Teach Me How to Mommy

She's too high right? Right now the baby needs a helicopter parent.   She needs to be near me at all (or at least most) times.   I don’t have to worry about holding her too much – that’s my job.   I actually should swoop in if someone else is holding her and she’s crying.   She’s mine to feed, snuggle and love.   Period. How freeing. Yet, when your kids begin to change from toddlers who toddle to “big” kids who talk, run and play independently then the waters get a bit murky.   With a five and close-to-four year old, Jerry and I have been trying to figure out what kind of parents we want to be when our kids need us a little less.   Sure we want to be helicopter parents.   We want to know if their feelings are hurt.   We want to be there for all of their big and little accomplishments.   We want to discuss all their academic gains (and flubs) with their teachers.   We want... But we also want them to figure things ou...

Ok, well  maybe just don't... Last Thursday I woke up to a snow day (yeaaa) and the stomach bug (booo).  Jerry went off to work and even though I am NEVER like this I was resigned to have a really chill day with the kids.  I let them watch an extra show in the morning and instead of moving from one activity to the next I tried to kind of stay put in one area and have the kids play around me.  Heck I was 39 weeks pregnant, right?  You can't really go outside when the snow is coming in sideways, right?  Everyone deserves a day to just not be "super", right? Well that day was here.  I still made the kids their meals, we ended up doing a fort and we did eventually venture outside and walk to the neighbor's house, but I was working at about a 25% capability level. The only problem is, when it came to 3:30 and my regular one cup of coffee a day ritual, I couldn't stomach it.  I tried three times to sip it and it wouldn't go down.  I knew my ...

It didn't dawn on me until this morning that perhaps every member of my family is adjusting differently to the news that there is a baby on his or her way.   I've been so focused on keeping up with the two I have (and a new position at work) that thinking about what happens after the baby actually gets here has not been high on the priority list. Yet I am fresh off a rough week with my youngest and all of a sudden thinking about the future is all I can think about. Sure it's been a tiring week (aren't we all feeling it).  He's also three, which has revealed its own challenges - ones that I am not accustomed to when he was two. But he's also about to be a big brother.  He's been my baby for three years and in less than two months that's going to change - permanently.  I'm a middle child - I know! So last night when he woke up at 2am, crying and moaning I pulled him close to me and placed him gently right in my bed.  He put his arms around me...