A Raad Story

South Florida's Best Parenting Blog

2 Secrets for a Mommy-To-Be

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I’m currently 6+ months pregnant and am a mama of a recently turned 1 year old!  I’ve heard a few mamas “warn” me about the arduous work that comes with being a mom of two babies.  Though I know in the first few weeks, it may be tiring (especially since I’m planning to breastfeed again!) but I believe that it will be easier than expected.  From my first pregnancy to now, I have been using 2 secret weapons that I’ve learned through my pastor: Prayer and Declaration.

  1. PRAYER.  In my first pregnancy, I learned to place my trust in God COMPLETELY.  The thought of being a first-time mom scared me probably like most women.  Even thinking of the whole pregnancy and then the delivery filled my heart with fear.  It was then that I began to pray for my pregnancy and delivery.  God began to remove fears I had and many of these fears came from things I read in the past, movies, and other women’s experience.  Most of it was negative.  Through prayer, God removed my fear and I was able to have a peace and assurance that I would have an amazing pregnancy and motherhood experience.
  2. DECLARATION.  The power of our words can make us or break us.  I wrote down exactly how I wanted my delivery to be, and began praying and declaring day and night!  Every night I would pray over my pregnant belly declaring positive things.  Mostly everything I declared became a reality!  I learned not to use negative words like exhausted, I can’t, etc. etc.  Of course in the beginning I was tired, but new moms seem to have an innate supernatural energy that wakes us every 2-3 hours to feed our babies.  And I did this with joy in my heart.

And now in this second pregnancy, I am practicing the same two principles of prayer and declaration.  Though some may say, “What are you going to do with your Irish twins? – I simply have a peace in my heart because I have an assurance that God will guide me to be the best mom and manage my time wisely.  Plus, my firstborn, Caleb, is such a good baby boy and when his baby sister comes, he will be the best, obedient big brother. And I have my husband’s unconditional love and support and we have a great supporting family.

Take a look at our day in sunny South Florida (Maternity dress by ShopPinkBlush.com):

 

 

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Baby No. 2: Boy or Girl?

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I LOVE Springtime which equates to floral print maternity dresses and joy! 🌺 [Check out more cute maternity clothes] 🌺

Boy are we excited because by this time next week, we will find out our second baby’s gender!  Some women say they could sense what they are having but quite honestly, I don’t understand how they can tell because I absolutely have no idea!  There are no physical signs that reveal the sex of the baby, though there are several myths.  For example, with Caleb, I had nausea and slight vomiting during my 2nd month of pregnancy.  My hair was also full and shining and my skin was clear.  On the contrary, this time around, I have zero nausea, I’m somewhat breaking out, and my hair is dry!  Does that mean I’m having a girl???

I don’t know.  I know that every baby takes a different toll on a woman’s body, and every pregnancy is unique.  Considering there are no baby girls in our family (Caleb is the 7th grandson!), I am technically the “baby girl” ready to hand down my crown.  However, I’ll be blessed with either gender.

Right now, with Caleb turning 9 months and me being 3 months pregnant, I can’t help but be ecstatic at this stage.  Yes, there are those that tell me to prepare myself for what’s coming.  And yes, I know there will be times that it may not be a walk in the park having 2 kids under 2 years, but I will always be the kind of positive person that looks on the bright side.  Though I know I must brace myself for the sleepless nights in the beginning, I will not worry about that now.  I just want to enjoy this moment here, my walk in the park with my baby boy and my pregnant belly and thank God for what’s to come!

Stay tuned next week as we find out the gender of our 4th family member.  Woohoo!

 

Floral Print Dress by ShopPinkBlush.com

Caleb’s Supernatural Delivery

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A friend of mine recommended “Supernatural Childbirth,” a book by Jackie Mize, weeks after our first baby’s birth announcement.  The book is primarily about experiencing pain-free childbirth through faith.  After reading it, I wrote down my prayer for Caleb’s delivery and together with my husband, prayed every night declaring my supernatural childbirth according to God’s will.  I strongly believed and had the assurance in my heart that God would grant me what I was praying for.

So it was, a few weeks before my due date, I began dilating.  Apparently, I was having slight contractions but never felt pain.  I knew in my heart that I would not feel any pain, so I prayed for my water to break in order for us to know when Caleb was coming.  And exactly how I had been declaring for months, my water broke on Friday morning, July 22nd.  Off we went to the hospital with the biggest smile on our faces because we knew we were going to meet our baby.

Everything was going smoothly until after a few hours, I was no longer dilating.  The doctor waited a couple of hours, however my body began to somehow close up and my temperature rose which led to a fever.  The baby’s heartbeat began to race and the doctor said that for the sake of my health and the baby’s well-being, they had to proceed with a C-section.  After hearing those words, I did not understand why that was happening.  I felt sad and cried because I thought my body was failing me.  Immediately, JuanPe and I began to pray and worship God.  Our parents also interceded for God’s will to be done.  Although, in that instance I did not understand, I placed my trust in God and proceeded with the C-section.  During the surgery the doctor realized that Caleb’s head was positioned in a way that would have been difficult for him to pass through the birth canal and his life and mine could have been in danger.  I knew in that moment that God is faithfully amazing and He sees beyond what we can see!  All along I prayed for how I wanted Caleb to come into this world but I always prayed for God’s will to be done and not my own.  I am grateful to God because Caleb is 100% healthy and it sure was a supernatural delivery since I did not experience any pain none whatsoever.

If you’re a mommy-to-be or wish to be a mother someday, write out your declaration of faith and pray for your supernatural childbirth specific to your heart’s desire and inlined with God’s will.
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Check out part of what I prayed for daily up until Caleb’s birth:  

Joceline’s Prayer & Declaration of Faith (nonetheless, let God’s will be done)
Galatians 3.13 “Christ has redeemed [Joceline] from the curse of the law, having become a curse for us!”
Isaiah 53.5 ” The chastisement for [JuanPe & Joceline’s] peace was upon Him, And by His stripes [Joceline is] healed.”

  • For the Holy Spirit to be in total control of Caleb’s delivery
  • A glorious & the most beautiful experience for Joceline, Caleb, JuanPe, & everyone!
  • JuanPe & Joceline to be calm and guided by the Holy Spirit
  • Joceline’s water to break
  • Speedy delivery
  • Epidural work 100% and be a pain-free needle
  • No need for episiotomy
  • Caleb to weigh 8.5 lbs or less, perfect healthy baby boy
  • Joceline to immediately produce more than enough milk for Caleb (on his birthday)
  • Caleb to latch on easily and quickly on skin to skin moment (on his birthday)
  • Pain-free contractions!
  • Only tears of joy
  • No pre-birth false contractions
  • No C-section
  • No preeclampsia
  • Joceline to be fully awake & aware
  • Joceline to feel great before, during, and after birth

The Key To Help Your Baby Sleep Through the Night

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Our baby boy has been sleeping through the night as early as 2 months (by sleeping through the night, I mean 8 hours straight without waking up to eat)!  We read a few parenting books and Baby Wise by Gary Ezzo taught us about having set baby schedules.  Although we do not practice word for word, we did follow a few tips that helped us especially as new parents.  We practice a mix of attachment parenting, with baby wise parenting and it has worked like a charm!  So what has been the key to help our baby sleep through the night?  Have a bedtime routine!  We started Caleb on his bedtime routine when he was 5 weeks old and he slept an hour more week by week. At 2 months he slept 8 hours and at 3 1/2 months he slept 11-12 hours!  He currently continues to sleep 11-12 hours straight.  This is our bedtime routine.

  • 8.30PM Bath time
  • 8.45PM Massage, PJs, daddy time (interacts with his dad) 
  • 9PM Set the night time mood & feeding time (see below) 
  • 9.30PM Baby falls asleep. Put down in crib

Feeding time

  1. Turn off lights.  Babies need to learn to associate light with day and darkness with night.  This is not innate, it must be learned.
  2. Have a nightlight or TV on (I like to have the TV on so that it’s not totally quiet that way he gets used to sleeping around slight noise).
  3. Do NOT interact with baby.  Sleep time is not play time.  If you talk to your baby, they may think it’s time to play.
  4. Make sure your baby is full.  This is most likely the key for a baby to sleep entirely.  A hungry baby WILL wake up every 3 hours.  Newborns will be able to hold more food as weeks pass by.  Usually when they are 5 weeks old, it’s believed that they will be able to sleep 5 hours, and at 6 weeks, 6 hours, and so forth.
  5. If you are nursing, nurse for at least 25-30 mins.  The ultimate goal for newborns is 20 min. on each breast.  Babies easily get comfortable in their mother’s arms while nursing, hence they may fall asleep quickly.  In order to prevent your newborn from falling asleep, gently touch his or her feet until you feel suction again.

A baby that sleeps through the night is a happy baby and also has happy parents!  Caleb is the happiest baby – he only cries when he is hungry, needs a clean diaper, or is overtired.  Having a bedtime routine for our baby was the best thing for him and for us because we are all able to sleep through the night.  And who doesn’t appreciate a good night’s rest?

There are exceptions when we have not been able to proceed with his routine for instance, the holidays.  He continued to sleep through the night however not as long as usual.  Also keep in mind, every baby is different.  What worked for us may not work for others.

If you have any questions, feel free to leave us a comment or email us at hello@ARaadStory.com.  We’d love to hear from you!

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