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.
BabyMakes6
member
Re: Which crib did you get? PIP it for us!
We ended up with the Darcy crib in Espresso from PBK, and love it! I really like that there arent rails all the way around, just on the front. And it sits up super high. To top it all off...it not only converts to a toddler bed, but ALSO a full sized bed as well, so it is worth the money because we can use it forever! https://www.potterybarnkids.com/products/darcy-fixed-gate-3-in-1-crib/?pkey=bcribs
https://shop.caprettidesign.com/collections/umbria/products/umbria-convertible-crib-3311
We have the Capretti Umbria crib in white. We love it! It's super heavy and converts to a toddler/ full bed. The only thing we don't like is that, due to its design, you can barely see the bedskirt from our bedding set. Other than, we are VERY happy.
We bought the Alex crib from Bellini. It is beautiful. It hasn't been delivered yet, but it is very solid and timeless, and we liked the lines.
ETA: it turns into a toddler bed and a full size bed.
DD #1 born 4/1/2012
My Married Bio
This is the Emily Davinci 4-in-1 (convert to toddler and full sized bed). It comes in all colors and is a good price, got the best reviews I've seen on the Bump and on various websites. Easy to buy--online through BRU, Amazon, or others. Hard to find in an actual store, but I was very pleased with how it looks in person when we assembled it:) Good luck!
We have the Europa Baby Palisades crib in classic cherry. It looks amazing and has very solid construction. It converts into a toddler and a double bed, which was a plus for us, and it isn't pricey. I believe Baby Bargains selected it as its crib of choice in their older version of books.
We ordered the Baby's Dream Legendary flat top solid back in espresso, but haven't received it yet. I like that it is a solid piece of furniture and what really sold us was the dresser. I wanted a full size heavy dresser that would be suitable for a teenager since this is a convertable crib. we also wanted a solid back so the headboard wouldn't look like a converted crib once it's a full size bed.
Oeuf Sparrow crib in white (converts to toddler crib later on). We love the clean lines, and it's very sturdy. Looks great with brightly-colored bedding!
Munire Urban Lifetime Crib--Should be delivered next week! Made in USA, real wood, sturdy, converts to toddler bed, then full sized bed.
We got the Davinci Jenny Lind- $150 on Amazon
We have the same one. I loved it so much the first time around, that we bought the same set for this LO as well.
This is ours...a co worker of mine had it for her LO and never used it so we got it for free! I love it!
We got the Graco Stanton. It converts toddler/daybed and then a full size bed. It's $150 at Walmart and Amazon. We haven't put it together yet but it got a lot of good reviews. https://www.walmart.com/ip/Graco-Stanton-4-in-1-Convertible-Crib-Espresso/14012480
Good to know it made the second round
We ordered the Bonavita Metro crib in white:
It will arrive between 4/1/12 and 4/30/12.
mm 2/17/11 * dd born 4/20/12 * bo 1/3/14 * edd 1/21/ 1/15
The Babi Italia Eastside Classic Crib...DS has the Babi Italia Pinehurst Convertible crib (w/dresser and changer dresser which we also got in the Eastside for DS#3's collection) and love how sturdy and solid the furniture is.
got it on Black Friday at BRU (chose the classic look vs convertible since I am going for a chabby chic/elegant theme and wanted the classic look)
Konstantino
Maximo
FOLLOW ME ON PINTEREST https://pinterest.com/raffaella1030/
We got the Bonavita Peyton Classic Crib in Expresso (we didnt put on the casters like shown below though). Came from buy buy baby, but for some reason they dont show the pics online!
Baby Cache Heritage Oak from BRU. It looks darker than this picture. We got the tall dresser and combo for the room too. Hopefully the crib can be set up soon!
Mr and Mrs EST 8.19.06
DD#1 3.28.12
We got the Munire Majestic Collection Crib, Armoire, Dresser, Hutch and end table.
We have a very large room for her, so this stuff will hopefully last her until she moves out! 
We got this. Summer Infant Brayden Crib from BRU. I love it.
Our New Home! Renovation Underway! The Law Nest
TTC Journey
7/2008 - begin TTC
7/2009 - began charting
9/2009 - Dx Endometriosis
10/2009 - HSG/SA (Normal)
12/2009 -6/2010 - Lupron #1 & 2
Sep-Nov 2010- Clomid Cycles #1&2 = BFN
Dec 2010 - Clomid Cycle #3 = BFP (1/11/11);no h/b (2/10/11); D&C (2/23/11)
5/11-6/11 - herbal tea regime = BFN
7/24/2011- herbal tea regime = surprise BFP
This is the one we are going to order for our little man once we move. What headboard did you end up picking? The one shown in the picture? They have 3 options to choose from.
We are doing crib, high and long dresser and night stand. I am going to skip the armoire.
We got the Graco Somerset 4 in 1 in white.
ETA: My "review"- Don't know much about it because we haven't put it together quite yet
But it got great reviews. One major plus it had for us was that it was only $160.
We got the babyletto Modo 3 in 1 Crib.
I like that it's very modern and converts to a toddler bed. I put it together myself (a few months ago! since we got it on sale). It was VERY easy to assemble (even easier than IKEA furnature) and is BEAUTIFUL.
I would have LOVED to get that OEUF, but $$$$! (So envious!!)
I got this same one.
We set it up a couple of weeks ago. It's a crib. I don't know! lol
Dream on Me Classic Convertible Crib in Espresso. $99 at Walmart.com but we didn't choose it because of the price, we chose it because it was the only crib I liked the look of. It has good reviews too.
We have this one!
We are getting the Sorelle Princeton 4-in-1 Crib. It's going to stay with him for a long time, and we love the changing table on the side that will convert to his nightstand when it becomes a toddler bed!
We went with the Graco Sarah crib, it is very sturdy. Seems to be very well made.
here is the PIP:
Here is ours, setup...cribskirt not yet here.
We went with the Babi Italia Eastside Convertible crib from BRU. We love how well-made it is and that it will hopefully stay with her throughout her childhood. I cannot say enough great things about the construction of this crib!
Emerson Kate born 4/6/12, 5 lbs. 13 oz. 18 3/4 inches.
Happily expecting Baby Mac #2 around 4/13/14
We also got the Babi Italia Eastside crib + dresser changer + chest, but we went with Cherry. I love it!
Another Babi Italia Eastside crib set! I also got it in Cherry. We picked it for the great Black Friday deal, but I love it so far!
A15 January Siggy Challenge-
I LOVE this crib! The Oeuf was actually a gift (!), but if it hadn't been, this crib was exactly what we would have bought!! I think it's gorgeous:)