We kick off with Shanelle and next week will be my friend Anoma. I can't wait for you to meet them all. They are truly unique and I applaud them. My she-roes if you will, check out our #MomFlow
I'm the style/features editor for PEOPLE.com's Moms & Babies channel. In a nutshell, I cover the style of celeb moms and their kids. I also edit and write feature galleries for the site. I'd (Chicbusymom here) like to add that she is also an amazing stylist and has a great eye for fashion.
How
many children do you have? Ages?
I have 3 children. My
daughter, Amhara, is 19 and a sophomore at Brooklyn College. My son, Masai, is
12 and a 7th grader. My baby, Dayo, is 15 months-old. We
decided to take another stab at parenthood. :)
With a daughter in college what made you and your
husband decide to go back to the well now?
Our oldest two children
were well past the little kid stage and pretty self-sufficient. And both my
husband and I were approaching 40 so we thought why not see if we could have
another baby. Not long after trying, we were pregnant and expecting our son,
Dayo, who is an absolute joy even though he tires us out every day.
Please share two of your biggest challenges you have had to face since having your 3rd child?
The biggest challenges
have been mostly maintaining the energy level necessary to look after an active
baby. Our son is into everything and both my husband and I have less energy
than we had when we were younger. We really feel it after a long day or a late
night with the little one. The other challenge is re-learning everything about
raising a baby. Since it's been so long, there were so many things we'd become
unfamiliar with e.g. teething, when to introduce solids, etc.
What
are the 3 biggest rewards?
The biggest rewards are
despite the lack of energy, we do feel younger. When people see us, they think
he's our first kid. We had our other kids pretty young, so we're actually more
in line with our friends now, which is nice because we can bond more with them
re: raising younger kids. Dayo also brings excitement to the house. Our family
unit was operating more independently for a while and now we all have more
reason to bond together. I definitely think he's brought us all closer.
What
are you doing differently this time around?
I'm being more Zen about
being a parent. I'm a pretty laid-back person, but I did tend to get anxious
about certain aspects of being a mom. Now, I know that trying and doing your
best is all you can do so I'm more patient. I don't get as upset about messes
or things being in their place. I'm just rolling with it and enjoying the ride
as I go along.
Does
motherhood physically feel different this time around?
As for my strength, no.
Holding him, carrying the stroller, etc. aren't difficult tasks for me. I'd say
just the energy level is different. There are a few more aches and pains that
just come with aging, but I don't really feel it's a drastic difference from
before.
Give us two mommy secrets/tips you can share?
I wish I had secrets or good tips. Friends ask all the time because they claim I make it look easy, but the only thing I can say is just enjoy the process and don't let it stress you out. Everything happens for a reason and will work out. Every time I find myself worked up about something kid-related (where they're going to go to school, will we find a babysitter, am I reading to them enough), I'm always amazed at how it just falls into place. And I don't beat myself up. If I want to watch a TV show or enjoy me time or a date with my husband, they'll be okay. They're good kids and I'm doing the best job I can do and that's all that matters.
What
do you do for ‘me time’ and ‘we time’?
Sadly, a lot of my 'me
time' includes watching TV shows that I'm obsessed with and I'm obsessed with a
lot. I also like to read. I actually enjoy riding the train because it's 30
minutes of uninterrupted reading time. We don't have as much "we time"
now that the baby is here, but when we do, we go out to eat or to a movie. My
goal for next year is to plan a really nice trip for the family and one for
just the two of us. I do need to do a better job of getting out and
experiencing what the city has to offer for kids especially now that I have
another little one in the house.
What is your
guilty pleasure?
Watching bad reality TV
shows. I know it's bad. And shopping, which I mostly do online.
What are the top
5 things on your bucket list?
a) Become a full time
fashion stylist
b) Buy a beach house
c) Travel all over the
world with my family
d) Volunteer to help
abused kids
e) Write a TV show
What is the one
piece of advice you would impart on a mother sharing a similar journey?
Keep your head up. No
really, having kids so far apart has been really fun on a lot of levels. I
would advise someone in a similar situation to really enjoy all the moments
because it goes by so quickly. Having a 19 year old seemed so far away and now
I'm here and I can remember staring at her while she slept as an infant. Just
try to live in the moment as much as possible.
No comments :
Post a Comment