our family grace

19 May 2014

Mommy Moments Blog Hop!

Hey mamas!

Welcome back for another great week of Mommy Moments Link Ups! Thank you for linking up and for spreading the word last week! We had some awesome links last week as usual.

Motherhood has its seriousness and frustration as well as its laughs. That's why we are here. Life is much easier when traveled with companions! So mamas, let's join together in the spirit of motherhood and share our moments together. We want to hear the happy, sad, tough, terrible, hilarious moments that make being a mother the best job in the world!

The top viewed link this week belongs to Paula from Beauty Through Imperfection and her post Dear Moms With and Without iPhones. I absolutely loved this post and Paula's encouragement to stop comparing ourselves to other moms to see how we measure up. Instead, let's look at our kids and see how they are doing!

The Life Of Faith

The Not Quite Military Wife

Beautiful Family Affairs,

Like A Morning Cup Of Coffee

Now, link up your post!
Post can include anything related to mommy-hood, children, homemaking, pregnancy etc. If you aren't a mom yet, feel free to link up your preparation for motherhood, your journey as you try to conceive, or even a post that would be encouraging to the other moms in the party!

Then, explore some of the other posts in the link-up and say hello to some new blog friends!

Please, pretty please, we'd love it if you would tweet or share the link up on Facebook so we can all make even more friends!

We would also love it if you could add the Mommy Moments button to your post or blog so everyone knows where you are linking up!

http://the-life-of-faith.blogspot.com//search/label/mommymoments" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank">http://i1114.photobucket.com/albums/k537/faithkonrath/cfa5ba11752f4e898055d03d33cf24e0.jpg

P.S. We will be having a new guest host every week! Want to be a guest host of the Mommy Moments Blog Hop? Send Faith a message at farmprincess14{at}gmail{dot}com. We would love to have you!

Colossians 3:17
And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

An InLinkz Link-up

15 May 2014

When Nursing Ends...

It was always my goal to nurse Bug as long as she wanted, within reason of course. We were lucky that breastfeeding came easily and naturally for us, and I loved the bond that breastfeeding created and I really didn't want to give it up. Call me selfish, call me crazy, call me whatever you want, but I was willing to nurse my girl past the age of 2 if she wanted.

By the time Bug turned one she was nursing just twice a day. Once when she first woke up and then again right before bed. Not long after turning one she switched herself to just nursing in the evening right before bed. Keep in mind that I'm pregnant and still breastfeeding. After researching and talking to my OB (I was still seeing an OB at the time and hadn't made the switch to our midwife yet), I decided to continue with breastfeeding as long Bug wanted. I just had to make sure I was eating well, which is hard to do with morning sickness.

Once Bug hit 13 months, she became less and less interested in nursing before bed. Instead, she would fidget and cuddle, but wouldn't latch. Or if she did latch, it wasn't for long. I knew my time nursing her was coming to an end. We had already made the switch to cows milk and she had no problem making that switch. But the switch hurt my feelings more than I thought it would. It helps that I have another little one on the way to look forward to breastfeeding, but I still miss the time with my little girl. There are times that I still wish we were able to continue nursing, but I know that this is what was best for my baby girl and me, so instead of wishing for what isn't, I'm extremely thankful for the 13 months that I got to spend nursing my baby girl.

Like A Morning Cup of Coffee The Not Quite Military Wife

From Here To Eternity Words About Waverly

Pardon My French Beautiful Family Affairs

My Delicious Adventure The Life Of Faith

Running From The Law The Olive Tree

May 8: Taming the Temper Tantrums

May 15: Weaning from Breastfeeding or From Formula to Cow’s Milk

May 22: Dealing with Mommy Guilt

May 29: When People Share Their Opinions and How to Lovingly Handle it

June 5: Traveling with your Toddler

June 12: How to get your toddler to eat their veggies…or their food at all

June 19: How to make time to blog in the busyness of motherhood

June 26: Bedtime Battles (nap or bedtime)

11 May 2014

Mommy Moments Blog Hop!

Hey mamas!

Welcome back for another great week of Mommy Moments Link Ups! Thank you for linking up and for spreading the word last week! We had some awesome links last week as usual.

The top viewed link this week belongs to Laura from Story Book Reality and her post Kelsey's Birth Story Part One! Doesn't she look great? I always love reading birth stories. They are each so different and special!

The Life Of Faith

The Not Quite Military Wife

Beautiful Family Affairs,

Like A Morning Cup Of Coffee

Then, explore some of the other posts in the link-up and say hello to some new blog friends!

Please, pretty please, we'd love it if you would tweet or share the link up on Facebook so we can all make even more friends!

We would also love it if you could add the Mommy Moments button to your post or blog so everyone knows where you are linking up!

http://the-life-of-faith.blogspot.com//search/label/mommymoments" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank">http://i1114.photobucket.com/albums/k537/faithkonrath/cfa5ba11752f4e898055d03d33cf24e0.jpg

P.S. We will be having a new guest host every week! Want to be a guest host of the Mommy Moments Blog Hop? Send Faith a message at farmprincess14{at}gmail{dot}com. We would love to have you!

Colossians 3:17
And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

An InLinkz Link-up

08 May 2014

One Year and Beyond: Taming the Tantrums

Bug is 15 months going on two (sometimes 16). She has all of a sudden developed such personality. A lot of the time, this personality is great. She laughs and giggles and plays, and it is so much fun to watch her grow. But then there is the other side of this personality. The tantrum. And boy can she throw a royal one.

These tantrums stem from two different things:

She isn't getting her way and is being told "no".
She's frustrated and tired.

This little girl is stubborn, and she comes by it honestly. So when she doesn't get her way with something, whether it be a toy or she doesn't want to eat what she's been given, she lets you know. Most of these times it's screaming and throwing her hands in the air and covering her face.

She's also now at the stage where she's trying to develop her independence. She wants to do things by herself, and when she can't accomplish what she wants, the tantrum ensues. A lot of these tantrums end up with her throwing herself on the floor and kicking and punching the ground. It can get pretty rough.

We were spending the evening with my parent's last night, and Bug was in rare form. When my dad (her Papi) walked in, she had just thrown herself on the floor and wouldn't even look at him. The first words out of his mouth, "Are you two?"

I'm still learning on how to deal with her tantrums, but for now, a few things work for us:

Ignore her - sometimes, she just needs to cry it out. That's okay. Once she settles down, she's more apt to listen and calm down. Ignoring her also gives me a chance to gather my bearings and see what the route cause of her tantrum might be.
Distract her - sometimes she just needs a good ole distraction from the things that she's not allowed to have.
Help her - if she's frustrated because she wants something done and can't do it by herself, it's best sometimes if I just dive in and help her. But I'm not allowed to do it for her. I have to show her how it's done, and then let her do it on her own.
Rest time - a lot of times, she's just plum exhausted and that is the reason for her tantrum. The best thing to do at this time is cuddle and turn on Mickey Mouse. It's a win-win situation for both of us. She gets to rest, and I get extra cuddles.

I'm still figuring things out with the tantrums, but for right now, these four things have come to help us when Bug decides to throw a tantrum.

Do you have any other tips on taming the tantrum? Link up with us below! I'm always looking for new ways to help ease the tantrum.