Motherhood recommendations by Marissa Anastasi: Be the person you needed as a kid. I want to be my little girls’ number one fan, and always listen and support her. I always loved having aunts and sisters that would encourage and help direct me through life’s struggles and special moments. At the age of 18, your child will know how to roll, crawl, feed themselves, speak, walk, sleep in their own beds etc. So don’t stress if they’re not doing these things at the same time as everyone else. They’ll get there in their own time.

Get Back into Exercise at Your Own Pace. “When you’re cleared to exercise, that doesn’t mean you should jump right back in at the same pace you were before,” according to Scott. “To start, keep your fitness goals small, manageable, and realistic for you. And remember that every bit counts—whether that’s going for a walk with your family or squeezing in a quick naptime workout.” Sleep. “Sleep like you’re not going to sleep for the next three years,” Auerbach urges. “Allow people to help you. If someone offers to bring food or watch your baby so you can nap it’s most likely they’ve been in your shoes. Don’t attempt to be Superwoman. You already are. You created and birthed a baby,” she continues.

Keep an open door policy. Let your child know that they can come to you at any time to talk about anything. This is important for developing and maintaining a good parent/teen relationship. When they come to you with something, stop and take the time to listen to them, talk to them and connect with them. If you want any relationship to work, it requires time, energy and effort. The relationship between a child and parent does not automatically occur, it must be cultivated. In order to cultivate it properly, your child must feel that they can come to you at any time for anything. Find additional info on Motherhood blog.

Seeing the world through their eyes! As adults we are always in a rush but kids stop to see the tiniest bugs, to the cloud formations. They really make me slow down to appreciate things I take for granted. It’s so special seeing them experience the world for the first time and seeing them appreciate the simplest of things. The moment when your child does something kind, completely unprompted. It reminds me that everything I am trying my hardest to teach them every day is actually slowly going in. It gives me hope for the future!

My blog is really about my passions in life and my struggles and it’s probably the same for many people. I feel like I could share a lot of experiences, good and bad and blogging also gives me a platform to share moments in our ever-changing life from babies, young kids to teenagers. There’s a mixture of topics, not just motherhood but lifestyle, house design, fashion, travel. I’m passionate about supporting small businesses, especially local ones and those that are run by mums like myself, as I know first-hand how difficult this is and how much the small shops need local support to survive. If YOU have a small business and would like to collaborate, please contact me…. ALL FOR SMALL!! Find a few more details on https://www.marissaanastasi.com/.