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.
Re: Another dog owner in desperate need of help!
I just don't know what to do. I know I want to cry, first things first. Idk how much more I can handle right now. We are at my in laws because our house is a construction zone right now ($$$$) and its 2:45 am here and H and I were just woken up by the sound of Dakota having diarrhea in her crate. H took her outside, she vomited, came back inside and vomited again. It's getting worse. She just finished both meds she was on that were supposed to fix this.
I can't afford another $200+ vet bill on top of the recent pipe leak in our house. Everything is adding up, H and I are stressed out, I'm afraid for us to even go to work and leave Dakota here with his mom all day and have her get sick and his mom be pissed about it. H already has to take time off to meet with insurance, plumbers and demo people for the pipe.
Also his parents live in deer central and I think she might have caught some fleas, but we are being very hopeful it was chiggers instead. I got 4 bites on me and then we have her a flea bath the next day but didn't see a single flea fall in the bathtub so idk but she's been itching. I don't want to be here. I want to be home and I want my dog to be healthy. She's such a good girl but she's been sick 95% of the time we've had her. Idk what else to do
My dog has a grade 3 heart murmur and at some point I need to do another dental on him. Probably after his next ultrasound.
At the end of the day there is only so much you can do and you will need to decide what your limit is. You can always apply for CareCredit if you're not willing to give up yet. Just sit down with your H and have that conversation. We had to sit down and decide that we were tapped out the other week.
-She is still totally herself! For anyone who hasn't read the whole story she was never vomiting, she just started that last night. From what I hear (I'm at work) she hasn't been sick all day.
-We will fast her again today to see if that helps, it helped last time we fasted her
I second trying natural balance limited ingredient. Pick a protein combo she isn't currently eating. So if shes on chicken switch to a non poultry variety.
Hopefully the vomiting stops but if she continues to vomit she should see the vet for at least an anti nausea injection.
She hasn't thrown up since last night and she was chewing a tennis ball yesterday so it's possible she swallowed some and that's what caused it this time. But there's just still so many freaking possibilities.
I think we might take her to a different vet for a second opinion but first I'm gonna try to get some advice over the phone cause I think it's BS that I have to keep paying $50 just to walk through the door because they weren't thorough enough the last time.
Ill ask about IBD. Thanks guys
Antibiotics can cause diarrhea. Probiotics help.
Metronidazole does not cause diarrhea if she's been on that.
I know it's frustrating and that you feel like you should have an answer by now. Veterinary medicine is limited sometimes because of what owners are willing or able to do.
So were they not thorough or did you decline tests? Sometimes an expensive test may give you a definitive answer but you can't financially do it, so the vet is going to do their best to treat the symptoms and use treatment trials to try and fix the problem. This can take time.
If you are not happy with the service or treatment you and your pet get, go find another vet. You will have to pay for a new exam again of course. Just call and have your vet fax records and X-rays to the Vet you pick so they don't have to repeat too much. Not all vets are created equal and it is fine to search around a bit. Remember though, cheaper isn't always better.
If they thought it was ulcers did they give her Pepcid or sucralfate? These are stomach protectants.
Are her stools black?
I didn't realize that this all started after steroid use. She was put on steroids for skin issues first? How long ago was that? And what were her skin issues like?
If she has a food allergy that led to skin issues the limited ingredient could help with that.
If you are not comfortable with your vet, switch. No need to worry about anyones feelings. I've worked with great vets and some I wouldn't trust to treat my animal ( for short periods of time.)
They might have to do some more tests if her stools are bloody.
Going for a second opinion can be good. Make sure you get all your records if not they will repeat tests you already have done. You will have to pay for another exam since they will have to do a complete exam on her.
As for insurance the top ones are ASPCA, VPI, Trupanion.
There are many more if you google pet insurance.
Personally I have my dog and two cats on Trupanion. You can pick your deductible and they pay 90/10.
Talk to a representative. That way you know what is covered. Some insurances do not cover exams. Dentals are not covered, and usually vaccines are not covered unless some may let you pay a higher premium.
For me I don't mind paying for the vaccines. I am more worries about unexpected issues. Someone getting sick or eating something.
Hope this helps. Good luck.
Licking the feet or around the anus causes discoloration and is a classic sign of allergies. Sounds like she is extra sensitive to pred though.
Your vet was probably not wrong in prescribing pred for her, but it can have side effects like you are seeing. If the diarrhea came after the pred the vet probably wouldn't jump to something like ibd or related tests, so I guess I'm not surprised tests werent offered at the time.
I'd give them a call tomorrow and talk and let them know the symptoms and maybe they can prescribe something like stomach protectants etc to try and get this under control before scheduling another visit.
Keep us updated
Black stools means she's bleeding. The loss of blood could make her anemic and they will want to check a rbc percent (PCV) at the least. They will likely want to do more complete bloodwork.
She is probably severely dehydrated if she is vomiting that frequently on top of diarrhea and will need supportive care.
She will likely need to be hospitalized on IV fluids and medications. Hopefully some sucralfate (carafate)
If she is really anemic she may need a blood transfusion, but hopefully she won't need that.
I'm very sorry you are going through this.
Not my cats but ones were I work at the animal hospital
See pics!!!
Ill ask about parvo, I thought only puppies could get that though? But idk much about that. I think they checked for that in her stool samples but ill have H ask.
Again thank you guys so much seriously. Having all these different viewpoints and things to ask is SO helpful and I hope were that much closer to finding an answer for what's wrong with our girl.
I got a suggestion to put her on gluten free food and see if that helps, would be funny (not really) if she can't tolerate gluten like her mama.
Idk about the B12, I wish I didn't have to work so I could've gone and ask everything myself.
Thank The Lord H got a huge raise this week or else I have no clue in hell how we'd pay for all this.
Actually his theory last two times was the prednisone caused ulcers so the meds he gave were to treat them but she finished all the meds and it never got better.
Side note: when all this is over H and I want to plan an anniversary trip to Hawaii and your SN makes me think about it every time I see it haha
The clay idea sounds hokey to me.
I hope she gets better
What blood tests did they run? Did they run an allergy panel?
No allergy panel, although he said if this is all normal he's going to "assume" it's food allergies. See this is why I wish I could've gone. H doesn't think to ask all of this. This is the type of shit that makes us have to go back later. Ugh
For everyone's enjoyment, a picture of our girl, she is still having diarrhea but not vomiting anymore and back to her usual self...
Stupid mobile making pics sideways!
They can't do an allergy panel for a certain period of time after steroid use.
Do you still have her on a bland diet?
Let us know if they do find anything on her bloodwork.
What are her stools like now?
When she gets through this I think your best bet for food allergies is a food trial.
Like previously mentioned you have to give her a very strict diet. Avoid blue buffalo and diets like it that have a grocery list of ingredients. In a dog with allergies that's just way too many variables.
Natural balance limited ingredient has been mentioned and is a great place to start. Pick something as unrelated to the protein source in pedigree. Stick with the new diet for at least 3 months.
As previously mentioned no chews, bones, treats, or human food.
There may be a treat made by natural balance that is the same protein carb combo and that would be ok.
I am relieved and hoping this has been what's causing everything