(Over)Thinking Mom » Podcast Episodes

Four unplanned pregnancies, a history of alcohol abuse, struggles with domestic violence, an uneasy relationship with welfare, and Sacramento State’s most valuable debater award.  And I thought being a well-supported stay at home mom of one baby was tiring. In this week’s episode, I talk with my cousin Bethany, a single mother of five, about her life’s path from a confused and self-destructive teen mom to a college student with honor role kids. Don’t forget to subscribe to all (Over)Thinking Mom posts by RSS or Email.  Are you afraid of commitment?  That’s okay, you can subscribe to each portion of the blogcast separately.  Check out by RSS or Email the once a week Podcast Episode.  You can also subscribe through iTunes.  If you have liked the podcasts, feel free to leave a review with iTunes.  Don't forget you can also pitch a show! Tales from a Young, Single Mother of Five

Wet nurses have been around to feed other women’s babies since women started having babies, but in the last few generations wet nurses have fallen out of favor, mostly because of the introduction of formula, among other reasons. In 2007 a small series of articles noted a new minor reemergence of wet nursing, often in the form of cross nursing, when two or more women feed each others' baby in a child care arrangement.  In 2009, while on a humanitarian mission to Sierra Leone, Salma Hayek made headlines by breastfeeding a newborn African baby.  So what do you think?  Is modern day wet nursing weird or wonderful? Articles: "Salma Hayek on Why She Breastfed Another Woman's Baby" by Kimberly Kaplan at ABC News 11 Feb. 2009. "Modern Day Wet Nursing" by Carol Lloyd at Salon.com 26 April 2007. "Not Your Mother's Milk" by Viv Groskop in The Guardian 5 January 2007. Don’t forget to subscribe to all (Over)Thinking Mom posts by RSS or Email.  Are you afraid of commitment?  That’s okay, you can subscribe to each portion of the blogcast separately.  Check out by RSS or Email the once a week Podcast Episode.  You can also subscribe through iTunes.  If you have liked the podcasts, feel free to leave a review with iTunes. Modern Day Wet Nursing

Many people, Oprah included, often hail moms, especially stay at home moms, as those with the hardest and most important job in the world.  However, misconceptions about our day to day lives are prevalent.  When I tell people I’m a stay at home mom, I’m often met by condescension, confusion, or indifference.  In a society that measures success through job descriptions, where does the stay at home mom fit? I talk with Alyssa, stay at home mom and blogger at adventuresofthestayathomemom.com about this job.  How does she keep her son amused?  What is the hardest part of the day?  The most rewarding?  And what does the internet have to do with all this? Don’t forget to subscribe to all (Over)Thinking Mom posts by RSS or Email.  Are you afraid of commitment?  That’s okay, you can subscribe to each portion of the blogcast separately.  Check out by RSS or Email the once a week Podcast Episode.  You can also subscribe through iTunes.  If you have liked the podcasts, feel free to leave a review with iTunes. Adventures of a stay at home mom

We all know Santa Claus couldn’t travel the world delivering toys without the help of a good woman, but when did Mrs. Claus enter the storybook picture? Where did she come from? What does she represent? I examine the origins of Mrs. Claus, her Christmas role as the perfect child-less mother, and her connection to the Martha Stewarts (of which I’m not among) of the world.  Merry Christmas! Don’t forget to subscribe to all (Over)Thinking Mom posts by RSS or Email.  Are you afraid of commitment?  That’s okay, you can subscribe to each portion of the blogcast separately.  Check out by RSS or Email the once a week Podcast Episode.  You can also subscribe through iTunes.  If you have liked the podcasts, feel free to leave a review with iTunes. Meet Mrs. Claus

According to some statistics, as many as 70% of moms work outside of the home, whether full time or part time.  Nearly 30% of babies with working moms use daycare specifically.  Not all statistics are full proof, and I’m not sure I’d go around quoting those numbers as absolute fact, but they do mean child care is a big issue for American moms. I stay at home with my daughter, so I am the opposite of an authority on this topic.  Therefore, I talk with Lindsay, a working mother of one with another on the way, about her experiences with different kinds of childcare.  I ask her about the decision to go back to work, about how she chose her daycare, and about what makes a daycare good, among other things. Childcare and the Working Mom

Although celebrities would have us believe otherwise, having a baby can wreak havoc on your body.  Personally, I gained over 40 pounds, and even after losing all the weight I felt (okay, feel) unsatisfied with my saggy post-baby body.  I had an almost ten pound baby and my body will never be the same, but after coming to terms with my new shape, I hired a personal trainer to help teach me safe ways to gain muscle and energy. My workout enthusiasm is hit or miss, so I’m not one to give advice, but my trainer was great.  I talk with her, Connie Marshall of Life Fitness 4 Me, about working out during and after pregnancy.  What are the biggest mistakes pregnant women and new moms make?  Are personal trainers only for the rich and famous?  Are all trainers the same?  Connie answers these questions and more. Body After Baby

You may have heard of Sarah Josepha Hale, the Mother of Thanksgiving.  If you haven’t, she was a widowed mother of five, editor of the magazine Godey’s Lady’s Book, and the reason we have a national day of Thanksgiving.  In 1863, President Lincoln issued the national proclamation giving us our American feast.  A children’s book even has the title Thank you, Sarah:  The Woman Who Saved Thanksgiving. But who was Sarah Hale?  For one, she was a complicated figure, a woman who opposed giving women the right to vote, but who lobbied for Thanksgiving as a particularly American and feminine holiday.  I look at Hale’s life, as well as an article by the historian Anne Wills, to discuss the 19th century foundations of this holiday.  It turns out, Pilgrims had less to do with Thanksgiving than did 19th century magazines.  Perhaps elementary school students should be dressing up as periodicals rather than as Pilgrims. Don’t forget to subscribe to all (Over)Thinking Mom posts by RSS or Email.  Are you afraid of commitment?  That’s okay, you can subscribe to each portion of the blogcast separately.  Check out by RSS or Email the once a week Podcast Episode.  You can also subscribe through itunes. Periodicals, not Pilgrims

In Podcast Episode 15 I talked with Clara about our own post-baby marriages.  This week, I up the ante and bring in my husband Dave.  As I’ve mentioned before, we got married about two years after we started dating and had a two month old help us celebrate our one year wedding anniversary.  Therefore, our marriage has been consumed with preparing for a baby, having a baby, and caring for this baby. What are some of the pitfalls facing couples after they have their first baby, newlyweds or not?  What is the Great Mom/Dad Divide?  What’s the score?  Dave and I discuss these questions as we talk about our own evolving post-baby marriage. Don’t forget to subscribe to all (Over)Thinking Mom posts by RSS or Email.  Are you afraid of commitment?  That’s okay, you can subscribe to each portion of the blogcast separately.  Check out the once a week Podcast Episode by RSS or Email.  You can also subscribe through itunes. He Said/She Said

For many years I have heard the warning that babies ruin marriages, and those issuing this warning often have years long studies backing up their claims. Since Dave and I got pregnant less than two months after getting married, I spent much of my pregnancy wondering if Amelia’s arrival would kill the romance. Guess what? It did, but does less romance correlate with a weak marriage? Does marital happiness always decrease post baby? I, along with Clara of maevesmomma.blogspot.com, look at two articles, one from msnbc.com with the title “Secret to marital bliss? Don’t have kids,” the other from the Monitor on Psychology by the American Psychological Association with the title “Parenthood detrimental to marriage? Not necessarily.” We examine the findings of these articles and how they relate to our own post-baby marriages. Don't forget to subscribe to all (Over)Thinking Mom posts by RSS or Email.  Are you afraid of commitment?  That's okay, you can subscribe to each portion of the blogcast separately.  Check out the once a week Podcast Episode by RSS or Email.  You can also subscribe through itunes. Your Post-Baby Marriage

In August of 2010, Skyscanner, a price comparison website, released findings from a poll revealing that out of 2000 passengers, 60% would prefer a separate family section on airlines and 20% would prefer child-free flights all together.  This is not music to my ears as I fret about flying with Amelia across country for the first time over Christmas. I talk with my cousin Abby, mother to one year old Teddy, about her travel experiences.  What should you bring?  Where does your baby sleep?  What about diaper changes?  Listen to find answers to these questions and many more. The Child Un-Friendly Skies

The Introduction to Dr. William Sears’ and Martha Sears’ 2003 edition of The Baby Book warns mothers, “Beware of Baby Trainers.”  They do not warn “Beware of Parenting Books” (because if they did their massive book would become obsolete).  Should we be wary of parenting books?  I’m not the one to ask; I read entirely too many.  Perhaps, instead of avoiding these manuals, we should put them in context. I look at Christina Hardyment’s book Dream Babies to give us some perspective on parenting throughout the 18th, 19th, and 20th centuries.  What did the experts say?  Have the manuals changed?  What were their goals?  These are large questions and I can’t fully answer them, but I try to summarize Hardyment’s findings anyhow. Bad Mother

The word doula comes from Ancient Greek and meant “female slave.”  However, the word has evolved over time and has come to describe non-medical support in labor and delivery.  According to some reports, only around three percent of American women use a doula and many have never even heard the term, but doulas are becoming more popular among certain segments of the population. What is a doula?  Is a doula a midwife?  How much does one cost?  What benefits does a doula bring to the labor and delivery experience?  What about postpartum doulas?  I talk with Ruth, a doula based in Northern California, and get answers to all these questions. Website: Ruth Lundsten's Doula Services Whats a Doula

We all know the guidelines for introducing solids to babies.  First, comes rice cereal mixed with breast milk or formula between four and six months, then comes pureed vegetables and fruits, one at a time.  I’m not exactly the type of person to buck all parenting guidelines, but I’m planning to skip rice cereals and purees completely.  I’m a little nervous about trying out this baby-led solids approach, so I talk with two moms, Sarah and Clara, about their experiences with Baby-Led Weaning (this is the British term for introducing solid foods and the title of Gill Rapley and Tracey Murkett’s book). How does this approach work?  Won’t your baby choke?  Will your baby waste away?  I try to find answers to these questions and more. Books: Baby Led Weaning Blog: My Life with Bryce Baby Led Solids: Skipping Rice Cereal and Purees Completely

In April 2009, The Atlantic published Hanna Rosin’s article “The Case Against Breast-Feeding.” In it, Rosin, a nursing mother of three young children, concludes that evidence supporting the health benefits of breastfeeding is surprisingly thin and that “breast is best” has become the upper class jingle without real thought to the negative effects of exclusive breastfeeding. Although Rosin brings up good points about the imbalance of parenting roles in many marriages, her overall argument against breastfeeding is misleading, judgmental, and aimed at a very small subsection of American women. I talk with Jamie, an experienced nursing mother, about the case against Rosin’s case against breastfeeding. Article: “The Case Against Breastfeeding” by Hanna Rosin in The Atlantic, April 2009. Blog Responses: “My Case Against Hanna Rosin’s Case Against Breastfeeding” by desmoinesdem at Bleeding Heartland, 24 March, 2009. "The Scientific Benefits of Breastfeeding" by PhD in Parenting, 14 May 2009. Health Study *Yes,  I noted that the study does not infer causality, but this doesn't make the study any less compelling. Breastfeeding and Maternal and Infant Health Outcomes in Developed Countries, Structured Abstract. May 2009. Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, Rockville, MD. The Case Against the Case Against Breastfeeding

The title of this episode refers to the famous disappearance of a ten-week old Australian baby in August 1980.  Although this baby girl was attacked on a camping trip by a wild animal, the dangers of all dogs, wild or otherwise, are often overlooked.  In July of 2010, in San Diego, a two year old boy was fatally mauled by a family’s German Shepherd Mix in military housing  The mother was downstairs during the attack, the father deployed overseas.  This story struck a little too close to home and prompted me to reevaluate the way I allow our German Shepherd and baby girl to interact. How dangerous are dogs to babies?  Do we treat our dogs like our babies?  How does the relationship between an owner and pet change when a newborn enters the picture?  I talk with my husband, Dave, about these questions and more. Article: "Newborn Babies Steal Pets' Spotlight" by Stephanie Pappas at Livescience.com on 15 August 2010. News Reports: "3 Week Old Baby Mauled to Death by Dog" at cbs2chicago.com on 21 January 2009. "Fatal Dog Mauling of Toddler Determined to be Accident" at 10News.com on 31 July 2010. A Dingo Ate My Baby