Crunch of the Mom's review of the Milkies Milk-Saver, a silicone cup that fits in your bra, collecting the leakage from breastfeeding.
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New Year’s Eve: Our Hearts of Romaine Lettuce
Usually, my Facebook feed is filled with the latest clickbait or semi-news article talking about listeria filled hearts of romaine lettuce. In the last few days, I saw these headlines instead: Share your favorite photo from 2018! What are your resolutions for the new year? What was your favorite vacation from 2018? What was the funniest thing that happened to you in 2018? What hurt you this year? Facebook on New Year’s Eve These were all things that floated by on my Facebook newsfeed this New Year’s Eve. People asking honest questions to their friends, genuinely curious of their answers. In fact, they were so intrigued to learn about the…
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Holiday Celebrations for “Snowflakes”
Do you know how my kindergartener celebrated the holiday season and the start of the winter at school? By watching the movie “Rio.” This is a movie about a parrot who is smuggled by dealers into the US. If that doesn’t scream HAPPY HOLIDAYS, I don’t know what does. Good grief. What are we doing in the schools for young kids during the holiday season? I’ll tell you. We are completely skirting around holidays to avoid offending someone, and are instead losing out on some very teachable moments. What if we were to embrace and celebrate our cultural differences, instead of hide from them? What if we used the holiday…
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5 Things I Learned in My Rainbow Pregnancy
The last place you want to spend Mother’s Day, as a mother, is in the ER. Mother’s Day 2017 brought us the biggest loss we had ever experienced as a married couple. We miscarried at almost twelve weeks along, at home, which then took us to spending Mother’s Day in the ER. Instead of spending Mother’s Day planting flowers and enjoying the day with my husband and our two children, I was getting pelvic exams and taking the “products of conception” in a paper bag to the ER. It was a nightmare. My name is Brittin. I am a Blessed Momma of a 5 year old little girl who came…
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Post-Holiday Blues
January 2 January 2. The day when most moms sigh a big sigh of relief. The holidays are over. We made it. From Black Friday onward, we go to the ends of the earth for our friends and family to make the holidays wonderful. Shopping, wrapping, baking, cooking, cleaning, party planning, budgeting, making travel plans, and somehow finding time to get a few hours of sleep at night to wake up and do it all over again. For about 6-7 weeks solid. It’s absolute insanity, but we do this to ourselves, year after year. Part of us enjoys the rush, and the other part of us cannot wait til it’s…
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Direct Sales: An Insider Perspective
As I sit here next to my husband on the train back home from Chicago, I am reminded of the little things, the simple things, yet the so very hugely important things in life. About 5 years ago now, I worked in an impatient neuropsychiatric unit while pregnant with our oldest daughter. I was up at 6am every morning, home at 6pm every evening, throughout the pregnancy; through exhaustion, morning sickness (sometimes all day sickness), conducting sessions with geriatric patients suffering from a plethora of emotional, psychological, and physical disorders. I was in the company of physically aggressive and verbally abusive patients, who desperately needed help. The career of a…
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The Whole Way Through Whole30
Well, I did it. I made it through the 30 days of what I expected to be pure torture-the whole way through Whole30. Surprisingly, it wasn’t torture at all but rather a life changing experience that has forever changed my relationship with food. Being a mom I am a mother of two little girls. My life is busy, my nights are sleepless, I have been breastfeeding for 4 years almost non-stop, and the 30 pounds that I haven’t been able to lose for the last 4+ years, were justified. But, enough was enough. My youngest turns 1 year old this month and it was time to make some changes. After…
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Keep the Milk Flowing on Whole30
As I sit here on Day 20 of the 30 day program of The Whole30: The 30-Day Guide to Total Health and Food Freedom, I want to talk to you about my experience with snacks. As a quick overview for those of you new to Whole30, these are the pillars of the Whole30 program that are non-negotiable. So whether you’re munching on a snack or eating a meal, the following may NOT be consumed. Whole30 shortlist of what not to eat: added sugar or artificial sweeteners alcohol grains legumes dairy Nursing Concerns I am a nursing Mom, so I need to be taking in enough calories to sustain a good…
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Whole30 – Halfway there!
I have been overweight for most of my life. I remember when I was an adolescent, I couldn’t fit into regular jeans. We had to get the 14+ size, which was the “chunky kid” version of a regular 14. I remember that so vividly. I also remember riding the bus in middle school and having one of my supposed “friends” tell me “You are fat! Look at your stomach!” I will never forget when that boy said that. It destroyed me. Sure, I thought I was a little chunky but that word… “fat”… absolutely made me feel like a piece of chewy steak that I regularly spit out. I remember…
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Bonfire
Spring in Michigan is a beautiful time. Grass turns green, flowers bloom, birds chirp, and everything seemingly comes alive again after a dormant winter. Tonight after we got our little ones asleep, quick like a ninja, I exited the house into the fresh spring air. I was thrilled by the idea that for about 30 minutes, the dogs and I would enjoy some peace and solitude on a beautiful spring evening. Pure Michigan beauty. Crisp air, slight breeze, not a car in sight, and more stars in the sky than I had noticed in months. Mostly likely because I hadn’t taken the time to notice them. They have probably been there all along…
