The Ten Thousand Hour Mama - Page 2 of 48 - Becoming a good mom, one hour at a time

Moms’ weekend in Hood River, Oregon: Wine, beer, hiking + laughter

February 26, 2018catherinemryan

One weekend. Eight moms. Two hikes. Plenty of wine and good food. An absurd amount of snacks. Our Moms’ Weekend trip to Hood River added up to a fun, restorative trip we won’t soon forget.

The eight of us have been friends since we were in moms’ group together, when our kids were babies. In some cases, we’ve known each other since our littles were just weeks old. Now that our kids are toddlers, many of us get together every week for homeschool preschool.

We keep in close touch—but even though we hang out often, we seldom get the chance to truly connect. After all, it’s hard to have a sustained conversation when kids are running sprints in the house, asking for more goldfish crackers and getting into fistfights over Paw Patrol toys.

We needed a Moms’ Weekend.

We planned our Moms’ Weekend in Hood River for months, putting it on the calendar so everyone could plan around it. We chose a house in Hood River, decided who would cook which meal and scoped out fun things to do.

When you have eight moms planning a trip, it’s going to be organized—and awesome.

Once we set out, leaving our families behind (except for one mom who brought her second baby—squee!), we also shed responsibilities. We didn’t have schedules or anywhere to be. We had a wide-open Moms’ Weekend in Hood River with some of our closest friends. It was primed to be epic.

Restore and replenish: My February monthly resolution

February 1, 2018February 1, 2018catherinemryan

In my first yoga class in ages, the instructor began by asking us to put a hand on our heart and set an intention for our practice that day. The first thing that came to my mind: restore. I’ve been feeling burnt out physically, mentally and emotionally, so for my monthly resolution I’m focusing on replenishing my reserves and trying to get back to my usual self.

6 self-care steps to restore and replenish physically, mentally and emotionally when you're feeling burnt out. Ten Thousand Hour Mama Read more →

12 best children’s books about a new baby: What we’re reading

January 31, 2018catherinemryan

These children’s books about a new baby will help a big sister- or big brother-to-be understand what’s coming, process their emotions and feel reassured that they’ll still be special even after the baby arrives. The post contains affiliate links.

12 best children's books about a new baby - Ten Thousand Hour Mama

When I was pregnant with Kiwi, Peeper and I read a lot of books about a new baby to help her know what was happening—and why Mom’s belly suddenly took up my entire lap. She had a lot of questions, which books helped us answer in a comforting way.

Kid’s literature also gave a reference point for us to talk about what would happen when our new baby was ready to come—and after.

12 best children's books about a new baby: Ten Thousand Hour Mama How to help Big Sister adjust to a new baby: children's books about babies. Ten Thousand Hour Mama

When the Big Day came, Peeper was more calm and comfortable with everything that happened—and I’m convinced these children’s books about a new baby were a big factor. All the changes were more familiar and less scary because she’d read about them many times.

Rereading these books with her and Kiwi now, I finish with stories about when they were born: like the very first time Peeper met Kiwi in the hospital, she came in and sang her new baby sister “Happy Birthday.” Awwww!

And although their relationship has had its rocky points, they have become the best of pals.

How to help Big Sister adjust to a new baby - Ten Thousand Hour Mama

If you’re looking for children’s books about a new baby to explain what it means to be a big sister or big brother, start here. Add them to your cart or request them from the library: You and your child will want to read—and reread—them even after Baby arrives. Read more →

The all-time best toddler thank you

January 29, 2018catherinemryan

Toddler thank yous are honest—and heart-melting. Here's the best one I ever heard. Ten Thousand Hour Mama — Image by Becca Jean Photography

The other morning Kiwi got up before the rest of the family. Like many mornings, we cuddled on a chair and woke up together. I pulled a quilt over us, one I’d sewed when I was pregnant with Peeper.

“I made this quilt when I was pregnant with your sister,” I told Kiwi.

“I come there?” Kiwi asked.

I wasn’t sure what she meant. “When you pregnant?” she added.

I clarified that I was pregnant with her after Peeper was already born. (Details like these often escape toddlers.)

“You grew inside me,” I explained. I pinched two fingers together until they were almost touching. “You were this little, and then you grew bigger and bigger and bigger inside my belly until you were born!”

Kiwi paused, taking this in. Then she said, “Thanks, mommy.”

*heart melt*

You’re welcome, my beautiful daughter. Even without that perfect toddler thank you, I’d do it a million times over if it meant I’d get you in my life.

Growing kids, heartwarming moments and the best toddler thank you I ever got. Ten Thousand Hour Mama — Image by Becca Jean Photography

Mixing colors: Ideas for homeschool preschool activities

January 25, 2018January 25, 2018catherinemryan

These homeschool preschool activities help kids learn about mixing colors in a hands-on, fun way. Make sure to read all the way to the bottom to read about our preschool science experiment, a dragon that spits foam! This post contains affiliate links.

At a recent meeting of our homeschool preschool, one mom joked that I was the messy mom—not necessarily because my house is always disheveled (which it is), but because my homeschool lessons always involve a warning: “We could get messy today. Dress accordingly!” The toddler-friendly activities about mixing colors were no exception.

I’m a giant fan of anything having to do with art and paint, but I try to design my homeschool preschool activities to involve pre-math skills, science and/or fine motor and gross motor skill-building options. So when I planned a day to learn about mixing colors, I kept this in mind and included hands-on projects that tick multiple boxes.

The mixing colors homeschool preschool lesson was a success! The kids—and the moms—got a kick out of the variety of activities we did to learn all about mixing colors. Read more →

“Let them be little”—protecting your kids, or white privilege?

January 22, 2018January 13, 2018catherinemryan

“Let them be little”—it’s a hashtag I use on Instagram often enough, and it’s a sentiment I hear on Facebook. But when a friend wrote this in response to a post I’d written about involving my kids in the resistance against injustice, my gut told me, no. Sheltering children from reality at any cost doesn’t do them any good, and it is a mark of white privilege.

After all, parents of color can’t “let them be little” when it comes to teaching their kids how to deal with a police officer so they don’t end up shot. Undocumented parents can’t “let them be little” when it comes to preparing their American-born children in case parents are detained or deported by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) or police.

We live in a time where raising children to grow up and create the world we value is more important than ever. For me, that means raising socially conscious, compassionate and strong citizens.

Finding your people, finding your place: Coworking and community

January 18, 2018catherinemryan

I have been a paying business member of The Perlene, the all-women social club and feminist coworking space in Portland, Oregon, since last summer. This post was not paid, sponsored or solicited. I wrote it entirely on my own because I think it’s crucial to support women and mothers to find your people wherever they may be.

Last summer, I found myself in a great place in my career as a freelance writer: I was working consistently. I was writing inspiring stories about nonprofits doing great things and kids changing the world through technology. I was publishing stories in magazines and web sites like Cosmo, Real Simple, Scary Mommy and Travel Portland. The problem: I was lonely.

I worked by myself at my home office, and it wasn’t uncommon that I’d get to bedtime and realize I didn’t step outside that day. I talked to folks over the phone but rarely had face-to-face conversations with people outside my family. And I found my productivity dwindling.

I remembered the good feeling I had getting a ton done while working with a colleague at WeWork in Portland. But the community—or lack thereof—was a turnoff. I didn’t feel like I’d find my people among all the tech bros working on four giant monitors.

A little googling led me to a new space that sounded more my speed: The Perlene, Portland’s feminist social club and coworking space. I had the feeling I would find my people here. Read more →

4 surprising ways to entertain kids at the doctor’s office

January 16, 2018January 16, 2018catherinemryan

We have been fortunate that overall, our kids are pretty healthy. But when Peeper had to go to the doctor’s office a bunch last month, I found myself stretching to keep her happy as we waited. The waiting room isn’t inherently fun (unless you’re a fan of fielding 100 questions about getting a shot), but it’s not impossible to entertain kids at the doctor’s office. With a little creativity (and by swiping some of your pediatrician’s stuff!), you and your kids can have fun while you wait and the doctor’s office!

It's not typically fun at the pediatrician's office, but these 4 surprising ways to entertain kids at the doctor's office will help as you all wait to get better! Ten Thousand Hour Mama Read more →

Children’s books about sound: Exploring the 5 senses

January 10, 2018January 2, 2018catherinemryan

A few weeks ago, we hosted Kiwi’s homeschool preschool, and we explored one of the 5 senses: sound. Although the highlight of the day was having a dance party on bubble wrap (see my post about a sounds theme and activities for details!), the kids got a chance to listen during story time. I read aloud a few of these children’s books about sounds during the preschool lesson, and I gathered recommendations for even more picture books here.

My friends told me that after our homeschool preschool lesson about sounds, their kids practiced their listening and observation at home! “I hear vacuum,” “I hear plane,” “I hear doggie,” one preschooler told her mom in the days that followed our lesson about sounds.

I love these books about sounds because they offer a chance to learn about the 5 senses every day. They encourage kids to pay attention to noise, an often-overlooked sense, and gives them the language to describe sounds. What’s more, they’re fun! Kids crack up at their parents imitating everyday noises like a tea kettle, a jackhammer or even falling leaves.

If you need to up your noise-making game, there’s lots of practice in these children’s books about sounds. Or you can make your kids make all the noises! They’ll love that, too. So put a few of these children’s books about sounds in your cart, or request them from your library, and read on!

8 best children's books about sounds to teach the 5 senses. Ten Thousand Hour Mama Read more →

How to pump at the airport: Breastfeeding and travel

January 8, 2018January 2, 2018catherinemryan

Breastfeeding can be many things—beautiful, painful, sweet, frustrating—and if you are breastfeeding while you travel, it can also be inconvenient. Add in having to pump at the airport and you have a whole new set of challenges to overcome.

There are many reasons you might need to pump at the airport: Maybe you’re going to travel without kids, or you exclusively pump, or you pump in addition to breastfeeding. Point is, pumping at the airport is sometimes necessary—but it doesn’t have to be terribly hard.

Although I weaned my youngest this summer, I still have a lot of thoughts about breastfeeding and pumping milk. I also have a lot of experience, since I breastfed my two kids for a total of more than three years and had to pump in all sorts of situations, some of which were really awkward.

Pumping wasn’t my favorite task even in the best of situations (thank you, Husband, for bringing me ice cream while I pumped at home!). But figuring out the logistics of how to pump at the airport, carrying milk in my carry-on and managing to not miss my connections: That sounded like a plot line from one of those terribly uncomfortable Judd Apatow movies I can’t watch because they make me break out into hives.

But maybe, just maybe, pumping in the airport doesn’t have to be such a nightmare. In the hopes of keeping your worries from reaching 30,000 feet, here’s my hard-won wisdom on how to pump at the airport.

How to pump at the airport: breastfeeding and travel. Ten Thousand Hour Mama Read more →