These are a few of the books that I have read lately:
Being a Stay-at-Home-Mom is an honor. Mothers choose to stay home or work for various reasons and neither choice is the absolute right choice for everyone. Working is sometimes the only option that makes sense financially for a family or some moms feel like they are better, more patient mothers when they put in fewer, yet more meaningful hours with their little ones. My personal opinions are in no way, shape, or form a reflection of anyone else's life or the choices that I think anyone else should make. This is what works for us.
I happen to love being home, even on the hard days, and am so grateful to my husband for being my biggest cheerleader in our choice for me to full-time parent our daughter. I wouldn't trade being home for the world and consider myself so fortunate to be able to do so, but, honestly, it really is the most difficult job in the world. I love being home and watching my child learn... everything. She's a little sponge and so eager to learn at this point. It is just such a fun age and I can't imagine missing a second of it. At the same time, a part of me wishes I had more free time or just time away to not be in teacher mode constantly. It can be mentally exhausting to repeat the same three word phrase over and over and over or to "read" certain books... and recite it from memory since you have already read it hundreds of times.
So, as the titles of the books I've recently read suggest, we have a very strong-willed child on our hands. She is an angel sometimes. She is also a kin to demons at others. I feel somewhat guilty for outing my child like this, but my little one can throw a fierce temper tantrum! She is also a cuddly, little love bug most of the time. However, the moments in between those sweet moments have been giving me a tremendous amount of anxiety lately! haha!
Since the terrible two's are just around the corner, I am fully aware that I am going to need to put together a game plan for how we intend to discipline our child as she grows. This is where the aforementioned books come in. She is already a handful and we are already putting some of these into practice now. We will be adding others as she comes to understand us better. We already use many disciplinary tactics and I am searching for more effective ways to raise our daughter into the woman that we hope she will become. We have a lot of work to do over the next 17+ years!
How I WISH there was an instruction manual out there for the fool proof way to raise a child. Emotions are tricky things, especially in regards to toddlers! Since she can't verbalize her wants/feelings yet, we have a major communication barrier. There are many guides, but what works for one child doesn't for the next and .... it is hard. It is so difficult to be confident in the decisions that you make for your child.
We all want the best for our children. We pray daily for guidance, we ask for advice, we educate ourselves on various parenting methods... and really, you just have to give it your best and hope you get it right, right?! For someone who micromanages the details of our life, accepting this is so extremely difficult for me.
All of this said... I am so glad that I have these decisions to make. : )
where is Daddy??
Have a lovely day, Everyone!!! 
