NYC Moms

New York City Moms Bloggers on the Radio

Show me a television or radio studio, and I am instantly awe-struck.  I think all that gear-- the NASA looking control panels, the head sets, the microphones-- is pretty cool.  So I had a great time last week, going to WFUV, 90.7, to record an interview for a Mother's Day show.  I was there with two other NYC mom bloggers... Kelcey, of Mama Bird Diaries, and Robin, who blogs as Adelaide, on One Of Those Horrible Moms.

I Hate Housekeeping

"Home, Sweet, Home."  Sometimes, it's messy.  Somtimes it's clean. 

If, for instance, you showed up right now, you might think we'd been robbed.  There are piles of laundry; a tangle of strollers, coats and shoes in the hallway; a pillow and blanket "fort" in the living room; a traffic jam of trucks and cars, leading from room to room; and of course, a fine layer of crumbs on the kitchen floor.   

On the other hand, if you stopped by around 8:00 tonight, you'd find a different scene.  You'd see bins stuffed with toys; pillows neatly arranged on the sofa; shoes in the shoe rack; strollers in a row; and a neat stacks of newspapers and magazines.  The dishwasher and washing machine would be humming in harmony.

How I Learned to Fix My Broken Blog (and why)

My personal blog, Mama Knows Breast, was broken for a few days last week.  You could see the screen. But I couldn't log in to make any changes. Every time I tried, I got an error message from Moveable Type, written in code. It made no sense at all. Sadly, my husband-- a.k.a. tech support-- was away.

This internet thing doesn't always come naturally to me.  I grew up using a typewriter.  My first computer, a Mac SE, didn't have a hard drive. There was a time when I didn't see the point of email.  I even remember the sound of a dial-up internet connection.

Momnesia

I woke, one morning, with a flash of insight. I finally remembered where my cell phone was.  It had been missing since 3 pm the day before when I put it in a safe spot.  Of course it was such a "safe" spot, that I couldn't find it.  And not only that, I had silenced the ringer because of nap time, so calling myself was useless.

Does this ever happen to you? Do you find yourself forgetting things because you are so preoccupied with work and kids and stuff?  It happens to me.  I've missed a doctor's appointment.  I've lost hats and sunglasses.  Once, I bought groceries at the supermarket, and then drove away, leaving the bags behind.  I didn't realize my blunder until I got home.  But hey, at least I had the kids with me.

According to some experts, "momnesia" is real.......

Bathing a Baby-- aka Ready, Set, Don Your Rain Gear

When our kids were newborns, I hated bath time.  I was scared.  In my eyes, water plus baby equaled danger.  I wouldn't bathe them unless another adult was around.  As a result, the kids sometimes went more than a week without a bath.  But it didn't really matter.  They weren't all that dirty.  And besides, "baths dry out the skin," I rationalized.

Once we hit the sandbox years all that changed.  Apple sauce and yogurt made baths a necessity.  So I figured out various tricks to make things feel less precarious.  My all time best move-- using a towel under their armpits to lift them out of the bath.  It worked wonders.

Family Vacations

Traveling was once a fairly straight-forward proposition.  Bring plane ticket, sunblock and extra underwear.  Now, with a two year old and a three year old, it's a military maneuver. Last month, my husband and I took a weekend away.  We were heading out of state, on a plane, and my mom was coming to stay with the kids.  It took me about a week to get ready.

First, came the list. It started as a sheet of emergency contacts and soon morphed into a two page document that included the kids' birthdates and Tylenol dosages. I tried to think of everything.  The number for the pediatrician wasn't enough.  I had to add the number of the pharmacy that delivers prescriptions.   I put down our cell phone numbers, and then figured, while I was at it, I might as well include all relevant relatives.

The First Hair Cut-- Do Not Try This At Home--

I cut our son’s hair yesterday.  He’s 22 months old and it was his first cut. It was also the last time I'll ever do this myself again.

The Bear, as we sometimes call him, had been bald for a long time.  So when his hair did finally start to grow, I just let it do its thing.  It snaked around his ears and curled at the base of his neck.  It was blond, and fine, and smelled good when it wasn’t coated with applesauce and yogurt.   

Will These Boys Ever Eat?

I once ate an entire brisket. Of course it didn't happen in one sitting.  But slowly, over the course of four days, I polished off about 5 pounds of meat. 

This wasn't supposed to happen.  The boys (ages 1 and 3) and my husband were supposed to pitch in.  In fact, the meal was designed to get the boys to eat some real protein.  They were going through their white period-- bread, bananas, yogurt, noodles, oatmeal and some raisins for variety.  Maybe an apple. Definitely nothing green. 

Of Babes and Boobs: Reflections on Breastfeeding

If you're reading this, chances are you have breasts. Or boobs. Or whatever you want to call them.  It's also pretty likely that before you had kids, you didn't think too much about breastfeeding.  Your breasts were something you admired, or maybe reviled.  You dressed them up.  Then undressed them.  They were part of your sexuality.

At least that's how it was for me.  Until I got pregnant, I really didn't give much thought to the fact that my breasts could actually serve a purpose-- feeding a baby.  So breastfeeding was a novelty, and, as I soon discovered, it wasn't all that easy.  There were leaks and aches.  Awkward bras.  Feedings at 3 a.m.  Even an occasionally bewildered husband.  But don't get me wrong.  It wasn't all bad.  There were moments of sheer bliss.  Moments when it all came together, and our son fell asleep in a milk induced stupor.

That's just a little bit of my story, and I'm sure you have one, too.  Whether you loved or hated breastfeeding, whether you did it for one day, one week, one year, or even longer, breastfeeding probably made quite an impression.  That's why we're all focusing on babes and boobs today.  Be sure to check out Silicon Valley Moms Blog, New York City Moms Blog, Chicago Moms Blog and DC Metro Moms Blog for our different takes on "the milky way." New posts will be going up on all four sites throughout the day, as we dedicate today to breastfeeding.....

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Andi Silverman is the author of the new book, Mama Knows Breast: A Beginner's Guide to Breastfeeding. She also runs the blog Mama Knows Breast and blogs at the New York City Moms Blog.

Announcing The Launch Of The NEW YORK CITY MOMS BLOG

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The time has finally arrived.....We are thrilled to officially announce the launch of the New York City Moms Blog!

New York City Moms Blog is a collaborative group of women living or working in New York City.  They wrestle strollers down subway stairs and struggle with taxi cabs on every corner.  But whether they’re parenting without backyards, extra storage space or carpools, or enjoying their recent escapes to the suburbs in spite of their horrific commutes, these moms are living proof that "the city never sleeps".

To visit New York City Moms Blog, go to http://www.nycmomsblog.com.  To meet the incredible (All right, we really mean incredible, talented, savvy, sophisticated and oh-so-interesting) NYC Moms, visit their "About Us" section, here.

The New York City Moms Blog is the newest sister site to Silicon Valley Moms Blog (launched April 2006), Chicago Moms Blog (launched May 2007) and DC Metro Moms Blog (launched September 2007).  The four sister sites now have over one hundred proud Mommy Bloggers talking about the experience of parenting and the issues that push moms' buttons.  We are delighted and honored to welcome these New York City Moms to our community of bloggers and hope you visit them today!

For questions or inqueries about the NYC Moms Blog, please contact us at: info at nycmomsblog dot com