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Make Motherhood Your Own

In Family by Madison Mayberry2 Comments

For the last three days I’ve had the JOY to spend three uninterrupted days with women from around the country at The Influence Conference. I met up with my sister-in-law, Amber, and good friend, Laura, for some much-needed girl time, a break from daily routines and time to think about the bigger picture in life rather than the day-to-day tasks. Did I mention this was my first overnight trip away from Ainsley? I had big plans for sleeping, but I … Read More

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Merlin’s Magic Sleep Suit Giveaway

In Family, Pregnancy by Madison Mayberry62 Comments

  Hi, friends! I have an exciting giveaway for you all today. A few weeks ago, I mentioned that the Baby Merlin’s Magic Sleep Suit was one of my must-have baby products for the first handful of months. I wasn’t kidding when I said that it made all the difference in how Ainsley slept. That girl didn’t like having her arms swaddled, and the Baby Merlin was just comforting enough to help her sleep without causing frustration from not being … Read More

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Help a Momma Out?

In Fashion by Madison Mayberry9 Comments

  I picked up a bunch of cheap little dresses toward the end of the summer to bridge me into fall and have been meaning to put together more of a formal fashion post. Alas, I’ve been spending most of my days working from home and when I’m not working, I’m either tending to a sometimes fussy baby (teething!) or covered in paint as we begin our home renovation project. Ainsley, on the other hand, thinks she looks mighty fine … Read More

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When Breast Isn’t Best

In Family, Pregnancy by Madison Mayberry19 Comments

Last week, I posted about breastfeeding (or rather, not breastfeeding and choosing to formula feed instead) on Espresso and Cream’s Facebook page. As I should have anticipated I got a lot of responses, some good and some filled with outrage. Because Facebook is short-form, I’m not sure my intent and thoughts behind my post were conveyed properly and with the clarity that I intended. I thought perhaps it was worth devoting a post to further clarification and explanation. When I … Read More

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You Light Up My Life

In Family by Madison Mayberry7 Comments

Before I had a baby I was very skeptical about motherhood. I read post after post from moms who talked about how fulfilling and amazing it was being a momma to littles, and I worried that I wouldn’t find it nearly as gratifying and wonderful as others described. I wondered, to be totally honest, if I had the “mom gene.” We walked the road of infertility for two years before Ainsley arrived. Sometimes when you’re in the thick of charting … Read More

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Mommy + Mind Update: 4 Months

In Family by Madison Mayberry19 Comments

I’ve talked a little bit about going back to work after having a baby, but I realized that for the most part I’ve been pretty quiet about my return back to the working world and how our family has been adjusting to the change. Truth be told, before I became a mom I couldn’t have ever pictured myself even entertaining the idea of staying home with my baby. “Not for me! No way!” I would boldly proclaim. I was raised … Read More

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Trust me, new momma. It gets better!

In Family by Madison Mayberry6 Comments

Man, oh man. Those first few weeks and months of motherhood? Let’s be honest, they’re pretty dang hard. I was really discouraged by everyone who told me about the difficulties of new motherhood, but guess what? They were right. When I think about how my baby is getting older and bigger by the day? I think I’m supposed to be super sad about the whole thing. Sometimes when I look at those tiny little clothes I’m packing away I do … Read More

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There is no shame in formula (and other truths about motherhood)

In Uncategorized by Madison Mayberry7 Comments

Photo by Gina Zeidler www.ginazeidler.com www.ginazeidler.com/blog I really don’t mean to stir the pot with the title of this post, but I’ve had so many thoughts flying around in my head as I reflect on the first 12 weeks of motherhood. Those first months are full of self-doubt and questions, especially when your baby doesn’t go “by the book” the way you had planned. Ha! Does any baby? For me, when things with Ainsley weren’t going the way I thought they … Read More

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Exclusively Pumping: Making It Less Miserable

In Uncategorized by Madison Mayberry19 Comments

  Flashback photo from Ainsley’s first week of life, when we were still figuring out the whole pumping/bottle feeding thing. Eeek! Can you believe how little she is there? Be still my momma heart.  I think one thing everyone who has ever breast fed can agree on is this: pumping is absolutely the worst. Anyone with me on that one? Although Ainsley is only two months old, I have already put my pump to good use since I’ve been exclusively pumping … Read More

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I didn’t realize how selfish I was until I became a mom.

In Uncategorized by Madison Mayberry25 Comments

Before I had a baby, I promised myself that I wasn’t going to talk about how hard motherhood is. I had heard so many other women tell me that motherhood was the most difficult/wonderful thing they had ever done, but quite honestly I was discouraged by those stories because they made me dread, rather than anticipate, what was to come for our little family. But now that I’ve been doing this motherhood thing for about six long and incredibly short … Read More