The hardest part about being a parent of two so far has been entertaining my toddler, Raylee, while I tend to the baby. When I need to breastfeed Ruthi or put her down for a nap, basically all of my attention needs to go to the baby. That means that Raylee needs to keep herself busy, but she's a toddler so that doesn't come easily. I have been compiling a list of the toys and activities we use to keep our toddler busy. We use these as tools to help her entertain herself so I can focus on the baby when needed. Even if you just have one kid, sometimes mama needs time to check email or make Continue Reading
Ways to Cope After Miscarriage
How can we cope after such a tragic loss? Losing a child is an indescribable loss that brings a heavy grief with it. So how can we cope? My unborn baby would be 19 weeks right now. In just a few short weeks, I would be finding out the gender. (We think of our baby as a boy because of a dream I had while pregnant.) Travis and I already had a theme and plan for a gender reveal party. There's not a day that has gone by where I haven't thought about our baby. I still miss him. In these past two months, although I have still felt pain and grief, I can feel myself learning to cope. I can feel Continue Reading
Ways to Bless a Woman Who Lost a Baby
Do you have a friend who has suffered a miscarriage or infant loss? Studies have shown that the grief one experiences after losing a wanted baby at any number of weeks is equivalent to the grief of losing a close friend or family member. So what can you do to help? How can you bless your friend during her loss? Ways to Help a Friend Who Lost a Baby Send a card. Finding a sympathy card and writing a short note inside doesn't take much work, but it does mean a ton. For me, I love receiving mail and every single card we received after my miscarriage I cherished. I kept all of them. Continue Reading
How to Help a Grieving Friend
What do we say when someone is grieving? How do we help when a friend is in pain? Are you wondering how to help a grieving friend? This topic has been on my heart lately. I've been told the saying, "God won't give you more than you can handle" during my own times of grief. In fact, it's a saying I believed and said to others. But not anymore. There are a lot of things in this world that God doesn't hand out. I believe most of the time, God is not the one causing our pain. Yes, He allows it, but He doesn't cause it or give it to us like some angry, punishing God. A lot of times the pain in Continue Reading
How to Help a Depressed Friend
Do you have a friend who seems to be depressed? Do they have the following symptoms? Feelings of helplessness and hopelessness Loss of interest in daily activities Appetite or weight changes Sleep changes Anger or irritability Loss of energy Self-loathing Reckless behavior Those are the symptoms and signs of depression. If you have a friend who is dealing with depression, you may be wondering how you can help. I've enlisted the help of others who have dealt with depression themselves. They are sharing some great advice on what do to and what not to do to help a Continue Reading
Ways to Mend a Broken Heart
For Valentine's Day coming up, I've decided to share about the time in my life where I had a completely broken heart. Not the usual love post, huh? Well, my heart is aching a little for those out there who are struggling with this day, this month, this year. The people who have struggling relationships and especially those who have already felt the pain of it ending. I'm sharing things I wrote during my own personal break up. Be sure to read the first post -- Waiting for Morning, which explains more about the break up. This is the second installment of A Glimpse into my Heart Break, Continue Reading
Hurting During the Holidays
Christmas can be an incredibly happy time. It can be full of joy and love and hope. But it can also be a very difficult time. It can be full of disappointment, sadness, hurting, and loneliness. I know there are people out there who are struggling this season. For some, the holidays don't seem so happy. Two years ago, I was struggling during the holidays. I know what if feels like to have an aching heart during what is supposed to be such a joyful season. For those of you out there who are hurting right now, please know you are not alone. I've complied a list of posts from others that Continue Reading