Reflective of how busy February was, I never did finish this half-written missive in time for a February newsletter! I think I was so excited for creativity and ambition to return postpartum that I finally got in over my head. All the balls were kind of in the air, and then my youngest dropped to one nap and basically all the balls dropped along with that loss of time. Such are the cons of choosing to work from home, so I've had to remind myself that I'm my own boss and I can make my job work for me, not vice versa. So I logged off of Instagram for Lent and I'm already loving the extra time spend on catching up on all the things: my to-do list (kind of), finishing my allergy cookbook (coming in April), but also catching up on my Dwell Bible reading plan, podcast interviews for season 2, and (hopefully) journaling and processing how quickly my third baby is growing!
I had to laugh as I deleted January's content and started on this month. That New Year's Resolution to sit down while eating? Imagine me laugh-crying because that same week, my 12 month old learned how to scale all of the household surfaces and spent a solid month pushing things over to the table, climbing up, and gleefully dispersing all objects on said table to all four corners of the room. So meal time has been a blance of feeding him in his highchair until he's whiny and restless and letting him run around while we all *try* to eat and have a baby billy goat climbing into everyone's lap and using that as leverage to get onto the table. I know I'll eat in peace again, and a very tiny part of me will miss this, but it's kind of exhausting in the meantime.
What I'm learning
I took what was supposed to be a long-awaited restful trip for 36 hours at the start of the month. I went to KC, saw some old friends (that part was amazing), went to see Abby Halberstadt speak at a one-day homeschool conference (meh), and raced home. Between the pumping and the having to be so selective about avoiding food allergens and just... not fitting in the way I did when I lived there, it was a wonderful and thought-provoking break from the everyday, but it wasn't exactly restful.
You could probably say I hit some good burnout late January/early February. It's been a long year of physical and emotional recovery, so adding the cold dark weather, and self-imposed impossible to-do lists was a recipe for never feeling like anything got done, let alone done well.
I'm still paying attention to this process and learning from my mistakes, for sure. I hope I alwyas will be!
What I'm reading
The Outlandish Companion was actually just as long as the Outlander books are and it took me several weeks to chug through it, but it was so enjoyable, as is everything Diana Gabaldon has written!
As for non-fiction, I thought I'd read everything Ruth Reichel wrote, so I was pleasantly surprised to find Garlic and Sapphires at my library book sale. I guess I'm getting old, because reading about life in the early 90s without the internet and cell phones just felt so simple and refreshing.
What I'm listening to
I had a long queue of audiobooks and podcasts to catch up on while I drove to and from KC, and instead I ended up listening to playlists from the last 4 years almost the entire time. It was a really sweet way to reflect on the journey we've been on the past 4 years in our marriage. That's a story for another day, though. I've also been loving the new-to-me Sandra McCracken song In the Valley lately. I actually don't feel like I'm in the valley for the first time in a long long time and for some reason it makes the song even sweeter, looking back at how far I've come.
I'm also working my way through Read-Aloud Revival podcast episode 216: How to Teach from Rest . The quote, "there is time enough for what God has called us to do" has really been resonating with me.
On the podcast
I recently started a podcast called Milk + Motherhood and it's been so fun. You can always find more info on Instagram (@happy.mama.healthy.baby), where I've made it really easy to see episode recaps on my feed. Season 1 has been focused on postpartum identity, recovery, and nutrition. Here's a review of what you'll find on Apple or Spotify from January and February:
8. How to Literally Feed Yourself When You're Raising Tiny Humans : My doula and chef friend Tori Weber and I talk about how to actually impelment postpartum dietary recommendations when your hands are full.
9. Restoring Womanly Movement Postpartum : Physical Therapist Dr. Cait and I talk about how we grow with each kid, how we need to apply our maternal mama bear instincts to our own postpartum care as well, and physical and emotional patterns that we can get into that don't serve us.
10. Tummy Time, Co-Regulation, and Retained Reflexes: Honestly, after most of my interviews, I think, "I love doing this and that was the best conversation ever." But this one was with one of my absolute favorite women, PT Stephanie Novacek. I worked alongside her for several years and I still learned so many things about infant movement patterns and co-regulation in this conversation.
11. Wise Traditions in Early Motherhood with THE Sally Fallon Morell : I was so nervous about this conversation, but Sally was SO easy to talk to and we had a blast talking about raw milk, human milk, ancestral diets, and the importance of Dr. Weston A. Price's research.
12. What to Expect When You Were Expecting to Sleep Like a Baby : In this interview, Taylor Kulik and I talk about all things sleep. Namely, what's normal in regards to infant sleep and how to cope with and investigate sleep patterns that are abnormal. You guys, the great irony is that the night I posted this episode was the FIRST TIME EVER my 14.5 month old slept through the night. You hear in the episode that he spent months 4-9 waking every one to two hours and crying inconsolably at night, so I thought this day might never come.
I have one more episode to post for season 1, and then Season 2 will start at the end of April. I have already done 5 interviews for seaon 2, with guests like Dr. Trill from Free to Feed, Adina Rubin with Strength Training for Happy Hormones, biological dentist Dr. Molly Hayes, and more!
If you're loving the podcast, PLEASE LEAVE A REVIEW ON APPLE. It's really easy to type a few sentences in, and it helps more people find the fantastic information my guests are sharing with you all. There will be a giveaway before season 2 starts, and all Apple reviews will be entered in the giveaway!
What I'm cooking
I'm still doubling meals to eat two nights in a row, and it really helps my decision fatigue with meal planning as well as the budget. We've been eating lots of recipes from the upcoming Nourished with Nuance e-cookbook as my wonderful recipe testers and I work out the last few kinks. Cookbook comes out in APRIL! I promise not to spam you, but you'll get 1-2 extra emails that month with early access and also a special email discount code.
What I'm feeding my kids
I have been making one chocolate cake per week because I'm determined to find one good cake recipe free from all the allergens for the cookbook. I've been making gluten and egg free cake fails for almost 6 years now, and I'm determined to get this one right. So.... we've been eating a lot of gummy or crumbly choclate cake, but the kids aren't complaining. The major WIN, though, is the muddy buddy bars from the cookbook. They're easy, fun, and delicious.
Parting thoughts
Thank you so much for subscribing to this little missive, following me on social media, supporting my podcast, and using my affiliate links when you purchase something like Perfect Supplements, Earthley, Lactation Lab testing, etc. I will never promote somthing I haven't personally spent money on, and using my affiliate links allows you to support the information I share on Instagram and my podcast without any additional cost to you. It truly means so much when I see someone purchase through my links- you can find them all at the bottom of each email, on my Instagram bio, or by clicking here .
