Category Archives: Parenting

Fly on the wall

Posted on February 6, 2011 by juliebyers

Fun things that have happened in my house over the last couple of months:

♥  Cedar ate my contact lens.

I saw proof that she ate my contact lens when spraying her poop into the toilet.

♥  To Norah, I made the mistake of explaining “having your loins girt about with truth” as “putting on your truth panties.”  Norah is memorizing Ephesians 6 as part of her classical program.  I despise that she has to learn it in the King James Version because of such explanations.

Now Norah has “magic panties.”

♥  And yesterday I heard this:  “I have to be the special-est because I’m the one with the magic panties.  Cedar can’t be the special-est because she doesn’t even have panties.  And if you don’t give me the hippopatomus RIGHT NOW, I’m gonna throw trash at you!”

I heard these words because Cedar got the hippo vitamin and Norah got the lion.

♥  Norah has also learned a bit about Russia.  She tells me that Czar Ivan the Great put a gremlin in Moscow. 

And WWII.  She explains that the US dropped an atomic bomb on Nagasaki and “Hero She-Ra” in 1945.  She’s been loving old She-Ra episodes on netflix.  

♥  Cedar now speaks in sentences.  But she speaks Ewok.  I’m certain it isn’t English.  Very cute curvy tongue kind of talk.  It sounds like “duey, duey, oooo, phftt, phftt, phftt, leur, long, ohhhh, duey”

♥  During a stressed moment, I told Norah to give me some space.  She did.  And made up a song to entertain me, “Mommies are supposed to be nice.  Mommies are not to be mean.  Mommies do not need space.  They want to snuggle all day.  Mommies are supposed to be nice.  Mommies are not to be mean.  Mommies never yell.  They play all day.” 

♥  We removed the handle from the oven drawer under our stove because Cedar kept climbing on it.  After a few frustrated attempts, she abandoned the drawer.  Success!  After a few moments, she returned to the kitchen with a stool.  Now she can reach everything.  Fail.

♥  Another success/fail:  We discovered that Cedar loves fish oil.  Great!  DHA/EPA are good things.  But, oh the breath.  Oh the breath.  And, no, please do NOT nurse after taking the fish oil.

No dull moments.  Nope.  I long for them, though… 
 

10 Comments

Posted in Family, Parenting. Bookmark the permalink.

Free Hypnobabies Script

Posted on February 3, 2011 by juliebyers

I used this script at my Hypno-Doula Training Workshop last week and I remembered that it is free to anyone who wants to try it!  It is a script that can be used for any stressful situation.  “Relax Me” helps you create a cue word for instant relaxation and confidence when handling tricky event. 

Um, like when you’re about to blow up at the children. 

Click “add to cart” for the Relax Me script and when you checkout (again, it is free), you’ll receive an email with instant mp3 download instructions.

It takes about 25 minutes to listen to it.  The more you listen to it, the more powerful the effects will be.  If you fall asleep while listening to it, so be it.  Your subconscious will keep hearing the suggestions for staying calm and confident.

3 Comments

Posted in Hypnobabies, Parenting, Products and Gear. Bookmark the permalink.

Free Parenting Classes

Posted on January 19, 2011 by juliebyers

I’m late posting this note.  One of the classes was last night.  But someone might be interested in attending some of the others.  These classes are taught by my friend, Kelly.  She teaches positive discipline.

PRIDE (Promoting Resources in Developmental Education) promotes its Parenting Toolbox series for upstate residents of South Carolina: Six Tuesday evenings of Positive Discipline parenting workshops will be offered and all parents are welcome. Each two hour class will be held from 6:30-8:30pm.

Six Tuesday Evenings of Parent Workshops in Greenville County

Come to one or come to all six, the only requirement is that you register in advance by calling the PRIDE office at 864-454-2102. All workshops will be held at the Mauldin Cultural Center in the Veteran’s Room and start promptly at 6:30 pm.

Power Struggle Prevention Tools: Creating Structure and Balance in Parenting – Tuesday, January 18, 2011

Parenting Style Profile: Laying a Foundation for Discipline Success – Tuesday, January 25, 2011

Your Child’s Emotional Brain: Building Blocks for Self-Discipline, Empathy and Problem Solving – Tuesday, February 1

Reframing Discipline: Using Misbehavior and Mistakes as Teaching Tools – Tuesday, February 8, 2011

“But I’ve told you 100 times!”: Breaking the Building Code for Misbehavior – Tuesday, February 15, 2011

Behavior Boost Blueprints: The Link Between Self-Esteem and Self-Discipline – Tuesday, February 22, 2011

The Mauldin Cultural Center is located in the old Mauldin Elementary school buliding at 101 East Butler Road, Mauldin, SC, 29662. The workshops will be based on the nationally recognized Positive Discipline curriculum. Call the PRIDE office at 864-454-2102 for more information or to register.

Leave a comment

Posted in Parenting and tagged . Bookmark the permalink.

Upcoming Free Events

Posted on January 8, 2011 by juliebyers

Greenville Babywearing Group  meets Thursday night (Jan. 20) at 6pm.  We’re enjoying our new home at Natural Baby.  Come to learn, try out a new type of carrier, or teach someone else.  Bring your carrier(s) and bring your baby.  Or if you’re pregnant, you can practice with a stuffed animal.  Dads are always welcome to attend!

Cloth Diaper 101:  I can’t believe how many people came out for this class last month!  So we’re offering it again.  I’ll show you lots of options for cloth diapering.  We’ll talk about poop.  We’ll talk about money.  We’ll talk trash (or lack thereof).  Dads need to come, too!  1pm at Natural Baby. 

Blessingways:  A Gathering of New and Expectant Families:  Join us for our monthly gathering. We’re meeting in a new place for 2011. When you arrive at Natural Baby, head toward the back of the store where you’ll find a comfortable lounge. Our positive birth story this month is Noelle who had her first baby at home with a midwife.  Our speaker is Ady Orezzoli, the owner of Natural Baby.  She will share her expertise on “Saving Money While Going Green.”

Pregnant couples are encouraged to attend.  New mamas and papas as well as experienced families are welcome!  Bring your babies or older children.  We expect it to be a bit noisy.  Hope to see you there!

A note about Natural Baby.  I’ve moved many of our events to this store because the owners opened the store, in part, as a place of education.  And they sincerely love parents and children.  Parking is available around the corner in the garage on Richardson street (credit card payment accepted) if you can’t find a spot on the street.

3 Comments

Posted in Babywearing, Green Living, Parenting, Pregnancy, Products and Gear. Bookmark the permalink.

I need to hear

Posted on January 7, 2011 by juliebyers

If you have a High-Needs, Super Spirited child, I would love to hear how you balance time with your Not-So-High-Needs, Not-So-Super-Spirited child. 

High-Needs:  Cedar (17 months)

I-only-THOUGHT-she-was-high-needs:  Norah (5 yrs)

I’m really struggling to help Norah with learning activities.  Honestly, I’m struggling to simply feed, snuggle, and talk with Norah.  Cedar takes a measly one hour nap.  When can I create space for art or literacy? 

Cedar is so very large.  Her spirit, that is.  She does everything loudly.  Her scream could break glass.  She is delightful.  And incredibly draining and demanding. 

I’ve tried putting Cedar in her highchair with playdoh, paints, crayons while Norah and I work.  She cannot tolerate restraint and screams until she wiggles her way out or I take her out.  When I put Norah at our dining room table to do a project, Cedar climbs Norah’s chair and becomes a destructive force. 

I’m discouraged.  I’m frankly deflated about the prospect of homeschool.  The idea seems impossible to me. 

Cedar is 17 months.  I know it is a tough phase.  Tell me what to expect, experienced mamas and papas of high-needs kids.  I need to know.  Or give me ideas to survive.

9 Comments

Posted in Parenting and tagged , . Bookmark the permalink.

Am I Nit-Picking?

Posted on December 21, 2010 by juliebyers

I will get back to birthy posts soon, I promise.

Recently, Norah was participating in a food drive for United Christian Ministries.  Fantastic.  She helped pick out what foods we would donate each week.  We talked about need.  We talked about sharing. 

Then, I realized it was a contest within this group.  The group of kids who brought the most food would win a pizza party. 

A pizza party? 

See, I grew up with stuff like this.  Lots of rewards for good behavior, memorizing scripture, perfect attendance.  I kind of felt that way of thinking was behind us.  That we had a new understanding of social justice.  That the reward was in the doing and the giving.   

Somehow I cannot imagine Jesus, when he sent his disciples out, saying, “whosoever heals the most lepers will get first seating at the marriage supper of the lamb.” 

Actually he said they would be flogged and hated. 

Norah’s group didn’t win the party.  I’m relieved.  Because the people we were collecting cast-off, dusty cans of creamed corn probably don’t get many pizza parties. 

Am I a scrooge about this?  Maybe it is all harmless.  I know I can’t shelter her from shallow rewards and legalism.  But oh how I want her heart to stay tender to the needs around her.  I want to model ways of engaging with people without tidy third parties.

Or pizza parties.

3 Comments

Posted in Blech, Parenting, Social Justice. Bookmark the permalink.

The Birthday Cake

Posted on December 13, 2010 by juliebyers

Norah began describing her birthday cake about two months before her birthday.  She was extraordinarily specific about what she wanted.  She drew a picture and posted it on the fridge.  Usually I make her cake but I was intimidated by this project.   And frankly, I didn’t understand her description. 

So we went to the bakery.  I thought she would be wooed by other cakes.  Or, maybe she would see one she liked.  I was wrong.  As we wandered from cake to cake, a baker approached us and asked what the problem was.  I explained.  This wonderful woman was all seriousness as she sat down with Norah to design her cake.  Neither of them smiled.  Norah answered each question with decisiveness and firm opinion.  Who is this child? 

I was nervous when I picked up the cake.  Upon showing it to Norah, she nodded briskly and declared it “perfect.”  Scott and I high-fived. 

Here she is holding the picture she drew of her cake. 

  

We had a small family party this year.  Just as the guests were arriving, she bolted to her room, locked the door, and re-emerged wearing the shiny ensemble you see here.  Complete with ruby red slippers.

She’s growing up so big.

Leave a comment

Posted in Food, Parenting. Bookmark the permalink.

How to tell if you have a 15 month old in your home

Posted on December 3, 2010 by juliebyers

1) Half-eaten food everywhere.

2) More food in the floor.  If the food is smashed as if by tiny stomping feet, the presence of a toddler is very likely.

3) Even more food.  Especially under the table as if flung from great heights.

 

4) You find important things hidden in odd places long after you’ve been forced to replace them.

 

5) Odd sightings of what looks like once-worn pants with still snapped diaper inside.  Owner absent.  This is exactly as I found it. 

6) Occasional blurs of naked butt.

If you are able to capture the 15 month old, my recommendation is to not let go.  Even when you’re very tired from sweeping up food all day. 

And perhaps, retrieve the diaper and put it back on.

3 Comments

Posted in Parenting and tagged , . Bookmark the permalink.

Openings are Grand!

Posted on November 23, 2010 by juliebyers

We’ve asked for one.  We’ve complained that our town didn’t have one.  We’ve ordered online and paid shipping fees.  We’ve driven to Spartanburg (and however much we love you, Mary, it is a long drive!).

Now it is here.  A natural parenting store.  In our town.  And it opens this week!

Come out of your hiding holes on Black Friday (or am I the only one who hides on Black Friday?) and visit Natural Baby between 10am and 6pm.  There will be giveaways!  And deals!  And lovely things to buy.  Things that are carefully crafted and sustainable.  Things that are fairly traded.  Things that are reusable (cloth diapers!).  Things that are locally made.

Come and see!

And while you’re visiting, tell Ady, the wonderful mama behind this project, how excited you are.  And give her your ideas for products to stock, free classes to offer, or ways to promote the store.

This is not simply another store.  It is an opportunity to impact parenting choices and support families in making mindful choices.  Ady wants the store to belong to the community–a place you can drop in to nurse a baby or let your toddler play while you catch your breath.  A place for gatherings like the monthly Babywearing group or LLL.  It is the new home of Upstate BirthNetwork.  Have I told you yet of this project?  Soon I will. 

I’ll be teaching a free Cloth Diapering 101 class on Dec. 11 at 2pm.  And the monthly Babywearing group will meet Dec. 9 at 6pm. 

Find Natural Baby via their website or on facebook.  And find it on Black Friday!

2 Comments

Posted in Babywearing, Natural Living, Parenting, Products and Gear, Uncategorized. Bookmark the permalink.

As I lay her down to sleep

Posted on November 14, 2010 by juliebyers

Cedar is in that tricky sleep stage.  She doesn’t know if she needs/wants one nap a day or two.  I sometimes feel like my entire day is spent trying to get her to nap.  I nurse her to sleep or sometimes lately I can just lay beside her.  And my mind wanders away as I’m stuck with the babe.

Want a peek into my brain as it wanders? 

  • Wow I need a pedicure. 
  • I should take Norah to get one with me.  Wait.  When did Norah last have a bath?  Oh grody.  I’m not really certain.
  • I wonder if I’ll get a shower today.
  • What am I going to do for dinner?  I’m out of olive oil.  And pepper.  What in the world can I cook without olive oil and pepper?
  • I have GOT to write some of my client’s birth timelines for them.  (Sorry E., N., and E.)
  • What is the 1st conjugation pluperfect tense of the verb amo?  Do I really care?  I stink at homeschooling.
  • I wonder how old my children will be when I no longer sweep the floors multiple times each day?
  • My lips feel chapped.  I could use some coconut oil.  Coconut oil!  I can cook dinner with that.
  • I need to clean the blinds in here.
  • Need to work on the BirthNetwork website.  Need to work on the BirthNetwork website.  Need to.  Need to.
  • What would it be like to have a baby you just put down for a nap and walk away?  Sigh.
  •  I bet other mamas get so much more done in a day.  Stop.  Stop.  Do not go down that path.
  • I’ll probably miss this time one day.  At least it forces me to make a to-do list.
  • If only I could reach my notepad. 
  • And a pen.
  • Wonder what Norah is getting into.  It got awfully quiet all of a sudden. 
  • Ok, gonna try to sneak away. 
  • Crap.  That didn’t work. 
  • Look at my toes.  I need a pedicure. 

6 Comments

Posted in Parenting. Bookmark the permalink.
← Older Posts
Newer Posts →