Our toddler is in the throes of her threenager stage at 31 months, and I am drowning in tantrums, attempted independence, and the fact that her last nap is nearing the end of its tenure.

This month is BUSY — my husband will be away for work, I will be traveling across the country with 2 kids without him (my mom will be joining us though) to see my sister for the first time in almost 2 years, and then we’ll be driving up north for Thanksgiving with my in laws.

Thriving? What’s that? I am barely surviving right now. One thing, in the trenches of (attempted) parenting a strong-willed toddler, that still makes me feel like I’m capable of SOMETHING is being crafty.

After the birth of our first in 2015, I got hit by an unexpected bout of postpartum anxiety and baby blues. I was lonely, but nervous to reach out. I wanted help, but I didn’t know how to ask for it. I was exhausted, but I couldn’t sleep. I was in pain, but couldn’t fix it. I loved my baby, but I dreaded feeding her. It was so hard, and so unexpected because she was our rainbow baby who I had waited my entire life for: motherhood was my calling! I was completely derailed by these emotions and hormones, and I didn’t know how to fix it. I felt like I had no control. I clung to Scripture, my husband, and my baby, and told very few people how I felt. I said no to well-meaning friends and visitors because I was embarrassed by how I looked and felt.

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When is a good time to introduce your baby to solid foods? While the AAP recommends a breastmilk diet for the first 6 months, I always wait for signs of developmental readiness before introducing any solids or purees. Now that our second child is over 4 months and can sit up in the high chair (or in our laps assisted!), we have begun getting the “when are you gonna feed her solids” question. Read on for the whats, whens, whys, and hows that worked for us.

I mommed hard today and failed; my hormones and emotions got the better of me too many times to count. “From His fullness we have all received grace upon grace.” (John‬ ‭1:16). Let me just say how thankful I am for God's grace today…and that His mercies are new every morning. Today was an opportunity to teach my toddler about forgiveness. She was patient with me even when I wasn't patient with her. She's growing up too fast and today it hit me hard that my baby is becoming a big girl before my eyes. Y'all–I am NOT READY. A moment of bedtime snuggles before she hopped into her big girl bed was more for me than for her, and I think she knew it. "Mommy, are you sad? Do you need another snuggle?" #dailyclaire #bestillmyheart #allthefeels #momlife #letthembelittle #postpartum #motherhood #bigsister #stopgrowing #justkiddinggrowupjustslowdownalittleok

A post shared by cαιтℓιη ✿ wαℊηℯr (@caitielin34) on Jul 12, 2017 at 8:12pm PDT