Do I Have to Act Like a Mom on Mother’s Day?

May 8, 2017

Last year, the Today Show did a study asking 6,000 women what they wanted for Mother’s Day. The number one answer was two hours of extra sleep. It also found that 50% of women wanted a day of peace and quiet versus a day spent with their children. I find this surprising because I thought the number would be much higher. Every year, my Mother’s Day struggle is that as much as I love spending time with my kids, I just want a day (or at least a few hours) where I do not need to parent them.

As a working mom, weekends are focused on family time. However, Mother’s Day is different. On that particular Sunday, I want nothing to do with any of the usual things I do as a mom. I have no interest in cooking a meal. I do not want to get up early to watch TV with them. I will not stand around a playground. If this is the one day of the year that celebrates motherhood, then it is my prerogative to spend it reading a book, going shopping, or going to a movie that does not have cartoon characters. Luckily, my husband is a trooper and does his best to occupy the kids for at least a portion of the day.

Even with my “no mommy activity” stance on Mother’s Day, there are a few things that I love about the day and a few pieces of advice I would give as I head into my 13th one.

Homemade cards are the best gift ever. The one thing I insist on every year is a homemade card. I have saved every one. I even got a hand-drawn banner one year! I will remember and cherish these cards much longer than an I-Tunes gift card or new earrings.
Dante’s Inferno talks about the 9 circles of Hell. If there were a tenth, it would be Mother’s Day brunch. While I always appreciate a meal out, restaurants are slammed and we have had to wait over an hour on a few occasions. Go out to lunch or dinner the day before or get really good takeout instead.
I always remind my kids that the best gift is the gift of good behavior. Not listening to bickering for at least a few hours is pure bliss.
Celebrate your kids too. On Mother’s Day, I like to get a little something for each of my kids. They are the reason I get to partake in Mother’s Day; why not spread the joy around? I have lobbied that moms should be celebrated on their kids’ birthdays. (Funny that my kids are not that into that idea).

This year on Mother’s Day I look forward to a little rest, lots of hugs and kisses, a few presents and cards, and a chance to get some extra sleeping and reading time. If I can make it through the day without running an errand or cooking a meal, than Happy Mother’s Day to me!

Keeping My Daughters Healthy

Lindsey Galvao

May 5, 2017

healthy medical care motherhood Providence Moms Blog — Photo credit: Nicole VonDette Photography

Sometimes on parenting blogs, as we write about the triumphs and tribulations of motherhood, we overlook the basic, yet quintessential role that mothers have in the lives of their children: to provide them with the basic necessities for their survival. I’m not talking about just kissing their boo-boos and snuggling at bedtime; I’m talking about providing them with food, shelter, clean drinking water, and access to medical care. And while I am mindful of the many mothers barely scraping by, struggling with food insecurity and unstable living conditions, talking about how many meals a week I can afford to feed my children or how much money I have to spend on copays has never once struck me as a valuable topic of a blog post until now.

I am blessed in my life that these are the norms that I enjoy. We have a great house in a safe neighborhood. I have the ability to purchase healthy produce and provide nutritious meals for my family. I have never once questioned our ability to drink and use our tap water. And I never hesitate to bring my children to the pediatrician for both preventative and sick care.

When the birth of my oldest daughter almost resulted in an emergency C-section, I never once had to think that there might be unintended consequences for bringing her safely into this world and saving my life. When my struggles with breastfeeding and her slow weight gain turned into anxiety, I knew I could reach out to my midwives to ask them for the mental health support I desperately needed without fear of stigmatization. When they encouraged me to seek therapy to help me through my postpartum anxiety, I did. When we discovered my daughter was anemic, I never once batted an eyelash at the insurance bills for her lab work. The lab work was what she needed to assure that she was healthy; of course it would be done. When the EKG revealed she had a heart murmur, I was coaxed into comfort upon hearing that it should not have a major impact on her life. And when my youngest daughter had a seizure in my arms last week, my only thought as I held her tiny body while fighting back tears was to get an ambulance to the hospital so I could keep her safe. Pre-existing conditions and lifelong consequences were the farthest thing from my mind.

My daughters are pretty fantastic. They are vivacious, filled with insatiable curiosity, and woo every adult and child they encounter. They are smart, funny, and fearless. How wonderful and blessed it is to spend my days preoccupied with art projects, reading stories, rushing to dance lessons, and complaining when they throw food on the floor or quibble over a toy. I am lucky that our medical history has only been rollercoaster glitches of stress and not the defining moments of our days or bank accounts. These medical issues have not once defined our family or our children in the long term; they have made no major financial burden, nor have they meant that I have to reconsider my ability to afford their medical care.

As a mother, it is my job to keep my children safe. As a mother, I take seriously the responsibility I have to keep them healthy and well. But now, I have a heavy heart that my job as a mother could be compromised, and that these medical blips could have unintended consequences for their futures through no fault of their own. Simply by their birth, by their DNA, they have needed the preventative care that has allowed them to blossom and grow. And what would happen to my thriving, energetic girls if that cannot be the case? What would happen to our family if minor medical issues ended up having a catastrophic financial burden on our lives?

As a mother, it is my job to ensure that my children have their basic needs met.

I pray I can continue to keep them safe and healthy.

I pray I can continue to have their basic needs met.

May is Maternal Mental Health Month. To help us end the stigma attached with maternal mental health complications, all month we will be featuring stories pertaining to MMH. If you or someone you know is in need of additional support, see our resources page. If you have a story you would like to share, please contact us at [email protected]

Dear Struggling Mama of Little Ones

Melody

May 4, 2017

With Mother’s Day just around the corner, I felt it was a good time to take a minute to acknowledge all the mamas out there who are struggling. While it used to be something I was ashamed to admit, I feel no shame today in saying I am one of those mamas who is struggling. Some days are easier than others, but there are hard days. Really, really hard days where I am too strict on my children, yell at them too much, and feel completely defeated, overwhelmed, and exhausted.

After my third child was born, I became even more hard on myself. I was exhausted from nursing through the night, waking up several times a night for all three children, and never being able to catch up on sleep. I struggled with Postpartum Depression and often felt like the worst mom in the world. I had a hard time connecting with anyone other than my newborn daughter and constantly thought something was wrong with me.

Can you relate to this?

Listen, I know being a mom is hard. I know that they are called the terrible twos for a reason and that my four year old will be as awful to me as I was to my own mother. I know that when they have tantrums it is because they are overwhelmed by their feelings; that their little bodies cannot process their frustrations. I know that they will scream at the top of their lungs because they can’t process that it is not the way to get what they want. I know all of this. But it doesn’t make it any easier to handle. I try really hard to be the calm, respectful, patient, kind, gentle, nurturing, perfect mother that I dream of being. I try to be an example for my children, but sometimes I fail. And that is okay.

So to all the moms out there who are struggling: you are not alone. And while I know the phrase “you are not alone” doesn’t make you feel any better of a mom on those bad days, at least you know it’s normal. When you feel absolutely awful for yelling at your 4 year old after she tantrums for 2 hours at bedtime, claiming to all of a sudden be afraid of the dark (even though the light is on), you are not a terrible mom. When you feel like a jerk for putting your 2 year old in timeout for hitting his baby sister with a soccer ball (when he was just trying to play catch), you are not a terrible mom. When you refuse to let your kids leave the dinner table before they eat their chicken and rice, and they say you hurt their feelings and made them sad, you are not a terrible mom. We all struggle. Just know that tomorrow is a new day. You can start fresh and work towards being the mother you dream of being.

May is Maternal Mental Health Month. To help us end the stigma attached with maternal mental health complications, all month we will be featuring stories pertaining to MMH. If you or someone you know is in need of additional support, see our resources page If you have a story you would like to share, please contact us at [email protected]

Reflections at My Mother’s Deathbed: Choosing Joy Over Regret

Brooke Rainville

May 3, 2017

Time. One of the biggest regrets around the death of a loved one is lack of time. We don’t feel like we had enough time to say goodbye. We don’t feel like they had enough time on this earth, enough time to do the things they wanted to do.

In a few days, my mother, for almost the first time in her 58 years, will take control over her life. She will come home, cease dialysis treatments, and spend time with her family. She will choose to die. She will bravely choose to end her suffering and save some of her dignity.

With this particular death, we have time. I truly believe this is a gift from God. Only He knows the true depth of the issues my mother and I have, both individually and in our parent/child relationship. He knows the reasons I couldn’t live with her. He knows how well she nurtured me as a small child, though I can’t remember. He knows the reasons she couldn’t fight for her children. He knows the anger I had towards her that permeated most of my younger years. The anger that hasn’t quite been resolved even as I write this. He knows what caused her to stay in bad relationships, and to always be so kind to those who hurt her so badly. He knows why she spent 15 years choosing an abusive man over her children, and how much damage it caused us.

And God, because He loves us, gave us time. A limited, planned out, on-purpose amount of time. Time for one daughter to get here from Minnesota. Time to make sure that my last words to her aren’t spoken in anger or resentment. Time for her to tell us how sorry she is. Time for her to make sure we know that babies need sun bonnets when they go outside. To always use Ivory Snow, never Dreft. Time for one last story of “the day that you were born was the happiest day of my life.” Time to care for her, nurture her in her last days. We have time to make sure that her death does not add to the issues that have always been between us. He has given me time to research ALL the children’s books on death so I can help my step-children process her passing. He has given me time so I can try to figure out what in the world I am going to tell my 22 year old disabled kiddo about why the woman who always sings her silly songs and never gets annoyed with her is no longer here.

I write this now, at 35 years old, after having cared for my mother intermittently since 2008. We cared for her through a kidney transplant, and its subsequent failing. I am her care partner for at- home dialsys, and my sisters and I have been by her side through more hospitalizations than I can count. She has lived with me for the past year. For the last 4 months, she has been bed-ridden and in excrutiating pain. But I did not have a relationship with her in high school. I did not visit with her after I moved to my dads, unless I couldn’t avoid it. For almost a full year before before she moved in with me this last time, I did not speak to her, and I would not allow her to see my girl. Had her diagnosis come at an earlier time in her life, I likely would not have cared. I might not have shed a tear. I might not have gone to say goodbye.

Maternal mental health matters. It affects us and our children for the rest of our lives, and can even affect our death.

My mom and I, we have time. I will not waste it, and I will choose to find joy in it.

May is Maternal Mental Health Month. To help us end the stigma attached with maternal mental health complications, all month we will be featuring stories pertaining to MMH. If you or someone you know is in need of additional support, see our resources page If you have a story you would like to share, please contact us at [email protected]

The Magic Baby Hack That Has Taken the Internet by Storm {and Personal Proof That it Works}

Tracy Slater

May 2, 2017

My daughter had her two month shots today. After having three children go through these, I can say with a fair degree of confidence that these shots are THE WORST. If you haven’t gone through them yet, do yourself a favor and just clear your calendar for the day of your baby’s two month well visit. Have some ready-made food available (or better yet, a pizza place on standby) queue up your Netflix, and plan to camp out on the couch with a very unhappy baby.

Sorry, I’m getting off topic… we’re here to talk about the magic. So, as I spent eight hours on the couch today, with a fairly miserable baby and my boobs out, I obviously spent ~~a little~~ ~~some~~ okay, ALL the time on the Internet. I extinguished everything of interest on my Facebook wall and went down some rabbit holes of Internet browsing. Memes and GIFs were viewed, comments were read. It got ugly for awhile there. But: Oh. My. Goodness. Friends, it was so very worth it, because I stumbled upon the most amazing video. A video that, at last check, has been viewed 34,171,324 times. 34,171,324. I can’t even comprehend that number, but I can comprehend why.

Watch this magic.

Check out this quick clip from my live Facebook video earlier to learn #HowToStopACryingBaby 😂🤣🤗👼😍🙏🏻#OMBaby #DanielEisenman #BreakingNormal #TheFreedomCatalyst

Posted by Daniel Eisenman: The Freedom Catalyst on Friday, April 21, 2017

DID YOU SEE THAT??? DID YOU SEE HIM MAGIC THAT BABY QUIET??????????

Perhaps you’re (understandably) skeptical. You may be thinking that the baby was simply entranced by the power of her father’s obviously perfect abs. I wondered the same thing. But, with my far from perfect abs, I was also able to magically soothe my miserable-from-too-many-shots baby with something other than a pair of very worn out boobs.

I tried it on four separate occasions and it worked every time. My husband was in the kitchen making cupcakes while I typed away and chanted “om” at the baby every time she fussed. I’m quite sure he thinks I’m nuts, but it just KEEPS WORKING.

So, if the next time you come to my house and see that we’re having a dance party to a soundtrack of Buddhist monks chanting instead of our usual 90’s pop mix, you’ll understand why.

Mom, I’m Going Outside

Sara

May 1, 2017

When I was in college, a professor commented that she could tell when it was spring because all of us walked around like moles who were exposed to sunlight for the first time in months. I think about this every year around this time when my kids pull away from the X-Box, put down the electronics, and yearn to be outside. My kids are not big on structured activities. My daughter has played basketball and my son takes swim lessons, but they like their weekends to be pretty free form. So, for a warm spring weekend when you want to put down the museum passes and skip the hundredth trip to the zoo, here are some easy and fun ideas that you can do to get your children active and outside.

Scavenger Hunts: A couple of years ago, my son requested a “Five Senses” Scavenger Hunt – a list of five things that each involved one sense. From there, we have created some elaborate lists that include a mix of indoor and outdoor items, as well as things you have to do (e.g. find a pencil and draw three shapes). Some lists involve walks around the neighborhood looking for things. I’ve created them in airports, train stations, and museums. Added bonus: If you are prone to misplacing things, put them on the list and get your kids to find them for you.

Chalk Drawings: Chalk is about the cheapest thing to buy and it unleashes creativity. The best part is that you can create a new drawing after every rainstorm. We even mark of sections so each child has a “canvas” to cover.

Parks: Living in Providence, we are fortunate to have some outstanding parks, including one at the end of our street. My kids and their friends are not really into the slides and swings, but they can spend hours kicking a soccer ball, playing hide and seek, or climbing trees. They both love to ride their bikes as well and will ride them to or around the park. I should mention that they rarely want to do these activities together, but that is another story for another day.

Obstacle Course: Put together an obstacle course in your front or backyard using hula hoops, jump ropes, frisbees, or other items you have around the garage. Endless permutations and your kids will participate for a while with the constant quest to shave just a second off their time.

going outside play Providence Moms Blog — The Great Climber

Please note that sometimes imaginative play requires a bit of supervision. Climbing a tree is fun; noticing your son is over 30 feet up is heart attack provoking. Using the large recycling bin as a basketball hoop is creative; sending your little brother head first in to retrieve the ball is not a great idea. Using the rickety garage shelves for hide and seek because “Mommy won’t mind.” Guess what – SHE WILL! For the most part, kids can play independently, but you may need to lay down a few basic ground rules.

Fred Rogers said, “When children pretend, they’re using their imaginations to move beyond the bounds of reality. A stick can be a magic wand. A sock can be a puppet. A small child can be a superhero.” While I know it would be fun to be cheering from the sidelines of a soccer game or sitting and listening to a piano recital, I also know that left to their own devices, my kids are being creative and having fun. What parent does not want that?

How to Help Out New Parents 101

Robin Barton

April 28, 2017

New babies are magical. They yawn tiny adorable yawns, have the cutest feet, and smell amazing. The hypnotic effects of new babydom coupled with the excitement of their arrival means visitors are imminent. One little spoken of caveat of new baby visitation is to remember you are not just visiting a new baby. You are also visiting the new parents (and possibly older siblings).

As a visitor, keep in mind that the new Mom and Dad are short on sleep, buried in an unimaginable avalanche of poop-stained laundry, and are generally overwhelmed. Additionally, Mom is managing her raging bundle of unpredictable post-birth hormones. There are so many simple ways to help ease the stress of this huge transition for the new parents:

Always check in to make sure it’s a good time to visit.

If you want to visit a new baby, let the new parents know that you are flexible on when you can visit and that you will come when they are ready. While everyone’s excitement comes from a good place, new parents should not feel pressured to manage a visitation schedule for friends and family.

Also, let Mom and Dad know that they can be relaxed during the visit. Tell them that you don’t care if they are in their pajamas. This also includes not flinching upon seeing breast pump supplies littering kitchen counters.

Don’t expect the new Mom & Dad to be great entertainers or conversationalists.

New parents are are so exhausted they are likely on the verge of falling asleep mid-conversation. While the nitty gritty details of new parenthood or the crazy labor story may be interesting to you, Mom and Dad might be feeling like a broken record. It’s certainly okay to talk about life with the tiny new addition, but it might also be refreshing for new parents to converse about topics unrelated to baby. They will enjoy connecting to their identities beyond their new found responsibilities.

Bring food.

The gift of food is priceless. If you come bearing a casserole dish at a meal time, you have a ready-made excuse to snuggle with baby while Mom and Dad enjoy a warm dinner, together. If you are not visiting at mealtime, bringing an easy pop-in-the-oven solution for dinner at another time is a godsend for the new parents.

Cooking not your thing? I had one visitor bring bakery breakfast pastries along with bottles of fruit juice. Others showed up with a pizza in hand, another with an fruit arrangement. All of it was intensely appreciated.

Don’t offer unsolicited advice.

It’s so tempting, and I have been guilty of this one too. When you feel as though you have experience with a certain topic, you naturally want to share that knowledge. Unsolicited advice, however, can unintentionally sting.

My breastmilk supply was low despite my best efforts. I could never seem to make enough and had to supplement early on. I remember being offered a lot of advice for which I did not ask. While advice-givers’ intentions were benevolent, every “pearl” of wisdom broke my heart a little more.

When you are tempted to share your really great parenting tip, ask yourself: does this mom just need me to listen to her vent? If the answer is yes, don’t offer your expertise. If they want your advice, they will ask. Sometimes new parents just need a calming presence and a listening ear.

Offer your help in any way possible.

It can be awkward to offer help in a home other than yours. But anyone can hold the baby so Mom can have a hot cup of coffee in its entirety, fold a basket of clean laundry, or load the dishwasher.

Ask if they need anything before you come over. Be prepared that that thing could be a gallon of milk, but it also might be nipple cream and maxi pads.

Or, just offer to help with the everyday tasks that have recently gotten much more difficult to complete. After my second son was born, my best friend visited. We went grocery shopping together. It was the best help she could have provided me that day. I satisfied my urge to get out of the house, and her presence provided the extra confidence that I could navigate a grocery store with a 3 year old in the shopping cart and a 2 month old in a Moby wrap.

Don’t forget about the new parents.

When the novelty of the new baby wears off, remember that parents are still navigating the rough waters of new parenthood. Check in from time to time. You can send a quick text to just say hello or to ask, “I’m running to the store; anything I can grab for you?” or “Has the baby pooped yet?” Even if a baby’s poop habits are not at the top of your personal life concerns, I can guarantee that feeling like someone cares goes a long way.

They say it takes a village to care for a child. That phrase should also include taking care of parents too, and there are so many simple ways to do so. Be a good villager.

Flying High, Infant Style

Amelia Sugerman

April 27, 2017

Traveling Before Kids (TBK)

I love new travel experiences! My husband and I often book flights for early Saturday morning and return on Monday evening to save money and vacation time. It’s a great way to extend a long weekend.

In July, we scooped up some amazing deals on flights for Thanksgiving to Washington, DC with family. I raced to book dinner reservations for a fun night out and texted a friend to see if we could meet up for lunch during the stay. After all, travel is supposed to be packed fun from beginning to end with reservations and a list a mile long of things to do TBK (insert eye roll here).

Then Life Changed.

Two weeks later, our son was born. We obviously knew about him in advance – we just didn’t exactly think about what it would be like to travel with him or just how hard (and absolutely amazing) it would be.

What Did We Learn?

I’ve found myself relaying this information to friends and family since our first flight and already feel better prepared for the next one, so I wanted to share it with you:

Start small! Our first flight with baby C was 1 hour 15 minutes. I packed enough in our carry ons in case we were stranded for 24 hours without access to food or water, but that’s beside the point. We did our best to book flights at times that wouldn’t disrupt routines for sleeping and eating.
Every kid is different, but flying during the witching hour sounds downright miserable.
Do yourself a favor and start packing days before you think you should. Seriously. Better yet, before you even open the suitcase, spend 2-3 days making lists of everything that your child uses in a day. Just get a feel for what it will be like away from your routine, right down to the simple details. As an example, I wish we had brought our bottle warmer! I use it six times a day, but I had completely forgotten it.
If you’re staying with family or friends, ship items in advance, such as diapers or formula.
Don’t forget to go get a birth certificate for baby. Turns out that it doesn’t matter if he is clearly less than 2 years old; they need proof.
Bring an extra outfit for yourself in the diaper bag just in case! Do you really want to smell the entire way on a plane?
Filling bottles with water for formula is perfectly acceptable. Make sure any breast milk is on ice and not slushy, as it will be checked at TSA.
Gate check your stroller in a gate check bag (Amazon Prime for the win!) to keep it secure and befriend the gate agents! If there are empty seats on board, they will allow you to bring your car seat onboard, which just seems to work a lot better all around. You’ll use the simple latch system as on the plane as you would in a car without the base. If you’re not driving while on vacation, you may even considering baby wearing in the airport and on the flight.

Last piece of advice.

90% of the things that I worried about didn’t even remotely come close to happening. Don’t forget to take pictures and treasure the memories of the first flight with baby!

Editor’s Note: This post is intended for the parents of infants. You’ll hear me swearing from the flight deck once my kid can maneuver himself through the cabin.

Advice From the Other Side

Carol-Ane Woodard

April 26, 2017

I have three children, ages 37, 35, and 31. So here is a list of all my successful child-rearing strategies.

(Wait, am I really supposed to write 420 more words for this article?)

At work, when younger mothers asked me what I did with my kids, I held up my hands.

“Don’t ask me. I never got my kids to go to bed on time. I never got them to sleep through the night. And I never even tried to get them to pick up their toys.”

As I recall, my confidence level fluctuated. A lot. As a new mother, I was convinced that my own mother was constantly criticizing me.

“I did this,” she would tell me. “I did that.”

But then, despite my mother, I had the world’s most wonderful baby. He walked early, talked early, and everyone loved him. I was clearly the world’s best mother. I never lost my patience. I didn’t let him cry it out, because that was barbaric. I let him fall asleep when he wanted, because I remembered spending hours in my own bedroom as a child, staring at the ceiling, and watching the ghosts try to eat me. I could, and did, give sage advice to anyone who asked. By the time I had my second, I didn’t even feel bad when my mother insisted on telling me what “she did.”

“She’s just remembering,” I thought. “She’s just talking. I’ve got this.”

But things went downhill from there. I had somewhat less patience with the second child. Neither of them would go to bed, or sleep through the night, and I could never get them to nap at the same time. My wonderful baby with the endearing habit of sucking his thumb while holding my hair… started to pull my hair. It hurt, and I got angry.

My second child, the original velcro baby, needed my attention 110% of the time. But I still had to go to work. My children still never picked up their toys or went to bed on time. Neither my husband or my mother approved of my child-rearing techniques. My mother was tactful. My husband was not.

After I had my third child, I morphed into the horrible woman in the supermarket who constantly screamed. My 6 year old would run off. While I was looking for him, the 4 year old would try to climb into the shopping cart with the baby. I pictured my baby’s brains smashed into a million pieces on the supermarket floor, shouted “Stop!” at the top of my lungs, and ran. This wasn’t an isolated incidence; I no longer believed I was the world’s best mother. No, I was in constant competition for “Bad Mother of the Year.”

So here, from the other side, is my best advice for new mothers.

Just hang on.

Someday they’ll grow up, leave home, and be able to buy you the drinks that you so desperately need right now. The terrible memories will fade, and you can regale your own daughters’ with all your successful child-rearing strategies.

Or just talk. And acknowledge that kids are just hard, and there are no magic solutions.

Lessons From My Preschooler

Jessica Johnson

April 25, 2017

“Understanding is a two-way street” -Eleanor Roosevelt

Motherhood is amazing, isn’t it? You are blessed with these little people and it’s your job to raise them. You do your best to teach them right from wrong, give them a safe space to process emotions, and love them unconditionally. Surprisingly, they teach you more than you ever thought they could. My 4 year old has taught me more about life than any self-help book I have come across. Here are a few things I have learned from my preschooler.

Wake Up Early – To be fair, this is actually in most self-help books I have read. Waking up early leads to a more productive day. But, I’m not talking 7 a.m. early. My 4 year old wakes up at 3 a.m. in search of a more comfortable bed (mine, of course). Comfort isn’t his only angle here. He is first to know the moment I get out of bed and the first of four kids to eat breakfast. As an early riser, he gets the best fruit and yogurt selection. The early bird really does get the worm.

Run Everywhere – My kids run EVERYWHERE. I have no idea how they do this. It’s like they are all in a Jurassic Park movie. Running, hiding, pretending to eat each other. If I ran everywhere like they did, I would be 20 pounds lighter and have the endurance of an Olympian. I tried copying my preschooler’s every move once and gave up after approximately 5 minutes. Preschoolers are in great shape.

Release Your Emotions – You know when you’re in an obscenely long line and you hear a kid screaming? At first you’re like, “oh great, that’s awesome to listen to while stuck in line,” but really, the kid is only doing what we’re all feeling on the inside. You can’t blame him! Am I suggesting everyone start wailing in line? No, but it’s okay to let your emotions go a little bit. When your friend forgets your birthday, don’t get passive aggressive. Take a tip from Daniel Tiger and use your words. Next time Dunkin’ Donuts runs out of chocolate chip muffins, shed a tear or two if you feel them welling up. You might feel better. If you don’t like the dinner someone made for you, don’t throw it on the floor and stomp on it, though. I needed my own Daniel Tiger song to get through that night.

Don’t freak out about matching your clothes. I will preface this by saying that I am a stay at home mom. If I had to go to an office each day, I wouldn’t take this lesson to heart. For a while, looking “put together” when I left the house was important to me. One day, I found myself frustrated when I couldn’t find the match to the shoes I wanted to wear. I looked over at my son, who was wearing a polo shirt, basketball shorts, and rain boots. It clicked. Who. Cares. It’s just Target. Wear your sneakers.

Dance crazy, not cool. Remember this; it’s important. Dancing is about having fun, not looking good. I am saddened to say there was a time I would not dance because I didn’t think I could. I’d sit at the table and sway awkwardly, convinced everyone would look at me if I got up. Since then, I’ve caught sight of my son dancing with reckless abandon. What preschooler doesn’t believe they can dance? They all KNOW they can dance, because they have arms and legs and can move them at will. You can dance too. Have fun.

There is so much we can learn from the little people in the world. Own your feelings, don’t waste time finding your other shoe, and spin around like no one’s watching.

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Can you relate to this?

Watch this magic.

DID YOU SEE THAT??? DID YOU SEE HIM MAGIC THAT BABY QUIET??????????

Always check in to make sure it’s a good time to visit.

Don’t expect the new Mom & Dad to be great entertainers or conversationalists.

Bring food.

Don’t offer unsolicited advice.

Offer your help in any way possible.

Don’t forget about the new parents.

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