May 31, 2025 • 30 mins
Not every milestone fits the calendar, and not every victory looks the same. In this episode of The Family of One, I talk about embracing celebration in a way that works for you—whether it’s a quiet joy, a teething-stage triumph, or a personal win that deserves recognition. Because every moment counts when it’s meaningful to you.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
SPEAKER_00 (00:00):
Hey amazing only child mums, I'm 4 Comment, your
part-time working mum friend wholoves Yahweh, family and fun.
Welcome to the family of onewhere we share joys and
adventures of raising an onlychild.
(00:21):
Expect relatable stories,parenting laughs and faithful
tips.
Let's make small family lifeenjoyable.
Woohoo! Hello, so we are goingto talk about, well me, talking
about celebrating the momentswhere you're at.
(00:42):
For example, are you wonderingwhat moments?
Moments.
For example, I was shopping atWalmart, it's a supermarket, and
I was at a checkout and I saw amum and it looked like it was
her mum.
the grandma, and the baby was ina lovely, I mean, if this was
(01:05):
available when I had Olivia, Isurely would have got this.
It was like a bassinet, and itwas in wheels.
It was like a stroller, but itwas a stroller.
It was flat, and I'm sure youcan pop it up to different
stages if you wanted the baby tosit up or kind of lie down
(01:27):
halfway or totally flat.
And I was thinking, oh, mygoodness.
We had a stroller.
It was a very nice stroller.
But I did not, when I waspurchasing Olivia's, the things
that we needed, we didn't spend.
Oh, we were given.
(01:48):
That's right.
We were given a stroller thatwas about, I think it was at
that time worth a thousanddollars.
You heard me.
We had friends of ours and theyhad multiple children and And so
they finished having childrenand they were like, hey, we got
(02:08):
all these gadgets.
It was because it was given tothem, but it was a really good
condition.
And so they said, would you liketo have this stroller?
And I was like, this is amazing.
This is like the high end ofstrollers.
The wheels were thick.
So if you wanted to go running,like trekking, mountain, I'm
(02:32):
sure mountain bike, mountainwalking kind of thing.
This was the stroller to take.
It was good size, awesome,durable wheels.
And if Olivia had a friend, itwas a doable, I think you didn't
even have a three seater.
I mean, it was amazing.
(02:53):
So what am I talking about?
I'm talking about, well, nowthat I'm talking about it, we
were very blessed with thestroller, but I was thinking,
you know, sometimes you look atother moms, and depending on how
old your child is, you wonder,oh, I remember they were that
(03:14):
age.
Like, once again, I was at afield trip with Olivia's class,
and this little, she might havebeen like maybe two or three,
just You know, walk by all themums as we do.
And she was just looking at usand we were waving to her.
She was smiling.
And we all said to each other,oh, I remember that age.
(03:38):
And we all reminisce how fastthey grow, the interests, the
things that they're learning.
And then some of them had oldersiblings.
And I was just wondering how.
You know, sometimes when you'regoing through seasons in life,
do you get to celebrate thosemoments?
And it's not until you sharewith someone else or even when
(04:02):
you sit down.
Because, you know, let's faceit.
Did I share?
Did I celebrate a lot?
I could have celebrated more.
But sometimes when you're goingthrough seasons and it's a bit
challenging, right?
I think the most challengingtime that I had when she was
teething.
(04:22):
Now, I spoke to other familiesand other families did, you
know, their child did notteethe.
They didn't have any challengeswith that.
And so for me, if you're goingthrough that stage and it's
teething stage and it's really,you know, your child is just
(04:42):
not, it's really hard for themthey're crying and no matter
what you give them i tell you ifeel for you anytime a new tooth
would come out she would justhave a fever and we would try
and give you all these thingsand you know put cold compress
(05:03):
on and give you the numbing ithink it's the numbing toys like
she could eat um i think it'slike a something you put in your
mouth or something so she canchew and not suck on it,
something like that.
I get it.
It was not a fun time.
I don't know if I increased mycoffee or what.
(05:29):
That was the only major, and Ithink for other moms– And I
would Google and I would watch.
And some people, you know, theydid other things.
But I think I pretty much triedeverything and just went through
it.
But once that stage had stopped,you know, she passed through it.
(05:51):
I tell you what, so teething forme, it was a lot more tears, I
think, for her and I.
So I just wanted to encourageyou, if you're just going into
that and you feel like you'rethe only person going through
those tough teething stages, Imean, what was the best thing
(06:11):
that worked for me?
I think something cold.
It was, I had like, I don'tknow, these teething things and
we put it in the fridge.
So if she wanted to, she couldjust bite on it.
And then we also had water.
Honestly, just some medicationif it was her fever or other
(06:32):
things.
All I know is it was a lot.
So, you know, and now there's alot of information.
So I'm sure you'll Google,you'll ask what works for you.
And if you're the mom that'slike, do they know?
We don't have any problems forthat.
You know, well, that is awesome.
(06:53):
I am so happy.
was so happy for you you did nothave to go through that I had
friends and on it and they saidno that that wasn't our
challenge maybe it was goingthrough the potty oh my goodness
now the potty season that washilarious she that season it was
(07:14):
interesting because she wentvery early maybe nine months I
think and it was fine and I'mlike whoo whoo she just put her
on the potty Those small ones.
And I think we already talkedabout that.
Then she went.
And then I think like a fewmonths later, she looked at what
was coming out of her body.
She said, no, thank you.
So I was back to diapers.
(07:37):
And she was waiting when she wasready to use the potty again.
But we did encourage her.
So it's kind of what I'm meaningin those moments, just
celebrating those moments.
Because one, you're learning howto, one, what's best for you.
Like you may have something andlike, this is it, this works for
(07:58):
me.
But if you share your advicewith someone else, like it may
not be the best for them.
For example, I had a friend andtheir child preferred, you know,
doing a number two standing upwhen they were little, right?
And they're like, we would get aparty for him.
We would sit him down.
(08:19):
I mean, there's so many things,but I just prefer standing up.
And I thought, well, one, atleast they're not holding it.
So that was fine.
I mean, now the child goes tothe bathroom.
But there's some other things aswell.
I mean, I know that sometimes...
When Olivia, she says, oh, youknow, sometimes I hear, mom,
(08:41):
when I need to go to thebathroom, I just go.
And I said, yeah, that's good.
You know, go to the bathroom anddo what you need to do.
Wash your hands.
please watch and then come outbecause she's been like her and
I and my two we know what that'slike when you are full of poop
(09:03):
it is not nice because youhaven't been you get a tummy
ache and then you got to takeprune juice or more fiber so we
both know that as you do ifyou're a parent and you two have
been clogged up, it's not a nicefeeling.
So one thing I'm so happy about,if she needs to go, she'll just
go to the bathroom, which isgood.
(09:25):
I mean, because no one wants atummy ache because you haven't
pooped.
And so celebrate those moments.
It's all funny and sometimes theIt's like ridiculous.
But you've really got to takethe moments just as best as you
(09:48):
can.
And I notice if I start hearingother people's stories and if I
start sharing, sometimes I maybe the only one in that group
that may be going through that.
And you may think, man...
My story's different.
I mean, no one in that group'sgoing through that same thing as
(10:09):
me.
Or maybe no one even can relateto what I'm going through.
Or maybe my story's so foreignto them.
For example, when I had Olivia,I was a lot older than most of
my friends.
In one, I only had an onlychild.
So the conversation was a littledifferent there.
(10:33):
And I noticed with mums of thelot younger, I felt like, wow,
I'm really old compared to them.
But when I spoke to older mums,similar to my age, and even if
they had multiple children, theyseemed more understanding.
(10:56):
It's not that the younger mumsdidn't.
It was just, I think, Just morelife experience.
Because now I am 48 years young.
And so I had Olivia when she was30.
And my 48-year-old body, as muchas I love it, it's still going
through a lot of stages.
(11:17):
So I celebrate what this body isdoing.
My soul, I'm celebrating this asbest I can.
My body and my spirit.
We are all trying to celebrateand align.
with motherhood so I wanted tocontinue to encouragement and
it's like when you see likecertain gadgets and you're
(11:41):
thinking how on earth that I wasI able to do that without having
that latest gadget oh like isn'tthat when you see isn't it that
bad I don't know what it'scalled again and it rocks the
baby I mean some gliders or babybounces some are so fancy that I
(12:04):
probably would have loved lovedgetting that I think I just had
the one I had a lot ofhand-me-downs where you just
naturally bounce the babyyourself like you would just do
it with your foot of your handAnd you call it good.
And some of them now, they justautomatically, you know, there's
a switch in their bouncer.
(12:25):
And it depends, too, becausesomeone lent us their bouncer,
the seat where it rocks it.
And I put Olivia in it.
And she didn't really like it,especially when– and this is
where you wonder, shall I buythings or shall I not?
Art, for me, what worked for me,if I was able to borrow it first
(12:46):
– Because most of my friends hadtheir babies in multiple and
they said, oh, sure, we're notusing this right now.
Yeah, they're done with it.
I would borrow that apparatusbefore purchasing it.
Or sometimes I just did.
I said, oh, yeah, I just need afew months.
And then she'll outgrow it.
(13:09):
So that was that was one of mytips.
If you can find friends orfamily or even someone who.
You know, I would ask first ofspending all that money into
something and then it takes upspace.
It really does.
It takes up a lot of...
You can kind of go crazy becauseI know with my first child, I
(13:33):
was like, ooh, I want this, Iwant this, I want this.
And it started to pile up like ababy store.
And I was like, you know what?
She's not going to be in thisfor long.
So most of my friends, because Iwas the last one to have a
child...
they were really kind in sharingtheir things with me.
(13:56):
And then all of them had morechildren than I gave it back.
And I just had the one.
And that's why this is calledthe Family of One podcast.
So, yes, another one was thebouncy, you know, I don't know
what it's called, the bouncyseat.
And you hook it up to the door,the doorframe, and you put her
(14:19):
in.
And then they would bounce.
That one I thought she wouldreally enjoy it.
And I'm glad I didn't buy itbecause she didn't like it.
I put her in.
She was like, nope, nope.
And it wasn't until like a fewmonths later, like a month
later, I tried it again.
And, yes, she did like it.
(14:40):
But then I thought, okay.
You know, she didn't like tospend as much time and not like
other children, speak to friendsand go, oh yeah, my child loves
that.
So it's interesting to see andlearn as your child, you know,
starts growing up and you startputting and showing them
different things.
(15:01):
Are they going to like it?
They may like something and theneventually they don't like it
anymore.
Or they didn't like somethingand now they do.
That's the part of, you know, Istarted to learn, like, you
know, maybe I'll just see if Icould borrow it or just see if
someone has something like thator, yeah.
(15:23):
Another thing I noticed, too,was when going into the
bathrooms and, oh, I startedgetting really good at packing
her changing bag.
Like, I always had, like, achanging pad that had, like, a
little bit of foam inside.
like a little bit of becausesometimes i think i went to one
(15:45):
bathroom one time and i forgot ididn't at this time i didn't
pack a bag and there were nochanging table right there's
nothing so i remember i wentback to my car to my husband i
need my jackets and i needed toput down my uh my my My long– I
(16:05):
wore a jacket, and I would putit down, then I would change it.
I think I must have wore– Ipurposely wore long cardigans,
but they were thin.
So if I needed to put down– andI– I honestly didn't mind.
You'd be like, gross.
But me, you know, and I didn'twear it after.
(16:28):
I made sure I just had itbecause if I had to go to the
bathroom and I wore this longthin cardigan and on the floor,
you know, a changing pad.
I wanted to put my karigan onthe floor and then I put the
changing pad down because, youknow, the floor would be cold,
be hard.
And I don't want her, you know,sometimes the baby, you know,
(16:51):
babies, they crawl.
I mean, their arms are flappyand they turn side to side.
And the changing pad wasn't big.
It was just enough, like, herheight, size.
I mean, her, you know, her bodysize.
It wasn't like a big blanket.
So that was one.
Oh, and then this is when Istarted getting real good.
(17:12):
For me, what worked is I hadlike a changing pad.
You know how you have...
a changing station in yourbedroom.
Well, I had an extra changingpad station.
I don't know how I did that.
Maybe I ordered one or someonegave me one.
So I would leave that in thecar.
(17:35):
And I would leave that in thecar, the changing pad.
And then if we had to change herin the car for whatever reason,
I would change her in the boot,in the back, you know, the boot,
because I've been at the boot,and I had the pad, and I had all
the things that I needed to, oron the side by the chair.
(17:57):
Like, I just put the back chairdown, I'll slide the pad over,
and because it was large enough,and then I'll just put her in
the middle, and I changed her.
I started doing that too, so Ijust found it was just an extra,
like a, and it didn't take upmuch space, I just had like a
It's a little station.
I put everything in a bag and Ileft it in the car or maybe I
(18:22):
had like a little basket.
I think I had a little basketand I had some just things in
there.
If I needed to change her stuff,it was fine.
And if another parent, if theyneeded to say, oh, I have a
changing station in my car.
It wasn't fancy.
I just kept it very practical.
(18:44):
And I just made sure there werediapers, there was wipes, there
was a disinfectant.
There's always plastic bags anda toilet paper.
I don't know why.
Maybe the toilet paper was forme.
If there was no toilet paper inthe bathroom and I needed to go.
So I When that stage was done,what's the point of this?
I celebrated I didn't need tochange her diapers.
(19:08):
And I celebrated I didn't needto go through that hassle.
And so I was so like, it feltlike during that time, like I'm
sure in the moments I was like,oh, tell my hubby, it's your
turn to change her.
UNKNOWN (19:29):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_00 (19:30):
And then I started getting really good at changing
her.
Like if I had to take heroutside, if we're going to the
park and whatever, I've got tochange her in the car or in the
bathroom, I've got to quicklychange her on the floor.
I had my routine done and I knewexactly and I always made sure
(19:50):
you had spare clothes in the carjust in case for those blowouts
or whatever.
But it was...
At that time, just going throughit, I was– sometimes I'm sure
I'm thinking, is it ever goingto end?
And I wondered about that.
(20:12):
But I just wanted to encourageyou.
It does end just to hang inthere.
And it's even better if you havesomeone to help you change those
diapers too.
So once that stage was finished,I– enjoyed it and then in the
(20:33):
moment of okay now you go to abathroom with your child you got
to make sure um one can they goby them not by themselves i mean
at the stage when she's eight ialways go with her but i think
at one stage in the beginning wewould both go in the cubicle and
(20:53):
And then I'm like, okay.
Or she's like, mom, just standout.
I think now she's at that stage.
Just stand out and put your footout so she can see me and I can
see her.
I put my foot so visually shecan see.
Just those type of things.
I tell you what, justcelebrating things.
(21:15):
The moments of what's it looklike from diapers to potty
training to going to thebathroom, but you still go to
the bathroom together.
Yeah.
And I remember when my husband,you know, they went to go
shopping and I told him shecannot go to the bathroom by
(21:36):
herself.
And so now there's family rooms,which I'm so thankful for, you
know, a dad and a daughter.
UNKNOWN (21:44):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_00 (21:44):
Because I'm just talking from that perspective
or, you know, that she can go tothe bathroom.
But I was like, okay, because hecan't go, you know, he didn't go
to a woman's bathroom.
He just took her in thebathroom.
And the thing was, she waslittle.
He just quickly, like, closedher eyes so she wouldn't see
anything.
(22:05):
Had to do her business if therewas no family room.
So thankful for those type ofbathrooms where, you know, like
a– a mom and a son or justthings like that.
But what else can I think aboutthe moments?
(22:26):
Another moment is I'm hopingyou're celebrating your own
moments during those times.
For me, what did I do?
I probably most likely just gavemyself a high five and Like the
changing pad, I ended up justgiving them away.
(22:48):
Like I think I had two.
I think one's still under thebed.
And Olivia uses it to put hertoys on it or she'll use it for
a jumping pad.
I don't know what.
I think I ended up giving it toanother family too.
I gave it away a lot.
(23:08):
I didn't sell anything, but youmight have some things that you
might want to sell and make somemoney, and that would be
awesome.
I just gave most of it away tofamilies that were starting,
having their first child, or Ijust put it on the market, the
(23:29):
Facebook market group.
And we had one family.
They came and they picked up allthis stuff and it was funny.
And then I said, hey, I haven'tput this on the page, but would
you like all of this as well?
They're like, yeah.
So I was like, take it, take it.
(23:52):
And that's what I mean.
Oh my gosh, celebrating thosemoments as your child is
growing.
Because it is...
It goes through so fast.
Have you ever, like, heardpeople say, and they're like,
oh, you know, I'm going to, Idon't know if they say just
take, they grow up so quick andnext minute, you know, they're
(24:18):
going to, they're driving a caror going to college or moving
out the house.
And I was like, I'm just tryingto get through this moment.
I can't think about them.
driving a car, my daughterdriving a car or, you know,
living somewhere else.
But now that she's, you know,she's eight, I'm thinking, you
(24:43):
know what?
I can see her a little bit likedoing more.
I mean, now she's combing herown hair.
I used to think, oh my goodness,I remember I had to comb her
hair before.
Even though they should say,mommy, can you comb my hair and
braid it, blah, blah, blah,which is nice.
But for the most part, she likesdoing it on here.
(25:06):
And I wonder, are you in thatsituation now, season, where you
no longer need to always combyour child's hair because your
child is You know, they likedoing their own style, maybe the
hairspray, the gel, or maybethere's particularly a way they
like to comb it.
(25:28):
I try to comb it as nice aspossible.
But I must admit, when I am in arush, it does come out a bit
ouchy for Olivia.
She'll be like, Mom, ouchy,ouch.
And I'll be like, hold still.
Oh, my goodness, I crack myselfup.
But I wanted to encourage you somuch, moms.
(25:51):
Remember, you're doing the best,the best that you can with the
time that's given.
You are an amazing mom.
And I wanted you to rememberthat.
Please, as you are cookingdinner, making lunches, or even
(26:13):
right now you're on the diaperstage.
Or maybe you're in the tallestseasoning, you know, taking them
taller training.
Or maybe you're like, oh, I'mreally at the teenage stage.
I'm just wanting to remind youto tell you that you are doing
the best you can with the timethat's given, with the resources
(26:37):
that you have, with thecommunity you're in.
And to be kind to yourself.
Absolutely be kind to yourself.
I hope you say to yourself,look, self, yee-haw! You're
doing good.
You're great.
(26:58):
Because it takes time.
I mean, you are investing somuch into your child.
And you're loving on yourfamily.
And that's what I mean.
And there's so much like on...
There's so many optionsavailable for you to pick.
(27:18):
And maybe, you know, dependingon what you're watching, you're
not sure what to do.
Should you go with A, B, C, D?
I don't know.
But I just want to keepencouraging.
It's okay.
I just try things that I feel...
that would be good for me and myfamily, that's going to be good.
(27:44):
And some things that I think isgoing to be good, it just
doesn't work out.
Like, oh, you know, no, thatdidn't really work out for us.
That I try to celebrate themoments I go back or celebrate
could be like, good job,everyone, you know, you're
(28:06):
alive.
Your family, your child iswell-loved, your husband is
amazing, and you are alive andwell, and you've done good.
So there you go, Mum.
Celebrate the moments and thedifferent seasons when you can
(28:27):
that make sense for you.
I mean, honestly, I would loveto celebrate my moments by...
Like going shopping, getting amassage.
You know, I like eating lovelyfood.
What's lovely food?
Food that I'm not cooking.
That's delicious.
I would like that.
(28:50):
So celebrate those moments.
And remember, everyone isdifferent and everyone has the
same type of learning process.
But you know what's best foryour child and for your family
because you are the one that'sspending time learning their
(29:10):
heart.
And you're learning aboutyourself too.
So always go by that.
You're doing the best you canwith the time that's given, with
the resources that you have,with the community that you're
in.
So it's that time again.
And I want to give a shout outto my two listeners.
(29:32):
It is so encouraging.
And I really do mean it becauseI'm always going to give a shout
out to the last episode.
So if you're wondering, when isshe going to give a shout out?
Well, Once I see you listen andI can get your location on the
last episode, I will give you ashout out.
(29:53):
So I really would love to give ashout out to my listener from
Bristol, Connecticut.
Thank you so much for listening.
Awesome listener from Bristol,Connecticut and from Canada,
Shawnigan Lake, Canada.
British Columbia.
I hope I got that right.
(30:13):
So the two listeners that I havethat listened to the last
episode, I just want to saythank you so much.
And if you're listening to thisand you're like, wow, hi, I just
listened.
Add me in.
Well, I'll catch you in the nextepisode and I will definitely
give you a shout out.
(30:33):
So once again, thank you verymuch for supporting and
listening to this podcast, TheFamily of One.
I will meet you in the nextepisode.
Bye.
Hey amazing only child mums, I'm 4 Comment, your
part-time working mum friend wholoves Yahweh, family and fun.
Welcome to the family of onewhere we share joys and
adventures of raising an onlychild.
(00:21):
Expect relatable stories,parenting laughs and faithful
tips.
Let's make small family lifeenjoyable.
Woohoo! Hello, so we are goingto talk about, well me, talking
about celebrating the momentswhere you're at.
(00:42):
For example, are you wonderingwhat moments?
Moments.
For example, I was shopping atWalmart, it's a supermarket, and
I was at a checkout and I saw amum and it looked like it was
her mum.
the grandma, and the baby was ina lovely, I mean, if this was
(01:05):
available when I had Olivia, Isurely would have got this.
It was like a bassinet, and itwas in wheels.
It was like a stroller, but itwas a stroller.
It was flat, and I'm sure youcan pop it up to different
stages if you wanted the baby tosit up or kind of lie down
(01:27):
halfway or totally flat.
And I was thinking, oh, mygoodness.
We had a stroller.
It was a very nice stroller.
But I did not, when I waspurchasing Olivia's, the things
that we needed, we didn't spend.
Oh, we were given.
(01:48):
That's right.
We were given a stroller thatwas about, I think it was at
that time worth a thousanddollars.
You heard me.
We had friends of ours and theyhad multiple children and And so
they finished having childrenand they were like, hey, we got
(02:08):
all these gadgets.
It was because it was given tothem, but it was a really good
condition.
And so they said, would you liketo have this stroller?
And I was like, this is amazing.
This is like the high end ofstrollers.
The wheels were thick.
So if you wanted to go running,like trekking, mountain, I'm
(02:32):
sure mountain bike, mountainwalking kind of thing.
This was the stroller to take.
It was good size, awesome,durable wheels.
And if Olivia had a friend, itwas a doable, I think you didn't
even have a three seater.
I mean, it was amazing.
(02:53):
So what am I talking about?
I'm talking about, well, nowthat I'm talking about it, we
were very blessed with thestroller, but I was thinking,
you know, sometimes you look atother moms, and depending on how
old your child is, you wonder,oh, I remember they were that
(03:14):
age.
Like, once again, I was at afield trip with Olivia's class,
and this little, she might havebeen like maybe two or three,
just You know, walk by all themums as we do.
And she was just looking at usand we were waving to her.
She was smiling.
And we all said to each other,oh, I remember that age.
(03:38):
And we all reminisce how fastthey grow, the interests, the
things that they're learning.
And then some of them had oldersiblings.
And I was just wondering how.
You know, sometimes when you'regoing through seasons in life,
do you get to celebrate thosemoments?
And it's not until you sharewith someone else or even when
(04:02):
you sit down.
Because, you know, let's faceit.
Did I share?
Did I celebrate a lot?
I could have celebrated more.
But sometimes when you're goingthrough seasons and it's a bit
challenging, right?
I think the most challengingtime that I had when she was
teething.
(04:22):
Now, I spoke to other familiesand other families did, you
know, their child did notteethe.
They didn't have any challengeswith that.
And so for me, if you're goingthrough that stage and it's
teething stage and it's really,you know, your child is just
(04:42):
not, it's really hard for themthey're crying and no matter
what you give them i tell you ifeel for you anytime a new tooth
would come out she would justhave a fever and we would try
and give you all these thingsand you know put cold compress
(05:03):
on and give you the numbing ithink it's the numbing toys like
she could eat um i think it'slike a something you put in your
mouth or something so she canchew and not suck on it,
something like that.
I get it.
It was not a fun time.
I don't know if I increased mycoffee or what.
(05:29):
That was the only major, and Ithink for other moms– And I
would Google and I would watch.
And some people, you know, theydid other things.
But I think I pretty much triedeverything and just went through
it.
But once that stage had stopped,you know, she passed through it.
(05:51):
I tell you what, so teething forme, it was a lot more tears, I
think, for her and I.
So I just wanted to encourageyou, if you're just going into
that and you feel like you'rethe only person going through
those tough teething stages, Imean, what was the best thing
(06:11):
that worked for me?
I think something cold.
It was, I had like, I don'tknow, these teething things and
we put it in the fridge.
So if she wanted to, she couldjust bite on it.
And then we also had water.
Honestly, just some medicationif it was her fever or other
(06:32):
things.
All I know is it was a lot.
So, you know, and now there's alot of information.
So I'm sure you'll Google,you'll ask what works for you.
And if you're the mom that'slike, do they know?
We don't have any problems forthat.
You know, well, that is awesome.
(06:53):
I am so happy.
was so happy for you you did nothave to go through that I had
friends and on it and they saidno that that wasn't our
challenge maybe it was goingthrough the potty oh my goodness
now the potty season that washilarious she that season it was
(07:14):
interesting because she wentvery early maybe nine months I
think and it was fine and I'mlike whoo whoo she just put her
on the potty Those small ones.
And I think we already talkedabout that.
Then she went.
And then I think like a fewmonths later, she looked at what
was coming out of her body.
She said, no, thank you.
So I was back to diapers.
(07:37):
And she was waiting when she wasready to use the potty again.
But we did encourage her.
So it's kind of what I'm meaningin those moments, just
celebrating those moments.
Because one, you're learning howto, one, what's best for you.
Like you may have something andlike, this is it, this works for
(07:58):
me.
But if you share your advicewith someone else, like it may
not be the best for them.
For example, I had a friend andtheir child preferred, you know,
doing a number two standing upwhen they were little, right?
And they're like, we would get aparty for him.
We would sit him down.
(08:19):
I mean, there's so many things,but I just prefer standing up.
And I thought, well, one, atleast they're not holding it.
So that was fine.
I mean, now the child goes tothe bathroom.
But there's some other things aswell.
I mean, I know that sometimes...
When Olivia, she says, oh, youknow, sometimes I hear, mom,
(08:41):
when I need to go to thebathroom, I just go.
And I said, yeah, that's good.
You know, go to the bathroom anddo what you need to do.
Wash your hands.
please watch and then come outbecause she's been like her and
I and my two we know what that'slike when you are full of poop
(09:03):
it is not nice because youhaven't been you get a tummy
ache and then you got to takeprune juice or more fiber so we
both know that as you do ifyou're a parent and you two have
been clogged up, it's not a nicefeeling.
So one thing I'm so happy about,if she needs to go, she'll just
go to the bathroom, which isgood.
(09:25):
I mean, because no one wants atummy ache because you haven't
pooped.
And so celebrate those moments.
It's all funny and sometimes theIt's like ridiculous.
But you've really got to takethe moments just as best as you
(09:48):
can.
And I notice if I start hearingother people's stories and if I
start sharing, sometimes I maybe the only one in that group
that may be going through that.
And you may think, man...
My story's different.
I mean, no one in that group'sgoing through that same thing as
(10:09):
me.
Or maybe no one even can relateto what I'm going through.
Or maybe my story's so foreignto them.
For example, when I had Olivia,I was a lot older than most of
my friends.
In one, I only had an onlychild.
So the conversation was a littledifferent there.
(10:33):
And I noticed with mums of thelot younger, I felt like, wow,
I'm really old compared to them.
But when I spoke to older mums,similar to my age, and even if
they had multiple children, theyseemed more understanding.
(10:56):
It's not that the younger mumsdidn't.
It was just, I think, Just morelife experience.
Because now I am 48 years young.
And so I had Olivia when she was30.
And my 48-year-old body, as muchas I love it, it's still going
through a lot of stages.
(11:17):
So I celebrate what this body isdoing.
My soul, I'm celebrating this asbest I can.
My body and my spirit.
We are all trying to celebrateand align.
with motherhood so I wanted tocontinue to encouragement and
it's like when you see likecertain gadgets and you're
(11:41):
thinking how on earth that I wasI able to do that without having
that latest gadget oh like isn'tthat when you see isn't it that
bad I don't know what it'scalled again and it rocks the
baby I mean some gliders or babybounces some are so fancy that I
(12:04):
probably would have loved lovedgetting that I think I just had
the one I had a lot ofhand-me-downs where you just
naturally bounce the babyyourself like you would just do
it with your foot of your handAnd you call it good.
And some of them now, they justautomatically, you know, there's
a switch in their bouncer.
(12:25):
And it depends, too, becausesomeone lent us their bouncer,
the seat where it rocks it.
And I put Olivia in it.
And she didn't really like it,especially when– and this is
where you wonder, shall I buythings or shall I not?
Art, for me, what worked for me,if I was able to borrow it first
(12:46):
– Because most of my friends hadtheir babies in multiple and
they said, oh, sure, we're notusing this right now.
Yeah, they're done with it.
I would borrow that apparatusbefore purchasing it.
Or sometimes I just did.
I said, oh, yeah, I just need afew months.
And then she'll outgrow it.
(13:09):
So that was that was one of mytips.
If you can find friends orfamily or even someone who.
You know, I would ask first ofspending all that money into
something and then it takes upspace.
It really does.
It takes up a lot of...
You can kind of go crazy becauseI know with my first child, I
(13:33):
was like, ooh, I want this, Iwant this, I want this.
And it started to pile up like ababy store.
And I was like, you know what?
She's not going to be in thisfor long.
So most of my friends, because Iwas the last one to have a
child...
they were really kind in sharingtheir things with me.
(13:56):
And then all of them had morechildren than I gave it back.
And I just had the one.
And that's why this is calledthe Family of One podcast.
So, yes, another one was thebouncy, you know, I don't know
what it's called, the bouncyseat.
And you hook it up to the door,the doorframe, and you put her
(14:19):
in.
And then they would bounce.
That one I thought she wouldreally enjoy it.
And I'm glad I didn't buy itbecause she didn't like it.
I put her in.
She was like, nope, nope.
And it wasn't until like a fewmonths later, like a month
later, I tried it again.
And, yes, she did like it.
(14:40):
But then I thought, okay.
You know, she didn't like tospend as much time and not like
other children, speak to friendsand go, oh yeah, my child loves
that.
So it's interesting to see andlearn as your child, you know,
starts growing up and you startputting and showing them
different things.
(15:01):
Are they going to like it?
They may like something and theneventually they don't like it
anymore.
Or they didn't like somethingand now they do.
That's the part of, you know, Istarted to learn, like, you
know, maybe I'll just see if Icould borrow it or just see if
someone has something like thator, yeah.
(15:23):
Another thing I noticed, too,was when going into the
bathrooms and, oh, I startedgetting really good at packing
her changing bag.
Like, I always had, like, achanging pad that had, like, a
little bit of foam inside.
like a little bit of becausesometimes i think i went to one
(15:45):
bathroom one time and i forgot ididn't at this time i didn't
pack a bag and there were nochanging table right there's
nothing so i remember i wentback to my car to my husband i
need my jackets and i needed toput down my uh my my My long– I
(16:05):
wore a jacket, and I would putit down, then I would change it.
I think I must have wore– Ipurposely wore long cardigans,
but they were thin.
So if I needed to put down– andI– I honestly didn't mind.
You'd be like, gross.
But me, you know, and I didn'twear it after.
(16:28):
I made sure I just had itbecause if I had to go to the
bathroom and I wore this longthin cardigan and on the floor,
you know, a changing pad.
I wanted to put my karigan onthe floor and then I put the
changing pad down because, youknow, the floor would be cold,
be hard.
And I don't want her, you know,sometimes the baby, you know,
(16:51):
babies, they crawl.
I mean, their arms are flappyand they turn side to side.
And the changing pad wasn't big.
It was just enough, like, herheight, size.
I mean, her, you know, her bodysize.
It wasn't like a big blanket.
So that was one.
Oh, and then this is when Istarted getting real good.
(17:12):
For me, what worked is I hadlike a changing pad.
You know how you have...
a changing station in yourbedroom.
Well, I had an extra changingpad station.
I don't know how I did that.
Maybe I ordered one or someonegave me one.
So I would leave that in thecar.
(17:35):
And I would leave that in thecar, the changing pad.
And then if we had to change herin the car for whatever reason,
I would change her in the boot,in the back, you know, the boot,
because I've been at the boot,and I had the pad, and I had all
the things that I needed to, oron the side by the chair.
(17:57):
Like, I just put the back chairdown, I'll slide the pad over,
and because it was large enough,and then I'll just put her in
the middle, and I changed her.
I started doing that too, so Ijust found it was just an extra,
like a, and it didn't take upmuch space, I just had like a
It's a little station.
I put everything in a bag and Ileft it in the car or maybe I
(18:22):
had like a little basket.
I think I had a little basketand I had some just things in
there.
If I needed to change her stuff,it was fine.
And if another parent, if theyneeded to say, oh, I have a
changing station in my car.
It wasn't fancy.
I just kept it very practical.
(18:44):
And I just made sure there werediapers, there was wipes, there
was a disinfectant.
There's always plastic bags anda toilet paper.
I don't know why.
Maybe the toilet paper was forme.
If there was no toilet paper inthe bathroom and I needed to go.
So I When that stage was done,what's the point of this?
I celebrated I didn't need tochange her diapers.
(19:08):
And I celebrated I didn't needto go through that hassle.
And so I was so like, it feltlike during that time, like I'm
sure in the moments I was like,oh, tell my hubby, it's your
turn to change her.
UNKNOWN (19:29):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_00 (19:30):
And then I started getting really good at changing
her.
Like if I had to take heroutside, if we're going to the
park and whatever, I've got tochange her in the car or in the
bathroom, I've got to quicklychange her on the floor.
I had my routine done and I knewexactly and I always made sure
(19:50):
you had spare clothes in the carjust in case for those blowouts
or whatever.
But it was...
At that time, just going throughit, I was– sometimes I'm sure
I'm thinking, is it ever goingto end?
And I wondered about that.
(20:12):
But I just wanted to encourageyou.
It does end just to hang inthere.
And it's even better if you havesomeone to help you change those
diapers too.
So once that stage was finished,I– enjoyed it and then in the
(20:33):
moment of okay now you go to abathroom with your child you got
to make sure um one can they goby them not by themselves i mean
at the stage when she's eight ialways go with her but i think
at one stage in the beginning wewould both go in the cubicle and
(20:53):
And then I'm like, okay.
Or she's like, mom, just standout.
I think now she's at that stage.
Just stand out and put your footout so she can see me and I can
see her.
I put my foot so visually shecan see.
Just those type of things.
I tell you what, justcelebrating things.
(21:15):
The moments of what's it looklike from diapers to potty
training to going to thebathroom, but you still go to
the bathroom together.
Yeah.
And I remember when my husband,you know, they went to go
shopping and I told him shecannot go to the bathroom by
(21:36):
herself.
And so now there's family rooms,which I'm so thankful for, you
know, a dad and a daughter.
UNKNOWN (21:44):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_00 (21:44):
Because I'm just talking from that perspective
or, you know, that she can go tothe bathroom.
But I was like, okay, because hecan't go, you know, he didn't go
to a woman's bathroom.
He just took her in thebathroom.
And the thing was, she waslittle.
He just quickly, like, closedher eyes so she wouldn't see
anything.
(22:05):
Had to do her business if therewas no family room.
So thankful for those type ofbathrooms where, you know, like
a– a mom and a son or justthings like that.
But what else can I think aboutthe moments?
(22:26):
Another moment is I'm hopingyou're celebrating your own
moments during those times.
For me, what did I do?
I probably most likely just gavemyself a high five and Like the
changing pad, I ended up justgiving them away.
(22:48):
Like I think I had two.
I think one's still under thebed.
And Olivia uses it to put hertoys on it or she'll use it for
a jumping pad.
I don't know what.
I think I ended up giving it toanother family too.
I gave it away a lot.
(23:08):
I didn't sell anything, but youmight have some things that you
might want to sell and make somemoney, and that would be
awesome.
I just gave most of it away tofamilies that were starting,
having their first child, or Ijust put it on the market, the
(23:29):
Facebook market group.
And we had one family.
They came and they picked up allthis stuff and it was funny.
And then I said, hey, I haven'tput this on the page, but would
you like all of this as well?
They're like, yeah.
So I was like, take it, take it.
(23:52):
And that's what I mean.
Oh my gosh, celebrating thosemoments as your child is
growing.
Because it is...
It goes through so fast.
Have you ever, like, heardpeople say, and they're like,
oh, you know, I'm going to, Idon't know if they say just
take, they grow up so quick andnext minute, you know, they're
(24:18):
going to, they're driving a caror going to college or moving
out the house.
And I was like, I'm just tryingto get through this moment.
I can't think about them.
driving a car, my daughterdriving a car or, you know,
living somewhere else.
But now that she's, you know,she's eight, I'm thinking, you
(24:43):
know what?
I can see her a little bit likedoing more.
I mean, now she's combing herown hair.
I used to think, oh my goodness,I remember I had to comb her
hair before.
Even though they should say,mommy, can you comb my hair and
braid it, blah, blah, blah,which is nice.
But for the most part, she likesdoing it on here.
(25:06):
And I wonder, are you in thatsituation now, season, where you
no longer need to always combyour child's hair because your
child is You know, they likedoing their own style, maybe the
hairspray, the gel, or maybethere's particularly a way they
like to comb it.
(25:28):
I try to comb it as nice aspossible.
But I must admit, when I am in arush, it does come out a bit
ouchy for Olivia.
She'll be like, Mom, ouchy,ouch.
And I'll be like, hold still.
Oh, my goodness, I crack myselfup.
But I wanted to encourage you somuch, moms.
(25:51):
Remember, you're doing the best,the best that you can with the
time that's given.
You are an amazing mom.
And I wanted you to rememberthat.
Please, as you are cookingdinner, making lunches, or even
(26:13):
right now you're on the diaperstage.
Or maybe you're in the tallestseasoning, you know, taking them
taller training.
Or maybe you're like, oh, I'mreally at the teenage stage.
I'm just wanting to remind youto tell you that you are doing
the best you can with the timethat's given, with the resources
(26:37):
that you have, with thecommunity you're in.
And to be kind to yourself.
Absolutely be kind to yourself.
I hope you say to yourself,look, self, yee-haw! You're
doing good.
You're great.
(26:58):
Because it takes time.
I mean, you are investing somuch into your child.
And you're loving on yourfamily.
And that's what I mean.
And there's so much like on...
There's so many optionsavailable for you to pick.
(27:18):
And maybe, you know, dependingon what you're watching, you're
not sure what to do.
Should you go with A, B, C, D?
I don't know.
But I just want to keepencouraging.
It's okay.
I just try things that I feel...
that would be good for me and myfamily, that's going to be good.
(27:44):
And some things that I think isgoing to be good, it just
doesn't work out.
Like, oh, you know, no, thatdidn't really work out for us.
That I try to celebrate themoments I go back or celebrate
could be like, good job,everyone, you know, you're
(28:06):
alive.
Your family, your child iswell-loved, your husband is
amazing, and you are alive andwell, and you've done good.
So there you go, Mum.
Celebrate the moments and thedifferent seasons when you can
(28:27):
that make sense for you.
I mean, honestly, I would loveto celebrate my moments by...
Like going shopping, getting amassage.
You know, I like eating lovelyfood.
What's lovely food?
Food that I'm not cooking.
That's delicious.
I would like that.
(28:50):
So celebrate those moments.
And remember, everyone isdifferent and everyone has the
same type of learning process.
But you know what's best foryour child and for your family
because you are the one that'sspending time learning their
(29:10):
heart.
And you're learning aboutyourself too.
So always go by that.
You're doing the best you canwith the time that's given, with
the resources that you have,with the community that you're
in.
So it's that time again.
And I want to give a shout outto my two listeners.
(29:32):
It is so encouraging.
And I really do mean it becauseI'm always going to give a shout
out to the last episode.
So if you're wondering, when isshe going to give a shout out?
Well, Once I see you listen andI can get your location on the
last episode, I will give you ashout out.
(29:53):
So I really would love to give ashout out to my listener from
Bristol, Connecticut.
Thank you so much for listening.
Awesome listener from Bristol,Connecticut and from Canada,
Shawnigan Lake, Canada.
British Columbia.
I hope I got that right.
(30:13):
So the two listeners that I havethat listened to the last
episode, I just want to saythank you so much.
And if you're listening to thisand you're like, wow, hi, I just
listened.
Add me in.
Well, I'll catch you in the nextepisode and I will definitely
give you a shout out.
(30:33):
So once again, thank you verymuch for supporting and
listening to this podcast, TheFamily of One.
I will meet you in the nextepisode.
Bye.
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