Up until Hannah was about 4 months old, she slept incredibly well. We could put her in the crib, or really anywhere, and she'd be out like a light. Given the (very minimal) amount I know about baby sleep, this makes sense... sleep early on tends to be easier to come by than sleep later on.
Read MoreHannah was born shortly before the end of spring term, which meant that I used a few weeks of short term disability until my contract ended for the school year in June.
Because I'm not on contract during the summer I didn’t need to use any leave from mid-June through mid-September. These months, like usual, were all unpaid and our expenses were covered with funds that I'd put into savings during the school year.
Because of the timing, I was able to save the bulk of my leave (i.e., sick time) for fall term, returning to work in mid-December.
Read MoreAfter Ellie was born I was so vigilant about signs of postpartum depression. I checked in with myself regularly. Feeling hopeless? Nope. Having frequent crying spells? Nope. Struggling to bond with the baby? Nope. Anything else that might be a sign of depression? Nope.
I made it through the first few months of postpartum life without any issues and thought okay, I’m in the clear, nothing to worry about… I can rest easy.
Read MoreIf you're a regular reader of my blog you know that my dad passed away in November, and then we had another family emergency come up in December that was also really difficult.
While my days and weeks are usually very structured, rigidity has not been what I’ve needed these past few months. From November through mid-January my schedule and planning processes shifted dramatically, mainly because I didn't do any planning (at least not the level of planning that I usually do). Once winter term started in early January I did need some sort of structure to help balance all the things, so I slowly started to incorporate more structure planning back into my regular routine.
Read MoreI have officially made it through my 4 month back to basics “challenge” 🎉🎉🎉 where I was making an effort to focus on the things that make me feel like a whole person. Which means… it’s time to do an update on my month of focusing on nutrition! If you’re curious, you can check out my other posts in this series. My initial post is here. May was all about sleep, June was all about meditation, July was all about movement, and August was all about nutrition.
Read MoreHow did movement go? Ugh… not well. I think maybe I set myself up for a challenge by starting off the month saying it was the “easiest” thing for me to work into my schedule. Fast forward to the end of the month and this one definitely has felt the hardest. We’ve been way off our old routine, going to bed super late and glued to our screens in the evening. Ellie has also been asserting her independence in every way possible (to put it nicely), which is awesome, and also exhausting, and I think Mike and I are both going through some parenting burnout. We also had a rough patch of sleep for most of July and my back has really been bothering me. So… movement was hard.
Read MoreI’m wrapping up month two of my back to basics “challenge.” At the beginning of May I mentioned that I’d be making an effort to focus on the things that make me feel like a whole person. You can read my initial post here. May was all about sleep, June was all about meditation, and July is all about movement.
Read MoreWell, I made it through a month of focusing on sleep… not sure if I actually feel more rested than I was before, but I will say that I am 1,000 times more consistent with my sleep routine, and interestingly enough, my workout routine. So that’s a win. On the other hand, Ellie isn’t sleeping through the night and I’m in the process of figuring out some iron related health issues, so those two things probably have something to do with my energy levels.
Read MoreThe month of May kicks off a flurry of activity in our lives. We’ve got Ellie’s birthday, our anniversary, my birthday, and Mike’s birthday. In addition to all of these important milestones there’s also the end of the school year and travel to see family (and/or visitors who come to see us). Knowing that the next few months are going to be filled to the brim, I’m making an effort to focus on the “basics.” By basics I mean the things that make me feel like a whole person, but always seem to come last (if at all).
Read More
