children

Children: Our most valuable natural resource.

Young Mother
Everyone knows that it is more common than not in this era for young girls to be pregnant. Most parents either go with the flow or they completely freak out on their child. My mother was the one to go with it while my dad was the one to freak out. I wasn't ever planning on being a young mother, but I knew what I was doing. Being 17 years old and finding this out was a complete shock to me, but I knew it was a possibility. Let's get this story going shall we?
By Bethany Taylor7 years ago in Families
Co-Sleeping
I am 100 percent for making your child sleep in their own bed. I was the first to announce that I was never going to co-sleep with my child. Whether they were 6-months-old or 5-years, it wasn't going to happen. Let's all laugh at that statement together. This—if you're a parent, for obvious reasons—didn't happen. I held true for a bit, but eventually, like I'm assuming most parents do, I caved.
By Michelle Schultz7 years ago in Families
5 Alternative Halloween Ideas
Holidays can be stressful; twice as stressful if you have a kid with sensory issues. You want to give them good memories and something to talk about at school, but the usual activities might be too much for them. So here are five sensory-sensitive ideas for alternative Halloween celebrations this year.
By Hannah Shannon7 years ago in Families
As Long As There Is Life, There Is Hope. As Long As There Is Hope, There Is Life.
What does it feel like to lose a baby? Ever wondered that? It may have crossed your mind at one point but it was probably only a fleeting thought and that's absolutely fine. Who would want to dwell on that?
By Aimee W7 years ago in Families
Code Brown
Have you ever heard of the phrase, code brown? The first time I heard it was when my newborn son was in the hospital for dehydration (Mommy wasn’t producing enough boobie juice). Like most hospitals, they had codes to alert staff of emergency events. Some examples of what that would be include: code red for fire, code blue for cardiac arrest, code black for bomb threat/other dangerous threats, and so on. My husband, who was curious of what all the codes were called, and what they were used for, questioned one of the nursing staff. After sharing the codes to him, she then mentioned code brown, and then laughed. My husband quizzically asked, “What is code brown?” The nurse laughed again, and told us that it was an inside code among the nursing and CNA staff... standing for, and you probably guessed it, POOP! And not just any poop. Poop everywhere! The patient, the bed, the walls, floor, you name it!
By Daycare Momma7 years ago in Families
Effective Strategies for Behavioral Interventions in Defiant Children
Behavioral interventions for children go far beyond changing poor behavior. The development of the theory of behavior modification completely altered the way people of the time thought about children’s motivation to behave. Studies on behavior modification began with behaviorist experts B.F. Skinner and Ivan Pavlov. Regardless of their methods of research, they were able to develop techniques that behavior strategists still use today, decades later. Jay Belsky, a psychology professor, asserts, “We now have a better idea why rewards work better than punishment with pre-adolescent children.”
By StephanieCristi7 years ago in Families
More Than You Can Handle
My perfect creation. Let me start off by saying I am truly blessed to have the chance to raise two perfect babies. Ok this question is for all the women. Have you ever wanted something so bad you tried for years to get it? Well I did. I tried for four years to have a baby. I was told by my family and others I wasn't able to have kids. Any mom or women who plan to become a mom knows how devastating tis news can be. For me it was soul crushing I've always dreamed of having the perfect all American family. The white picket fence and the dog in the yes with a boy and a girl running around playing catch with their dad. So you can only imagine after trying for so long when I became pregnant how happy I was. The happiness was short lived though. Soon after finding out I had conceived I lost the baby. This happened three more times. So when my fifth pregnancy came you can only assume that I wasn't even the slightest but excited. During the first few months I didn't tell the family or friends in fear that it would all be a disappointment in the end. I almost lost the baby twice during the pregnancy. Little did I know yet that I was having twins. At the first scare of false miscarriage I found out it was pregnant with twins. I looked at the doctor and laughed. I really thought he was joking. He then showed me the monitor. I was so happy words couldn't describe. I was scared, excited, and in disbelief. I had a wave of emotions come over me. From sadness to hurt I felt it all. I went through so much durning the pregnancy. I was never able to hold down food I never got bigger then someone carrying just one baby I was in constant pain and would faint all the time. When the day came to find out the sex I had their dad on the phone and my best friend beside me only they were allowed to know the sex and they were to hide it from me. The day I found out what I was having was so great. I'm not going to lie I wanted it to both boys. Instead I got even luckier I found out I was having a boy and a girl the best of both worlds. The only problem was I had always planned on having a boy first and a girl later I wanted a little boy to grow up to protect and defend his sister someone she could look up to. When the day came to have them it was scary and wonderful all at the same time the prepped me for the c section and got me in the room a short hour later the we're here. First came my precious son and then my beautiful daughter. I got exactly what I asked for, a boy then a girl. Maybe not in the way I wanted but I wouldn't dare change it for the world. I'm not going lie the first month was hard but with their father's help love and support we are getting it done. I'm learning new things everyday. As each day passes my love for them grows more deeply. I have to day it's the most amazing feeling in the world. I wanted to share my story to let people know that anything is possible. Just keep your heard up and keep moving forward. To never give up and always keep hope. I'm living proof that it can happen.
By Brittniey7 years ago in Families
An Open Letter to My Kids
To my babies: I never was ready to be a mom! I never thought I had it in me to take care of you. But I do! I love each and every one of you from the bottom of my heart. So much that some days my heart could burst if it were allowed. The three times that I endeared the joys of giving birth to you all left me speechless and filled with tears the moment I looked at each of your little eyes. I did that and was a part of creating you.
By Salina Lehn7 years ago in Families
Teen Mom
A challenge that I have faced in my life was being pregnant as a teenager. This meant that I fell under the stereotype of teen pregnancy which portrayed financial and emotional struggle, lack of education, and irresponsible parenting. This stereotype is painted by the image people choose to believe about teenage parents but does not portray what all teen parents look like. Many people would pity me as I walked through the halls in high school, thinking that my life was over. Little did they know, becoming pregnant as a teenager was the best challenge I have ever been faced with.
By Brittany Meier7 years ago in Families
How to Survive Having a Baby in NICU
As women we all picture this perfect pregnancy, having our water break and rushing to the hospital. But, like many, that is never the case. I was hospitalized at 34 weeks into my pregnancy due to preeclampsia, which didn't even come on until a couple of weeks before and then all of sudden became severe and they sent me to the hospital for evaluation in labor and delivery.
By Nikki Sanger7 years ago in Families
Childcare Nightmare
I'm a working mom. It's awful. However, I have no choice. I have yet to accomplish my dreams of writing the next great book series like the Harry Potter series, so until then I must go to work. My daughter is of course, in a daycare program and while they suck almost every last dime out of my pocket to basically expose my daughter to every disease imaginable, they are not open on weekends. I'm not required to work on weekends. Only if I want to eat. The loop of constantly trying to find a babysitter so that I can go to work travels around and around. It's a never-ending horrible cycle.
By Michelle Schultz7 years ago in Families
Doing It Right This Time
As a parent have you ever felt wrong about the things that you couldn't do for your first child? When you think about it, the first child is always the most memorable, because at times you never see him, her, or them coming. I am 23 years old, and I just had my second child July 7th, 2018 @ 6:30 PM. My first child is six years old; this is a big gap because I had my son when I was 17 years old. Being pregnant at 16 was very traumatic for me but looking back I know that my son was a blessing. He put me on the right path and brought me the stability that I needed in my life as crazy as that may seem. At the age of 16, I wasn't prepared to have a baby at all. I had only known my son's father for a month, and I was still naive and a child but I've always been mature, so it didn't ruin my life. One of the main thoughts I had, when I was pregnant the first time, was, how am I going to take care of this baby? I didn't have any job experience and wasn't old enough to be hired for a job, so I was already heading down a struggling path. While I was pregnant with my son, I was still in high school, so this was hard enough because I was dealing with nosy people all the time. I didn't get to enjoy being pregnant, my mom was my biggest supporter, and she helped me through everything. However, I never had money to myself, so I didn't get to feed my cravings, have a baby shower or take maternity pictures. I also didn't get to shop for my baby because I wasn't the one bringing in any money. My mom was my rock, and she did as much as she could. When I got pregnant, I was staying with a family member because my mom was getting ready to deploy. The funny thing is that when I found out, I was pregnant my mom's deployment was canceled. After my mom got the news, my siblings and I moved back with my mom, so my son's father and I had a long distance relationship on and off throughout my pregnancy. This meant that I didn't get to go through my pregnancy with the person that I made this child with. My family experienced all my trimesters and pregnancy moments. When I had my son January 27th, 2012 my mom and sisters were there not my son's father. As my son got older, I still wasn't able to provide for him because I was still trying to figure out how to provide for myself and get my life together to get him together. I went through a lot between the ages of 18-20 so that I could provide for my son. These moments were tough but, my son was my biggest motivation to stay strong. The stress of being a first-time young parent was very hard, and I'll honestly say I got it all together when my son turned 3. It took three years for me to feel like I was doing right by my son. Now that he is 6 I can honestly say I am proud of myself for the provider that I've become. My daughter has provided me with a whole new meaning of pregnancy, adulthood, and parenting. The first difference I felt when I find out I was pregnant with my daughter was that I made the decision to have her and it wasn't by surprise. I am also married to the love of my life, so I am in a stable relationship. Finding out I was pregnant with my daughter made me realize my life was complete and stable enough to have another baby. I got to experience a partner with me through this pregnancy. I was able to feed my cravings and shop for my baby like crazy. I was able to take beautiful maternity pictures and get the amazing 4D ultrasound pictures. Most importantly I was able to experience bringing a life into the world with the man that I made my beautiful daughter with. My daughter reminds me daily that I did stuff right this time. My kids are my world and even at 23 years old with two kids I feel good, I am a great mom, and it is because of my son that I can be the mom that I am today. In the future I want one more child, I wonder if there will be another difference with baby #3.
By Maelyn Jeffers7 years ago in Families