motherhood – Page 2 – Jared's Little Corner

blogging my way through sahmihood

i have only been a blogger for almost 7 months now and i would consider myself a novice in all this blogging business. there is just way too many things to learn as i go along. i’ve originally started my blog to chronicle my son’s very first birthday and eventually post a tip or a pointer or two to be of help to other mummies out there struggling to throw a simple yet memorable first birthday bash for their kiddos!
and then my blogging seem to have taken a life of its own, it wasn’t merely an online journal of my motherhood journey, but has pushed me to different directions and opened up a whole new horizon for me. i now see it as:

an opportunity to connect with other stay-at-home mums out there, may it be online (through pmb) or in person through mommy bloggers’ events i attended
an outlet for my frustrations when all this mum-staying-at-home business is not working out exactly the way i want it
a source of a much needed adult conversation, when my constant companion, my baby, has yet to go beyond the monosyllabic exchange
as an opportunity to earn so i can continue staying at home to prioritize my son
as an avenue to meet potential lifelong friends
a chronicle of my own, personal continuing education about life in general
as another form of self-expression in this digital world

writing is a form of personal freedom. it frees us from the mass identity we see in the making around us. in the end, writers will write not be outlaw heroes of some underculture but mainly to save themselves, to survive as individuals.

don delillo

i have decided to make blogging my other profession and, in turn, jotted the following goals for me to achieve this year:

have my own domain (i have a new .info domain, much thanks to the domain angel!)
have my own web-hosting (check, courtesy of 888host!) (so, someone will be busy in a few weeks time transferring to my own web-hosting under my own domain name, yay!)
have my first 100 followers (which i’ve accomplished a few weeks back, so that is another reason to celebrate!), and counting down the next 100!
monetize my blog (i’ve currently signed up with paid-to-post site, hopefully my blog will be approved and start earning soon)
and drive traffic to my blogs via blog memes and blog hops, and ultimately, making quality, entertaining, and hopefully slightly intelligent posts my readers will like and relate to☺)

i realized staying at home to focus on my childminding duties need not be boring, i do it the coolest way i can – i blog!

so, what are your blogging plans for this year? answer that and you might just win yourself any of the following prizes, through coolbuster.net extrabloganza contes t:

1st prize: Php10,000 + domain + ad spot for 3 months
2nd prize:Php 6,000 + ad sport for 2 months
3rd prize:Php 4,000 + ad sport for a month

much thanks to the following sponsors for making this giveaway possible:

NursingUniforms.net – offers a wide range of branded nursing scrubs and lab coats
Straw Hat Luffy – Anime, Games, Sports and Gizmos
Make Money Online Philippines | Winziph
Web Design Philippines
Scolex Portal
PCSO Lotto Results
NLE Results – Nursing board exam results
LET Results – Teachers’ board exam results
Talent Search News
Computer Basics Tutorial

contest ends on february 28 and winners will be announced on march 31st, 2011.

pointers to being a patient mum

i must admit being a stay-at-home mum is nowhere near living in a bed of roses. i’ve had my fair share of frustration and the proverbial “bad days” and yes, much like most mums around i fall into the trappings of losing my patience. i’ve probably been grumpy + cranky to my son on several occasions, of which i really felt most guilty of. even if he would most of the time counteract one of my fits with his endearing giggles or dismiss my scolding and resume playing with his bib to his mouth, oblivious of his mum having a nervous breakdown any moment soon, it would really leave me with a bitter taste in my mouth and a sinking feeling inside, thinking “what a terrible mum i was!”

photo source

i must also confess to having the patience of a mum who’ve just been a mum for 17 months and 18 days (yep, i’ve been counting!) read: patience that is no match to a 17 month’s old’s patience and will easily snap with little agitation like squirming toddler during diaper changing or a baby that won’t budge from the bath tub – that is after too much prodding – after bathtime.

i noticed i was particularly impatient when i lack sleep and when i am understress…
glad i came across these 5 pointers to be a patient mum from kat of inspired to action:

sleep 7-8 hours (yep lack of sleep can really be such a bummer)
drink 6-8 glasses of water (being hydrated all the time will keep the grumpiness factor to a minimum)
be a wall of jello “Be like Jello, absorb their emotions and frustrations, filtering them through prayer. If we can’t respond in LOVE, tell them we need to calm down and postpone response”
be all there, don’t multitask! (lots of pressure goes into trying to do everything all at the same time)
start 15 minutes early (recently i’ve been doing exactly this, in fact, i’m starting very much early by going online in the wee hours of the morning, that way, i can have loads of work done online before jared wakes up)

kat, actually challenges us to put these 5 pointers into practice + see how we can turn into a patient mum in 24hours, i think i’ll take on the challenge. how about you? for more challenges to inspire you to action and or other inspiring and enlightening tips on motherhood, do drop by inspired to action. you can also download this great e-book to inspire you maximize your mornings: