Talkin’ ’bout My Resolutions
Welcome to the January Carnival of Natural Parenting: Parenting resolutions!
This post was written for inclusion in the monthly Carnival of Natural Parenting hosted by Hobo Mama and Code Name: Mama. This month we’re writing about how we want to parent differently — or the same — in the New Year. Please read to the end to find a list of links to the other carnival participants.
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Every year someone asks me about my New Year’s resolutions.
Usually, I answer with a resounding, “Meh…” Resolutions, schmesolutions.
Resolutions are all about good intentions and you know where those lead…straight into that pint of doublefudgemochacookiesncreammarshmallow chocolate ice-cream you just resolved to avoid two seconds ago. At least it was a yummy descent into hell.
Despite my usual resolve to be apathetic (about well…resolving), I started 2010 as James Brown would say, “on the good foot.”
(Hold on, dancing intermission time):
Annnnnd I’m back. Phew, what a workout (in my head)! Now where was I? Ah yes, resolutions. I have made a few after all.
I resolve to (ahem!) –
1) Continue cloth diapering and reduce the number of disposable diapers we use
Baby E usually wears the disposables when we go out, when he goes to bed and during poop marathons. However, I think we’ve gotten to the point where we can survive mostly on cloth. Plus, it gives me an excuse to indulge my burgeoning addiction to pocket diapers.
2) Learn about baby signs
Is that snickering I hear in the peanut gallery? Baby sign language? She’s officially bonkers now. Well, no, not yet at least. Baby signs can come in handy when your little one is trying to communicate with you but just doesn’t have the verbal skills to do so yet. What mom doesn’t want to avoid a baby meltdown of frustration? Baby E has already learned to throw himself backwards when he gets fussy. I’d like to have the tools to nip that one in the bud.
3) Try to implement a bedtime routine
Really, there’s a reason I’m writing this blog post at 12:30 am on a weekday – the kiddo wouldn’t go to sleep. Something’s gotta be done – nuff said.
4) Read more to Baby E
This is my greatest shame so far. I LOVE to read. I just haven’t been able to finish a book since I gave birth. How will I pass along the joy of reading if I don’t even participate in the joy?
So, those are my parenting resolutions for 2010. I have committed them to electronic memory and now I have no choice but to follow up with what I have promised or risk looking like the resolution backslider that I really am.
So, how are your New Year’s resolutions going?
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Visit Hobo Mama and Code Name: Mama to find out how you can participate in the next Carnival of Natural Parenting!
Please take time to read the submissions by the other carnival participants:
(All the links should be active by noon on Jan. 12. Go to Hobo Mama and Code Name: Mama for the most recently updated list.)
• To Yell or Not to Yell — The Adventures of Lactating Girl
• It Is All About Empathy: Nurturing a Toddler’s Compassion Potential — Baby Dust Diaries
• To my babies: this year… — BluebirdMama
• Mindfully Loving My Children — Breastfeeding Moms Unite!
• January Carnival of Natural Parenting: Resolutions — Code Name: Mama
• Imperfect Mother — Consider Eden
• Resolutions — Craphead (aka Mommy)
• FC Mom’s Parenting Resolutions 2010 — FC Mom
• What’s in a Resolution? — Happy Mothering
• January Carnival of Natural Parenting: Parenting resolutions — Hobo Mama
• Natural Parenting Resolutions — Little Green Blog
• This year, I will mostly… — Look Left of the Pleiades
• Parenting Resolutions — The Mahogany Way
• I Resolve to Breastfeed In Public More Often — mama2mama tips
• Moving to Two Kids — Megna the Destroyer
• Use Love — Momopoly
• My parenting resolutions — Musings of a Milk Maker
• Talkin’ ’bout My Resolutions — Navelgazing
• Parenting Resolutions — One Starry Night
• Invitations, not resolutions — Raising My Boychick
• No more multitasking during kid time — The Recovering Procrastinator
• I need to slow down, smell those roses AND the poopy diapers — Tales of a Kitchen Witch Momma
• Resolutely Parenting in 2010 — This Is Worthwhile
Posted on January 12, 2010, in Cloth diapers, Holidays, Natural parenting, New mommyhood, video and tagged 2010, Cloth diapers, Natural parenting, New Year, pocket diapers, resolutions. Bookmark the permalink. 22 Comments.
Navelgazing 
I’m convinced that my son’s very minimal “tantrums” are thanks to sign language – even before he had spoken words, he had tons of signs and could tell us what was on his mind. It seems that tantrums are so often due to a lack of communication. I can’t recommend signing enough!
I totally agree with the signing thing. My son took a long time to talk comprehensibly, and it was such a trip to glimpse what was in his thoughts before he could verbalize it. He loved signing, and it was a lot of fun, so it wasn’t like adding on an extra burden in any way. You might see if the library has books or the Signing Time or Baby Signing Time DVDs — those are an easy way to pick up some signs (for you, I mean!).
And the reading thing — I am such a slacker there, too, and I adore reading myself. I have to make sure books are scattered absolutely everywhere at home (not hard — ha ha!) so that I’ll stumble across one and it will remind me to have some reading time. I think I should try to institute a routine of bedtime reading, but I’m terrible with schedules, too.
It’s funny, I actually had so much *more* time for books after the Boychick was born — at least for the first few months. Whenever he was nursing, napping, sleeping in, playing on his own (usually in my lap, sometimes on the floor next to me), I had time for a book. I went through dozens of novels in those early months.
Of course, since then…
Also, third on the yay for ASL signs. They really did help in that period between brain being ready for communication and mouth managing to talk — about 9-18 months, for the Boychick. *Huge* help.
Great resolutions; I love your writing style too – really funny 😀 Baby signing is awesome, I did a tiny bit with DD, but it made SUCH a difference. GOod luck with them all and have a wonderful 2010 🙂
Hi there fellow carnival-ee (is that a word?). I’ve been using baby signs with A since she was born and at 11 months she understands milk (nurse), more, eat, drink, bath, nap, and all done. She makes the sign all done. Overall it has been really exciting to be able to communicate with her in this small way. I hope you have great luck with it!
Love the James Brown clip! The girls came running when they heard the music.
I would love to try baby sign language with this new babe. I’m all for cutting down tantrums.
Love cloth diapers! There are so many cute ones out there. can’t wait to use cloth again. It’s hard for me to stick with just one type.
Great resolutions! They are very similar to mine when I had one little one and was still CDing and all of that fun stuff! I think of all of this, reading is my favorite one. You can never read too much together!
Ooh, once a bedtime routine is implemented it feels like the skies open up and rainbows are in every corner. Of course, it’s not set in stone and things happen, but having that base to fall back on is a life-saver for me. I look forward to that grown-up time every night and without it I think I’d lose my mind entirely.
We did some “light” sign language in my house and it was awesome. I just taught him feelings and a few object names such as “paci,” “blankie,” “hungry,” “water,” and “more.” I wasn’t too interested in teaching him the sign for “elephant” since I wasn’t so sure we’d need it in our every day lives in Austin hahaha. Good luck!
Ha! Love the dancer interlude.
Ah, bedtime. I have three kiddos 5 and under, and we have more steps for our bedtime than it would take to launch a nuclear attack. And, yet, they still don’t always sleep well. Sleep is for wimps anyways. 🙂
Great resolutions. Blessings!
I think that doing some baby signs is pretty easy and I did some and it was great. I made up my own and the kids made up a few of their own for some things. I think the trick is that it doesn’t have to be ASL unless you really want to learn that (assuming you don’t already know it?). That way it doesn’t feel like one more thing you have to learn or do. You can just learn a few basic signs – nurse, more, eat, drink – and then make some up or look them up as you need them.
Good luck with your resolutions. 🙂
ummmm hippygirl is craphead and craphead is hippygirl. sorry, didn’t realize i was logged into the other account! haha.
That’s fine, I do that too sometimes. By the way, I absolutely loved the story behind the name, “Craphead.” It’s so something my husband and I would do.
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