KEEP IT IN THE PHAMLY

Chopsticks. I don't hold mine correctly. Neither does Little Sissy Pham. Do you know who holds chopsticks perfectly? Big Brother Pham. You know why? Because he had our parents all to himself for the first four years until I came along and ruined everything. When I rocked up, my parents were chasing after a super active, wild toddler and Mum Pham was pregnant...

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Before we had a baby, we would be asked if we wanted / planned / tried to make babies. Now that we have Baby Pham, a common question is 'Will you have another?' I don't mind this question, it's natural for people who meet my chunky monkey of a baby to want more versions of him with equal or greater chunkiness. He's a...

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We had grand plans to paint baby's nursery a cute colour or paint a feature wall like in our bedroom but we never got around to it. Instead, we went with quick and easy wall decals. Boyfriend Pham wanted an Australiana-themed nursery for Baby Pham because he'll grow up surrounded by Americanisms in pop culture. It took us about 8 months after Baby...

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I took Baby Pham to visit the work crew and one of my colleagues asked when I'd gotten engaged. I forgot I'd started wearing a ring on my ring finger because it no longer fit on my middle finger. I told him my fingers got fat after pregnancy and they haven't deflated to the size they used to be. I have no plans...

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One thing I wasn't prepared for being a primary carer for Baby Pham was sun-damaged hands. I suppose there are many more important things to talk about when it comes to raising a baby, which is why I was never warned that new mums (and dads) have an equivalent to a Trucker's Arm. This, my friend, is what I call Pram Hands.Pushing the...

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I was a wreck the first six weeks with Baby Pham. The anxiety and fear and worry over keeping Baby alive and thriving was crippling. I've never experienced anxiety before. Sure, I've been nervous before big life milestones or changes, but I've never had my nerves shake me to the point where they impacted my decision-making and actions (or inaction). Simple things I did...

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Boyfriend Pham and I aren't married - hence, calling him Boyfriend instead of Husband - and his surname isn't Pham. Even though I love my name - Jade Pham, short, sharp and to the point - there are a bazillion Phams out there and thousands of Jade Phams because 'Ngoc' meaning jade is a very common Vietnamese first name.When it came to picking...

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Little Sissy Pham told me life with Nephew Pham got easier around the 3-month mark when he started to sleep better and generally be more robust. For us, it was around the 4-month mark.The first 9 weeks were terrible because Baby Pham had reflux, which meant he couldn't be put down flat on his back to nap or sleep for about an hour...

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Every baby is different, which is why all the parenting books give out varying and often conflicting advice. The first eight weeks (aka newborn phase) were pretty much a roller coaster of anxiety, trying to interpret Baby's needs and adapting to them but never really knowing if what we did improved things or made them worse or Baby Pham just moved onto the...

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I've never felt so out of my depth before in my life coming home with Baby Pham in tow. There's so much support and scrutiny when you're pregnant, and while you're delivering the baby and then... you're on your own, kid. Except you're no longer the kid and you have a tiny fragile newborn kid that you have to somehow keep alive and...

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