Moran Family Adventures: musings of a boy mom

I've been meaning to write this post for a minute or two but kept getting distracted with...life. It's funny- you want to write about life events but more life events happen to prevent you from playing catch up! The holiday season of 2017 was a rough one for the Moran family. It was rough. Seriously rough. Matt's parents came by for Thanksgiving and left with the flu that turned into pneumonia. So that already had me on edge. We live in a small house and it's cramped for our family of 5, add two more adults and it's basically impossible to have any personal space. My children go to daycare, and that place is horrible for sickness. They do what they can with the handwashing, sanitizing, and requiring immunizations but they can't catch every moment a kid touches their mouth then touches a toy. And the rules don't require that kids with runny noses or colds stay out because, well, then they wouldn't have a business right? So the series of events that lead ...

There are some fears coming my way as a boy mom in this era. I'm reading Oprah's speech from the Golden Globes and it's moving and powerful. I'm reading about Natalie Portman's comments about an ALL male directors nominee list, and I'm reading about scandal and sexual assault and the need for women to rise up and not be silenced. As a woman, I support fighting for gender equality. I'm a working mom for goodness sakes. I'm a working mom with two degrees, working on my third, and I'm grateful for the freedom to pursue higher education. I'm a woman that served in the military, I'm a female veteran and I've been to the desert, I've fired guns, I've been mortared. I'm a woman, I feel empowered, I feel for my gender. At the same time though....I haven't felt discrimination or oppression. My paychecks have always been equal to the men who work alongside me. Thank you military for paying us the same based on rank not based on gen...

The lose weight this year resolution might be the most cliché one of all right? Am I really going to be THAT person? #sorrynotsorry ya'll but I am. I had Henry in September and got down to my pre-Henry weight in less than 3 months which was totally awesome. Woohooo, go me! I lost 15lbs in October, 10lbs in November, and 5lbs in December. UGH WHHHHYYYYYYYYYY. Sure, the Holidays probably had something to do with, and also going back to work and not having as much time to go to the gym during the day, and possibly the shorter days meaning less walks/runs because we leave the house for work and it's dark and we get home after work and it's dark. The excuses can go on for days. I could work out more when the kids go to sleep but that would mean that Henry cooperates and goes to sleep when the older two do. And that also would mean that I don't fall asleep with Henry because that's what happens 75% of the time. Unless I have homework to do, in which case, I make Matt wak...

I had a meltdown today. A big one- it wasn't pretty. Ok I have lots of meltdowns but this one warranted some blogging because I feel like a lot of working moms can relate to this. My little man Henry has an ear infection and the dreaded Hand Foot and Mouth virus. He was fighting a fever overnight and we had a nice ole party from 0200-0400 early this morning. I wasn't too worried at first because the older two would go to daycare and I had my work laptop at home so I could knock out what I needed to do. Grateful for the option to telecommute during special circumstances! Oh there were other plans ya'll..... when it came time for me to get on my work server...it wasn't working. Let the flood of emotions come rolling in and the  waterworks flow freely. GUILT- I need to take care of my sick kid- but I need to get this work report done too. ANGER & FRUSTRATION- Why can't I be comfortable leaving my baby with my husband who has the day off? Sure he can't breas...

I was watching a Madison Vining live video on Facebook and was so very inspired by it that I had to watch it again to take notes. If you don't know who she is- look her up on Instagram @madisonviningblog and you will be amazed by her. Just have a box of Kleenex handy because she is extremely open about her current struggle with a horrible tragedy. And yet despite that- she is still so incredibly motivating, I am blown away by her strength, faith, and wisdom. Anyway, I was listening to her live video while driving home and I immediately knew that I'd have to listen to it again. Taking notes while driving is most likely frowned upon. The second I had a moment to spare I watched it. This time instead of just listening, I had my Kleenex handy and jotted down a few things. She opened up with being intentional and a story about raising kids. What do I want my kids to look like when they're older? How do I get them there? Does it just become a goal of mine and I hope my children a...

These feelings are all too familiar  The last few nights I've been getting slightly anxious, slightly sad, and mostly hormonal. I felt this way right before Thomas was born and I was having major anxiety over figuring out how to love two kids with the same ferocity and intensity as I loved my, at the time, just one kid. Ok, well, I figured that part out. Moms have an endless well of love, and while I love my boys differently, I love them with to the same degree. Got it, don't have to worry about making room in my heart for a third kid. Now though, my anxiety lies with Thomas no longer being my YOUNGEST. He's getting bumped to the role of middle child-or as I'm going to try to make myself say- 2nd child to try to remove some of the stigma. Matt usually puts Charles to bed with a book and some cuddles, while I stay in our bed with Thomas until he falls asleep, then we move him over to his bed in the boys' room. Lately, as I've been having these end of day snu...

We Love Pictures  I think one of the things I get the most impatient about when it comes to being pregnant, besides meeting the baby face to face, is gender. It's an agonizing 16 weeks of waiting for me. And I am not a very patient person. Nowadays people can find out the gender of their babies via blood test as soon as they find out they're pregnant, but I can't seem to be part of that crowd, so I have to wait until the 16 week mark, may out of pocket to go to a 3D ultrasound place, and find out there. Paying out of pocket is fine with me, it's just the WAITING....AND WAITING... I know so many people that are choosing to wait until birth to find out. They're either crazy, or just really amazingly patient. I am crazy but not patient.   So, when 16 weeks came along, I went to the same place that told me I was having Thomas those 2 years ago. At that time, I still hadn't decided if I was going to let myself know, or wait until our photo shoot ten days a...

Never Easy... We are currently exploring the world of toddler beds for both boys in the same room. It's a lot of work. We all know that I'm a co-sleeping mom. I don't regret being a co-sleeping mom, not one bit. I'm grateful for the bonding I shared with my boys, and the extra sleep I got because they slept better in my bed. It also made middle of the night nurse sessions so much easier. But, there is a downside. And that is getting that kiddo out of the bed! We had to transition Charles out of his bed much earlier than Thomas since....well Thomas came along when Charles was only 16 months old. But now that little man #3 will be making his appearance soon, my 2 year old Thomas needs to transition out of mom and dad's bed. And it has been a nightmare! At first.   So we started by moving him to the Pack n Play and he did pretty well in there. But when he would cry in the middle of the night, I moved him to bed with me and just let him stay. Mama doesn't h...