becoming our parents: interview with PJ

The last interview for this week-long series is with PJ. I stumbled across PJ's blog thanks to a link on Hither and Thither, and I'm so glad I did: her son Levi is adorable; she lives in Omaha, my husband's old stomping grounds (ever been to a hole-in-the-wall burger joint named Goldberg's, PJ? It was his favorite restaurant as a kid); and she has had a career in the publishing world I'm totally envious of (she got to work with Anne Lamott! Swoon!). Read on to find out more about PJ's childhood...

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My mom, dad, younger sister and I lived in a two-story house in suburbia New Jersey about 30 miles outside of New York City. My dad commuted into Manhattan daily, leaving for work shortly after waking us up for school and getting home just in time for dinner. My mom worked for a nearby school system and was home by 4:15pm, so she drove us to our after-school activities—which at one point or another included swim team practice, gymnastic classes, soccer/softball/basketball games and marching band rehearsal. For a couple of years while I was in elementary school, we were fortunate to have several fantastic au pairs live with us and become part of our family. Oh! And we also had a fluffy white Bichon Frise named Timmy, who lived a long and happy life.

How old were your parents when you were born? How old were you when you had your first child? Was your decision about when to have kids affected in any way by your parents' choices?

My parents married when my mom was 24 and my dad was 25 (young by today’s standards), but they waited three years before having me. I didn’t want to be an “old mom,” so my plan was to have a baby before I turned 30 like they did. Of course, that plan went out the window when I didn’t meet my husband until I was 26! We married two years later and wanted to enjoy “alone time” as a couple before bringing a child into our family. Throw in a couple of deployments (my husband is in the military), and the next thing I knew, I was having my first baby at age 31!

What are your plans (if any) about the number of children you hope to have? Is your decision about how many children you'll have affected in any way by your parents' choices?

I loved growing up with a sister but sometimes wished we had more siblings. The more the merrier! Right now I’m thinking I’d like to have three kids, but if our second child is a girl, maybe we’ll stop at two. Our first kiddo is a boy named Levi. I would love to have at least one of each!

How does the place where you grew up impact your own decision-making about where to raise your family?

I can’t imagine not raising my family on the East Coast, either in the suburbs of New York City or Washington, DC. Omaha is a fantastic town, but that’s what it is—a town. While I appreciate the wholesomeness of Midwestern life, I miss the fast pace and culture and travel opportunities that come with living near a major metropolis. I also miss my parents! Growing up, my own grandparents lived within an hour of us and because of that I had a close relationship with them. I’d like the same for my children and their grandparents. 

How does your role as a disciplinarian reflect on your own upbringing?

There’s no disciplining an 8 month old. At this age, he’s the king! (At least that’s what his pediatrician says.) As he grows up, I do want to make sure he views me as a parent first and foremost, not as a friend. I haven’t given much thought to how I will handle discipline when he’s older, but I do know that I don’t plan on spanking. I think I was spanked once or twice as a kid, but that’s not what I want to do. My husband, on the other hand…

Do you have any memories from your childhood of moments when you thought "I'll never be like this as a parent" or "I hope to be just like my mom because..."? If not, describe a moment between you and one of your parents that you think was a defining one for you in some way -- explain a little bit about why.

I think I always sort of idolized my father. He really could do no wrong. We share many of the same interests—photography, pop culture, music, movies—and because he was a psychology major, I would go to him for friend advice because I thought he was good at staying objective. My mom and I fought as mothers and daughters tend to do. I think it was because we are both equally stubborn and because she was home more often than my dad. She was also more outwardly emotional than he, and even if she wasn’t yelling, she was SO LOUD. I remember being embarrassed by how loud she would be in front of my friends, and I promised to never act that way in front of my own children. Of course, she and I are super close now (but she’s still loud)!

Now that you are a parent, do you find yourself acting more like (or less like) your own parents than you anticipated? How so? Are you at peace with the similarities/differences?

One of my mom’s strengths is that she is able to stay calm under pressure. In the eight months that I’ve been a parent, we have had to deal with a couple of stressful situations with the baby. To my surprise, I was able to remain surprisingly composed even when my husband seemed rattled, which is how I was actually feeling on the inside. My rule is that only one of us can freak out at a time!

How has becoming a parent changed your relationship with your own parents?

I have always been able to count on my parents to get me through tough situations—let’s just say there were many teary middle of the night phone calls during my 20s—and what’s tougher than being a first-time parent? Not much! They have been just as supportive as they’ve ever been, maybe even more. The hardest adjustment for me was seeing them as somebody’s grandparents and not just as my mom and dad. Also, recognizing that I’m not just their daughter anymore; I’m someone’s mother. 

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Thanks, PJ! Stop over to Bunny and Dolly to learn more about her life with cutie-pie Levi. And thanks to you all for joining all my interviewees this week while I've been away. Can't wait to be back with you on Monday! Happy weekend, everybody :)

becoming our parents: interview with Suzi

Today's interview is with Suzi Leigh, a blogger and lactation counselor who helped me in the first difficult weeks of learning to breastfeed (did anyone else think it felt like being cut by tiny pieces of glass?). She and her husband Tim are also starting a blog together called Traditional Nerdist Upbringing, but they've gotten a little sidetracked after finding out a happy surprise: they're expecting baby #2! You can also catch Suzi over on Pinterest where she finds the most amazing recipes despite being bowled over by horrendous morning sickness. Read on to learn more about choosing to have biological children after growing up as an adopted child...

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When my mother was in her early twenties, she discovered she was unable to have children because of malignant ovarian cysts which caused her to need a full hysterectomy.  Because she knew that she always wanted children, my parents adopted my brother, and then myself, 6 1/2 years later.  Until the age of 21 I lived in the same house, where my parents currently live.  Both sets of grandparents always lived close by, and since my mother had chosen to stay home with us, we always had her there with us.  There were definitely pros and cons to having my mother always home, the cons mainly occurring when I discovered my autonomy as a teenager and didn't want my mom around too much ;)  But now as an adult and as a parent myself, I appreciate her decision to put off a career outside of the home to ensure that we were always with our family.

How old were your parents when you were born? How old were you when you had your first child? Was your decision about when to have kids affected in any way by your parents' choices?

My parents were 35 when they adopted me, which was not a conscious choice on their part but a result of the adoption agency favoring first-time parents and parents who were not picky about gender.  Since they had my brother and knew that they wanted a girl for their second child, it took a few years for them to find me, or I suppose, for me to find them.

As a teenager, I really wanted to have children at a much younger age, I believe I thought 23 was the "perfect" age to start a family.  (I ended up getting married at 23 and was in NO way ready for a child at that point!)  I always wanted to be a younger mother than my mom was, though I never see any indication that my parents are slowing down or losing energy, at least not at this time.

What are your plans (if any) about the number of children you hope to have? Is your decision about how many children you'll have affected in any way by your parents' choices?

I grew up in a very traditional family with one boy and one girl, though growing up I vacillated between wanting only boys or only girls, or no kids at all.  I think I always felt like 2 was a good number, it seemed to make sense to me since I grew up with one sibling and most kids I knew only had 1 sibling as well.  Now that I'm a parent, I don't seem to be able to make up my mind.  We are currently expecting our second, after having a son 2 1/2 years ago, and in thinking about my family at this time, I feel like I am set with 2.  However, if this one turns out to be another boy, I may just change my mind in the hopes of trying for a girl.  :)

How does the place where you grew up impact your own decision-making about where to raise your family?

I grew up in the suburbs, in a pretty standard middle class neighborhood.  I always felt safe as a child, and never thought I was missing out on anything.  Now as an adult, I want to raise my kids in an area that has more access to art and culture, and is more representative of the style of living that I have learned to be mine.  If I had my way, I would live somewhere like Portland, with its abundant farmers markets and people on bicycles.  At this point, we are looking to live somewhere that is affordable, and not too terribly far away from our family, as I am realizing how important it is for my son to have them in his life.  I think we are looking for a happy medium between white middle-class suburbia and a hippie commune ;)

How does your role as a disciplinarian reflect on your own upbringing?

My parents grew up in the 50s, and so in terms of discipline, there was no question of spanking us when we were not obedient or putting soap in our mouths when we talked back.  I resisted this form of punishment more than my brother, who would simply learn the lesson (or at least not attempt whatever he attempted again) and move on.  I was a challenge to my parents' way of disciplining us, and constantly tried to push back.  When I learned I was pregnant with my son, I read "The Baby Book" by Dr William and Martha Sears, and within the first few pages, what they said really hit me.  They spoke of a gentle way to parent that focused on attention and helping your children feel secure.  This was unlike what I experienced as a child, and I thought it sounded so natural and beautiful.  Flash forward 2 1/2 years, and my natural parenting instincts have been called into question numerous times.  I am not as calm and gentle as I hoped to be, though I cannot ever bring myself to strike my child.  I have many faults as a mother, as I'm sure most of us can attest to, but if I am comparing my style of parenting to what I grew up with, I still feel that I am more connected to my son than I felt with either of my parents.

Do you have any memories from your childhood of moments when you thought "I'll never be like this as a parent" or "I hope to be just like my mom because..."? 

I never felt that I had any privacy as an adolescent.  My mother would come into my room unannounced at 7am to put laundry away as I was trying to sleep.  I would come home from school and find shirts of mine thrown out (Because they "had stains") or things on my dresser moved, and I would feel like my freedom was gone.  I remember thinking that I would never do this as a parent because I knew how much it hurt having your sense of control taken away.  My son is still a toddler, so I generally still need to barge into his room and put things away, but I do sometimes move his toys that he was just playing with or put something in a place that I like better and think that I'm being just like my mom.  I will be constantly reminding myself to give my kids their space as they get older and need it more so as not to adopt the same habits I grew up with.

Now that you are a parent, do you find yourself acting more like (or less like) your own parents than you anticipated? How so? Are you at peace with the similarities/differences?

I feel that I am generally not as close to my mother's way of parenting than I had expected me to be, though my son is still very young and I could see a shift as he gets older.  I will sometimes catch myself saying things or feeling that I need to put things in order in a way that reminds me of my mom, but I think that I have mostly rebelled against my very traditional upbringing into my own type of parent, which I am incredibly grateful for.

How has becoming a parent changed your relationship with your own parents?

The only area of my life that I am not constantly questioned about or being offered unsolicited advice about is my parenting.  This is the greatest gift my parents could possibly give me.  They have always seemed to coddle me, perhaps because I was the youngest and got married before I graduated college and had a "real" job, but I have always been used to discussions about my decisions which left me feeling like a child again.  My parents have never once offered me parenting advice, nor do they criticize anything I do with my son.  In fact, they praise me and my husband for how well we're raising him and how wonderful and smart our boy is.  This has only made me respect and love my parents more, and has made me finally feel like an adult in their eyes.  My mother and I are much closer now than we were when I was growing up, and for that I am supremely grateful.

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Thanks, Suzi! Her breastfeeding blog is on a bit of a hiatus, but I'm excited to follow Suzi and Tim as they plan for little nerd #2. Stop by tomorrow for the last of our interviews with PJ!

becoming our parents: interview with Megan

Today's parenting interview comes courtesy Megan over at Boho Mama. Megan has two beautiful twin girls, Ruth and Afton -- I love her posts about her girls and her own struggles and triumphs throughout their first year, but I also think she's just a fantastic writer in general (check out these posts to see what I mean). Read on to learn a little more about Megan's parenting style:

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We were a family of four - father, mother, me, younger brother - for the first thirteen years of my life. Then, on Christmas Eve night, I vividly remember my mom announcing her pregnancy, and my little pre-teen brain was shocked and skeptical of this new little person and how she would fit into our lives. But her arrival felt like the completion of our family. During my early childhood years, my dad was the worship pastor in a very conservative Christian denomination and my mom stayed home with us. As a pastor's kid, my life was very much about "keeping up appearances". Although my childhood was a happy one with many wonderful memories, I can say that I experienced a sense of freedom when my father stepped away from the ministry when I was in junior high. In many ways, that was when my life and my journey of faith began.

How old were your parents when you were born? How old were you when you had your first child? Was your decision about when to have kids affected in any way by your parents' choices?

My parents were married very young - 19 and 23 - and my mom was 21 when she gave birth to me. I loved growing up with young parents, and wanted be a young mom myself. I was in a serious relationship in my late teens and thought we were going to get married and have babies right away...but the relationship ended, and after I met my husband, we waited four years before deciding it was time to expand our family. We took advantage of our freedom as young marrieds - freedom that my parents did not get to experience. We moved to the big city, finished our degrees, worked fulfilling jobs, and traveled the world. I was 26 when the time felt right, and less than one year later I gave birth to twin girls.

 

What are your plans (if any) about the number of children you hope to have? Is your decision about how many children you'll have affected in any way by your parents' choices?

After my sister came along, I wanted at least three kids. There is a fullness with three that is so enjoyable, and I hear my mom's voice in my head saying, "if you have three, might as well have four!" She always regretted not having a fourth so my sister would have a buddy. It makes sense to me, but I haven't convinced my husband just yet. I don't want to say that finances are an issue. That reason bums me out!

How does the place where you grew up impact your own decision-making about where to raise your family?

We are a West Coast family: Idaho, California, Arizona, and for most of my life, Oregon. I love the Pacific Northwest corner of the U.S. and it will always be home. I want my kids to experience the cold ocean, the dense forests, the rushing rivers, the snow-covered mountains, and the high desert. Our big cities aren't too big and our people are relaxed, friendly, and adventurous. We're also quasi-hippies. I can't think of anywhere I'd rather live, so with that in mind, I want to raise my kids here, too. 

How does your role as a disciplinarian reflect on your own upbringing?

One practice I like is using the term "instruction" as opposed to "discipline". What I do know is that I want my children to learn how to take responsibility for their own actions, be confident in their decisions (whether good or bad) and I want our home to be a place where emotions can be expressed in a healthy way, without shame or undue guilt. I think my desire for this stems from feeling scared of my own questions and feelings as a child, and I don't want my own kids to have that same experience. If they don't find validation or reassurance in the home, they'll go find it elsewhere. I don't want that to happen.


Do you have any memories from your childhood of moments when you thought "I'll never be like this as a parent" or "I hope to be just like my mom because..."?

I love my mom. She is my best friend. There are some moments when I say, "that was SO my mom!" and laugh, because it was something silly or forgetful. Then, I call her and tell her about it, and we laugh together. But in the deeper ways, she has inspired me by the sacrifices she has made for her family and the way she has still remained true to herself. She is a strong, independent woman and I can say that I do hope to be like her. And my dad...he and I have a special bond. We also have a running family joke about Lord Byron (dad) vs. Chuck Norris.

Now that you are a parent, do you find yourself acting more like (or less like) your own parents than you anticipated? How so? Are you at peace with the similarities/differences?

It's hard to know if I'm acting like my own parents, because I am only eight months into being a mom. I do know that some of the ways we plan on parenting are contrary to the ways we both were raised, and while our parents respect our decisions and give us room to figure it out, there isn't always common ground. They don't second guess our decisions and they don't give advice without being asked, and that has meant a lot to me as a first-time mom trying to make sense of it all. Their respect gives me a great sense of peace.


How has becoming a parent changed your relationship with your own parents?

 I am thankful every single day that I grew up in a loving and safe environment. So many people have not had that luxury. My parents, despite their mistakes and their flawed human-ness, worked hard to model healthy relationships for us. Parenting is tough, and their dedication to their relationship and to our health as a family unit is something that I recognize and respect them for doing. They've already set me up for success as a parent, and I pray I can do the same for my children.

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Thanks, Megan! Stop by Boho Mama to read more about her twins and her life in Portland. Coming up tomorrow: Suzi!

becoming our parents: interview with Amber

Today is the second installment of my parenting interview series: I'm happy to introduce Amber from Educating Miss Amber. I've been reading her blog for months because I can relate to her on so many levels: she's a teacher, has a son who is very close in age to my daughter, and is just as sarcastic as I am. Read on to learn about how her parenting style was influenced by her upbringing in a small farming community...

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Hey! I'm Amber, first-time mom to 10-month-old Liam and high school teacher, and I blog over at Educating Miss Amber. I'm so excited to guest post for Courtney while she's enjoying sunny Florida.

I was excited when Courtney told me that the interview would be about how our parenting decisions have been influenced by our parents' style, because that's something I've been thinking a lot about over the course of the past 10-months.

I'm the oldest of three kids. My dad worked in the grain industry, so we lived in very rural towns. I didn't grow up on a farm, but both of my grandpas were farmers, so I definitely grew up around that lifestyle.  When I was fourteen, my dad took a new job, so I moved during the summer between my eighth grade and freshman year. It definitely changed my world--I'd grown up in a very small town and felt like I belonged there. I moved to another small town where everybody had pretty much grown up together. Feeling like an outsider definitely changed my perspective on things.

How old were your parents when you were born? How old were you when you had your first child? Was your decision about when to have kids affected in any way by your parents' choices?

My parents were high school sweethearts and were very young when I was born. My mom commuted to a college in a nearby town and finished in three years. I honestly don't know how she did it. I remember that I was in middle school when my mom turned 30 and thinking that 30 was so old.

I was 27 when I had Liam.  I liked having younger parents, but I think my mom was really careful to emphasize that it was a lot easier to have a child when you're older, which definitely influenced my decision to wait until I was older.

What are your plans (if any) about the number of children you hope to have? Is your decision about how many children you'll have affected in any way by your parents' choices?

Right now, Craig and I don't really have any plans about the number of children we hope to have. We bounce back and forth between being happy with just one child and talking about names for another one. I don't think we'll have more than two.  My parents' choices didn't really influence my decision about how many children I'll have. However, the age gap between my siblings and me definitely influenced my decision about spacing between our kids. I'm five years older than my brother and eight years older than my sister. I don't think I want my kids to be much more than three years apart.

How does the place where you grew up impact your own decision-making about where to raise your family?

When I was growing up, I wanted nothing more than to escape small town living. Now I think that all of the things that annoyed me when I was  growing up, like the fact that my parents knew all of my friends, their parents, and were close to all of my teachers, would be really beneficial as I raise Liam.

Sometimes I resent the fact that I live five hours from the nearest Anthropologie, Ikea, or H&M, but I like the community where we live. It has less than 2,000 people, so it's small. While the class sizes at the school are getting larger due to budget cuts, they're nothing in comparison to some schools.  The community is also centered in a very tourist-oriented area, so the options for shopping and eating out are better than your typical small town. It's in a really beautiful area, too. I hope Liam appreciates the beauty in the area where we live when he grows up.

How does your role as a disciplinarian reflect on your own upbringing?

My parents were pretty good about giving me the freedom to make my own choices and learn from my mistakes. At the same time, they were strict enough that when I did make mistakes, I knew that there would be consequences for my actions. I'm hoping to be that type of disciplinarian once Liam gets older.

Do you have any memories from your childhood of moments when you thought "I'll never be like this as a parent" or "I hope to be just like my mom because..."?

There are two things that stick out in my mind:

I remember when I was in third (or fourth?) grade, I found a beach towel that I wanted when my mom and I were shopping. It was on sale for 30% off. When I asked her if I could get it, she said that I could have it if I figured out the sale price. The entire time we were in the store, I tried different solutions. She finally showed me the process for figuring out sale prices, and I eventually got it. Now that I'm a teacher and occasionally come into contact with high school students who can't figure out the sale price of items, I think of this experience. I hope that I can provide those types of learning experiences for Liam. (Also, what a great way to keep me quiet. I spent the whole time walking around the store trying to do the math.)

When I was a junior in high school, my mom took me to London. She was working on her Master's Degree in Curriculum and Instruction and was meeting with teachers in a few of the schools there.  One day she gave me the freedom to explore a few of the places I wanted to see like the Apple Corps Headquarters, where The Beatles performed live together for the last time, and a few other places where Pink Floyd and Jimi Hendrix played (granted it was on one of those walking tours). Being able to go with her was an experience I'll always remember, but more than anything, it meant a lot to me that she allowed me the freedom to explore things that interested me, as well. 

There were those times, though, when she totally overreacted about things. When I was 21, I spent the summer interning on Capitol Hill. I came down with what I thought was strep throat, so I rode the metro to the only urgent care I could find. When the strep test came back negative, the doctor I saw got a little concerned-- apparently when a college student who lives in communal housing comes down with strep-like symptoms it raises red flags for meningitis, so she sent me on to the emergency room at to the George Washington University Medical Center for a spinal tap. I only had cell phone reception when I was in triage. As I walked out of the ER pumped full of fluids (it was just a virus), I was greeted by at least 19 messages on my phone. "Amber, it's Mom. I'm just wondering how it's going." "Amber, it's Mom. I haven't heard from you in awhile. I just wanted to make sure everything's okay." "Amber. It's me again. I'm starting to get worried." "Amber. Seriously. I'm starting to look for plane tickets. Please call me to let me know you're okay."I know I'll be the same way, though.

Now that you are a parent, do you find yourself acting more like (or less like) your own parents than you anticipated? How so? Are you at peace with the similarities/differences?

Oh my goodness. I find myself acting more and more like my mom every day. Most of the time, I'm okay with that.

How has becoming a parent changed your relationship with your own parents?

My mom is really funny about being a grandma. She was in a car accident a few years ago and lives in a nursing home. She always brags to the other ladies about being a "young grandma." She really loves her grandchildren, and I really love that about her.

I think I'm most surprised by my dad, though. My sister and I like to call him the "baby whisperer." He is really good with crying babies. He's also done a couple of really cute things-- like putting together a collection of all of the 50 state quarters for Liam and my niece.  Little things like that definitely make my heart melt.

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Thanks so much to Amber for her candid responses -- and I hope you'll stop by her blog to check out what her darling son Liam is up to lately. Check back tomorrow for an interview with Megan!

becoming our parents: interview with Stephanie

Today is the first installment of my week-long series all about how our own upbringing shaped our identities as parents. (Here's my original post about it.) Stephanie from Adventures of an Artist, Wife, and Mom is my first interviewee -- she's the mom to 3-year-old Avery, wife to childhood-sweetheart Erik, and a totally inspiring cook, gardener, artist, and about a million other things. (You know, the kind of person you want to hate for being so amazing, but then you can't because she's too nice? That's Stephanie.) Read on to find out more about her and her reflections about her parents' influences on her parenting decisions...

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I grew up with three siblings...2 younger brothers and 1 younger sister.  We were born every other year, girl-boy-girl-boy.  We lived in a big split level house, in a beautiful suburban neighborhood in Southwest Washington State.  My dad was/is a high school teacher and a coach, and mom stayed at home with us.  They still live in the same house, and my husband and I bought a house about 2 miles away a couple years ago. 

How old were your parents when you were born? How old were you when you had your first child? Was your decision about when to have kids affected in any way by your parents' choices?

My parents started having kids at the ages of 25 (dad) and 26 (mom).  They had been married for 5 years when I was born.  Erik and I were 28 and 27 when Avery was born.  We had been married for 5 years.  My parents didn't really have anything to do with it...well maybe subconsciously they did.  I actually didn't think I would ever have kids, but it became obvious to me when I was 26 that I desperately wanted a baby, and we started trying right away.  

What are your plans (if any) about the number of children you hope to have? Is your decision about how many children you'll have affected in any way by your parents' choices?

I only want one.  I think Erik would have a house-full.  I never thought I would want children, which Erik was always fine with (or so he says).  But he was very happy when we decided to have Avery.  Every once in awhile he brings up having another one, but in three and a half years it has never even crossed my mind to have another so I can't imagine that changing.  I don't know why I never wanted kids at first...I had the BEST childhood, but I grew up wanting to be writer and a painter and to travel the world, so maybe I didn't think I could do both.  Who knows.

How does the place where you grew up impact your own decision-making about where to raise your family?

I had idyllic surroundings growing up:  Beautiful neighborhood, great schools...we were close to Portland, we travelled to Seattle quite a bit, we went to the mountains to play in the snow, we went to the beach and played in the Pacific Ocean, we went camping and hiking...everything around us was beautiful.  Erik grew up here as well and we love Washington.  It really is the best place to raise a child (in our humble opinion).

How does your role as a disciplinarian reflect on your own upbringing?

Our daughter is only three, but I'd say I'm a little different from my parents.  We use time outs, we take toys away and we don't spank.  My parents did spank us on occasion, but mostly we were sent to our rooms or had privileges taken away.

 

Do you have any memories from your childhood of moments when you thought "I'll never be like this as a parent" or "I hope to be just like my mom because..."?

A couple things...

My parents are completely wonderful, and growing up they were always very involved with our schools, our activities and our friends.  All my friends wanted to hang out at our house.  My mom always worked in our classrooms, always went on field trips, she was always making cupcakes, or throwing the best birthday parties.  Even in high school my friends always wanted to be at my house, even though my dad was one of our teachers.  My parents never missed a soccer game, basketball game, track meet, choir concert or science fair.  I want to be exactly like that. 

We didn't, however, talk about our feelings very often.  We never talked about things that were sad, or difficult things that we were going through.  I held in a lot of emotions growing up, and I hope Avery always feels like she can talk to me about anything.

Now that you are a parent, do you find yourself acting more like (or less like) your own parents than you anticipated? How so? Are you at peace with the similarities/differences?

More like my parents.  I'm more strict than I thought I'd be.  I'm ok with it though, I mean, my siblings and I all turned out pretty well, and so far Avery is pretty great.  : )

How has becoming a parent changed your relationship with your own parents?

I have always been really close to my parents, but I do have a new respect for what it must have been like to have four kids.  It's completely unfathomable to me now that I have a child.  I don't know how they did it, financially or mentally.  But they made it work.  All four of us would do anything for our parents and we are a very close family.  It's a tribute to how we were raised, and how much we were loved.  And how much my parents loved, and still love each other.

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Thanks, Stephanie! Stop by her blog to see more of her darling family. And stop back here every day this week for interviews with other inspiring mothers. Next up: Amber!