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.
Gingersnap
member
Re: Names
Anyhow, I like Delilah. So does H. IDK what mn I would put with that, we have an Irish last name.
H likes Jameson for a boy but I just can't get on board, I just associate it with whiskey!
Jk. I love names could talk about them all the live long day
Our boy name is set- Anders Jude, last name sounds like Cushion.
Girl name- no clue! Anya was our top choice but our best friends who are TYC and struggling are set on Anwen. They are family, so it would be like siblings having those names.
I like seeing what people have named their kids!
We do know middle names. A boys middle name would be Michael and a girls would be Michelle (after DHs dad - DD took my side of the family's middle name).
Gul means rose / flower in Farsi and Turkish and was H's grandpas middle name (I'm not naming a kid Mohammad so middle name it is)
For a boy we're stumped. We both like "classic" names that most consider boring, but H hates all my suggestions and has none of his own. I like Henry but it was roundly vetoed. Boy mn would be Paul for H's deceased SB.
In in general my guidelines are must be timeless and must have a nn option. My name doesn't and I always wanted one.
We have a few ideas for girls and boys but still very undecided. Long way to go.
First BFP: 12/16/13
EDD: 08/23/14
Baby BOY born: 08/29/14
We don't do family names but we like classics so we're probably going to go that route.
For boys, we like Alexander, Henry, and Benjamin. For girls, we like Amelia, Elizabeth, Claire, and Josephine.
We're still going to keep tossing names around. Did I mention that DH thinks 'Mister' is a great boy option?
::le sigh::
Big Bro 7/14/13
Little Bro 2/6/17
DS is Marshall Evans. His middle name was after my uncle who was killed in action a year prior to my son's birth, but before that happened we had talked about giving a boy my FIL middle name- Lee, or my husband's middle name Scott.
For a girl, we fell in love with the name Rowan. Possibly name Rowan Rae, Rowan Leigh, Rowan Marie, Rowan Nikole. We also used to love the name Emma back when pregnant with DS, but it's so popular I'm not sure if it's something we like anymore.
For a boy we like the names Hudson Rhys, Ethan Scott, Emerson Scott, and we also like Rowan as well.
Then again, we haven't really discussed it too much, because we're waiting to find out what we're having to really start being selective.
Daughter's name is kayli I loved the name but H picked the spelling (we almost went with Brooke because we couldn't agree on the spelling lol) her middle name is same as my middle name Marie.
For the new little one we are set on the girl name, Lillian (but will call her lily) we like lily but took Lillian from my great grandma. Then middle name Mae (@xstatic3333 I liked rose for the middle but H didn't want 2 flower names lol, and @gingersnap I wanted to use my great grandmas whole name of Lillian violet too but again 2 flowers lol)
For a boy we haven't agreed on just 1 yet I like both our names but husband's leaning towards 1. We both like Austin Reid and I really like William August. I like Will for short. H is open to William but his older brothers MN is William and he doesn't want the connection. In the end we both have to agree.
For a girl, choices are Hannah Rose, Olivia Marie, or Lucy Elizabeth. DH loves Hannah Rose, so that will likely be the one. Also, my mom is Rose. His mom is Rose. And it's my middle name, SIL's middle name, and a few of our cousins' middle names.
Boys: STUCK!!! haha Maybe Julian or Joseph? We should find out if we're having a boy or girl in the next week or two, so if we're having a boy I'll need some help! Haha
I have a very Italian maiden name (it rhymes with spaghetti) and husband has a German last name. I would love to keep the Italian in there somewhere!
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Started TTC #1 November 2015
BFP 6/10/2016 - EDD 2/22/2017
Girl's name is Harper Virginia and boy is Maverick Robert.
For boys there are a few I like favorites being Landon, Chase and Brayden.
Otherwise, we've got two to name and nothing we really agree on. The twins will be siblings to brothers Carter Patrick and Jack Michael.
My SIL/best friend was killed in a car wreck last year. Her name was Megan (Meg) and I'd like to incorporate it. I don't love the name, but it's important to me. I have this pipe dream that the twins will be girls and I'll name them Charlotte and Margaret. I think those go nicely together.
But, let's be serious. I'm a boy-making machine. So I'm not getting my hopes up.
We're toying with different names for girls. Willow, Bailey, Anika with Willow Rae being at the top for first and middle. For a boy, we're thinking Landon, Aiden, Lukas, or Braydon. Landon is my personal favorite out of those. We'll iron it out once we find out what we're having.
Margaret Jane (Maggie)
Benjamin Andrew (Ben)
Amelia Elizabeth (Mia)
They all have some family connection except for my youngest. Amelia came from a book.
Mia would have possibly been Nathaniel Norman (DH's middle name) so that is still on the table.
I have tossed around Jocelyn for a girl- could Josie be a nickname?
Catherine, Ryan, Joshua, Aubrey and Parker have all been used by close family and our dog is Lily Mae.
Ben and Maggie - 4/10/09
Mia - 6/16/11
Surprise! due 2/23/17
Me: 37 - H: 39
TTC#1: 01/2016
BFP: 06/18/2016 - EDD: 02/20/2017 - Born: 01/27/2017
Anyone have a Jr for a son? Our EDD is DHs birthday, and he's been talking about doing a jr. I can't do that, but tried to meet him in the middle with Jon Louis (fn - Louis is a family name) Matthew (mn), but I feel like I'd still just call them both Jon and feel the same frustrations as I would over a straight jr.
For a girl, we love Rosemarie Louise, and a boy Roman Louis, nn Rolo for both.
However we are so stuck on boy names and will take any suggestions. The middle name will be Ezekiel after dh's grandfather. Our top contender is James but I'm just not loving it. I like Sebastian but DH is strongly against. I'm just not finding a good first name.
My style is pretty traditional. For girls I love Lydia, Cecilia, Lucille, Evelyn, Hazel, Mabel and Scarlett.
Favorite boy names are Calvin, Theodore and Reid.
Hopefully we can find a family name that works for middle names.
a girl will be Mackenzie
i have three boy names we like: Colton, Gavin, grant. The middle name will be jay
I do like Delilah, but am wondering what mn....
probably something simple like Jane, Rose...
H and I haven't talked names and I don't really plan to think about it until we know the sex. I think it's a girl and I have a few names I like, but lots of my faves are way too popular now