Becca has to be on of my favorite bloggers of all time. For real y'all. She has to have some superhero in her family tree, I don't understand how she does it all personally, she is a work-at-home Mom with her adorable baby boy Jax and the master mind behind Jumping Jax Designs and designed my blog :).
I did a quick little interview with her so all of you can get to know her, so enjoy.
1. Why did you start blogging?
I started blogging shortly after my husband and I got married in 2008. Little did I know that 3 days after my first blog post, I'd get BFP, and the blog would turn into a pregnancy journal/baby book, and a way to keep out-of-town family up to date on our life. I blog about raising my little guy and the joys and stresses that it entails.
2. What made you start Jumping Jax Designs?
I have always loved fashion and had a knack for creative design, but since I went to college to be a teacher, I didn't really have an outlet for that. When I had my son last year, I just knew that daycare wasn't for our family. I wanted to stay home with him, but somehow still bring in money, doing something I loved. It was my mother-in-law who finally gave me the swift kick in the pants to get my own business going last August. I'm so amazed every day with how much it has grown, and how much I have grown throughout the past year. I never thought I could LOVE a job this much!
3. What was your first “OMG, I’m a Mom” moment?
Well my first "oh my gosh, I birthed a human!" moment was when I walked into the NICU to meet Jax for the first time. I just stared at him and couldn't believe that my body made that. The button nose, long eyelashes, fingernails, everything. My body did that. I can't describe that feeling. I didn't really and truly feel like his mom though until we took him home from the NICU. Until then, there were nurses looking over our shoulder every time we held him, and monitoring how much time he was held, etc. Once we got him home, I actually had that "whoa, this little person's life is in my hands" feeling.
If you mean like a ridiculous thing I've done, where I can't believe I did it but I totally realized what a "mom" I am at that moment, it would have to be the few times where I inspected/smelled brown spots on my shirt/hands/hair and said "is this chocolate? or poop?" SUCH a mom.
4. Reading your “He’s All Boy” post I see Jax likes to laugh at his “gas”. So this leads to the question, what has been your most embarrassing Mom moment?
Wow, there have been way too many. I'd say it's a close tie between the 2 times he dumped my entire drink all over my light colored (read: see-through when wet) pants/skirt, throwing a shoe-hurdling temper tantrum on the floor of Chick Fil A, or when he had a ridiculous blowout (seriously, diarrhea came out of every possible angle of the diaper) TODAY in Dollar Tree.
5. What is your favorite post you have written? And why?
My favorite posts are always the ones where I'm just honest, open, and raw about motherhood, but I usually feel so inhibited and afraid to hit "publish" on posts like that. I enjoyed writing about my "Just Wait" thoughts towards snotty pregnant women, and it felt incredibly therapeutic to get my thoughts out into the open about the abnormality of my birth experience.
6. How much time do you spend on your blog a week?
I blog every night and each post usually takes from 10 minutes to two hours, depending on the topic. Or if it's something close to my heart that I'm feeling iffy about posting, it can take me days or weeks of waffling back and forth about whether or not to post!
7. What is a Mommy “must have” for you?
Actually it's two things that when I was pregnant, I considered superfluous items: Homedics Sound Spa Lullaby white noise machine, AKA Baby Crack Machine, and the video monitor.
The sound machine played on "rain" has been invaluable and has been used every naptime and bedtime since Jax came home. I think he got used to the noise of the NICU (and of course the noise of the womb) and it just helps him block everything else out and sleep!
Being preemie parents, we were paranoid about letting Jax sleep in his own room, especially with his history of breathing problems (he has reflux and as a newborn choked, stopped breathing & went gray/limp on several occasions). Having the video monitor right next to me allowed me to watch him sleep and gave me peace of mind -- I could even see his chest rise and fall! Plus, back then, and even now, they make such odd noises, it's so nice to just glance and see what shenanigans he's up to now. :)
8. What was the best piece of advise you have been given. Ever.
It's not really advice, but my grandma is always telling me "this too shall pass" and that helps me keep perspective. It was good for me to remember that when he was in the NICU, when he screamed all.the.time. from reflux, sleepless nights and up to the present, with his feeding issues, it will all pass. None of it is going to last forever, and if you keep that in mind, it's much easier to relish the sweet moments amidst the chaos, because they really are fleeting.
9. What is a guilty pleasure for you?
Caffeine. I work some LATE nights (sometimes til 3-4am), so I need something to keep me focused. Unfortunately, that is often a giant Diet Coke, which I know isn't doing me any favors in the weight loss department (even if it IS diet) and sure can't be helping the insomnia I face once I finally do crawl into bed at night!
If you would like to be featured on TheNerdyKatie Blog, please email me at thenerdykatie@gmail.com. Don't be shy gosh darn-it!
0 comments:
Post a Comment