Child-Rearing Archives - Page 2 of 3 - Large Family Management

How to Get More Fruits and Veggies into Your Kids On Busy Days

July 14, 2017

Getting more fruits and veggies into my children’s diets is one of my top priorities when I’m serving meals and snacks.

There was a time, when I only had young children, when I was more concerned that everything be 100% organic (milk, meat, produce). The result of this mindset was that we could afford very little produce.

I thought that I was doing the best for my family by spending the majority of our grocery money on organic meat and milk. But in retrospect, I can see how my thinking was majorly flawed.

The USDA MYPLATE recommendations are that half of your plate (meal) be fruits and veggies. So basically, I was getting half of our family’s diet wrong.

We were sick all.the.time. You can read more about those eating misadventures here.

Today though, I want to talk about how to make sure you are getting more fruits and veggies into your children, even on the very busiest of days.

Beware of this Off-Limits Chore During Your Postpartum Recovery

June 21, 2017

Now that I have had nine children, I am extremely protective of my pelvic floor muscles, as well as my abdominus recti muscles. These are two areas of the body that are quickly stressed, worn out, and even damaged by pregnancy, child-bearing, and postpartum recovery.

After the birth of my fourth child, I discovered a particular household chore that needed to wait. This specific chore would not only strain my pelvic floor muscles, but it also increased my postpartum bleeding (a sure sign that I was over-doing it).

How to Survive the Baby Blues

June 16, 2017

Dealing with the baby blues during the postpartum period can be a huge surprise to new moms. I know that it was for me.

I had a small inkling that it may take a few weeks for my postpartum emotions to level out, but in reality, it took me a few months, and some days I felt downright bizarre.

I, of course, being the recovering perfectionist that I am, expected everything to be perfect. I expected myself to bounce right into joyful, blissful motherhood without any blips or hiccups.

I expected my body to feel and look completely normal by the time I got home from the hospital.

And I expected for my baby to fall into a relatively normal sleep pattern (maybe waking once or twice a night) quickly and easily.

I was of course surprised (I was so naive!) when none of these things happened!

Now that I have gone through pregnancy, birth, and the postpartum adjustments nine different times, I have a few words of wisdom to pass out to anyone who want them!

How to Say Goodbye to Toe-Curling Nipple Pain Right Now

June 13, 2017

Whether you are breastfeeding your first baby, or you have nursed several, dealing with nipple pain is no joke! I breastfed my first three babies with no pain at all, but when my fourth baby was born, I experienced cracked, bleeding nipples for the first time.

I went through agony for a full week before my midwife finally took pity on me and recommended a little breastfeeding accessory that changed my life (or at least my breastfeeding life). Why she waited so long, I will never know.

This little piece of silicone worked instantly, and gave my nipples the protection they needed in order to heal.

How to Make a Strong Recovery After Birth

June 7, 2017

We’ve all heard or read about the new mom who jumped right back into normal life, and her normal jeans right after leaving the hospital. Have you felt jealous of her? My younger, less experienced self sure did!

Now that I’ve had many more children, and am sitting pretty in my mid-thirties, I realize how foolish I was not to allow my body to make a strong recovery after birth.

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