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: Maternity Clothes
My regular full length leggings still fit comfortably, but it’s heating up and I don’t know how much longer I can wear them in the heat. Apparently all my capris are higher waisted. Normally nice, but now just a little too much compression...
Also, motherhood maternity discontinued my favorite underwear - they had a v-cut and fit under the bump. What is eveyone else doing for undies??
As for underwear I'm wearing my regular undies, I usually just wear Victoria secrets thongs and they work well for me so far.
For undies, I've bought plain old cotton undies a size up on Amazon. I had to size up because they were too tight in my normal size, and the VPL was bad. Still not a great panty line, but oh well. I also can still wear the "one size fits all" thongs from VS or Hanky Panky (at nordstrom).
I've had to go up a band size, but not a cup size, so now I'm a 38B. It doesn't seem to be a common size, and I can find it on clearance racks. Everything I've read seems to indicate that I will probably still go up a cup size, so I didn't want to buy too many. I've always been small chested, so I don't usually wear bras just lying around the house, but the girls are starting to get sore. I'm trying to make do with sports bras because if I get nursing bras now, they're going to be too small, right?
For regular bras, Macy's has big lingerie sales fairly often, it seems. I got 3 bras for about $55 in May, between sales and a coupon. I think they go up to DD in some brands.
And plus one to VS lace undies. Wore my regular size through my entire pregnancy with DS. They’ve held up for years, even with the dryer.
If they're having sales, Bare Necessities and Her Room have a huge range of brands and sizes. Also, it can be hit or miss, but Zulily sometimes has sales for hard to find bra sizes. They recently had a sale for some of the cheaper brands that carry unusual sizes, and almost everything in there was under $40. It might still be going on. I recently bought 2 bras from one of their sales, both Parfait (the cheap version of Affinitas bras) for under $20/each.
+1 for air drying bras... they last much longer and don’t end up changing shape (especially with underwire)
I bought a bralette and it is so comfy:
https://www.thymematernity.com/en/402057.html?cgid=nursing-baby-nursing-bras&dwvar_402057_color=Baked%20Apple#start=1&sz=60
I’m looking for something else that would fit nicely under dresses and tops for when I’m going out or get back to work. I was thinking of the Bravado body silks or embrace. Has anyone tried those? I heard they are forgiving for when you’re breasts are still growing. I don’t want to invest in a really good bra that I won’t be able to wear for long so I might go with the 3 pack from H&M if it’s still too early. I’m almost 25 weeks. Thoughts?
I've only bought 2 other bras so far (not including the nursing sports bra I bought), a larger size in the same style I always wear, and a nursing bra from Cake (the waffles one-figured it was cheaper than my normal bras, so why not try it.). Neither one is particularly comfy now, because the wire tends to rest on my stomach when I sit down, but they get the job done. I don't expect either to work for me while nursing, since one isn't a nursing bra, and both may be too small by that time.