Adventures in [Natural] Parenting

I’m pretty sure breastmilk can be used to help all skin problems ever. So far I’ve used...

Fri, 24 May 2013 12:15:38 -0400

I’m pretty sure breastmilk can be used to help all skin problems ever.

So far I’ve used it successfully on cradle cap, diaper rash, baby acne, adult acne, dry skin, and sunburn. All with good results.

Ugh

Fri, 24 May 2013 10:05:26 -0400

slightlyawsm:

So, I saw this on confessionsofamadmumblr today:

Ironically, I usually rather quite like both of the admins that responded, but it makes my stomach turn that these girls help run this blog. I was like “What? No way! How can they support this? I can’t even—-“ It just left a bad taste in my mouth. But whatever, I didn’t unfollow either of their individual accounts, I just chose not to follow this one.

And that was fine, until I saw this fucked up logic that I highlighted in the above post for you all to see.

Let’s get something straight…

Read More

THIS. This shit right here is what pisses me off. This is wrong, it’s bullying, and they know it.

My other blog

Fri, 24 May 2013 09:41:27 -0400

My other blog:

My new personal blog. This is where my non-parenting stuff goes. Follow if you want. :)

What happens when you eat in front of a young child

Fri, 24 May 2013 09:34:08 -0400

Child: I'm really liking this food
Child: This is some good food
Child: WOAH WOAH WOAH, WHAT DO YOU HAVE THERE?
Adult: Nothing. Nothing at all.
Child: I see it. Tell me.
Adult: Fine. It's food.
Child: Give me some.
Adult: You have your own.
Child: But your's is different.
Adult: You don't like it.
Child: I'll be the judge of that.
Adult: Don't you remember last time?
Child: Nope. Gimme.
Adult: But...
Child: I'm just gonna bug you until you give me some
Adult: Fine...
Child: Yuck. Are you trying to make me hate you?!
Adult: I told you you wouldn't like it.
Child: More please.
Adult: What?! You hate...
Child: More

Photo

Fri, 24 May 2013 09:33:22 -0400

goldenheartedrose: josiahd: captain-ray-assbutt: have you ever stopped to think about how weird...

Thu, 23 May 2013 23:59:54 -0400

goldenheartedrose:

josiahd:

captain-ray-assbutt:

have you ever stopped to think about how weird it is that kids get told “well, in real life/in the real world…” whenever they complain about certain things? kids lives aren’t real? WTF.

Yes. That always bothered me.

Same.

MommyToAriana: iszz: creamofbutts: I feel kind of bad for people who need to read...

Thu, 23 May 2013 10:45:24 -0400

MommyToAriana: iszz: creamofbutts: I feel kind of bad for people who need to read...:

twobittymonkeys:

lifewithflame:

followingphoenix:

cupc4kemommy:

iszz:

creamofbutts:

I feel kind of bad for people who need to read baby books, its beyond me how one could not know how to put on a diaper…

Like ladies, gents, dont over think, feed it, dont leave it outside and dont set it on fire and you will be fine.

This actually really…

I chose to opt. out reading the books. I tried but a lot of info was SO out dated. Rather than read books i found multiple groups. I’ve learnt SO MUCH that i would’ve never have thought of. Its important to learn so you can make your life easier!

I read all baby books that i could get my hands on. I found them to be really good reads actually, outdated or not. I knew how to change butts and make bottles etc well before i fell pregnant but i don’t think there is a problem in learning or reading them. At least some people are trying to learn about parenting, rather than just having a kid and doing something wrong.

Alright I wasn’t going to comment on this but really?! I read everything I could get my hands on but it wasnt because I wasnt sure how to put on a diaper - it was because there are so many other things you can read about in baby books and learn from them, things that could benefit your baby and as a parent I wanted to be well prepaired. Learn about baby development, activities for them, food that’s good for them at a certain age etc etc.
And, I’m not supposed to set my baby on fire? Damn.

Seriously, there are so many different type of baby books out there. I needed some for breastfeeding because before I had a child I knew no one who breastfed. Putting on diapers? That’s easy, I’ve been doing that since I was scarcely more than a kid myself. But that doesn’t help you with child development or deciding what activities to do/what stimuli to provide your growing child. There are a lot of good parenting books out there. And for everything from successful breastfeeding to teaching your infant to swim. Also, at least in my case, it’s great in the case that you are making “unconventional” parenting choices because when people question you, you have back up.

For the record, I did not know how to put on a diaper when Sophie was born. I had to ask a nurse to show me how. So there’s that.

Welcome.: julian-osterman: creative-knowledge: julian-osterman:...

Thu, 23 May 2013 10:38:10 -0400

Welcome.: julian-osterman: creative-knowledge: julian-osterman:...:

mollymcflyyy:

julian-osterman:

creative-knowledge:

julian-osterman:

creative-knowledge:

Sometimes I wish I could just be normal. Like why do I seem so different from most of the people I have known my entire life?

Do you need me to come over and be weird with you?

Kinda late for that…

Ugh I’m so jealous of your guys’ friendship

Can’t we just be triplets I mean I’m only like a few days older than you guys we can pretend our mom had like a really long labor

Julian was born in ‘88. I was born in ‘93.

Yes we can be triplets. :)

sublime-sweatpants: Why doesn’t anyone discuss how society’s perceived ownership of the female body...

Wed, 22 May 2013 22:05:29 -0400

sublime-sweatpants:

Why doesn’t anyone discuss how society’s perceived ownership of the female body extends into parents who dictate everything their daughters do?

Not letting your daughters express themselves in how they dress, talk, wear their hair, or whether or not they wear makeup just gives them the idea, from an extremely young age, that their body is not their own and they must please others by making it look how they view best.
Learn that before you have children.

And this is why when my two year old wanted me to put eyeshadow on her today, I did. Fuck society, it’s her body and if she wants some sparkly eyeshadow she can have it.

If you have no rules/don't say 'no' in your house how do you discipline? I mean like when it comes to your kids fighting or hitting when they're old enough are you just gonna let them? Xx

Wed, 22 May 2013 21:29:37 -0400

I have never claimed that I don’t say no. I do say no, quite often in fact (sometimes too much). No rules does not mean no boundaries.

Sophie was so brave today at gymnastics! It was the first time...

Wed, 22 May 2013 18:25:48 -0400

Sophie was so brave today at gymnastics! It was the first time she’s gone down in that tunnel thing and agreed to do the bars AND rolls. :D

Selfies

Wed, 22 May 2013 15:58:33 -0400

Selfies

Sophie is pretending to be a baby, fake crying for a paci and...

Wed, 22 May 2013 15:27:00 -0400

Sophie is pretending to be a baby, fake crying for a paci and all. Izzy’s just like “…you okay over there?”

:)

Wed, 22 May 2013 15:17:03 -0400

They love each other so much!

Wed, 22 May 2013 15:05:40 -0400

They love each other so much!

Man if I had a good camera like a professional one, I could take such awesome pictures. My...

Wed, 22 May 2013 14:40:31 -0400

Man if I had a good camera like a professional one, I could take such awesome pictures.

My birthday’s July 2nd. Hint hint.

Just kidding, the one I want is like a few hundred dollars at least.

We have a huge girly girl on our hands. Today she wanted to wear...

Wed, 22 May 2013 14:26:43 -0400

We have a huge girly girl on our hands. Today she wanted to wear eyeshadow and play with my makeup brushes. :)

I just seen Bret's facebook status on schooling. Even though we plan to send our kids to traditional schools, it was really eye-opening, and very well said. I think it's so cool how you guys both agree on parenting decisions and how you got him to not only research, but also advocate for things you both feel passionate about. You should be super proud of him! You both rock!

Wed, 22 May 2013 12:40:25 -0400

Did you see his comments on my religion status? When we first got together we could barely even discuss religion because I offended him lol. His willingness to learn right alongside me has been awesome. :D

The Problem with 'Boys Will Be Boys'

Wed, 22 May 2013 07:36:54 -0400

The Problem with 'Boys Will Be Boys':

For months, every morning when my daughter was in preschool, I watched her construct an elaborate castle out of blocks, colorful plastic discs, bits of rope, ribbons and feathers, only to have the same little boy gleefully destroy it within seconds of its completion.

No matter how many times he did it, his parents never swooped in BEFORE the morning’s live 3-D reenactment of “Invasion of AstroMonster.” This is what they’d say repeatedly:

“You know! Boys will be boys!”

“He’s just going through a phase!”

“He’s such a boy! He LOVES destroying things!”

“Oh my god! Girls and boys are SO different!”

“He. Just. Can’t. Help himself!”

I tried to teach my daughter how to stop this from happening. She asked him politely not to do it. We talked about some things she might do. She moved where she built. She stood in his way. She built a stronger foundation to the castle, so that, if he did get to it, she wouldn’t have to rebuild the whole thing. In the meantime, I imagine his parents thinking, “What red-blooded boy wouldn’t knock it down?”

She built a beautiful, glittery castle in a public space.

It was so tempting.

He just couldn’t control himself and, being a boy, had violent inclinations.

She had to keep her building safe.

Her consent didn’t matter. Besides, it’s not like she made a big fuss when he knocked it down. It wasn’t a “legitimate” knocking over if she didn’t throw a tantrum.

His desire — for power, destruction, control, whatever- - was understandable.

Maybe she “shouldn’t have gone to preschool” at all. OR, better if she just kept her building activities to home.

I know it’s a lurid metaphor, but I taught my daughter the preschool block precursor of don’t “get raped” and this child, Boy #1, did not learn the preschool equivalent of “don’t rape.”

Not once did his parents talk to him about invading another person’s space and claiming for his own purposes something that was not his to claim. Respect for her and her work and words was not something he was learning. How much of the boy’s behavior in coming years would be excused in these ways, be calibrated to meet these expectations and enforce the “rules” his parents kept repeating?

There was another boy who, similarly, decided to knock down her castle one day. When he did it his mother took him in hand, explained to him that it was not his to destroy, asked him how he thought my daughter felt after working so hard on her building and walked over with him so he could apologize. That probably wasn’t much fun for him, but he did not do it again.

There was a third child. He was really smart. He asked if he could knock her building down. She, beneficent ruler of all pre-circle-time castle construction, said yes… but only after she was done building it and said it was OK. They worked out a plan together and eventually he started building things with her and they would both knock the thing down with unadulterated joy. You can’t make this stuff up.

Take each of these three boys and consider what he might do when he’s older, say, at college, drunk at a party, mad at an ex-girlfriend who rebuffs him and uses words that she expects will be meaningful and respecte, “No, I don’t want to. Stop. Leave.”

The “overarching attitudinal characteristic” of abusive men is entitlement

YES. This is why I’m so big on consent for kids and not doing things against their consent!

Oh my gosh someone was actually nice on there! Thanks, whoever...

Tue, 21 May 2013 21:27:12 -0400

Oh my gosh someone was actually nice on there! Thanks, whoever you are :D