH YOURSELF HELPS YOU WITH BEING OPEN AND HONEST WITH YOUR KIDS.

Mommy Introduciton

My name is La'Daska and I'm a mom of 3. I wanted to start this blog as way to vent about being a mom. Sometimes its hard to get the truth from your other mom friends but I want to start this as a way to tell mommy secrets that most moms refuse to tell you.

Being honest with yourself plays a significant role in being a mom, wife, girlfriend, friend, etc. Once you start being honest with your emotions and express the way you truly feel inside, being a mom becomes much easier. Sometimes, We tend to lie to ourselves to get us through the days, weeks, months and sometimes years but the longer we hold on to those lies of emotions, the longer it takes us to get back to the way we used to be.

With Mom 2 Mom, I plan to take you on the journey of motherhood. The ups and downs, the pitfalls you may run into, and mistakes to watch out for but I also plan to share joyous and exciting moments of being a mother. Sometimes it helps to know that you are not alone in this thing called motherhood.

So I look forward to sharing some information with you and take you on the journey with me as I find my way back to me.

Stay tuned,

La'Daska