Stress Reduction

Postpartum depression and anxiety: Why doesn’t anyone talk about this? Well I’m talking about it now. Where to start… Loading up my toddler and all our stuff to leave the house triggered that anxious feeling. “I can’t fucking breathe!” I exclaimed, leaning against the car. It’s still morning. It’s too early …

We all strive to be the best parents we can be. What does “the best parents we can be” really mean, though? It’s easy to want to compare ourselves to friends or family who have been through the early stages of parenthood before, but how many of us take the time …

Motherhood is an elevated, high calling. It may not appear that way on the outside looking in, since we often find ourselves in humble places (whether we’re wiping bums, cleaning sticky fingers, breathing deeply amidst our frustrations or moving through difficult feelings of being undervalued or unseen). My hope is …

It was March, and I was in about week 4 of my depression. I have always had a tendency toward depression, though in the last few years I had been pretty consistently happy. But then that kid shot up a high school in Florida. Of all the social media outlets, …

As I type this, my adorable, amazing, spectacular 4-year-old is adjacent to me. Notice I did not say “next to me”; I said, “adjacent” — in mathematical terms, “having a common vertex and a common side.” In mommy terms: touching me. So. Very. Much. Touching. My child is always touching me. …

When was the last time you missed a doctor’s appointment? I’m not talking about one that you totally spaced, or maybe were too sick to go that day, but instead, when was the last time you knew you should go to the doctor for that checkup, but never actually scheduled it? Now, …

I’m supposed to be 2 months pregnant by now on baby #2. My husband and I have always talked about having two kids. We have an 18-month-old girl now. I got my dental health in check and got in with an OB/GYN in town for a preconception visit. We had our …

Mammas and Munchkins is a playdate group that meets every Tuesday at 10 a.m. We moms take turns hosting these playdates at our homes. I joined and have been to four and am hosting for the second time soon. The group began by a mom in the military, who learned how …

“You know how no one told you how hard it is to have a baby?” I heard my best friend’s voice say in a comfortably familiar tone through my cell phone, “Well this is me saying, if you get a puppy with a toddler, its going to be hard. This …

I’m sorry, but what the hell is up with parents that choose not to trick their kids into believing Santa Claus exists?!? A lot of my mom friends are not perpetuating the Santa Claus myth and I’m surprised, like really? Its super fun as a parent to play along in …