The Mommy Olympics

Can I just say that motherhood and parenting is not a competition. It's not a sport. You're not going to get a trophy or a prize when you're child meets certain milestones, goes off to college or turns out to be a stand up human being. I'll double check with my Mom but I am pretty sure she hasn't received any kind of award for being a great Mother. (other than the sheer joy of seeing how awesome me and my brothers are)

You would think that just seeing your child do well would be enough of a 'prize'. The gratification and the unconditional love you receive from your child should be all the praise one needs for being a good parent. But nope. Some of these Moms out here need to know that their child is best and first. Your child started sitting up before mine? That's nice. Your child started sleeping through the night before mine? That's great. Annnnd guess what?

I don't care. All children grow and change in their own time.

I am not in competition with any other Mom. None of us are. The best thing we can all do for ourselves  is to stay in our own lane with our own kids. Focus on what's going on with your own children. Someone else's kid may be 'doing more' than your child. Their child might be 'more behaved' but focusing on that does absolutely nothing for me or my kids.

So. The next time any of us find ourselves comparing the parenting, development or behavior of another to our own let's remember…this is not (ain't) the olympics. She's not going to get a gold medal for what she's doing with her kids and you're not going to get a bronze medal for what you're doing with yours.

There is no first, second or third place.

I am not in competition with her. She's not in competition with me.

It's not like any of us will be getting rated or evaluated for a possible promotion so stop competing with that woman.

This is not a race. There is no finish line. There are no trophies or medals. She is not winning. You are not losing.

31 Days 31 Photos 31 Stories of My Favorite Things

Here are my photos for the My Favorite Things photo challenge from over the weekend.

Day 3: Food

I am a sushi lover. I consider to be a social food. Something you can enjoy with others before a meal or late at night with drinks. When we were living in DC sushi was one of my regular lunches. I had to have it at least once a week.

Day 5: Shoes

I don't have a favorite pair of shoes so I decided to share the shoes I wore on Sunday. I've had these gold Nine West sandals for years. I love them. They're the right amount of gold and sparkle.

Day 5: Person

I couldn't pick just one so I included my entire family for today's photo. I am so lucky to have such a funny little family. I can not believe Sav will be three next month and little man is already almost two months old. Time is flying!

- posted from my chic iPhone

How to get through the next day after a Sleepless Night...

I can barely keep my eyes open to type this post. That's how sleepy I am. You know how it is with a newborn. They sleep all day and you get minimum sleep at night. This is the part you forget about when you see that positive pregnancy test.

So far this week I think I have gotten maybe a combined total of ten hours of sleep. Yep. You read that right. I think I've slept for about three hours a night this week. Not complaining, just stating the facts. Baby M wakes up every few hours to be fed and changed. That's to be expected. What I didn't expect is for Savannah to start waking up during the night. You remember all the hard work I did to get her to sleep all night after we moved to Texas? Well. This week has been a recurring nightmare of those days.

I think she's a light sleeper like me so she wakes up if she hears the baby crying too loudly. Not only does she wake up but she gets out of bed and comes to check on him. Sweet, right? It wouldn't be if you were me. Last night they were both up for a while and I had this feeling of defeat. They were beating me at my own game. No worries though. I have a game plan that will put an end to all of this night waking. More on that later...

I have been amazed at how easy it's been to still get through the days while I'm past tired. Here are some tips that I've found very useful. Thank you for everyone that made a suggestion via our Facebook page....

~ Stay Busy

As crazy as it sounds staying busy when you're exhausted helps the time fly by. You won't feel as sleepy if your occupied by another task. This is my go-to method for getting through the tired days after a sleepless night. I clean, cook or take the kids out. It helps keep that sluggish feeling at bay until you can actually sleep.

~ Drink lots of water

This may not be true for everyone but drinking ice cold water throughout the day keeps me alert. I have been doing pretty well staying off of caffeine. Caffeine tends to make me feel less energized, or maybe it's the crash from the sugar in a soda. At any rate drinking water has done wonders for my energy level.

~ Sleep while the baby is sleeping

Everyone has heard this. Unfortunately, I've never been a good napper. Napping actually has the opposite effect on me. If you are a person that does well with naps try sleeping when your baby does. Since Sav doesn't take naps anymore I can't sleep during the day, but if you're able to do it GO FOR IT!

~ Don't feel pressured by your checklist

If you're like me you feel the need to get things done during the day. When you're super tired throw that list in the garbage. Take your time getting things done. Ease into your day. Don't rush it. If you can get a load of laundry done, great! If you can't, don't sweat it. Try to keep your day as calm and carefree as possible. Staying in a relaxed state will keep you from exerting more energy. I take the pressure of cooking dinner off of my plate when I'm really tired and it helps me.

~Rest when you can

Try doing some stationary activities with your kids. Read books, color, paint or work on some fine motor skills if they're old enough. If you have a child that will watch a movie throw one on. Even if you can't sleep just sitting and resting does wonders.

I use all of these during the day to help me stay mentally sane after a sleepless night. It's not easy but you can do it. As soon as both kids are asleep at night I go to bed too. A couple hours of sleep is better than no sleep at all.

What are some of your tips for getting through the day after a sleepless night?