Over the next few days I will be introducing a variety of moms that I have met through blogging. I asked them all a series of questions and have loved reading their answers – so I hope my blog readers enjoy them too! I am calling this series “A Mom a Minute.” Today, let’s spend a minute with Kera from Nugget on a Budget!
Tell us about your kids – how many, boys/girls, names, ages, etc.
I have one little girl, Sofia {commonly known as the Nugget}, who is 18 months old. At the end of the summer, we’ll be welcoming another little girl into our family 🙂
What are your kids into right now? TV Shows, music, movies, toys, books, etc? What are their favorite things?
Sofia is really into her baby dolls and her play kitchen. She already has a huge imagination, which I love. She also has started to play dress up with necklaces and her headbands. She calls them “pretty”. We don’t watch too much TV yet, but her favorite shows are Sofia the First and Doc McStuffins on Disney Junior. What she does love the most though is dancing! She asks Daddy to turn on Pandora on his iPad the minute he walks through the door.
What kind of activities are your kids involved in? If they are too little for activities, what do you think you might want them involved in when they are older?
I enrolled Sofia in a music class this Spring for the first time because she loves to dance. It’s a good way to get her around other kids her age too {and I enjoy the mom company lol}. It’s hilarious though, she acts totally the opposite of her crazy, outgoing self when we’re there! She’s so serious, like she’s taking it all in. This summer I’d love to get her involved in swimming lessons and gymnastics. When she’s a bit older, I think she’ll love dance and playing soccer and golf. Well, her Daddy hopes she’ll love golf!
Where have you gone with your kids that you’d recommend to others? Children’s museums, amusement parks, vacations?
We haven’t taken Sofia to that many places yet, since she’s just now starting to enjoy those things. I’d love to take her to the American Girl Doll store and to the zoo or the aquarium this summer. It’s on my to-do list. We do go to the beach multiple times each summer since my parents own a house, and she loves it there.
Are your kids picky eaters or do they eat whatever you make them? What are their favorites?
Oh wow. Sofia was the pickiest eater alive up until a few months ago. I exclusively breastfed, and she didn’t even start to get used to solids until 9 months, even though I introduced them at 6 months. It wasn’t until her 12 month checkup when her pediatrician told us that she needed to gain weight {she wasn’t even on the chart for weight compared to her height} that we knew we had to do something. We started letting her have what we were eating and she has done really well since then. Still though, she hates whole milk and drinks water over juice. I’d say her favorite foods are any kind of fruit, Greek yogurt, and crackers.
What is your mom super power?
My mom super power lol…that’s hard! I think it would be the ability to put Sofia down for her nap when we are home. She used to absolutely HATE her crib and would scream any time we’d put her in there. Then I tried sleep training her for naps {my last resort} and it literally only took 3 days. Now I can read a story to her and put her in the crib awake and she takes a 2-3 hour nap!
What is your biggest mom challenge or struggle?
My biggest struggle these days is wanting to get Sofia in her own bed for the night instead of in OUR bed. And to finally end those night time nursings so I have a few months off before the new baby arrives. If we weren’t having another baby yet, I wouldn’t care. But I really want to get her on a good bedtime schedule before the baby comes. I know she’ll be fine when it’s all said and done, but it’s still hard!
What has been your biggest surprise as a mom – something you do that you didn’t think you would ever do or something you just didn’t expect?
I always thought that I’d be more of an organic foods, organic everything type of mom. LOL! Until I realized how much money that costs. Especially on a budget. They don’t really make many coupons for organic things, and we don’t live in a place where the Farmer’s Market is available to us year-round. I came to terms that it’s okay to give your kids non-organic things–they’ll still be healthy and turn out fine. I also never though I’d shop at consignment shops. Those are the BEST places to find great quality items for cheap!
Give us some Mommy advice!
I think all moms can give a ton of advice of what has worked for them and their kids. But not all that advice is applicable to other moms because we all do things differently. And that’s one of the best things. I guess some advice I could give to first-time moms would be to do whatever feels right and what works for you and your baby. No matter what others say. If you’re breastfeeding, don’t be afraid to pump early on and have your baby get used to taking your milk from a bottle sometimes. It will make things easier for you later on.
Don’t forget to visit Kera at her blog!
Thank you so much to everyone for tuning into this series over the past two weeks. I hope you enjoyed it and found some new blogs to read – I just love all the ladies who participated!!