Apr
18
You Are What Your Growing Baby Makes You Eat
by Amy Hicks
I should begin by saying that I am pregnant with my second child and due early this summer. It’s a girl and we are both doing well. With that being said, pregnancy cravings are a b****. When I was carrying my now three year old son Aaron, everyone asked me, “Are you craving anything in particular?” While I believe that I single handedly kept the peanut butter and banana industry afloat during those nine months, there wasn’t anything that I just had to have. I never had to send my husband Michael anywhere at 11:30 at night for tacos and ice cream or pickles and carrot cake, lucky for him. I do remember around the last six weeks I just had to have Corn Pops cereal, but that I have to say is really as far as it ever went.
This pregnancy is a whole other ball game. I don’t know if it’s because I am carrying a girl this time or not, but all I want to eat are sweets. Cookies, M&M’s, ice cream…you name it, I want it. Do I even have to mention that it’s Girl Scout cookie time? Everyday that my husband walks in the door from work without my coveted boxes of cookie nirvana I think, just for a second, about leaving him for someone with a better cookie connection.
The other night we were coming home from my parent’s house and Aaron had brought a bag of Fruit Loops cereal to eat as a snack on the way home. That sweet, fruity aroma filled the car and I really thought about snatching them off of him. I wouldn’t really have done it, but oh I thought about it. Guess what’s at the top of my grocery list for this week? Yep, Fruit Loops. I have a real problem.
So far I have not gained an obscene amount of weight. I had lost several pounds in the beginning of the pregnancy thanks to good ole morning sickness, and the weight that I have put on has come slowly; only one or two pounds a month. Thankfully I have not actually given in to everything that I’ve craved. But as the months go by, it is getting harder and harder to just say no. So if in the next couple of months you hear about an unexplained M&M famine that has rocked the country, please forget that you ever read this post. I swear that I had nothing to do with it. Really! Honest!
About the author: Amy, this month’s This Is Motherhood columnist, is a full-time stay-at-home wife and mother and has been married to her wonderful husband Michael for five years. Together they have a son, Aaron, who is three and a daughter, Elyse, who is due to be born early this summer. Before becoming a mother, Amy was a Histology Technician for a Pathology lab at a local hospital.
Apr
17
Leslie Has Left The Building
by Daddy Forever
Wow, I’m writing on Leslie’s blog. I thought this would be easy, but it’s actually a lot harder to write on another person’s blog. Not sure what to write about. I don’t know you and you don’t know me. Maybe I should just tell you about Leslie’s deep dark secrets. Here goes:
1) Julia does all the writing for Mommy’s Place. It’s true. Julia’s very talented you know. Leslie just takes credit for her daughter’s hard work.
2) Leslie’s husband, Dave, is an alien. He’s from the planet which has no name. He came to Earth for sex — the dirty kind that he couldn’t get from the planet which has no name.
3) I’m Leslie long-lost twin brother. I just found out a second ago. I’m not sure how this is even possible. I’m Asian and Leslie is, well, not Asian.
4) Leslie’s secret identity is Catwoman, which is why she has so many cats. She also likes to use the whip on Dave.
5) When Leslie runs out of milk, she sneaks over to the neighbors and milks their cow.
6) Leslie’s maiden name is John. Her parents are Olivia Newton-John and Elton John.
7) Leslie has a big crush on Simon Cowell. That’s why she watches American Idol every year.
Some of Leslie’s secrets sound like I just made them up, but I didn’t. They are all true. I wouldn’t pull your leg. Honest.
About the author: Daddy Forever is married to Mommy Forever and have 3 Forever kids: Princess M (7), Spiderboy Z (4), and Little Monkey K (2). The Forever clan lives near Beaverton, Oregon (USA). You can read more about them at his personal blog, Daddy Forever.
Apr
15
The Last Pregnant Post
by Leslie
Well, the next time you all hear from me, I will no longer be pregnant. In less than 12 hours, Lucy will be out of my belly and in my arms.
I’ll be checking in here now and then over the next week or so, but for the most part, I’ve handed my blog over to some of my favorite writers. So, won’t you check in here, too? I’ll bring the snooogly wooogly new baby photos and some awesome guest posts, you bring the comments. Deal?
See you all postpartum!
Apr
1
It’s a wonderful opportunity to meet some brilliant mothers; to celebrate, learn from and be inspired by our differences, while drawing strength and support from the common ground we share.
I am so proud to introduce you to April’s featured mother: my very good friend, Amy Hicks.
I was absolutely delighted when Amy agreed to write about her motherhood experience for This Is Motherhood. Although she doesn’t have a blog…yet (hint hint, double hint), she has a wonderful way with words. What is more, she’s an incredible mother, a generous friend and a beautiful, open-hearted individual. She is down-to-earth and genuine, and makes the best chocolate chip cookies I’ve ever eaten in my life. I’m grateful to know her, and I believe you will be, too. So be sure to click and read her column after this friendly little interview.
Leslie: What is the best parenting advice you’ve ever received? What is the worst?
Amy: I don’t know that I have ever received a best or worst piece of advice. I think that I have just kind of plodded my way through and have done the best that I can. Over time I have learned that no mother is perfect and that has allowed me to relax a little and not be so up tight about every little thing. If there was one thing that I could tell every new mother it would be that we all have our own way of handling motherhood. There is no right or wrong way, just what works for you. I think that new mothers would ease into the whole experience a lot easier if they didn’t feel like everyone else knew what to do except for them.
Leslie: What do you want to teach your children?
Amy: More than anything I want to teach my children to respect themselves and others. I think that everything else that you wish for your children will follow if they can just learn respect. Also I want them to see that their father and I are more in love today than we were when we got married. I think that it is incredibly important for children to know with out a doubt that their parents love each other.
Leslie: As a mother, what product or item can’t you live without?
Amy: Actually, my husband and I just bought a Kia Sedona mini van. I absolutely love it and can’t believe that we spent the last three years carting my son around in my teeny tiny little car. There is so much room and we will have no problem installing my daughter’s infant car seat in just a few short weeks. The mini van…I love it and could not live with out it!
Leslie: If you were to write a book about your motherhood experience, what would it be called?
Amy: If I Only Knew Then…A Woman’s Journey into the World of Motherhood
Well that or
If I Have to Tell You One More Time…A Tale of How One Mother Flipped Out
Leslie: If you were given a day completely to yourself where you could do whatever you wanted – money is no object – how would you spend that day?
Amy: I would go to some deserted island where the only other people there would be my personal team of servants whose only job it is to serve me and not talk. I would spend the day relaxing on the beach, getting massages and eating a case of Leslie’s Famous Buckeyes. Now that would be Heaven.
Please click on over to read Amy’s edition of This Is Motherhood, then come on back here to shower her with comment love!
Mar
1
Motherhood According To Suz
by Leslie
It’s a new month, so that means there’s a new edition of the feature column:
It’s a wonderful opportunity to meet some brilliant mothers; to celebrate, learn from and be inspired by our differences, while drawing strength and support from the common ground we share.
I am really excited to introduce you to this month’s featured mother: Suzanne Gale of The World According To Suz. I’ve had a crush on her and her blog pretty much since she started writing it. I did a little something resembling a hurkey (which is a whole lot for a pregnant lady like me) when she agreed to write this installment of This Is Motherhood, because she is the coolest. If we were to have a cool kids virtual sleepover, Suz would be the one helping me put your bra in the freezer. She also happens to be an incredibly talented writer, so you really must click and read her column right after this warm-up interview.
Leslie: Why do you blog?
Suzanne: I blog for a few reasons:
*One: keeps me writing on a regular basis. Writing is what I like to do, but it’s rarely feasible to be able to sit and work on a novel for hours a day. A couple hundred words each day, or even every-other-day, is more my speed right now.
*Two, being a blogger is the closest I will ever come to being a rock star or performing before a large audience. I’ll write something and then just can’t wait to see the comments; I’m a comment junkie. I see new comments and I think Yay! People are paying attention to me!! (Wow, that was probably too honest… please don’t think less of me…)
*And last but not least, I blog so my friends and family who live far away can sort of keep tabs on my family. They like to see pictures of the kids posted.
Leslie: If your blog were a food or beverage, what would it be and why?
Suzanne: Mashed potatoes with Pop Rocks on top. It’s kind of smooshy and comforting, but then has a funny, tickling element to it. And it rots your teeth.
Leslie: If there were a movie made of your life, who would you choose to play you? Who do you think your children would choose for you?
Suzanne: I’ve had a few people tell me that I look like Cameron Diaz. I would be just fine with her playing me; then people would think that I was taller and had straighter teeth in real life. Plus, we already know from Charlie’s Angels that she can pull off the martial arts moves. We would have to put some fight scenes in the movie, just for dramatic effect. My children would probably pick a character from Star Wars or Sponge Bob to play me, because those are about the only actors they know.
Leslie: Would you rather have the ability to read other people’s thoughts or the ability to plant thoughts in their head?
Suzanne: I’d like to have the ability to read people’s thoughts, but I’d want to be able to shut if off at will. I don’t think I’d like to hear things about myself all of the time. I mean, how depressing would that be to be talking to someone and they just keep thinking wow, I wonder if she knows about that zit on her forehead. She has to know. How could she not feel that one?
Leslie: If you were given a day completely to yourself where you could do whatever you wanted – money is no object – how would you spend that day?
Suzanne: I’m a sucker for time spent with my husband. He is a funny guy, and just fun to be around. I’d like to fly off with him to somewhere warm. Just spend the day hanging out, being outside. A massage would be nice, too. Oooh, yeah, I’ve always wanted to do one of those couples massages on a beach somewhere. That’d be the best.
Now, click on over to read Suzanne’s edition of This Is Motherhood and be sure to visit her blog The World According To Suz!
Stuff I Do
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Stuff You Should Do
You know, Stuff.
