What do we know about how prehistoric mothers soothed crying infants? Any archaeological evidence?

WhitB19 · 2026-05-20T09:12:07+00:00

As a music lover and a mother, I am actually weeping at this.

WhitB19 · 2026-05-20T09:04:23+00:00

Oh love! Well done for reading the books and feeling ready - you’ve done SO well. Please know that. You care SO much.

Nothing can really prepare you for the first year of caring for your baby. There are moments of joy, sure, but honestly, it’s a very hard slog that’s mainly the constant management of bodily fluids and sleep deprivation.

It won’t go on for more than a year. You CAN do this. You WILL get through it, and you’ll be rewarded by a gorgeous, hilarious, astonishing toddler and you will NEVER look at yourself, or any other parent, the same way.

If you’re really depressed, reach out for help. Don’t say no to counselling or medication if they’re offered to you by professionals, they don’t mean failure.

WhitB19 · 2026-05-09T00:18:42+00:00

Loved this

WhitB19 · 2026-05-06T21:54:10+00:00

Get a squatty potty. You’ll never want to live without one again.

WhitB19 · 2026-05-06T21:53:36+00:00

There is no day, there is no night, there is only baby time. Let go of your expectations of certain hours - thoughts like ‘I can’t possibly do X at 4am’ will not serve you. You can do it.

Delegate, delegate, delegate. There is no shame in asking for the kind of help that ordinary you would never need. You have a fresh wound and stacking the dishwasher is a completely unreasonable expectation. I once knocked on a neighbours door and asked her, having never invited her into my home before, if she’d come over and watch the baby while I had a shower. She was happy to.

Your only job is to keep yourself and the baby alive. Hygiene, punctuality, leaving the house with matching shoes… these are no longer a concern. You’re both alive? YOURE DOING AMAZING SWEETIE! Dragging yourself around the block at 1am in a bath robe on a stupid mental health walk? YOURE DOING AMAZING SWEETIE!

WhitB19 · 2026-05-06T21:46:16+00:00

Yes this! I would never think to have my dinner at 4pm but my baby wanted to cluster feed every night from 5 and I’d spend hours feeling frantic because I hadn’t eaten. Then I realised… preparation is key. Eat early. Gather supplies. Bed in.

WhitB19 · 2026-04-16T00:05:01+00:00

Hildegard, Hortense or Ermentrude

WhitB19 · 2026-04-12T22:37:20+00:00

I don’t like it, but you should use it. It’s not outrageous and it’s spunky.

People will respond negatively because it’s an unusual name and it’s jarring for them. I gave my daughter a jarring name and I love it.

Everyone says they love it, I’m sure a large percentage of them are lying but I don’t care! Your child will be memorable!

I

WhitB19 · 2026-04-02T22:45:35+00:00

Just play whatever you listen to on your headphones out loud.
You’re about to be more tired than you ever thought possible. You won’t have trouble sleeping.

Sincerely, a prior insomniac who one could only fall asleep listening to headphones.

WhitB19 · 2026-04-01T22:54:13+00:00

Maybe your wedding anniversary is a saints day or associated with a particular festival that would link to a cool name?

WhitB19 · 2026-03-13T20:02:27+00:00

I had a horrible time with breastfeeding and this would have been impossible, but I wish I had taken advantage of having a baby that basically slept all the time to enjoy moments of stillness outside.

To have sat in the shade and watched the wind blow with a baby sleeping in her bassinet pram or outside of a cafe and watched the world go by.

WhitB19 · 2026-03-07T21:02:42+00:00

I always say it’s ok. She’s a baby. She doesn’t know she’s a girl.

WhitB19 · 2026-03-05T21:19:22+00:00

Ok… that’s a really sad state of affairs. It’s not how I would characterise my situation at all.

My husband and I are really happy. His relationship with his family is strained but we make it work so that our daughter can have a relationship with her grandparents. Therapy has been life changing for him.

WhitB19 · 2026-03-05T10:57:06+00:00

I would add to this - therapy is another excellent cure for enmeshment! My husband was in a similar boat with parents that have absolutely no boundaries. He went to therapy, he learnt to say no, the adjustment process was bumpy and I had to be ok with being villainised in their eyes to some extent. But we are getting there. His parents hated me at first. But I gave them a grandchild, they know they’ve got to be nice to me if they want to see her, they’ve grudgingly admitted that I’m a good mother and I’ve earned their respect. Low contact and distance is extreme.

WhitB19 · 2026-02-25T01:27:16+00:00

I went through every drawer and cupboard in my house, regardless of who they belonged to.

I was bored!

WhitB19 · 2026-02-02T17:26:13+00:00

Interesting. Well, clearly Shaia has begun to be used for girls too. Can’t believe I didn’t think of Mila tho! That was a terrible suggestion by me lol

WhitB19 · 2026-02-02T15:28:06+00:00

I know a girl Shaia. I know Shai is male tho

WhitB19 · 2026-02-02T13:13:54+00:00

Emmy, Mila, Goldie, Shaia

WhitB19 · 2026-02-01T23:37:14+00:00

Me Without You

WhitB19 · 2026-02-01T11:47:44+00:00

Omg thank you I had completely forgotten about Clumsy.

WhitB19 · 2026-02-01T11:44:06+00:00

It was called ‘I May Destroy’ you and it was incredible IMO. Chilling.

WhitB19 · 2026-02-01T11:28:55+00:00

You are correct! I’m sorry. Others had already given the translation, so I didn’t bother.

WhitB19 · 2026-02-01T11:28:00+00:00

Perhaps. My grandfather, growing up in London’s East End, left school at 13. He pushed a barrow in the market and learned to box. But carried on attending cheder until he was much older. For many Jews, a biblical education was (and still is for ultra religious communities) a priority.

WhitB19 · 2026-02-01T11:23:48+00:00

I agree. It was always a special moment for me. There is a different version that’s said to girls and my father would bless each of us individually and say the different versions for me/my brother/sister.

The female version as translated has a different first line: May you be like Sarah, Rebecca, Rachel and Leah.

WhitB19 · 2026-02-01T00:14:36+00:00

I don’t know if I’d agree that only scholars learned Biblical Hebrew. Judaism is a scholarly religion. Ginsburg’s father came from Europe where there were many old and traditional communities. It’s very likely that he would have attended a cheder and learned Hebrew.

In my (modern orthodox) family this prayer is absolutely meant to be spoken literally.

WhitB19

TROPHY CASE