Featured Posts 69
 Tough Stuff
Keeping our Offbeatlings upbeat in the face of gender judgementThe world is a difficult place for children... how can a sensitive child feel free to express himself differently from others in a world where "different" is "bad?" 
Featured Posts38
 It worked for me
The b(r)east of both worlds — using formula AND breastfeedingOvernight, I became a working mother (Really! Interviewed on Tuesday morning, offered the job that afternoon and began work the next day). I dutifully hauled my breastpump to work everyday. I felt guilty for leaving... 
Featured Posts23
 Identity
Untangling the threads of a impending offbeat mama identity crisisMy identity as an electronic music fan (yes, ok fine: raver) dates back to 1996. But things shifted when I got pregnant. 
Featured Posts16
 Real Weddings: Northeast US (Offbeat Bride)
Bex & Dan's kids and Cookie Monster-friendly weddingBex and Dan had a small church ceremony in a big, kid-friendly way. Instead of flowers, their daughter carried a boutonniered Cookie Monster, and the bride was escorted down the aisle by her son. 
Featured Posts10
Decor DIY (Offbeat Bride)
Crochet your own Little Big Planet sackboySo, you like Little Big Planet, and want to make a sackboy. If you're like me, you'll Google your brains out trying to find a pattern you like. I didn't find any patterns I liked, so I made up my own crochet "pattern"... |
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Most Recent Posts
 I'm such a gushy fan of stackable rings.. they're so simple and awesome. Our sponsor, ring-creator extraordinaire Tinahdee is a self-taught artisan: she learned to put jewelry together by reading books, articles, and watching countless videos on YouTube. I think this makes her work extra-special: when you order a piece from her, you're connecting with a woman who deeply loves what she's creating. 
I'm only 13 weeks, so this is super early, but I've been thinking about how much I'd like a doula with me during labor. I'm not super crunchy, but I plan on having an unmedicated birth and I'm really happy with my choice in hospital and doctor. However, I also think a doula would provide even more support and make it as close to the experience that we want as possible. 
It's been a minute since we've given Etsy vendors some love.. which is funny, because I spend a solid part of every day scouring shop after shop. Since a lot of in-store maternity fashion can be troubling to say the least, Etsy is always an excellent alternative. Who knew you could find something like this vintage-inspired floral number from Hellcat Mama. 
I talk to my wife about everything — EVERYTHING. I talk so much that it gets to a point where I'm annoying myself with my incessant blathering. With that said, we obviously talked about the idea of getting a vasectomy a lot. Most of the discussion was about whether it should happen at all. My wife originally wanted more than one child as she is very fond of children.. and after coming around to the idea of even having one, I wanted nine to outdo the Weasleys. After one, I decided I would never live up to them. 
A few years ago, I came to the realization that my daughter was growing quicker than I could keep up. She was entering sixth grade — whilst we grow a culture of the "young at heart," we knew that this was not going to fly with her peers for much longer. We decided to turn her Alice in Wonderland obsession into a fête, and began planning a Mad Hatter Tea Party for our daughter's twelfth birthday. 
A common passion that my husband, Eric, and I have is seeing live music. We enjoy festivals in particular because we can see a bunch of bands during the weekend and possibly become a new fan. We decided that just because we have a baby didn't mean our love for live music had to change — so we just started taking her with us! 
My partner and I are considering having children sometime in the next few years, but the question of "community" has been holding us back. We both grew up in religious households but we are pretty much agnostic. However, we both know how powerful that supporting community can be. 
So my pregnancy ticker tells me week by week how big my new baby is in relation to produce. My nearly four-year-old son loves it. He's an on-hands learner (His grandmother the teacher says it's a 'kinesthetic learner') and it gives him a tactile idea of how big our new wiggly addition to the family has grown. He asks me constantly how big the baby is now and really grasps the process of growing with the progression of fruits and veggies. |
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