Second Babies Get the Shaft?

Baby Levi may be second, but not second-rate!

Being a second baby myself, I wanted to make sure my second baby didn't get the shaft just for showing up second. But for a whole bunch of reasons, and despite how hyper-aware I was about trying to keep things equal between my kids, I did and continue to find it a challenge to give my second-born all the attention and fawning I did for my first. This phenomena has been coined second-baby syndrome, a subject I explore for The Calgary Herald.

I have noticed that my son is way more laid-back than my daughter, and seems much more at ease about going with the flow. I can't say for sure that this is because he is the second-born and has had to be shuffled along on his older sister's schedule for most of his eight months of life so far, but I really do think that being a second child helps develop a stronger adaptability. That's the case among my siblings.

I know that many fellow parents feel they've fallen victim to second-baby syndrome, but as you'll see in my story, it's rarely as bad as we make it out to be. Unfortunately, guilt seems to go hand-inhand with parenthood...fodder for a future story.

ps. Clearly my blog has fallen to third baby or more accurately, 10th or maybe 20th. Ha! Hope to stay better updated as I re-enter the working world. No year-long paid mat leaves for this freelancing momma; fodder for a different future story...

From Spaceman to Horseman

Last month, William Shatner AKA Captain Kirk was the Calgary Stampede's Grand Marshal. I was sent to find out what the good ol' captain had to say about the job for Canadian Living magazine. Mr. Shatner did not disappoint; he was chatty and funny, and I felt like sitting on his knee (in a friendly Santa way, not a creepy old man way).

Mum's the Word

Wow, have been very delinquent about updating my blog! I guess that's what happens when a new baby is on the way. Sorry folks, had to focus on wrapping up mostly corporate contracts to make sure we had a bit of a nest egg saved up before baby arrived. Don't have the luxury of EI for this mat leave, what with the whole freelancing life!

I did make time to write my first cover feature story for Swerve. It's about my search for answers into my family history, a story I've wanted to write for a long time. In this piece, I focus on my mom and her journey across continents, uncovering family details I never knew before. It was a learning process for all of us; difficult to research and write as is the case for most really personal narratives, but rewarding in the end.

I'm glad I got to write it, and even happier that Swerve gave me a forum to showcase the work. The feedback I've received has been overwhelming; strangers have messaged me to say that they wish they had probed deeper to find out more family history before their parents passed away while longtime friends have revealed things like they were shocked when they discovered I was first-generation Canadian. One friend's wife who is also Chinese wrote me a page-long message telling me how similar her family story is, and how it was so amazing for her to see it mirrored in my story. She says it's rare for her to find stories that really resonate with her.


Plus, my parents were quite proud, which was really important to me, of course.

It's so gratifying to know when your stuff is not only being read, but touching people in some way.

Hope you enjoy the read.