Perfect Moms Need Not Apply

Are you a perfect mom?  By that, I mean, do you do the right thing at the right time with the right attitude EVERY time?  If so, stop reading now ... or maybe give yourself some grace and read on (you know what you need).

This year I was given a surprise gift from someone that I don't even know - the opportunity to be on the launch team for a great new book!  The book is titled No More Perfect Moms, written by Jill Savage.  If you are unfamiliar with her, she is the founder and CEO of Hearts at Home.  I was able to attend my first Hearts at Home conference this past fall in Rochester, let me tell you, it was life-changing and encouraging and challenging all a the same time.  In our registration bags, we were all given a preview of the book - which I promptly skimmed while waiting for mom's night out to start ... I knew, then and there, that I would be purchasing this book, in fact I almost pre-ordered it at the conference.

Fast forward to the week before Christmas when I got a glorious email saying that I had been selected to be part of the launch team for this fantastic book!  I was beside myself excited!  Now, I get to tell you all about the book and how fabulous it really is and wet your appetite for your copy!  

Are you so excited that you can hardly wait?  I am!  Here are some ways that you can be involved now and get the most from the book:

 1. Sign up for Jill Savage's "No More Perfect Moms" 31-Day Email Challenge. You don't have to have the book {which doesn't release until February anyway} to be part of this. Click here to sign up so you can start receiving real-life encouragement in your inbox on Jan. 1 (tomorrow).

2. Don't buy the book yet, but get ready to do so Feb. 4-9. Along with the release of "No More Perfect Moms," Hearts at Home and Moody Publishers will offer additional bonus resources worth more than $100 if you order/buy the book anytime Feb. 4-9. Click here to learn more about this and sign up to be reminded of the release date.  We want to get the book on the Best Seller List so that more mom's can be reached.

3. Visit "No More Perfect Moms" website. This is where you can share stories, learn more about the book, and view motherhood resources.

I look forward to making motherhood real with you, my friends!

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A PDF copy of the book was given to me to review, but the thoughts and commentary are mine.

I haven't forgotten ...

Merry Christmas. my dear friends!  I haven't forgotten about you, or the next mommy advice post ... but I want it to have pictures, and can't seem to find the time to take them! 

We've had a lot going on around our house (who hasn't these days, right?) - it all started with sick kids over Thanksgiving, and has just gotten busier and  busier by the day!  David has been on vacation all week, and we have yet to be home for a day (or even half a day) - yikes!  Tis the season, right? 

Thinking of and praying for safe travels and a very merry Christmas for you!

Labor and Delivery

So, as promised (and just a bit overdue, but hey - babies work on their own time-table too!), here is my take on labor and delivery :)

WARNING - MY STORY IS NOT "NORMAL"

As we neared the end of my pregnancy with Kate, I was finding myself thankful that I had gestational diabetes.  You see, my doctor told me that she would not let me go past my due date!  So, with Kate, I was induced on my due date (well, the night before) :)  (Jenna was another story!).

I was told to call into the hospital at 6:30am, and that they would then "put me on the list" and call me when I could come to the hospital.  Let me tell you, that day was the longest day of my entire pregnancy!  When they FINALLY called at 8:00pm, I was ecstatic!  We eagerly drove the 45 minutes to the hospital, checked in and waited some more.  Finally, at 11pm I was given cytotec (to "ripen" my cervix - how's that for TMI?!) and told that I would get that every 4 hours until they had seen sufficient progress; then I would be switched to pitocin to bring on labor.

David and I decided that we would do our best to get as much sleep as we could (although we were VERY excited).  Around 2:30am I woke up; feeling something strange.  Decided I must just need to go to the bathroom, got up and realized that strange feeling had been my water breaking - decided to go back to sleep, because I could.  At 3:00am  I woke up, unable to sleep through the contractions anymore.  So, we got up and used all of the things we learned in our birthing classes.  Around 4:00am, I realized that this could go on for a very long time (most first babies are 10+ hours in labor) - and I wasn't so sure I could go through with my no medication plan.  So, I had David tell the nurse that I wanted something to take the edge off.  The very next contraction, I looked at the nurse and told her "I know you're going to tell me it's not time - but I feel like I need to push." She immediately had me get into the bed so she could check my progress and told me that there were going to be no pain meds in my future - I was going to push on the next contraction!  So, I pushed for a couple contractions and then was told that I had to wait because the doctor was not in the room to catch the baby.  I waited as best I could through several contractions (that is VERY hard to do, by the way) - then asked the nurse if the doctor was ever going to come, because I just couldn't do that anymore.  (She later told us that she was just about to push the "code" button when the dr arrived).  Well, the doctor FINALLY arrived, thinking that she'd have some time before our baby was ready - the nurse told her to get ready as fast as humanly possible - this baby is coming - NOW!

At 4:28am, our little princess came into the world and changed our lives forever.  We were now parents to this little 8 pound 2 ounce, 21.5 inch angel (who is now 4 - HOW DID THAT HAPPEN?!).  What a difference a few hours made!

The next morning the nurse who checked me in came to say hi and see how we were doing - every staff member who came into my room talked of how very fast Kate came and how they were all surprised and amazed that I did it all without medication.

You know what?  I wouldn't have it any other way!!

Next time: carseats (be warned, this is a topic of passion of mine)

Pregnancy

Ok - so maybe once a week was a bit ambitious for this stage of life .... we'll see!

As promised, here's my take on pregnancy:

After waiting almost 2 years to hear the magical words "you're pregnant!" you'd think that I'd have been more prepared.  Instead the conversation went something like this:

"Is this Sara?"

"Yes it is."

"Hi Sara, this is (someone) from Dr. Campbell's office.  

I wanted to let you know that your pregnancy test came back positive.  

Congratulations!"

"What?!  Are you serious?!?!!?!?!?!?!?"

"Oh, honey - I wouldn't joke about this!"

I was beside myself surprised, excited.  There were NO WORDS to describe the feeling I had at that moment.  The best part?!  My employer (I was a nanny at the time) was sitting across the table from me when I got the call (yes, they knew we were trying and that I was expecting the call that afternoon) - she told me how excited she was and then excused herself from the room so I could call David!

My pregnancy with Kate was ... well ... magical!  It was all so new, I had only ever dreamed of what it could possibly be like.  Now, the magic was not all fun - I was pretty sick in the first trimester -- but once that was done - pure bliss!  Well ... until I got a positive test for gestational diabetes .. but even that was manageable in light that I was doing what I was doing to grow a healthy HUMAN BEING!

I loved to feel my baby kick and move and roll - I even loved getting up in the middle of the night for a billion trips to the bathroom!!  It was just wonderful. 

Pregnancy is a blast, I LOVE it!!!!

Now, I know that not everyone loves (or even likes) being pregnant, and I'm not sure what else to tell you about it - it's kind of a hands-on experience.  Everyone reacts differently, for example - I become VERY outspoken and opinionated when I am pregnant!  (hard to believe, if you know me otherwise, I know)  Oh - and a word on cravings ... mine were not all that weird, but very specific ... for example - I sent David out to the grocery store minutes before it closed for Bomb Pops -- but not just any kind, they had to be the ones that just melt in your mouth ... the ones that have ridges around the outside and are just the best!  (yes, that is the description I sent him with - I now know that they are Blue Bunny ones)

My advice - pick up a copy of  "Your Baby Week-By-Week" and ENJOY IT!!  Oh - and skip "What to expect when you're expecting" ... I thought that one was pretty useless.  Oh - also get "The Girlfriend's Guide to Pregnancy" - it will have you in hysterics!!

Up next - labor and delivery (the fun stuff)

A challenge

I was recently challenged by a friend to write posts about all aspects of being the mom that I am.  I am officially accepting this challenge and starting now I will post once/week on various aspects of motherhood.

Let me first say that I am not a perfect mother, nor am I saying that my way is best.  I am simply going to share what we have done in our house and what has worked/not worked for our family.

So ... to start this challenge - let's start at the beginning :)  We were married for about 2 years before deciding that we were ready to begin our journey as parents.  We didn't know then what a long journey we were in for ... turns out that getting pregnant isn't always so easy!  We worked with various teams of medical professionals for just under 2 years before we got the joyous call saying that the blood-test they had run that morning came back positive!!!  All of the tests, endless monitoring, shots and other medications that toyed with my emotions - it was all suddenly worth every minute!  To say that we were excited would be an understatement!

We lived much of those two years in silence about what we were going through.  It was just not something that we talked about - how do you even bring that up in conversation?  "Hi, how are you?  We're trying to have a baby, but that isn't going so well."  Yeah ... I don't think so.  We didn't know anyone else who had ever gone through anything like this, so who would we turn to anyway?  It was hard, if I had something to go back and do over with this process, that would make the short list.  To have people around you, those who genuinely care, supporting you is worth the awkward conversation of telling someone what you are going though.  You may even be surprised by who else knows just what you're going through. :)

Until next week :)

Next up: pregnancy

Summer in review

WOW!  What a summer!  

We started our summer (May) with a cross country road trip with our kiddos :)  It was a lot of work, but so worth it in the end!  We got to spend time with family and friends across several states.  Driving is more work than flying, but so much cheaper in the end.  It can be done, friends - and even can be *gasp* enjoyable!

When we got back home, we started working on a playhouse for our girls.  Kate and I designed it, and David built it.  It took MUCH longer than either of us ever imagined, but it is pretty much done now and the kids really love to play in it!  Kate's favorite part was choosing the paint colors and then helping me to paint the inside.  Oh - and I broke my toe!!

July brought the first birthday party of our sweet niece, an incredibly hot Independence Day, and then the wedding of some sweet friends.

August was spent getting ready for my 30th birthday -- I think my Dad is having a harder time with the fact that his child is 30 than I am!!  We had a fantastic time with friends, enjoying the back yard (cooler weather too) and chatting.  It was the perfect way to spend my birthday.

That brings us to September, the start of our homeschooling adventure.  Kate is officially in preschool and we are loving the ability to teach her at home and I really love watching her learn and grasp new things.  

I am also back to blogging - so many thoughts rolling around in my mind, if you have thoughts on anything in particular you'd like to see - let me know!!  It's fun to be back, my friends!

If you can't say something nice ....

"Oh, you're still _____?!"

"You know, if you did (things my way) then (I might not tell you about it as much)."

"Don't you think they're a little old for that?"

"What did you do all day?"

"What do you mean, you don't have time? It's not like you WORK or anything!"

"Maybe you just need some time management skills."

"Can't you control your children!?"

"Wow, don't you know how birth control works?!"

I have a friend who actually heard this from some lady at the grocery store!

Everyone seems to want to tell you what you're doing wrong or how you SHOULD (according to them) be doing it differently.  If you're anything like me, you don't need any exterior criticism to feel like you're not living up to expectations as a wife/mom/friend.


We are all making decisions based on our own family, our own circumstances and our own convictions.  So long as my decisions aren't hurting or posing a threat to the safety of my children, let it go!  It may not be what you do/did with your kids - but we each have to make choices based on our own family.  If you think that donuts for breakfast every day is fine - do it.  If you decide to give your baby formula - good for you.  If you want to work outside your home - get a job.  Make choices that work for your family.  Do us all a favor though, don't live your life by indecision (more on that another day).  


Let's cut one another some slack.  Trust that people are making the best decisions that they are capable of making, and encourage them!  Instead of pointing out what they are doing wrong - find something they're doing great.  Then the hard part (if you're a true Minnesotan anyway) TELL THEM! 


The Bible has a lot to say on encouragement, let's change the norm from criticism to encouragement.  We are all doing the best we can!

1 Thessalonians 5:11

 Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing.

Hebrews 10:24-25

And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.