Mama Wit

Submit!

Lori Ann — Thu, 12 Jan 2012 13:17:21 +0000

You’ve probably noticed how messy (and completely different) MamaWit has looked lately… I promise there’s a good reason!

Saruskabeth and I have decided to transform MamaWit from a blog (you can get that on Lori Ann and Saruskabeth’s personal sites) to a digital magazine. You know, in all our tons of spare time (actually, with a current plan of 4 issues per year and the fun we’re having working on it when the kids sleep, we aren’t going crazy yet..)

All the details are on this page but the basics are:

the whole vision is a magazine of uplifting, joy-bringing stories and images… there are already sources out there for parenting advice and for complaining about parenting; instead, we want to present parenting in the context of real (and enjoyable) family life
the theme for the first magazine is “new” (so think birth stories, newborn pictures, spring nature journal sketches, or anything else)
contributors whose submissions are selected get live links from the digital magazine and website to your choice site, such as your blog or etsy store
entries from parents, grandparents, and children are all welcome (homeschool activity, anyone?)
advertisers will be selected by vote (submitters each get one vote; winning submissions earn you more) because we want to feature mama-run businesses that are popular among real families; the business receiving the most votes will get a free one-page ad in the magazine!!
the first, open, everything-accepted round of submissions are due Jan. 27; if we still have some gaps, we’ll put out more specific submission requests with a later deadline

So please click over to the “submit” page, think of how your stories can best meet your favorite medium, and get creative!! We can’t wait to read what you have to share!Similar Posts:

Blog Posts 2011

Lori Ann — Sat, 31 Dec 2011 00:00:36 +0000

In the spirit of last year’s post (when this was Lori Ann and Saruskabeth‘s joint personal blog), here’s our 2011 roundup review:

Most Popular in 2011:

And for fun, a few posts needing some love (i.e. comments… they just got lost in the shuffle, right?):

Sleep Gallery
Submit to MamaWit Mag – okay, so we haven’t formerly announced this yet thus it hasn’t had a ton of hits, but check it out to share your parenting stories, photos, artwork, and more with the world!
Advent
Three Little Words
Our Month in China

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Newborn Sleep Question

Lori Ann — Thu, 22 Dec 2011 06:21:06 +0000

Remember those newborn days when you wonder if you’ll ever get a good night’s sleep again? We have a newborn sleep question in the “Ask a Mama” thread awaiting answers… if you have any tips please click over there and share! (I’ve fixed the bug that wasn’t allowing registrations, if you tried unsuccessfully before).Similar Posts:

Free Jazz: For Kids & Parents!

Lori Ann — Tue, 20 Dec 2011 02:11:15 +0000

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Toddler Advent

Lori Ann — Thu, 08 Dec 2011 02:20:24 +0000

We’ve moved Lori Ann’s posts to her own personal blog. Read her latest post about celebrating Advent as a family this season. To have YOUR blog post featured on MamaWit, just submit the link or full text with our contact form. To submit your writing or creative work (drawing, photo, graphic design, whatever!) to the MamaWit Magazine, read the guidelines here: the upcoming theme is “New” and the deadline for the first round of submissions is January 20th.Similar Posts:

Advent

Lori Ann — Wed, 30 Nov 2011 11:19:21 +0000

Tigger enjoys her nativity set sheep, last year and today

It’s Advent, the season before Christmas where we expect and wait for Jesus! I honestly have to say that to me, Advent is the most wonderful time of the year. Just like at Lent, during Advent I look backwards and forwards both.

Looking backwards:
In the past I’ve posted about our Advent bedtime story books and how we form our family traditions. Last year, Sarah and I shared our thoughts on “doing Santa” in America and China. My list of favorites to read, watch, and listen to in anticipation for Christmas are still available here (and I’d love to hear your favorites in the comments!)

This year:
For this year’s family advent devotions, we are reading a chapter a day (they’re short) from Jesus by Joseph F. Girzone. Every Sunday we light one candle and sing a song of expectation. Tigger’s nativity (with handmade fabric characters) it out for play, and ours will slowly make the journey around the room until Jesus arrives Christmas morning and the Wise Men on January 6th. Christmas Eve, we’ll wake up to surprise gifts (new pajamas, snacks from the U.S., a book, and something fun) in our pajama bags, and we’ll watch Nativity Story that night. I’m sewing Paul’s pajamas and knitting Hope’s. In lieu of our usual exchange of 3 gifts on January 6th (Epiphany), we’ll be going to Disneyland this year! If you’re still looking to purchase any gifts, this page has sales through December 3rd on Amazon (and using our link supports MamaWit without costing you anything!)

Looking forwards:
When Tigger’s a bit older I’d like do Bible storytime with stories like these and these tips from desiringGod. Maybe next year this Advent Storybook (recommended for preschoolers) would be most appropriate. Other future ideas are an Advent activity calendar and/or Jesse tree (but not as a tree? somehow, maybe?).

…and you?
Share about your Advent, Christmas, and other wintertime traditions in the comments or forums. If all this talk of Advent is new to you, start with this free printable book, A Jesus Advent Celebration by author Ann Voskamp.

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Sleep Gallery

Lori Ann — Mon, 21 Nov 2011 13:23:32 +0000

I remember confiding in a friend when Tigger was a week old: “Everything’s fine… I’m just exhausted.” Months later, I bought and read The No-Cry Sleep Solution when we just couldn’t seem to get naps worked out. Finally, I found Sleepless in America, realized that our problem was not anticipating her tired times early enough and needing a consistent naptime/bedtime routine to help her ease into the slumber her body needed. Now, I’m typing as she sleeps for multi-hour stretches at night, resettling if necessary with just a pat.

This isn’t a post with advice for getting your baby to sleep… I just finished this pagewith the resources that most helped me (you should click over for the photo at the top if nothing else!) As I was searching for a photo to stick on that page, I realized as I found picture after picture of our peacefully slumbering baby that she really did sleep a lot! Here’s a trip back in time to remember that she really did sleep, even in the early days. Feel free to comment with your infant sleep stories or links to photos of your snoozing sweeties.

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the Mama couch

Lori Ann — Thu, 27 Oct 2011 00:00:45 +0000

by Lori Ann

us with our Mama!

I have an idea for MamaWit but i need your help!

I like using MamaWit to share with my family and friends (yes, you virtual friends too!) about our family life, plus recipes and helpful tips from time to time, but in some seasons of my life I’d really prefer to just read. Sometimes I need inspiration from others in dealing with parenting situations, realizing that toddler behaviors are normal, or coming up with an activity or recipe to enjoy on a rainy day. So…

I think MamaWit needs more Mamas.

I don’t have the idea all fleshed out, but I’m envisioning the readable version of a room full of Mamas. It’s a comfortable, safe place for being honest. The Mamas take turns sharing their Wit – advice, humor, and stories… especially stories. Younger women learn from what the older women share — both their good and their bad moments — but the more experienced parents pick up fresh ideas from the newer ones, too.

Some have babies in arms, some get up from time to time to kiss a little one’s boo-boo, some dropped their kids off at a friend’s house on the way. There’s no agenda, no stated moral or lesson at the end of the stories that are shared… they’re just friends, sisters in the fellowship of Motherhood, sharing frustrations, breakthroughs, questions, and laughs.

Can you help me make MamaWit an online living room for these kinds of interactions? What would it take? Guest posts? A forum? Question-and-answer posts? An “ask a Mama” button in the sidebar?

Let me know in the comments, and Saruskabeth and I will be brainstorming too!Similar Posts:

Nursing Gear

Lori Ann — Fri, 12 Aug 2011 13:09:28 +0000

by Lori Ann

I have several friends who are pregnant right now! What a fun stage in my life, raising a little one and looking forward to the arrival of my friends’.

I’ve been trying to compile advice from my first pregnancy, birth, and child to share with new Mamas and to remind myself next time it comes around for me! Nursing gear is a hot topic on many Mama sites, and because our life involves lots of traveling which requires plenty of nursing in public, what I wear has been really important for me.

I find it most discreet (and inexpensive) to wear regular or maternity shirts that are at least somewhat free-flowing from the chest down, like shirts with an empire waist. Underneath, I wear a nursing bra with a belly band (yes, the ones that held up your pants when you were pregnant) or a nursing camisole to cover my tummy.

For camisoles, I prefer ones with very thin straps (can wear them under any shirt), a high cut (so they can serve as an undershirt too), and those that open from the top (I find that more discreet when nursing in public). Here are some good examples (you can find good prices online or in local stores such as Target).

Gilligan & O’Malley Nursing Tank (I found this one easiest to quickly open for nursing)
Glamourmom Nursing Bra Tank (small openings for discreet nursing)
Medela Nursing Camisole (nice high cut)
La Leche League Nursing Tank (can be strapless)

You’ll want nursing pads too, to absorb milk leakage from getting through your bra onto your clothes in the early months. Most stores sell disposable kinds which I didn’t use, preferring wool nursing pads because they’re also good for nipple health and healing.

Swimwear:

I used a regular swimsuit when Tigger was 2 months which meant I needed to mostly undress to nurse. Next time I’ll try something that works the same as a nursing camisole while giving the coverage I prefer, such as:

Sporty Sarong Nursing Tankini

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6am

Lori Ann — Sat, 30 Jul 2011 00:00:19 +0000

by Lori Ann

6am. The air seems crisper, the sky meditative. Something about the still quiet seems to enter my body with each breath, helping me think clearer. No distractions, nowhere to go. Just my daughter and I, enjoying a new day together. Tickling, giggling, playing peek-a-boo. Quietly, so as not to wake Baba. Which makes it all the more fun, like a secret between just the two of us.

Tigger’s bedtime has been 7pm since she was 5 days older. As a newborn, she slept (barely interrupted by nursings) until 9am. As she got older, morning wake-up backed up to 8am, 7am. Now 6am.

And I couldn’t be happier.

What’s your morning routine? Is it dreaded or enjoyed?Similar Posts: