Shiny New Parent Blog | Navigating the Early Childhood Years

Greetings! I’m Gussi, and the Shiny New Parent blog is a place for parents to gather and navigate those amazing but challenging early childhood years.

I share all about motherhood challenges, early childhood development topics, and kid-friendly recipes and activities.

How I Became A Mom

Before my son’s birth, I knew very little about babies. I never dreamed of being a mom as a little girl, and even into adulthood wasn’t sure if I would have kids.

Motherless

Part of my lack of vision when it came to motherhood, was the fact that the concept of motherhood was a sad one for me. My mom passed when I was 19, and her absence left me feeling lost.

I felt like I did not belong anywhere; like I did not have an anchor anymore without my mom. This was my first big loss in life.

A Broken Career

As life continued, I made the dream of a perfect career my goal and focus. I wanted to be a mental health counselor and art therapist. I was thrilled about the prospect of having this dream career.

graduate school graduation photo — My Master’s graduation

I thought I would have this career until my dying day. As it turns out, this career was not meant for me for several reasons. So I said goodbye to this dream.

I returned to my work as a licensed massage therapist and also began working as a visual artist. I wandered around with a lot of self-doubt and sadness for a couple of years but slowly started to heal my wounds.

Deciding To Bring a Child Into The World

As time passed, I found myself with more mental and emotional space to explore new paths. This was exciting!

One of those new paths led my wonderful husband and I to decide to have a child.

pregnant woman — The night before I went into labor with my first child

So the journey of parenthood began! I am now a stay-at-home mom and am learning and growing in ways I could have never imagined.

The Birth of the Shiny New Parent Blog

After my first child was born, I was always worried I was never doing it “right”. So I got to work researching, planning, and experimenting as a stay-at-home mom with a tiny human. This is when I decided to start my mom blog.

Parenthood is such a labor of love, and I wanted this blog to be a reflection of that care and devotion to my kiddos.

I love sharing everything that I am learning as a parent, and I hope that by sharing this blog I can make other new parents’ lives easier and more joyful during these exciting, exhausting, and memorable years!

Background

Education: BA in Psychology (Lewis & Clark College), MA in Art Therapy & Counseling (Marylhurst University)

Work Experience: Licensed Massage Therapist, Child & Family Therapist, Residential Trainer