Sarah Nelson is a mom, blogger, fashion lover, and interior decorator living in the Portland, OR area. Her blog Frills for Thrills features style tips, DIY tutorials, photos from her travels, and honest memoirs about her journey through the identity change of becoming a mom for the first time. You can follow her on twitter @frills4thrills
My son Greyer (pronounced gray-er) just turned 1. He is super shy in public, but never stops giggling and squealing at home.
It is incredible to see how Greyer is developing and learning something new each day. It’s also fun comparing him to myself and my husband to see who he’s more like. The verdict is that he looks more like my husband but has more of my personality!
The biggest challenge I face as a first time mom is trying to find ways to still be “me”. So much of my identity now is in being a mom, but I find that I still need time, hobbies, and friends not dedicated to my baby to feel like I’m still taking care of myself. When I forget to schedule dates with girl friends or just alone time to be productive or relax, I start getting really overwhelmed by the whole mom thing. It’s also been a challenge to accept that and not feel guilty that I need space from my child.
I’m definitely still the same person I was before having Greyer, but now it is much less about me and all about him. My schedule went from not really having one to timing errands and activities around meals, diaper changes, and naps!
I go to my mom and my mother in-law a lot for advice. Other than that, I have a couple close mommy friends that I respect or I ask on my blog.
I first started a blog when I was between school and a move and bored out of my mind! I had never read a blog before and didn’t know anything about them. I just started one for fun and haven’t stopped blogging since!
I think the most honest post I’ve published is one called Delayed PPD?. I loved that post because I felt totally safe being so vulnerable on my blog because my readers feel like friends. I knew they would support me and know just what to say– and they did! Blogging is such a great way for moms to connect when they are all on different schedules according to their little ones!
-Sarah Nelson
