Chronicles of a Babywise Mom

Memorial Day 2012

2012-05-28T10:00:00.000-06:00

Happy Memorial Day everyone! I am off having fun with my family. Hope you have a great day!

Moo Kitty Finds a Home Winner!

2012-05-26T09:08:00.001-06:00

The winner of Moo Kitty Finds a Home is.... kmbutrfly Please email me at valplowman@gmail.com with your mailing address. You have one week or another winner will be chosen. Congrats!

Remedies for Reflux/Heartburn During Pregnancy

2012-05-25T10:00:00.000-06:00

First of all, the picture has nothing to do with heartburn other than the fact that the baby I am looking at in my belly is causing my heartburn. That was a week ago. I had this plan to write this post on remedies for reflux/heartburn while pregnant and then realized my ideas are pretty weak. I think they are ideas pretty much everyone knows. Just in case not, I will share. Or if nothing

Can it be too hot to sleep?

2012-05-24T10:00:00.000-06:00

image source "Please don't blame [poor sleep on] changes in the weather--it is never too hot or too cold to sleep well" (Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child, page 226). So I am reading along through HSHHC and come across this line--and I am totally surprised. I obviously have a strong disagreement with this statement--just read my post Some Like it Hot--Sleep That Is. I kind of think most

Love Our Work

2012-05-23T10:00:00.000-06:00

image source Have I ever mentioned that I don't particularly enjoy doing laundry (um, yes, here and here and I am sure other places as often as I can toss that in)? I know I am supposed to be working on finding the joy in doing my laundry and being appreciative that I have clothes to wash, but I get some sort of strange satisfaction out of having this light-hearted, and yet strong, dislike of

Help Me Out: Room Sharing Tips

2012-05-22T10:00:00.001-06:00

We are on our countdown to when we will move Kaitlyn and McKenna together to share a room. They are 5 and 3. We have never had children share a room before, so I am looking for your tips! What can we do to make the transition smoother and have the most success? Do we put them to bed at the same time or stagger bedtime? What rules work for going to sleep? Please comment with your tips on room

Preparing for Music

2012-05-21T10:25:00.000-06:00

image source I love music. Love, love, love. I love many forms of music. Beyond listening, I love to sing. I am currently the choir director at my church and I just find such a great power in music. Something that amazes me about music is that it appeals to any type of "brain." The logical brain can do music because music has its black and white component (literally in the notes!). It also

Moo Kitty Finds a Home {Giveaway}

2012-05-19T06:00:00.000-06:00

Today's giveaway is of the book Moo Kitty Finds a Home . This is a story of a cat whose owner dies and the cat is then put out on the street. Some kind people help the cat get to a shelter where the cat is eventually adopted by a new family. The author, Valerie Lee Veltre, studied creative writing at East Stroudsburg university. She was inspired to write and illustrate her first book, Moo

Pinteresting Fridays: Cute Hair Accessories

2012-05-18T10:00:00.000-06:00

Headband Tutorial by Just Sew Sassy Yellow Chiffon Flower Clip by StyleHive Easy Stretchy Baby Headband by Birdie Little Secrets 50 Headband Tutorials by Tipnut 25 Hair Clip Tutorials by Babble For more hair accessories, see my Craftiness board. Follow me here.

How Do I Love Thee?

2012-05-17T10:00:00.000-06:00

image source How does a child love--what drives a child's display of love and affection? In The Five Love Languages of Children, Chapman and Campbell say that while adults strive for unconditional love and often reside in reciprocating love, children aim for neither. "Being immature, a child loves in a self-oriented fashion" (page 123). Children are not concerned about how loved you feel--

Poll Results: WHICH BABY WHISPERER PERSONALITY IS YOUR CHILD?

2012-05-16T15:13:00.001-06:00

Angel 8 (12%) Textbook 22 (33%) Touchy 16 (24%) Spirited 15 (22%) Grumpy 1 (1%) Doesn't Fit Any 1 (1%) I Don't Know 3 (4%) Votes so far: 66 Angel 7 votes Textbook 7 votes Touchy 0 votes Spirited 6 votes Grumpy Doesn't fit any I don't know 1 vote

Mothers, Let's Be Nice

2012-05-15T10:00:00.001-06:00

image source Being a mother has made me a better person. I am no doubt a better person today than I was a little over 7 years ago. What has motherhood done for you as a person--what has it done for your character development? Think about that for a moment before you continue on. What is your answer to that question? Here is my answer. Motherhood has helped me develop charity. Oh, I think

Penmanship Preparation

2012-05-14T10:00:00.000-06:00

image source Reading, Writing, and Arithmetic. Writing, or penmanship, has long been part of the core things to learn in school. In our district today, not only are kindergartners writing letters and simple words, they are expected to journal daily. A Kindergarten teacher at our school told me just yesterday, "Some children, like yours, can come to Kindergarten and do that. Others really

Mother's Love Winners

2012-05-12T14:45:00.001-06:00

The winners of the Mother's Love book are: Tiffany Katie and Valerie Durham Please email me at valplowman@gmail.com with your shipping address. You have one week or another winner will be chosen. Congrats!

Pregnancy News Flash: Pain is not a Requirement

2012-05-11T10:00:00.000-06:00

There I was--walking through the store with McKenna. As we walked, I got a little slower, and a little slower, and a little slower. Why? Because I felt like my baby was about to fall out. Like--you know how you feel when you are about 36 weeks along and the baby is right there and getting ready to make an appearance? I literally started doing kegels to try to keep her in. Not only was the

Fathers Impact on Daughters

2012-05-10T11:21:00.002-06:00

My husband and Kaitlyn several years ago Today, I did a guest post on DaddyLife.net about the profound impact fathers have on their daughters. Check it out here: http://daddylife.net/2012/05/10/fathers-impact-on-his-daughters/. This post talks about what research finds as positive results of the father/daughter relationships (including positive self-view) and gives ideas for what fathers

Words for Mothers

2012-05-09T10:00:00.000-06:00

Over the years, I have written several posts for moms. I thought as Mother's Day approached, it would be fun to draw attention to these. Pregnancy Pregnancy: Weight Gain and Eternal Perspective Being Pregnant and Being a Mom Encouragement Be Thankful for Everything We Do Have 10 Ways to Save Your Sanity Increasing Our Capacity Motherhood Reality Check Slow the Pace A

Preschooler Summary: 3 years and one month

2012-05-08T10:00:00.000-06:00

Touching a...sting ray? Manta ray? I can't remember--at the aquarium EATING All is well. PLAYING Something interesting that has come out recently is if Kaitlyn or Brayden are home, McKenna now will basically refuse to play alone. She will do independent play, but she won't happily play something alone--even something like play in the sandbox. She wants a person with her. If they aren't

Controlling Environment for Preschoolers

2012-05-07T10:00:00.000-06:00

image source Last month, I talked about Controlling Environment for Toddlers. Today, I will be focusing on preschoolers. Even if you do not have a toddler, it would be a good idea to read the toddler post first to get an idea of where I am building from for the toddler years. It would also be a good idea to read through Fine Balance of Protecting Children. Things start to change a bit in

Mother's Love {Giveaway!}

2012-05-05T08:00:00.000-06:00

Today's giveaway is of this sweet book Mother's Love by Melina Gerosa Bellows. This book is full of adorable mother/baby animal pictures. It also has inspiring stories and quotes about motherhood. If you like animals, you will love this book. We have three books to giveaway today! Let's enter! For Your First Entry: Become a follower of this blog. Then leave a comment. If you are already a

Pinteresting Fridays: Birthday/Birthday Parties

2012-05-04T10:00:00.000-06:00

Party Ideas by Karas's Party Ideas Birthday Photo Backdrop by Mom*tog Birthday Tradition by Crafty Moods Birthday Questions Album by Reaves, Party of Four 8 Birthday Traditions by Calgary's Child For more party and birthday ideas, see my board: Birthdays and Parties Follow me here.

Baby Whisperer Personality Types: Spirited Baby

2012-05-03T10:00:00.000-06:00

image source Tracy Hogg, aka the Baby Whisperer, describes five different personality profiles that babies fall into. We have been going through them. "Spirited" is her fourth. A quick overall description: Spirited Baby: Born knowing what she likes and doesn't like and makes it well-known. Vocal and aggressive. Screams when she wakes. Doesn't like dirty diapers. Body language is jerky.

Poll Results: DO YOU READ STORIES AS PART OF THE BEDTIME ROUTINE?

2012-05-02T10:00:00.000-06:00

Yes 56 (80%) No 8 (11%) Sometimes 6 (8%) Votes so far: 70 Facebook Results Yes 41 votes 75 % No 3 votes 5% Sometimes 11 votes 20% Total of 55 facebook votes RELATED POSTS/BLOG LABELS: Poll results bedtime Reminder: You can leave comments on poll results posts if you would like to add to the poll after it has closed.

Traditions for Lost Child's Birthday

2012-05-01T10:00:00.000-06:00

Yesterday (as I write this) was Braxston's birthday. (see Baby Braxston and Miscarriage and Stillbirth). Each year, we have our set traditions of what we do to remember him and celebrate his birthday. We want the kids to remember him, but we also want it to be more of a celebration than a day of sadness. We start by going to the store and choosing flowers to take to the cemetery. We then

Personality and Temperament

2012-04-30T10:00:00.000-06:00

This month, we have been talking about HEP. On Becoming Toddlerwise talks about HEP--Heredity, Environment, and Personality. These three things work together to help shape and mold your child into herself. Today's topic is Personality. Personality might be the most complicated of the three things. Heredity is out of your control once your child's genetic make-up has been formed in the womb.