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.
Recent Articles
10 Ways I Set Myself Up For Success When Breastfeeding
So, you're going to have a baby and you're thinking about breastfeeding. Congrats! I can tell you from my own experience that nursing a baby (or a toddler) can be a wonderful, rewarding thing to do. Of course other people can tell you it's hell on ea…
By Jamie Kenney
Actually, I Don't Miss My Kids When I'm Away
I didn't spend more than a few hours away from my son until he was 2. It wasn't so much reluctance as lack of opportunity, but a dear friend's wedding a quick plane ride away provided the perfect excuse for a long weekend getaway with my husband and …
By Jamie Kenney
9 Things Moms Raising Sons Who Will Take Responsibility For Their Actions Never Do
The other day, while my son and daughter were playing, I watched my 6-year-old boy slam his sister's head against the wall. I could tell it wasn't malicious and that he wasn't trying to hurt her, but it was absolutely intentional. The fact that he wa…
By Jamie Kenney
13 Signs You're A Straight-Up Selfish Mom
There are those who would say that motherhood is about balance; that it's a tightrope of making the necessary changes to effectively nurture your child while maintaining a sense of self. Those people are wrong. If I've learned one thing in my six yea…
By Jamie Kenney
Dear First-Time Dad: On Father's Day, Ignore These 3 Types Of People
For my husband, Father's Day is a non-holiday. Every year I ask what he'd like to do and he always answers: "Just... dad stuff." So Father's Day is like any other lazy Sunday at our house. He's an incredible father, though, and I would love to pay hi…
By Jamie Kenney
11 Reasons Why I Don't Care If I Flash Strangers During Breastfeeding
There's really no telling how many people have seen my breasts during the three years I breastfed my two children. They ate all the time and I rarely brought a cover. While I was stealthy and never had an instance where I wound up attracting a ton of…
By Jamie Kenney
11 Things Raising Your Daughter To Be A Feminist Does *Not* Mean
In some circles, "feminism" is a cringe-worthy and dreadful word. So I guess people within those circles would be pretty horrified to know that feminism is one of the key principles I hope to instill in my daughter. And even though she's only 4, her …
By Jamie Kenney
13 Things Grown-Ass Stay-At-Home Moms Aren't Afraid To Say
There are a lot of preconceived notions out there about "the kind of woman" who becomes a stay-at-home mom. But the truth is we really run the gamut socially, economically, personally, and pretty much every scale we can fall on. When I decided to bec…
By Jamie Kenney
11 Things Raising Your Son To Be A Feminist Does *Not* Mean
Something people tend to learn very quickly about both me and my husband is that we are staunch feminists. Generally speaking, people understand why we're all "Ra ra feminism!" too, especially in regard to our daughter, but we sometimes get unusual l…
By Jamie Kenney
11 Things People Think Are OK To Say To Expectant Dads That Are Actually Creepy
Pregnancy is, ideally, an exciting time in a new parent's life. And since most of the gushing excitement is directed at the gestational parent (so, usually, the mother), fathers are often overlooked in the process. Now in some ways this makes sense: …
By Jamie Kenney
21 Women Share How Their Orgasms Changed After Having A Baby
Every now and then, you'll hear someone crack a joke about the idea that sex is basically a non-existent, distant dream for parents. Now, I don't think I've ever encountered a couple for whom sex after children did not require some kind of dedicated …
By Jamie Kenney
10 Ways I Set Myself Up For Disappointment During My First Pregnancy
I didn't exactly see my first pregnancy coming. I mean, I wasn't shocked, because I'm an adult and I know how babies are made and we were already starting to kind of talk about starting a family, but I was still thrown for a loop when I peed on a sti…
By Jamie Kenney
12 Partners Describe What It's Like To Be In the Delivery Room For The First Time
Television and movies lead us believe in a very particular birth narrative. Labor starts instantly (after the mom's water breaks, of course), and everyone comedically or dramatically rushes to the hospital whereupon pushing begins immediately. More o…
By Jamie Kenney
9 Reasons Why I Won't Celebrate My Partner For Braiding My Daughter's Hair
My 4-year-old daughter's hair trails almost down to her butt and she doesn't want to cut it. My husband and I are pretty chill about the choices our children make when it comes to their appearance, but we do have a rule: "If you want long hair, you h…
By Jamie Kenney
15 Things Women Who've Had Emergency C-Sections Want Pregnant Women To Know
Here's the thing with emergency C-sections: you never know when you'll need one... until you do. That's the nature of emergencies, right? They're unexpected, they're sudden, and, yes, they can be scary and even dangerous. That's why there are things …
By Jamie Kenney
10 Signs Your Kids Are Aldi Kids
When I was a little girl, I would get really excited about the chance to accompany my mother and grandmother shopping. Now, 30 or so years later, my children are similarly amused by errands and, as a result, have a few favorite stores: they're big fa…
By Jamie Kenney
"Pregnancy Is Magical" Is A Joke, & 17 Important Things Pregnant Women Need To Know
I'm certain that there are people out there for whom pregnancy is magical. I know a few, lucky women who felt amazing for the duration of the their pregnancies. My mom often told me that she "never felt better" than when she was pregnant. I also know…
By Jamie Kenney
12 Things I'm Teaching My Son When I Talk To Him Like An Adult
When I was growing up, my mom often told me that while she didn't do everything right, one thing she was proud of was the fact that she never talked to me like a child. "I always spoke to you like an adult, and it made you a critical thinker and eloq…
By Jamie Kenney
11 Rules For Having Your Cat Around My Baby
I firmly believe that every person — especially, perhaps, every child — needs a self-proclaimed "crazy cat person" in their life. For my kids, that's their grandmother (my mom). For me, growing up... it was also my mom. I love that lady and, thanks t…
By Jamie Kenney
14 Awful Things People Say When You're Extended Breastfeeding
I am very fortunate to be someone who had very positive breastfeeding experiences. This is notable because not everyone does and because I breastfed for a collective 38 months. That's a pretty long time to be more or less judgement-free. In talking t…
By Jamie Kenney
