anointedheels: motherhood

I suffered postpartum depression and didn't know it

By Lyne A 10:57:00 PM motherhood, Parenting, postpartum, self care

I started watching blackish over the summer, I got all caught up so it's obvious now I'm hooked to the new fall scheduling.
This week episode was a heavy 30 minutes about postpartum depression.

It's been 8-9 years since I've had my kids and the story was firing triggers on all cylinders.
Everything Bow was going through I was thinking wait I went through that.

I remember crying all the time, granted I had a lotta crap going at the time so my crying was justified, I never associated the crying with postpartum.
I remember being afraid all the time.

I couldn't put the baby down. I was afraid she was gonna stop breathing if I wasn't looking at her every second of every day and night. As a result, I never sleep, even when she started sleeping.

And watching Bow dealing with Ruby... Lawd I had several "Rubies"!

I was fighting for my right to breastfeed, whether to bathe the baby or not, whether I should wash her hair and when.
Feeding the baby solid or not
It was so overwhelming!

I was so tired of fighting I caved and let one of my relatives gave my baby some nasty oil concoction that was supposed to "clean" her stomach.

My baby ended up having an upset tummy and cried all night. I felt soooo guilty! I was weak and tired, instead of protecting my child and do what I thought was best for her I caved to the pushing of family and now she was in pain!

Boy, I lost it and lashed out at all them!

In the show, we saw Bow lashing out at Ruby and kicked her out, and later on, Ruby came back and apologize for her behavior and it ended in a sweet hug that may have brought them closer because it's TV and tv has to be warm and fuzzy.

But reality?

My "Rubies" never apologize many of them freeze me out for my insolence because in their eyes I'm still a 10-year-old girl they can tell what to do.

I'm not having any more babies but if I was at least I'm sure I would be free of "Rubies"

Anyway, that episode was a mean trigger.

I hope I file these events under my "do not forget" files in my brain so I can be the best support system for my girls or any younger woman who may need me in the future.

3 ways to be more creative as a single mom

By Lyne A 3:28:00 PM family, Lifestyle, motherhood, single mom

First of all I'd like to say thank you for each and everyone of you who filled out the reader survey, I appreciate so very much. If you haven't done so already you still can!

One of the most popular comments I got from the survey was:

"Being more creative as a single mom."

There are so many ways you can be creative as a single mom... You can be creative with your money, food, fashion, kids activities etc.

I want to start with just a few ideas, but I will be back on the subject with more. If it was you who ask about the subject on the survey, please leave me a comment or shoot me an email, let me know exactly what you would like to see.

Again thank you!

One thing I learn since I became a single mom is to embrace the season, make the most of it, and live life to the fullest.

There is a grace for every season on life, no matter how difficult the season may appear to be. If you look closely you will find some beauty in it.

For instance, there are some things I am able to do with my kids now I probably wouldn't have done when I was married. Bloom where you're planted, create a beautiful life for yourself and your kids no matter where you are in life and no matter your relationship status.

Get creative with your kids activities

My kids always talk about going camping, I've never been camping and I don't intend to go camping with them anytime soon... for so many reason! I came up with an idea to camp at home, and they love it. We basically hang out on the patio as late as possible then sleep in the living room. We cook thing on a stick, make s'mores, tell stories and sleep on the floor.

This is one of their favorites things to do, in the summer we camp downstairs for almost a week.

As a single mom, I can do stuff like that. There's no husband waiting for me upstairs so I can sleep with my kids in my living room as much as I want and they love it.

It's a great time of bonding for us, I get to infuse all my love into them. They are more open to talk, and share. I can use this time to do some serious mothering still in a very fun and memorable way.

Best yet, this "camping" trip didn't cost any money.

Be spontaneous! Break the rules once in a while

I have a strict rule about eating out, we have an eating out budget and we stick to it. I won't even buy a drink on a whim, my kids are train to leave the house with snacks and bottle water in their little bags and so do I. As a single mom, you have to have these rules... (unless you're loaded and don't have to worry about your spending)

Last week, I took my girls to the office with me afterwards, instead of going home, we stopped by Publix grabbed a couple subs and drink, and we head to the beach.

It wasn't planned, and it was a HUGE deal to my girls. I spend less than twenty bucks but it was something out of the ordinary. We ate at the beach then swim for the rest of the day.

My kids were so excited and happy, you would have thought I took them to Paris on a private jet. Unplanned fun are usually the best fun! Break the rules, do something out of the ordinary.

Cook something you could only order in a restaurant

My girls and I made sushi last Sunday, I shared about it here on the blog you can check it out. I bought a sushi kit on amazon a while back and out of the blue we decided to put it to good use. I didn't plan on making sushi that day, I only use item I already had and wing it, it was pretty bare but we had a blast and it was delicious! Since then we've made it twice and I think it might be becoming one of our staples.

Sushi is not the only out of the box meal you could make... You can cook Hotdogs on a stick, make pizza... Anything you wouldn't normally do, the kids will get a kick out of it.

What other creative ideas do you for single mom? or mom in general?

Chime in the comments!

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