Motherhood is HARD
I’m just struggling, every day, as a mom. Is this normal? -Tuckered Out Mama
Dear Tuckered Out Mama,
I think it can be very normal to go through trying periods as a mom. I find that every three months, my girls make huge development strides, and I have to adjust to a completely new routine. These adjustments can be very rough, and sometimes I feel the good moments are less frequent than the bad moments. However, if you feel like every minute of every day is terrible, without relief for an extended period of time, I would consider contacting your OBGYN (or therapist if you have one) to be evaluated for postpartum depression. If you don’t feel comfortable with this, I would begin by asking some of your friends for their experience and see where you fall. Continue to monitor your feelings and assess the severity of your sadness, frustration, and feelings of being overwhelmed. Ask yourself, do I feel like this all of the time, sometimes, or just occasionally? Are these feelings preventing me from taking care of my child(ren)? In any case, don’t be discouraged. Hope is always available in the form of coping skills. I also encourage you to take some time for yourself. Sometimes we just need a break!
Exercise, what’s that?
How the heck do people work out with kids?! I’m dying over here. I miss exercising 😩. Help! -Workout Mom
Hi Workout Mom,
I hear ya! I absolutely love exercising. It helps me stay connected with my body, and it supports my mental health. This being said, I am not one of those moms who can work out with her kids. There are far too many variables in my house for this to lead to an effective work out for me. Sometimes we’ll do yoga together for fun, but it is more for them than me. I have learned that I need to go somewhere with an onsite daycare center, while exercising. I’ve found the most economical way to do this is at the YMCA. Many of them offer free childcare as part of your membership, and they even offer scholarships to those in need. So if you’re strapped for resources, consider a gym membership with affordable childcare. You’ll get a work out, a break, and some me-time.
Jumping on the pottytrain
How do I know when my child is ready for pottytraining? My friends keep talking about starting pottytraining, but my kid doesn’t seem interested at all. -Toddler Mom
Hey Toddler Mom,
We started pottytraining when my girls were ripping off their diapers at 18 months. By “started,” I mean we bought little plastic potties to put outside while they played in the kiddie pool. The girls were not interested though, until they were about 2. They just didn’t understand what was being asked of them. We kept checking back in (whenever I felt like I could handle it), and we would go diaper free for an hour or two and see how things went. Eventually, one of my twins was able to pee in the potty pretty consistently, right around 2 years old. The other one though was not interested at all. She would fight me, if I encouraged her to use the potty. So we just left it out, and waited for her to show interest in it. We would ask her frequently, like her sister, “Do you need to go potty?” Eventually, she followed her sister 4-6 weeks later. I encourage you to wait until your child is interested. It will be so much easier. This is something every single parent has told me. It will cause everyone a lot of heartache to begin too soon. So buy a plastic potty, leave it out, and let your kid decide when he or she is ready. As long as you continue to show interest in pottytraining, your child will eventually get there too.
Jacqueline Pinchuk 