Posts Tagged Under Cindy Bailey
Swimming Upstream
I want to scream!
My husband and I went back East with our two-year-old for the New Year holiday. We returned refreshed, inspired and motivated. This would be the year we break from our routine and create more time for family and travel!
Yet, here we are at the end of January and neither of us had done anything toward our goals.
Two weeks earlier, in the twenty minutes we had before our son would wake from his nap, we whipped up a plan and gave each other assignments.
By adminFear of Gifts Aplenty
Christmas is coming. My son is two, so I’m not worried.
Yet.
What about when he’s four or five? We are not big on showering gifts, and I worry that he’ll feel deprived or cheated if he doesn’t get as many as his friends. Is it possible in our culture of abundance to raise a child to be above that?
These thoughts first came a couple of years ago when my son was three weeks old. A friend invited us to her family’s house for Christmas. There were aunts, uncles, cousins, brothers, sisters, nieces, nephews, a grandmother—a fully loaded house.
In the spacious living room stood a tree eight-feet high, and all around it presents were stacked to the ceiling. I had never seen so many gifts under, or next to, one tree. You could hardly see the tree.
By adminBroken Mommy
As mentioned in a previous blog, my back went out recently. Wham! Just like that, and afterward, I could barely move.
One of the questions I asked myself is, “How could I have let myself get so out of shape that now I couldn’t even take care of my own child?”
Well, there’s a reason, and it’s stupid, in hindsight.
By adminSuperdad
Twisting my body to lift my son, I strained my back. Bam! It went out, just like that. Afterward, I could barely move without excruciating pain.
I thought, “How am I going to care for my toddler?” Just the thought of putting my son in his car seat or even lifting his legs to change his diaper made me cringe.
Luckily, my husband is Superdad, and he swooped in to the rescue. Superdad is not a mythical comic book figure, but a real superhero that lives in our home. He heard there was trouble in the family, so he raced home from work early to help. No matter that his work was in crisis and he was under tremendous pressure. His family comes first.
By adminGo Green: Potty Train Now
Recently, I attended a potty training class that was advertised as getting toddlers between the ages of fifteen and twenty eight months potty trained in one long weekend.
My toddler is nineteen-months old and doesn’t speak yet. He doesn’t point to a toilet or his diaper when he has to go. He has his own potty, but mostly he uses it to store toys. He does, however, strongly dislike having his diaper changed, and according to leaders of the potty training class, that’s one of the signs.
When I told friends about my intent to potty train, I was surprised by the wall of opposition I got. They said: “He’s way too young.” “He’ll tell you when he’s ready.” “He has to be able to talk first, so he can communicate his needs.” “When they’re ready, they practically train themselves.”
By adminMorbid Mommy
We spent Fourth of July the way most families do: at a BBQ with friends at their backyard pool, soaking up the sun and each other’s company. It was wonderful.
Nevertheless, in the week leading up to the event, I was overrun with terror.It would be the first time we would be spending time by a pool since our 19-month-old son, Julien, learned to walk, so, naturally, the gruesome, worst-case-scenario visions started: Julien is running along the pool’s edge and I’m chasing and shouting at him to stop. He looks back at me giggling and goes over the edge and into the deep end. I vault to grab his arm, but he slips under. Seconds pass and I’m finally able to snatch him by his T-shirt and pull him out. He chokes, coughing up water, but is OK. I am not.
I know. Horrible. Sick.
By adminToo Young, Too Unfair
While in Switzerland a couple of weeks ago, visiting my husband’s family, I called my friend Hanne, who had just moved there from San Francisco.
I was hoping I could visit, but I knew the timing wasn’t right: she was expecting her second baby any day.
When we spoke she reminded me of this, and said that also her first, Lucas, who is 20 months old and extremely active, had fallen down and wasn’t walking properly, so they were taking him in for an MRI.
By adminToo Young, Too Unfair
While in Switzerland a couple of weeks ago, visiting my husband’s family, I called my friend Hanne, who had just moved there from San Francisco.
I was hoping I could visit, but I knew the timing wasn’t right: she was expecting her second baby any day.
When we spoke she reminded me of this, and said that also her first, Lucas, who is 20 months old and extremely active, had fallen down and wasn’t walking properly, so they were taking him in for an MRI.
By adminWhat Happened to Her?
I almost jumped out of my chair. I know Lisa! I went to high school with her in Rockville, Maryland. We ran on the track team together. I remember her as smart, ambitious, and very competitive. In her senior year, Lisa won the prestigious student-athlete award and told us that all she wanted to do was fly. Continue… »
