Intentional Pregnancy Project Episode 3

Baby Fever & BumGenius 4.0 Cloth Diaper Giveaway

Alright friends...it's the long awaited moment...a giveaway!! From Tuesday March 25 - Tuesday April 8 this giveaway will be live on the Rafflecopter form below. If you are a resident of the US, you can get one "free" entry by entering your email and if you want additional entries, you can like facebook pages, follow twitter accounts and much more fun stuff!

This week on the Vlog I discuss that oh so fabulous topic of Baby Fever! Oh the joy oh the pain of this emotional awwwwwwwww every time you see a baby! But the downside to that attraction to all things squishy and cute is the pain and jealousy that can occur when you see a new mom and her little baby and wish you were in that stage too. I've seen that baby fever can strike during all phases of life--even for those who have young children. It's understandable that women think babies are just so darn cute, I mean, that's how we populate the planet! But the downside is that it can cause a great deal of emotional anguish and frustration when we want something sooo badly and aren't able to achieve it at this time of our life.

I have dealt with a great deal of baby fever and have tried all sorts of methods to cope. Keeping busy, focusing on hobbies, reading, researching, learning, staying active, journaling, meditating, the list goes on. My goal is to remain somewhat content (just not too content!) in order to enjoy the phase of life I'm currently in, while looking forward to the adventure that little ones will bring to my future!

If you didn't see the YouTube episode on Baby Fever, check it out here:

Enter the Giveaway & You could win a BumGenius 4.0 Diaper!

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Intentional Pregnancy Project - Episode 2

Episode 2: When to Start a Family

Starting a family is a very personal decision, but one that everyone has an opinion on. Some cultures have norms and expectations, in addition to many religions and even family groups. In society today, it's common for people to push marriage and children into the "later in life" category. Some by choice, some by circumstance and some by necessity. But if I have learned one thing from the experience of being married young-ish (I was 24 and he was 21) and talking about children in our first few years of marriage, I've learned that people are quite open about encouraging you to wait. I used to be very offended when people told me to wait 4-5 years or until I was 30, because I want children way before then! I am not trying to build a career outside the home--I greatly desire to be home and raise a family. However, I quickly discovered that when people told me to wait, they were sharing their story of what they did, or wish they had done. 

I believe that it is valid to put off starting your family until you feel right about it, regardless of whether you work outside or inside the home and where you desire to be once you have a family. Timing is not an issue that anyone can decide for you. Certainly concerned observations can be made, but it requires careful consideration and evaluation on your part. And only you and your partner get to decide when you're ready.

Intentional Pregnancy Project - Episode 1

The project has officially launched and I need your help! I have a basic list of topics to cover in the coming weeks, but I know you have more ideas. Please let me know of any topics of interest that you would like us to talk about! I currently am posting videos on Tuesdays with a topic from the book, but I would like to add an additional video each week, probably on Fridays, addressing your questions, comments and opening more discussions!

Getting any project off the ground is a lot of legwork, so bear with me as we build some momentum. I am so passionate about the subject of motherhood and preparing to be a parent, and, seriously guys, I have so much to share that I'm super duper excited about! (Is that enough enthusiasm, you think??)

You will want to stay tuned as Episode Two opens the oh-so-popular topic of "when to start a family" and the following week, March 25th, we'll be talking about baby fever and I'll be giving away a brand-new BumGenius 4.0 Pocket Cloth Diaper!! So excited! 

So without further ado...here is Episode One!

The Intentional Pregnancy Project

The YouTube Project...What Am I Doing??

Okay, here it goes. Ever since I got married, almost a year ago, I have had baby fever. Like, really really strong baby fever! I have followed bloggers, vloggers and Facebook groups of moms, cloth diapering, infertility/pregnancy loss, families, and other parenting issues. On any average day, I see more media about babies and mommyhood than anything else.

Five days a week, I run around after infants and toddlers for eight hours a day. But my struggle has been that these aren't my kids. And as much fun as it is to care for them and come home to a quiet house with uninterrupted sleep, it's just not what I really want to do with my life. It's not the same because those aren't my kids. I love them, but I want my own little ones.

Many, many people have made comments like "you should wait until you're thirty to have kids" and "enjoy being married for at least four years first" and inside I cringe. For them, it may have been perfect to wait that long before having children, but what they don't understand is that I don't want to work outside the home/build a career/travel the world. I love my husband and enjoy our time together, but my dream is to be a stay/work at home mom and homeschool my children. Certainly I am not against working part-time or doing things outside the home, but I want to be at home first and foremost. It's not a job that's for everyone, but it's what I most desire. 

Intentional Pregnancy Book Trailer

Having said all that, I began a writing project a few months ago entitled Intentional Pregnancy: Practical & Prayerful Preparation for Baby before Pregnancy. I've been freewriting, journaling and brainstorming, and hope to release the finished ebook in May. But as I'm working on this book, I was inspired to reach out and start a community project. 

I don't know a lot of young, married women who are planning and preparing to start families. But I want to! And I am hoping that by starting a YouTube Channel  and uploading weekly videos based on topics from my book, conversations will be started, relationships will be formed, and information and stories will be shared. This is personal, this is important. 

I will be creating surveys and polls that will appear in the book and also offering a few giveways as well. 

Channel Intro Trailer

My first vlog is a fun one...just a get to know me video to express who I really am! =)

All About Me

So this is the invitation. I want to start conversations with women who are planning for a family and those who have already started theirs (both young and older), so we can share our hopes, dreams, struggles and experiences along the journey.

Weekly Vlogs will post on Tuesdays, so please subscribe to my channel to keep updated and be a part of this project. It's about to get really real over there!