Hello, let me introduce myself first..
For the first 30 years of my life, everything was smooth and worry-free. I was my parents’ most beloved child, found my true love in college, and happily married him after graduation.
At work, I was my boss’s most valued employee. Whenever I was in charge of a project, colleagues would inevitably say, “Oh, then I’m totally at ease.” I was constantly named “Employee of the Year,” with generous bonuses every year.
Later, I started my own business. Within just three months, I had broken into the market and started making money. By the fifth month, I was earning twice my previous salary. Growth was steady month after month. Right when the business needed more hands, I serendipitously met an amazing partner, and the company reached a whole new level.
Really, it seemed like at every step, whatever I needed, a pair of hands would always place it right in front of me, just in time.
My Two Girls: Ellie & Mia
Meet Ellie, My Firstborn
In 2020, my husband and I decided to have a child. After trying for over a year, we finally got the news in 2021 that a little one was on the way. In 2022, we welcomed our first child, Ellie. She made me a mother.
She is utterly adorable—big eyes, rosy skin, chubby little hands. Every time I look at her, I can’t help but give her a kiss. She is pure joy, and I love her more each day.
But as a first-time mom, I faced unprecedented difficulties. The postpartum tearing wouldn’t heal, and the pain was excruciating. Clogged milk ducts made my breasts hard as rocks. The severe sleep deprivation… And what was even more crushing was that, with zero parenting experience, I was clueless when faced with her unexplained wailing, night terrors, refusal to nurse, constipation, diarrhea, fevers… I desperately searched online, longing for one accurate, truly useful answer!
It was during this time that I thought, once I make it through this “dark” path, I must leave a light on for other new moms.
And Then Came Mia
Ellie had just turned one when I got pregnant again. In 2024, we welcomed our second daughter, Mia.
Completely different from Ellie, Mia is a great eater and sleeper. Although she had her fussy moments in the first two months, starting almost from month three, she became super easygoing. She feeds on schedule, gradually sleeps through the night, loves her solid foods, and adapted quickly when I had to stop breastfeeding due to mastitis.
This made me realize just how vastly different babies can be! It made me even more determined to write about my experiences.
Why I Had to Start This Blog
The Catalyst: A Life Pivoted
After Mia was born, my business also began to decline sharply. I had no choice but to close it and become a full-time mom. My work no longer involves Excel and Word, but instead revolves around changing diapers, washing bottles, making baby food, and managing household chores…
This has been a monumental challenge for me. All my past achievements seem irrelevant now. Managing two young children has brought me a sense of frustration I’ve never known before.
The Daily Reality
They are always fighting over things. When one is in my arms, the other immediately demands to be held too. When I try to cook, Ellie wants me to read her a book. When I attempt to load the washing machine, Mia has a diaper blowout, and I must drop everything to change her…
By the time I finish all that, I see the cup of hot coffee on the table has gone cold again. And it’s not until evening that I remember, “Oh my goodness, the clothes are still in the hamper, unwashed!”
Of course, being a mom is filled with happiness, but that doesn’t negate how hard it is.
My Promise to You
Because I’ve walked this path myself, I won’t just tell you how joyful motherhood is, like many websites do. I want to share my real, unfiltered experiences so every new mom can find a “companion” here.
I want to tell you: you are not alone. What you’re going through, I’ve been there too. Your breakdowns, your helplessness, your moments of losing control—I’ve had them all. You don’t need to feel guilty. This is just a small, necessary stretch of the journey for every mom.
My Hope for This Space
I really want to share my parenting experiences—not just the warm, glowing moments, but to honestly document the pitfalls I’ve stumbled into, the tears I’ve shed, and the “survival wisdom” I’ve scraped together in utter exhaustion.
The Goal: A Mom’s Toolkit
I hope this blog becomes a “mom’s toolkit,” filled not with vague theories, but with:
- Practical Tips: Like how to quickly figure out why a baby is crying, tried-and-true methods for dealing with clogged ducts, or how to efficiently manage the daily grind with twins (or two under two) solo.
- Pitfall Avoidance Guides: Sharing the baby products I regret buying the most, and those “game-changer” parenting hacks. Letting you know which parenting anxieties you can let go of, and which principles are worth holding onto.
- A Community for Moms: I hope my stories connect me with more moms like you. We can cheer each other on in the comments, share our own tricks, turning the storms we face alone into a journey we walk together.
The Bigger Vision
My previous career taught me to analyze data, solve problems, and optimize processes. Now, I’m applying all those skills to this new “position” of Mom. I want to prove that a mom’s value is absolutely not confined to the home. The mindset, resilience, and creativity we built in our careers can shine just as brightly—perhaps even brighter—in this more complex, long-term “project” of raising humans, and can even be transformed into a force that helps others.
My hope is simple: that every mom who opens this blog can let out a sigh of relief and say, “So it’s not just me.” Then, she can find a bit of practical info, a dose of comforting solidarity, and return to her sweet, chaotic mom-life with a little more confidence and a little less weight on her shoulders.
This road? Let’s walk it together.
mavs_girl07
member
Re: Did you do anything to PT at night?
Age and maturity. DD has been day trained for 2 years and still wets the bed at night about 50% of the time. She is slowly getting better about getting up to go or holding it.
I would buy a cheap plastic cover or waterproof mattress pad for her mattress if you are going to try going without pull ups.
I expect it's something that comes with maturity (ie. as their body matures); this is why they make pull ups or 'good nights' for older kids.
When we PTd DS this past summer we didn't worry about night time training and had him in pull ups. DH and I have started to notice that he wakes up to pee at night and wakes up dry most mornings. When we run out of pull ups we'll try him in undies at night and see how it goes.
We ditched the pull up on December 31st. DD had been day trained for a little shy of 6 months, but I was told by a friend that a general rule of thumb is that when they can go one week without any overnight peeing thats when you can ditch the diaper.
We are still accident free although DD cried yesterday because she wanted to wear a pull up to bed and mommy was mean and told her no because she is now a very big girl.
Thanks everyone! We'll just keep giving it time.
It's an Ikea mattress, so we've had trouble finding a mattress protector that would fit it. I bought a small, rectangular-shaped mattress protector online that had a plastic backing, but she had an accident and it still leaked through to the mattress. But I was just looking at Ikea's website and saw that they sell a mattress protector, I'll have to go try that one out.
Matthew James 1/11/07
My oldest is 5 and STILL wears a pull-up at night. She sees a pediatric urologist because she had recurring UTIs at age 3 and at our last visit 6 months ago he said he wasn't really worried that she still can't get through the night without wetting the bed.
My 3 year old potty trained herself (because of the issues we had with her sister I said I would keep her in diapers until she was absolutely ready). She was completely PT within 3 weeks. Guess it just depends on the child.
I agree w/ pps. It's a developmental thing.
DD1 potty trained herself, daytime, when she was 2yrs 4 months. She would wake up with a FULL diaper in the morning, so I wasn't about to attempt nighttime PTing.
Up until about a month ago, she would still wake up with a full pull-up, sometimes even leaking out she peed so much at night.
The week before Xmas, she decided she was done w/ pull ups at night, went to bed in underwear and has been fine ever since. She's had 2 accidents in 3+ week, and both were in the beginning. FWIW, she will be 4 in a month...so nighttime PT happened a year and a half after daytime PT.
ETA: DD doesn't wake up to go either. I think that's why those accidents happen. She just holds it all night.
BFP 5/07 - Kylie born 2/08. BPF 2/09 - Alexandra born 10/09.
TTC since 8/13 - diagnosed difficulty conceiving due to LP defect. Took vitamin B and Vitex Berry to help lengthen.
BFP 2/14 - Missed M/C found at 8.5 weeks. D&C at 9w2d. Partial Molar Pregnancy.
BFP 11/14
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I love these two beautiful children!