A couple of weeks before Mother’s Day, I shared some research findings on things that cause stress for moms. Of course, moms aren’t the only ones who experience stress. Our male counterparts also experience considerable parenting-related stress. Interestingly, when I began looking into this topic, I didn’t find any survey findings or … [Read more...] about Dads Feel Stress, Too
pregnancy
The Best Baby Toys for Developmentally Appropriate Play
One of my most popular printables is a guide to developmentally appropriate play for babies (you can see the original version here and an updated one here). This guide describes what types of activities foster a baby’s development at ages birth-1 month, 2-3 months, 4-6 months, and so on. This guide describes many activities and mentions … [Read more...] about The Best Baby Toys for Developmentally Appropriate Play
Worship Music Playlist for Labor and Delivery
This is a post that I intended to share after I gave birth to my third child back in September. I didn’t get around to it right away, and then I hesitated to share it because the delivery didn’t go as planned. Of course, it’s not the playlist’s fault that I ended up needing an emergency C-section, so I decided to go ahead and share it … [Read more...] about Worship Music Playlist for Labor and Delivery
“Just In Case” Cesarean Preferences for Your Birth Plan
Late last summer, as I was preparing to give birth to my third child, I made plans to write a post about how to prepare for a successful VBAC (vaginal birth after cesarean). As you can see, that’s not what I’m writing about today. This is because sometimes unexpected things happen during the delivery of your baby. Of course, I could … [Read more...] about “Just In Case” Cesarean Preferences for Your Birth Plan
Names Are Gifts We Give to Our Children
Are names merely indiscriminate titles that help us know when someone is speaking to us or is there more to it? I believe the latter, specifically that names have the power to shape our lives in significant ways. We see examples of this in Scripture. Though names sometimes recorded an aspect of a child’s birth (see Esau and Jacob in … [Read more...] about Names Are Gifts We Give to Our Children
Convertible Car Seats that are Suitable for Newborns
Two weeks ago I shared 4 reasons to skip the infant car seat in favor of a convertible one. As I noted in that post, not all convertible car seats are suitable for newborns. However, a great number of convertible car seats are perfect for newborns. How can you tell which are suitable and which aren’t? I’ll share the answer to this … [Read more...] about Convertible Car Seats that are Suitable for Newborns
Our Hearts Are So Full!
My hands and my heart have been so full these last two weeks as we’ve been adjusting to life as a family of five! We welcomed our third child, Gilana Brielle, on September 20th. Gilana means “joy” and Brielle (a diminutive of Gabrielle) means “strength of God” or “heroine of God.” She weighed 7 lbs. 15 oz. and was 19 in. long. Her … [Read more...] about Our Hearts Are So Full!
Resources for Christian Women Who Are Preparing for Childbirth
Though each woman has a unique experience, most women find childbirth to be a very profound event. In fact, regardless of whether they believe in God or not, most women find childbirth to be a deeply spiritual experience. I believe that childbirth is particularly special for those of us who are Christians. We’ve spent somewhere in the … [Read more...] about Resources for Christian Women Who Are Preparing for Childbirth
