What the Pink Pool Toy Taught me about Gender

October 25, 2016October 24, 2016 ~ newbiemomsite ~ Leave a comment

I am happy to say I have another article running on Her View from Home this week.

Have you ever had one of those moments where you wish you had responded differently? Well, this is about one of those times. This one has been brewing for a while, and I finally found the brain power to articulate my feelings.

Here is an excerpt:

It all started with a pink pool toy. It was just an ordinary toy, but this one pool toy made me question my values and my deeply held beliefs. It took me down a peg.

But I’m getting ahead of myself. Let me back up a little bit.

During the summer, my husband, one-year-old son and I took a short vacation in a nearby town. We were staying in a hotel with a nice pool and I had bought the perfect pool toy for our son. It was a small boat, with holes so he could stick his legs through and float around the pool. There was just one problem. I had left that toy at home.

Determined to enjoy the pool, I sent my husband across the street to Walmart to buy another one. He came back shortly and tossed the bag on the sofa. I opened the box and my heart sunk.

How kids changed my relationship with music

October 7, 2016October 1, 2016 ~ newbiemomsite ~ Leave a comment

Everyone with small children knows that your life completely changes. Keeping your small human(s) alive takes priority, which leaves you with not much time for yourself. I think most new parents find themselves missing their old lives at some point.

What I miss most isn’t eating dinner at a regular speed. It’s not using the bathroom alone and it’s not sleeping in. What I miss most is playing the piano.

I have been playing the piano since I was seven years old. What started as a hobby turned into a passion, which turned into a career and an identity. I used to play for 3 hours a day. Now I am lucky if I play 3 hours a year. You know why? It’s not the lack of motivation and it’s not the lack of desire. It is because of kids – mine and other people’s. Continue reading →

The One Thing I Wish I Knew about Parenting When I was Pregnant

August 5, 2016September 1, 2016 ~ newbiemomsite ~ 4 Comments

I don’t know about you, but there is a charity coming to my door at least once a week asking for money. As much as I genuinely support these worthy causes in spirit, it is impossible to support all of them financially. The person at the door may assume that I am selfish or don’t care about the cause. They don’t know that I have chosen two causes to support which mean a lot to me. Even though I feel terribly guilty telling the very nice representative that I can’t help the refugees/children/animals that their charity supports at this time, I know that it doesn’t make me a bad person.

I think parenting, especially in the early stages, is a lot like this. I wish I had known that going in. Continue reading →