Jamie Kenney
Jamie Kenney is basically an amalgam of Marianne Dashwood from Sense & Sensibility, Karen Walker from Will & Grace, and Tom Hagen from The Godfather: a witty, sassy free-spirit who, alas, is just not a wartime consigliere. She has two children, and she talks about them a lot on Facebook, but in a totally charming, not annoying way.
11 Things I Thought I Had To Do For My Kids' Vaccinations, But Really Didn't
I'm a woman of science. Well, as much as someone who received horrible grades in biology and chemistry and took precisely one anatomy course in college can be. But I like science, and I believe science, so there was never a question as to whether or…
By Jamie Kenney
10 Things I'm Glad No One Told Me About Childbirth
I like a good surprise. I'll never read the spoilers to a movie or the last few pages of a book until it's time, I appreciate a well-placed jump-scare, and one of my best birthdays of my life was my surprise party when I turned 27. And while I often…
By Jamie Kenney
13 Things I Wish I Could Say To My Pre-Baby Boobs
Women's bodies are fascinating. On the very basic, primal level, they're fascinating the way any living organism is. Sociologically, all the absolute toxic sludge we constantly douse them in is, similarly, fascinating. Horrifying, yes, but also…
By Jamie Kenney
10 Things I'm Glad No One Told Me About Getting A C-Section
I didn't know I was going to have a C-section, but deep down I had a feeling I might. Despite my labor starting on its own and progressing steadily, and despite my totally normal sized baby and his position, I just knew. So when my normal-sized baby…
By Jamie Kenney
13 Pieces Of Breastfeeding Advice From Other Moms That Made Me Feel Powerful
No one can give you advice about mothering like a mother can, and there were few subjects I was more grateful for advice on than breastfeeding. Even though I had a relatively easy time of it, I could not begin to measure the stress or tears that…
By Jamie Kenney
11 Things Authoritative Moms Do That Every Mom Should Try
In my AP Psychology class, one of the units I remember being particularly interested in was Diana Baumrind's parenting styles. In the 1960s she established three different types of parenting based on two dimensions: parent responsiveness to child's…
By Jamie Kenney
11 Things A Postpartum Orgasm Will Fix Immediately
Who has two thumbs and loves orgasms? My guess, probably 97 percent of everyone with two thumbs. Orgasms are great, you guys! They're like the ringing of bells and rainbows radiating from your fancy bits! Partnered or on your own, they do so much to…
By Jamie Kenney
An Open Letter To The Mom With The "Perfect" Kid
Dear Mom With The "Perfect" Kid:
If you're worried I might be talking about you, I probably am. If you're not sure, imagine the following situations: a harried parent struggles to deal with an unruly kid, a fellow mom's toddler is going through a…
By Jamie Kenney
Here Are The Traits Your Kid Will Get From Their Dad, According To The Zodiac
Astrology is so much fun, you guys. Is it a clear and uneditable map to your past, present, and future? Of course not. But it's an awesome meditation on different personality types. As long as we don't take ourselves too seriously, knowing about the…
By Jamie Kenney
27 Moms Reveal The One Trait Their Child *Definitely* Got From Them
The minute you hold your new baby in your arms you search for traces of yourself in them. If you're genetically connected to your child, you're literally in the building blocks of who they are. But I think the act of being their parent is more…
By Jamie Kenney
13 Things You Should Just Let Your Baby Do
The baby stage is full of advice. Professional advice. Family advice. Friend advice. Bad advice. And even though much of it will be contradictory or impossible to follow, you will try your best. But there are things you should let go of and things…
By Jamie Kenney
No, My Body Wasn't "Made To Have Babies"
I've heard it to varying levels of creepy and problematic. When a friend was worried about getting pregnant, another well-meaning friend assured her that our female bodies are made to have babies. People who want to severely limit anything else a…
By Jamie Kenney
20 Preschoolers Share What They Miss Most About Their Moms When They're At School
Parenting is full of bittersweet and emotionally complicated milestones, but few have ever matched the maelstrom of feelings that swirled within me when I sent my kids to school for the first time. Even though my kids had experienced day care,…
By Jamie Kenney
Here Are The Traits You'll Pass On To Your Kid, Based On Your Zodiac Sign
While the Zodiac itself may not be the most scientific or well-proven of belief systems, one thing that has been established is that children learn how to be humans by the people who raise them. Sometimes this is done through conscious parenting…
By Jamie Kenney
11 Times The Postpartum Struggle Prepared Me For Toddlerhood
I can never answer particularly well when people ask me what the "hardest stage" is for parenting. On the one hand, the postpartum period (the first few months after giving birth) is brutal. You're exhausted, you're healing, and you're learning…
By Jamie Kenney
An Epidural Can "Fix" These 11 Horrible Things During Labor & Delivery
I never allowed myself to promise that I was never going to get an epidural. My preference for both my births was to go unmedicated, not for any philosophical or judgmental reason but because I'm more of an "if it ain't broke don't fix it" kinda…
By Jamie Kenney
13 Things I Thought I Had To Do Because I Had A Sunshine Baby
My second pregnancy took me completely by surprise. I took a home test after feeling just a little bit "off" a day or so before my period was expected, surprised that it was positive. And I was taken for a second emotional jolt when, days later, I…
By Jamie Kenney
15 Moms Share How Their Kid Reacted When They Found Out They Were Going To Have A Sibling
In general, a first pregnancy tends to be the most exciting. It makes sense, right? It's novel! It's unpredictable! But subsequent pregnancies give you the opportunity to share the happy news with your older child or children. What could be more…
By Jamie Kenney
Having My Second Baby Didn't Erase The Pain Of My Pregnancy Loss
It took me four years after the birth of my second child to go back to the gynecologist. This wasn't due to any lingering birth trauma or white coat anxiety, either. Honestly, I was busy and lazy and nothing was with the ol' vagine so I kept putting…
By Jamie Kenney
11 Things You Should Just Let Your Toddler Do
Being a parent to a toddler can be an incredibly negative experience. Don't get me wrong, it's great! I don't mean it's negative in the sense that it sucks (though sometimes it does), but I mean negative in the sense that you're always saying "no."…
By Jamie Kenney
