As Maternal Mental Health Week comes to a close, I feel compelled to share a piece of my journey that I’ve kept mostly private—my greatest fear during my pregnancy after loss— in order to help raise awareness. This is #RealMotherhood, and there is #NoShame. Photo by Katie Donovan I’ve suffered from mental illness [...]
Last week I spent some time with Pregnancy After Loss Support's founder, Lindsey Henke. At lunch before she dropped me off at the airport, we were chatting about our first born children--our stillbirths. She asked if Patrick was buried or cremated. I'm always a little defensive about this topic. I know we made the right [...]
I've been talking a lot about the magic of the holiday season this year. I feel it in me, and I see it in my daughter's eyes. Each night, she opens her Advent present so carefully, so expectantly, so delightfully. It's precious. I want to bottle these moments. But, if I was to be really [...]
*Photograph by Margaret Belanger Last week, Stitch and I rode the elevator with a very frazzled pregnant mama. She asked how old Stitch was. After I replied she said her babe needed to cook a little longer. Since I had that opening, I asked when she was due. "Three weeks," she replied. "I [...]
Going places with my 20-month-old has started being much more of a process. She is choosing her own clothes and shoes, and she knows what she wants--even if it's to wear white dress shoes to the park. Before we can leave, she needs to choose a book and stuffie to bring with her in the [...]
The first stop in our favorite things series is rainbows. In the world of pregnancy loss and pregnancy after loss, rainbows signify the baby born after a loss: the rainbow after the storm of loss and grief. I didn't really embrace the whole "rainbow baby" thing while we were pregnant with Stitch, but this spring [...]
Hold the presses! Our Halloween Favorite Things series will return tomorrow. Today we need to pause and celebrate. STITCH TOOK HER FIRST STEPS!!!! Ahem. Nope. Let me shout it again: STITCH TOOK HER FIRST STEPS!!!! Our 19.5-month-old little love has lagged in her gross motor development, and we broke down and had her evaluated by [...]
Dear Fellow Mama in the Grocery Store, Please know I am coming from a place of love and concern. I don't share this photo lightly, and I definitely don't share it to shame. I tried to make sure to remove as many identifying factors as I could. And I totally wanted to steal your Oreos [...]
The clock on my phone reads 11:18 AM. My daughter just fell asleep for her nap, and I brewed my third cup of coffee so far today. As I sip it, I want to get real with you about toddler sleep, at least in our house. If you can relate, grab a cup of coffee [...]
I take a lot of pictures of my daughter. I'm actually not sure I want to know exactly how many iPhone photos I've taken of her since she was born. I send pictures to Daddy and the grandparents during the day. I take photos of her wearing clothes or playing with toys that were gifted [...]
