She Works Hard for the Mommy v. 12

Hi! I’m Missy, a pediatric physical therapist. I absolutely love my job because I help babies, toddlers, and young children learn to crawl, walk, and play. As a kid I wore a back brace for scoliosis. I went to the therapist but they were not kid friendly. So at 13 years old I knew this is what I wanted to do and I’d work with kids and make it fun and less scary.

It was very hard when my kids were little. Once my son was born I needed to work part-time because he was premature. I felt terribly guilty that I went into labor early because I was busy taking care of someone else’s baby instead of my own. Working part-time helped me find the balance between being a good mom and being a good PT. I feel it’s made me a better physical therapist because I wanted my baby in the NICU and I know how scary it is that your perfect baby needs help from someone other than his mother and father. So I feel like I don’t only treat the baby I work with closely with but work closely with family members so they can help build their child’s confidence!

Now I mainly work with babies from birth to age three doing early intervention. I go to the child’s house and work with baby and the whole family! I really love my job because early intervention helps them develop typical movement patterns so they can lead a full and typical life! I work with the company Select Kids, based out of Virginia Beach, and can be reached at mcrose@selectmedical.com.

Thanks Missy! I have some exciting news. Missy will be joining us in the near future for an Ask Me Anything type post! Get your questions ready!

World's Greatest Hobby on Tour

Until I had kids, I didn't truly know that railroading was as huge as it is. This show introduces the general public to this beloved hobby with tons of model train set ups, trains for sale, Thomas rides, and more. In fact, 50,000 square feet of operating model railroads were set up at the Hampton Roads Convention Center this weekend for this non-profit educational program. The show featured national and local organizations including Atlas Model Railroad Company, Kato, Modelaer's Choice Model Railroad Products, Walthers, Kalmbach Publishing, Jaeger Ho, Augusta Track, Bachmann Trains, Caboose Industries, Digitrax, and Gyro-Cut.

One thing I love about this is that all kids under 16 are free, and there were tons of them! For kids there was a big Thomas to ride on in addition to two small ones, train tables, legos, and all of the displays. We somehow walked out buying more trains, but easily could have spent hundreds of dollars in there with all of the cool stuff they had. 

The World's Greatest Hobby On Tour comes around every few years, but is part of a larger organization which includes the Grain Train Show, Greenberg Shows, and the Great Midwest Train Show. Visit www.trainshow.com for details. 

Toddler Tuesday Tech Edition: Novel Effect

I found out about this program from school, and immediately downloaded it because I was so excited because I knew I wanted to use it at home. Literally that night I went home to try it out and was hooked. This.is.so.cool! So the app takes traditional read alouds to another level by adding layers of media. It works with books that you already have, and it is free to download. (This is not a sponsored post. I am really this excited!) Search for your book and read it like normal. The voice recognition will pick up on where you are in the story and add music, sound effect, and character voices. You can bookmark your favorites, and request the books that you want added. Check it out, we are super into it!

Valentines Day for Mama

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1- This book has amazing reviews and is about strengthening relationships. I love stuff like this.
2- How perfect are these mermaid brushes?!
3- I love how these earrings are a little edgy.
4- The most perfect little studded bracelet.
5- I have been eyeing this rose gold watch band! Less than ten bucks!

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1- This little sweatshirt is too cute.
2- I love baking with my little man. These you can use year after year.
3- I love a baseball tee!
4- Everyone loves llama llama!

She Works Hard for the Mommy v. 11

Hello there! My name is Heather and I own a certified at-home bakery, Heather's Hot Buns. A little about myself, I am from Florida and was adopted and raised by my grandparents. My grandpa is an entrepreneur; I have always looked up to his adventurous spirit. My grandma was a stay-at home mom for most of our childhood. She was at every swim meet, every school activity, she was our biggest supporter and fan. My end goal for adulthood was to emulate both of my grandparents  BUT like most high school graduates, I had no idea how to get there. My high school required us to apply to ten colleges. My grandparents said if I went out-of-state I was on my own financially and rightfully so since I could have gone anywhere in Florida for free. I started researching how I could afford out of state tuition and viola, the Navy came up on my search. I applied for a NROTC scholarship for Nursing and waited, and waited, and waited. They accepted me into the program and gave me a list of schools to choose from. Like any mature 17 year old, I shut my eyes and blindly pointed to a variety of schools all around the country (and a few in Florida although I sent in blank applications....sorry grandma!) and applied. Purdue University was one of those schools and the rest is history. Through an odd twist and turns of events, I dropped Nursing and got a bachelor's degree in Nutrition, Fitness and Health (ironic huh? now I sell sugary delicious treats!). I commissioned in the Navy and went on my way to my first tour in Yokosuka, Japan. 

Eight years later, here I am. I separated from the Navy January 2019 but my last day of "working" was November 13, 2018. My baby girl was due December 27, 2018, I always said I would NEVER have a Christmas baby. I share a birthday with Thanksgiving and I was always bitter about it as a child. Unpopular opinion, I do not like Thanksgiving food! However, life happened and we were about to have an (almost) Christmas baby. I will never forget that Tuesday, November 13th. I was MISERABLE. I hadn't slept in weeks, I didn't feel like eating and I had this uncontrollable itch. The itch was so bad that I had to sleep with ice packs on my arms and would scratch so hard I gave myself blood blisters all over my body. I had noticed a severe decrease in fetal movement, I am sure my husband thought I was just going through another one of my anxiety riddled rants. I turned to my friend at work and said, this baby is coming early, I can feel it. Everyone looked at me and rolled their eyes. Four hours later I was on my way to the hospital. First they did a 20 min test which turned into a 12 hour test which turned into 2 days of being strapped to a hospital bed. I was still so itchy that I scratched my knuckles raw on the hospital bed. All I could think was that I wanted to shower and MOVE! Did I mention I was miserable? On the morning of the 15th, they let me shower before I saw a specialty doctor for an ultrasound. At 11:54 AM they told me I was having an emergency C-section and at 12:56 PM our beautiful baby girl was born. 

I had all these dreams about how labor would be, many of them were nightmares but I never entertained the thought of a C-section. I felt, shocked. I never thought I would be told I couldn't see my baby or that the first time I would see her was in the NICU, or that she would have a breathing and feeding tube with little prick marks all over her arms from the IVs. The first time I saw her, I knew I could never leave her. That I could not work a 9-5 job. If I hadn't stuck with my gut, she could have been a stillborn from the buildup of my bile acids (hence the itching) and the umbilical cord being wrapped around her neck twice. I didn't want to miss a single milestone because each one was not a given, she had to fight from that first day to be in this world. I decided what was best for ME was to not chase money but to chase memories and I was determined to pave a path to be able to stay at-home with her.

Here I am now, striving to be as strong and inspiring as my grandparents...a stay at-home mom with a small business. This is the best of both worlds for me. I understand some people are a better Mom by working. I totally get it, there are days where I think it would be nice to have a break from home-life, to chase a goal outside of the home. It makes for a very tiring day, I wake up early to bake cookies, decorate, finish packaging or check my messages. Then she wakes up and the fun begins. I spend my mornings reading to her or building various structures with blocks that she simultaneously demolishes. She loves chasing the vacuum around and watching the dogs bark and chase each other out back. It is funny how things that were once nuances turn into fun activities.  I think the best part of being a Mom is how a little human change your perspective on pretty much everything.  I have two goals each day, to make her belly laugh and to be the best wife/mom I can possibly be.

I think when you have a passion for something, you will find time to do it. I LOVE being a part of people's special events with my baked goods and I LOVE being a Mama Bear. I LOVE the look on my customers faces when they see their vision in cookie form. I LOVE the look on my daughter's face when she accomplishes something new and waits for me to acknowledge it with a scream of glee and clapping. The best compliment I can get is a big smile and a hug from my customers. The best feeling in the world is when she is filled with so much love that she surprises me with a kiss on the cheek or a hug. That makes the lack of sleep worth it. Laughing with her all day makes the lack of sleep bearable. I spent eight years in the military counting down the days to "freedom" and wishing time would go by faster. Now, I want to freeze time for a while. I hope everyone gets to the point of happiness that you too want to freeze time instead of wish your time away. Whatever will get you to that goal, do it! Do not take life or the people around you for granted. 

If you are a NICU Mama and need support, someone with a entrepreneur spirit but not sure how to make your dreams a reality, or really want a yummy cookie you can contact me through email (heathershotbuns@gmail.com), direct message me on Instagram (@heathers_hot_buns_bakery) or on fFcebook (@HeathersHotBuns).