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.
rivercitynik
member
Re: Product Spotlight: Blankets and Swaddles
Swaddles (a/k/a my personal money pit): We had a 4-pack of the Aden+Anais muslin swaddles that you see everywhere, and I liked that they were thin, stretchy and a pretty good size. https://www.adenandanais.com/swaddles Four was plenty. I also really love the prints on Pehr swaddles and might splurge on one for hospital photos this go-round. https://shoppehr.com/collections/swaddles
We gave up on a true blanket swaddle and switched to SwaddleMe swaddles and pods just a couple weeks in. I liked the pods best; they just seemed the tiniest bit easier. https://www.target.com/s?searchTerm=swaddleme
As baby got a little older and still wasn't sleeping great, we started trying all kinds of swaddles out of desperation. The concept of the nested bean swaddles is really cool, but they weren't the magic touch for us. Same for the halo swaddles. What we ultimately fell head over heels for was the Love to Dream. He slept soooo much better with hands up by his face, and I love that they provide TOG (weight/warmth) ratings and have several different options, including one that's super light-weight. https://lovetodream.com/stage-1-swaddling/
It's not really a swaddle, but when we had to transition away from swaddles we used the baby merlin magic sleepsuit and it was another lifesaver. https://www.magicsleepsuit.com/collections/frontpage
Sleep sacks are better imho once they are at least at the 3-6m range and you're not going to swaddle past when they can roll over anyway. And you don't want those overly big when they are tiny bc they can ride up. If you do a NB sleep sack, it's got to have the Velcro etc to snug it up around them, and even then, sometimes you can be left feeling nervous it may ride up around their airways. :/ So we were gifted a NB fleece one like I described, and I mean 🤷 unless you keep your AC very cold something like that is probably overkill for an August baby. Maybe the fleecier things you could try in 0-3 or 3-6 depending on how quickly your climate changes, and how long is baby etc., But I really do feel like you kind of won't know until you try.
+1 on the swaddleme Velcro swaddles. Start with the small size and see if you like them.
Aden + Anais silky soft line is really nice as a thin, soft blanket but it’s a bit tricky to swaddle a tiny baby with them. When DD became old enough to sleep with a loose blanket these became her favorite.
if you do the amazon welcome box, there should be a free swaddle included. We used that one all the time, too. It’s a bit thicker than the silky soft ones.
My children don't seem to care much for swaddles. We were gifted a set of SwaddleMe swaddles. I liked them fine. For what they are, they seemed like they worked how they're supposed to. It was really easy to get them tightly bundled up. We just only used them a couple times per child.
Personally, my children really like stomach sleeping. They sleep way better on their stomachs. That also makes it so they can't jerk around and startle awake and move their arms and legs well. I know this isn't the current recommendations, and of course, we don't do it immediately, but as soon as they have good head control, we sleep them on their stomachs.
We were bought lots of blankets, some I’ve never used. I've loved the large muslin swaddle blankets I got, and they are probably one of our most used items. They just have so many uses. They are a a swaddle, a light blanket, a clean-up cloth etc. I put them under my son when feeding him in a side lying position to stop him dribbling on the bed and I still use them now when he has his cup of milk before bed to catch and drips and save me washing the sheets.
We also have several cellular blankets for DSs bed, they are very popular and recommended in the UK because you can breathe through them even if they are several layers thick.
@sarah0985 oh how scary! I didn't have pods with DD but I wish I did. We used the Velcro ones when we were desperate, but I still didn't find them to be that user-friendly.
as me and it was morning. I went out that same day and found a safe alternative.
@tyrion_ that is super cute! I was thinking I need a new photo blanket for this one, but being team green, I'm not sure what way to go. DDs was floral, so I might want to have something in the wings to buy when we know? These extended ship times are killing me tho :/
Dating 4/2008
Married 6/2016
TTC #1 9/2019
BFP 12/13/2019!
EDD 8/27/2020 Baby Girl
https://sweetelliesue.com/collections/all/products/little-star
I don’t know anything about the quality but had to have it. I almost tagged you because I came here after reading the name post!
They have cute prints but I'm not sure if they would be worth buying.
Pregnancy #2 Natural Miscarriage at 6 weeks 03/2014 Due date 11/9/2014
Pregnancy #3 DS 02.23.2015
Pregnancy #4 Missed Miscarriage at 11 weeks 11/2018 Due date 5/22/2019
Pregnancy #5 Positive test 12/11/2019 Due Date 8/17/2020