Romper

Ambrosia Brody

Ambrosia Brody is a full-time editor, journalist and mother to two spirited daughters. She lives in Southern California in a beach city but hates the sand; enjoys people watching but hates small talk. Her time is spent raising two strong-willed daughters, trying to watching Netflix with her husband and reading celebrity news. She started to blog at Random Aspects of (My) Life when she realized everything she knew about parenting was wrong. Connect with her at ambrosia_brody@yahooo.com, Facebook or on Twitter.
I Worry About Speaking Spanish In Public, But I’m Doing It Anyway
My personal experiences with racism reach as far back as childhood, when I was told “go back to your country.” In adulthood, the racism pops up in unexpected places. A man recently pulled up beside us at a red light and yelled “what the f*ck kind of…
Why I Am Using Proper Body-Part Labels With My Young Kids
Anyone else cringe when little kids-or adults-refer to their “private parts” with cutesy names? Blame it on societal norms or the generation gap, but the terms "vagina," "vulva," and "penis" are not considered acceptable. During a time when…
You're Right, Kids Tend To Spill The Tea On Their Lives At Bedtime
The moment I turn the lights off and snuggle between my 4- and 6-year-old daughters is the second all the tea-spilling starts. “Hey Mom, guess what happened at school today,” is code for here come all the stories. Bedtime is when kids are most…
Loving My Postpartum Body Was Hard Because I Never Got Over Puberty
Women are instructed to do lots of things, especially new moms. If we aren’t being told to “cherish every moment” then we’re instructed to “sleep when the baby sleeps,” or “embrace your new body” after baby. But here’s the thing, feeling…
We Should Celebrate Maternity Leave Like We Do Sabbaticals
Looking down the barrel of a three-month leave from work made me feel more anxiety than excitement when I started planning maternity leave with my first daughter. Instead of looking forward to spending time with my first baby, I worried time away…
It's Awesome Being Pregnant On Thanksgiving Except When You Go Into Labor
My mom and tia were coming over to cook the turkey and the in-laws were coming for dinner. I was going to enjoy eating for two on the greatest eating day of the year. That was the plan, anyway. Instead, I was trapped in bed in a hospital gown and…
I Worry About My Girls Being Rejected, Like I Have Been
Watching my daughters run to little kids playing in the open space area in our local outdoor mall stirs up nervous butterflies in my stomach. Will the little girls accept my daughters' request to play or will they snub them in the way that little…
Anxiety Is Universal For New Moms — But Here's What Happens When It Gets Out Of Hand
As a first-time mom there were countless times that I spent my nights researching potential risks, activities, places or situations that could bring harm to my daughter. An outbreak of hand-foot-mouth disease meant we stayed away from the splash…
This Is What Happened When I Ditched The Diaper Bag
There's a conversation in Boondock Saints that goes something like, "Name one thing you gonna need a rope for." "You don't f*ckin' know what you're gonna need it for. They just always need it." I could say the same thing about my diaper bag. I…
I Tried Toddler Tantrum Techniques On My Own Anxiety, & I Have A New Appreciation For Tantrums
If you take a look at my hands in the days leading up to a big trip, an important meeting, a play date with a new mom, you’ll see painfully short nails and ripped cuticles. Not an awesome sight, I know. I’ve been a chronic nail biter due to social…
Here's What A Diversity Awareness Instructor Had To Say About Teaching Your Kid How To Be Inclusive
Eight thousand Starbucks stores closed on May 29 for "racial bias" training, often referred to as "diversity awareness" training, after two black men were arrested in April for simply waiting in a Philadelphia Starbucks for a friend to arrive…
If You Literally Feel Like A New Person After Having Your Baby, Here's Why
I can pinpoint the day I knew I was pregnant. It wasn’t the sleepiness or nauseousness brought on by the smell of coffee that tipped me off. The "aha" moment came when I started crying while watching the documentary Waiting For Superman. When the…
This Is Why You Feel So Bad About Your "Choice" To Be A SAHM Or Working Mom
Ask any U.S. mom why she decided to return to work, or stay at home, and I guarantee she has an Excel file tabulating the income versus child-care tradeoff, and a mental ledger of concerns about career momentum versus "quality time while they're…
Am I Too Old To Have Another Baby?
I didn’t think waiting until I was 30 to have my first baby would really matter. I mean, yes I would have liked to have started a family when I was in my mid-20s but it took some time to get a career going, get married, travel some and actually feel…
Labor Is Kind Of A Nightmare When You’re An Introvert
I have to admit that I was extremely self-conscious when I went into active labor with my first daughter. Although I knew that the nurses assisting me had most likely seen so many bare breasts, butts, and vaginas that they could care less how mine…
I Don't Care If It's Body-Positive, I Hate Being Naked In Front Of My Kids
The worst part is when I come out of the shower and my soon to be 3-year-old asks to touch my nipple. Are you freakin’ kidding me, kid?! Haven’t you done enough to my breasts? I am (technically) all for modeling body positivity, but nipples alive!…
I Gave Up Sleep For A Year Until The Risk Of SIDS Was Lower
When you announce you’re pregnant, people start throwing little tidbits of advice your way as though you actually want to hear it. After people starting freaking me out about all the negative aspects of having a baby (tearing, deflated breasts,…
How To Pack The Ultimate "Silky Mom" Hospital Bag
If you're halfway silky, you already know that some hospitals have Starbucks inside of them. You might have even chosen which hospital you'd like to deliver at based on whether or not it has a Starbucks. This post is for you. While plenty of…
I'll Admit It, I Was Skeptical About Vaccines
The controversy surrounding vaccinating was in full-force as I went from thinking, "kids, maybe?" to scheduling sex for the optimal chances of conception with the precision of a NASA engineer. Jenny McCarthy’s anti-vaccination arguments stuck with…
What "Overprotective" Moms Get Right About Sleepovers And Child Abuse
Are slumber parties dangerous? Now that everyone in America seems to have less than six degrees of separation from the nearest sexual predator, it's hard not to look at the rash of abuses and panic about sending your kids, well, anywhere. Gymnasts,…