I came across this article a few days ago and it seems to reinforce my own discoveries of how to survive (and even thrive) while doing the motherhood thing:

How to be a happier mom: 8 ways to focus on the positive

For the most part, these are the same things that really help me out, so I'm glad that someone wrote them all down in an article that I can refer back to when I need reminders.

This morning I saw this article:

After a time out for child care, I'm glad to have a boss again
At the office, it's clean, quiet, and no one ever whines to be carried everywhere

And yes, there's something to be said for that. When I went back to work at Yahoo! part-time at five months post-partum with Julian, it was sheer bliss to sit at my desk and just....WORK. Clean, focused, uninterrupted. It was really, really nice.

But not nice enough to make me stay when my division was closed and my choices were either take a full-time position somewhere else within Yahoo! or accept a severance package. I took the severance package, but not without thinking long and hard about it.

I still really miss my paychecks. And my 401K. And my stock options. But I don't regret becoming a work-at-home mother, especially when the weather is beautiful and I have an activity planned with my mommy friends and their kids.

And finally, I decided today to get on top of this reflux situation with Adrian. Poor baby wakes up rasping and wheezing and miserable every night, and heartburn is definitely no fun. I bid on a Tucker Sling on eBay, I'm making some tummy-soothing tea right now for myself (in the hopes that it will pass through to him in part), and I think I might try a dairy-free diet for a while and see if that helps. Apparently that is the #1 dietary cause of reflux.

However, I think that this reflux and gassiness is mostly due to overactive letdown. My boob is like a fire hose in Adrian's mouth when letdown happens, and he gasps and chokes and swallows a bunch of air as a result. Poor baby.

So I've been reading about reflux a lot today, and also about umbilical hernias. Adrian has an umbilical hernia, and I really, really hate it. It's so gross. It's like a ball sticking out where his belly button is. You can poke it back inside and it squishes and makes a wet sound, then pops right back out afterwards. So disgusting to know that his intestine is coming out right there. OK, it's common...WHATEVER! It's nasty. But apparently there is no real treatment, it will just eventually go away on its own. IN ONE TO THREE YEARS. Dammit.

Jesus, Adrian is farting up a storm. He has ripped at least ten giant-sized farts while I've been typing this, and he's still going. Talk about gassy! Poor thing. OK, I'm dairy-free as of tonight. My friend Hana is bringing by a Japanese meal for us later, no dairy there. That's a good start. Might as well give it a go.