Amanda had 2 very inspirational stories to share with us on this weeks episode.
– The Power of Prayer turned a nightmare into a miracle
– The timing of turning her will over to God, regarding having a 3rd baby, was indeed divine.
As well as some really great advice.
– Ask lots of questions
– Still do your normal things!
[00:00:32] Meet Amanda
Amanda: I’m Amanda , I love going on epic adventures and traveling to obscure places. I love learning about new cultures. I love Latin dancing, playing hoops and beach volleyball. Mom life allows. I find joy in planning, crazy surprises and big events. And I am in charge of character molding, nutrition managing, adventure planning, health monitoring, lifestyle designing, kindness encouraging and education
coordinating. For three high maintenance, high energy, and high demand, little humans that I absolutely adore, as a way to document life and family memories. I started vlogging after my first born and I have a YouTube channel called “written ritmos” where you can catch videos of all of our crazy unconventional family experiences.
So that’s kind of me in a nutshell.
Sheridan: Great. Thank you. It sounds fun. It’s a little chaotic, but I think that’s normal. I remember when I had three little ones, myself, it was often chaotic and that’s just part of being a family, with little
Amanda: kids. Absolutely. Yeah.
great. Well, I’m so excited to have you here and we’re going to start with having you share a time or a few times, whatever you want to share about experiencing the divine nature of pregnancy birth or mothering.
[00:01:52] The Power of Prayer Creates a Miracle for Amanda’s 2nd Baby
I was listening actually just recently to your latest podcast episode, and I think it was your guest, Melissa, who mentioned how pregnancy and birth can make the veil seem thin. And that totally reminded me of a really special spiritual experience that I had with my second birth, my daughter, Mayana.
I went in for just a normal checkup, a doctors appointment. And my husband usually would come with me to most of the appointments. but of course that one time he wasn’t with me. And, so I’m waiting for the doctors she comes in and she checks again. And. She looked very concerned and I see her kind of turn to her assistant and they talk for a minute and she looks at me, she picks up my cell phone, which is next to me on the bed and she hands it to me.
Amanda: And she said, call your husband and tell him to meet you at the hospital. We’re calling an ambulance. you’re going to have your baby today. We can’t find your baby’s heartbeat. Wow. And, my stomach just completely dropped. And of course I like freaked out trying to stay calm on the outside, but freaking out on the inside.
And of course my husband’s not answering his phone and I’m just like, Ugh. So they stuck me in an ambulance and away we went and I’m just praying, just, oh my goodness, please bless that. My baby’s okay. And I have no idea what’s going on. everything had been fine up until that point. So I texted my mom and I texted my sister and I said, will you both, please just pray for us.
I don’t know what’s going on. I’m in an ambulance headed to the hospital. They can’t find my baby’s heartbeat. And so they immediately of course spread the word to their family to start praying as well. My mom told me that a few family members immediately started to fast. She told me that she messaged my aunt, who is a teacher, an elementary teacher, and my aunt stopped what she was teaching and, told her whole little class of third graders what was going on.
So the whole little class of third graders said a prayer for me right there, for me and my baby, and I’m just, it was crazy just to know that so many people were praying for us. Anyway, so I’m in the ambulance and I’m just praying and freaking out. And suddenly I just felt completely, I don’t even know how to explain it, but I just knew that my abuelita was in the ambulance with me and my abuelita had passed away a few years ago and she and I were really close.
but I just knew she was there. She’s just this incredibly faithful woman. if you wanted to know the definition of faith, you would probably find her name, like in the definition, because she was just like the perfect, example of faith to me and to everybody while she was on this earth.
Amanda: I felt like this overwhelming feeling of calm and peace, and just to know that she was there. And I just felt like everything’s going to be fine. we got to the hospital, they checked me in and found the baby’s heartbeat and everything was suddenly fine. And the doctors were all, I think just leaning on logic and just trying to be like, that was a fluke or one doctor said, maybe.
They think maybe the umbilical cord had been kinked or who knows what, but in my mind I was like, no, y’all, that was legit a miracle that was a hundred percent a miracle. That was a ton of people praying and coming together. And, just in my eyes, I just felt like we had experienced the greatest miracle and I was allowed to have my beautiful little baby girl, and we didn’t have any other health complications after that, but it was just probably the biggest scare of my life.
Wow, that does sound so scary. And I love that you were able to reach out to two people and then they reached out to who knows how many people just had this amazing prayer chain. and so many people praying for you in that moment of need and that you could see such a beautiful miracle from that experience.
Sheridan: So
that’s awesome.
Amanda: Yeah, absolutely. the power of prayer, I think a lot of times it’s such a simple thing, but I think a lot of times we just take it for granted and forget how powerful it really can.
Sheridan: Yeah. Great. Is there another example you, or another time you want to share? Or should I go on to the next question?
Yeah,
[00:06:09] Turning over her will to God, Amanda gets to the point to be willing to have another baby.
Amanda: actually it, now that you mentioned it, I do have, so another experience, so I get really sick. I’m sure many mothers do, but, pregnancy for me. Yeah. Not even a little bit enjoyable. I’m pretty much a disgusting vomited mess day and night, just miserable. And it’s just, really hard.
it’s a huge challenge for me to be pregnant. with all three of my pregnancies, it’s been that way. So after we had our first two. we had beautiful little Nico and beautiful Mayena and my husband and I were like, you know what? This is great. We’re good. We have a boy, we have a girl we’ve been super blessed.
and we’re, I think we’re fine. Our family’s complete, but I just, I don’t know. I feel like my soul started having that question. just feeling or wondering. Are we missing another soul in our family, a little human. And I, my husband and I talked about it a few times, but we were just like, it’s so hard.
Amanda: It’s so hard for me to be pregnant. And with each, with the second, it was just even harder because I had my crazy little hyper Nico to take care of. And I was just so sick and it was just really hard. So we couldn’t even imagine going through all that with two. And so we were just like, it’s so hard, maybe not, maybe that’s not what we need to be doing.
But then one night, I was just laying late. It was really late. And I was laying in my bed praying. And when I pray, sometimes it’s more like a casual conversation or like an ongoing conversation with God. Like a lot of times I’ll just. Be telling him how I feel and my thoughts. And I was just laying in bed one night and looking up at the ceiling and just talking to him.
And I was just basically saying, you know what Father, like, you know, you know, I would really rather not go through this misery again, to have another baby, because it’s so hard for me. And you’ve seen me struggle and it’s just takes a toll on everyone around us. And I was just talking to him and I was like, you know what, but.
If it is, Thy will, that I have another baby. I will do it. And as soon as that thought finished in my mind, I felt I kid you not. I felt a little bloop in my stomach area. I just felt like a little flutter. and the thought came to me like the overwhelming thought and feeling came all over me.
You’re pregnant. And I was just like, no way, like what, but at the same time I felt so, just okay, like how could you ask for more of a clear answer than that? Like how could you ask for more spiritual confirmation that this is what needs to happen in your life? And this is the Lord’s plan for you and your family and okay.
It’s going to be hard, but let’s do it. And, I felt like I didn’t even need to take a pregnancy test. Two weeks later I did and it was positive. And now we have our beautiful little Bria and she is just an absolute angel and we adore her and I can’t imagine our family without her. So it was just a really cool and really special spiritual experience.
Sheridan: Wow.
I love that. I love how that, that divine timing where God let you. Get to that point where you were like, okay, if it’s Thy will do it and then he’s done.
Amanda: Totally. I know. They always say, what’s that saying? Watch what you pray for.
Sheridan: That’s funny. It’s interesting. Cause I had a similar experience with my third and my, I just had postpartum depression after my second and I just was like, I’m going to wait a long time to have another one. And. Let’s see, Carson was four that’s my second one. We finally even just started thinking about getting pregnant.
And I remember I was sitting in relief society and I saw the sister in front of, who is leading the music and she was pregnant and I’m like, I think I could do it. I think I’m ready. And I too was pregnant. I didn’t know it, but
that’s epic. Yeah. Yeah. Crazy how things happen
just it’s and I know it doesn’t happen that way for everyone.
Like sometimes babies come more surprising than that, but it’s tender when you do get that. Okay. I’m turning it over to you God. And then he’s like, all right,
Amanda: yeah. A hundred percent. Yeah. And like you said, that’s, it’s not the same with any two pregnancies. I feel like everyone’s journey and experience is completely different for them.
[00:10:52] Advice for other Moms – Ask All the Questions!
Sheridan: Yeah, absolutely. If you could give advice to a young woman just starting out on her mothering journey, what would it be?
Amanda: So this is an interesting topic for me because I feel like it’s.
The religion that I was brought up in, which is the LDS, religion, and culture. I feel like so much is just not talked about. I feel like it’s very family focused and very, very much get married, have kids go do the thing. And so we’re like, okay, we’ll go do the thing, but we have no idea exactly what that all entails.
And so I feel like I went into everything just Maybe just unprepared or unaware of what exactly “the thing” was, if that makes sense. And so I just feel like I would encourage any about to be soon to be mother, just to ask questions, ask all the questions, find people you’re comfortable with, and don’t even be shy.
Just ask all the questions and if you don’t have someone to talk. Ask me, find me on Instagram message me. I will tell you, I keep it real, ask the questions because so many things, for example, I feel like one of the things I had no idea about, and it’s a silly little thing. but I feel like I didn’t even know that after you have a baby that your normal clothes won’t fit you, like you still look pregnant for awhile.
I didn’t even know that I literally took clothes to the hospital that were like, Yeah. Old clothes from before when I was pregnant to go home in, because I just didn’t even know just things that, I just felt a little blindsided with the whole motherhood and pregnancy journey that I went on. So that would be one thing I would say is just ask all the questions.
Amanda:
[00:12:36] You will be in survival mode – but still do your normal things!
Amanda: Find somebody that you trust and ask. the other thing I would say is that your world is about to be turned upside down and you’re going to be in survival mode for awhile and that’s okay. but at the same time, I would also add to that, that you can do more things than you think you can, even if you feel like you can’t.
I just remember being in the hospital with my first and a nurse would, come and check on me every once in a while. And. was checking me out to go home. She looked at me and she said, I want you to know that. You can take your baby out and do all your normal things. Like you can go on errands, you can do things.
Amanda: It might seem scary at first, but make yourself do them. And that was such good advice because she was right. Like they send you home from the
hospital with this human, this tiny human, and they’re like, keep this human alive. And you’re just like, I have no idea how to do this.
And you’re a little freaked out and you’re like, maybe afraid to go out and do the things that you normally love to do, or, go do the normal things, the daily things that you need to, but don’t be afraid and honestly just be, feel empowered and know that you can do hard things. You literally just gave birth to a human.
[00:13:46] You grew a human, so you can do hard things!
Amanda: You grew a human, so you can do hard things. Life is full of ebbs and flows in motherhood. There’s ups, there’s downs. It’s a crazy rollercoaster ride. I would just say, find support and take care of yourself during the downs and just completely relish and enjoy the ups. it’s going to be up and it’s going to be down.
It’s going to be all over, but if you can take care of yourself when you’re down and then just completely enjoy the ups, I think that will make your motherhood journey a lot easier.
[00:14:18] Find friends that are a step ahead of you.
Sheridan: Thank you. Those are two great pieces of advice. And what I have found, especially I love having friends that are like a step ahead of me, you know, that have kids that are like five or 10 years older than my kids.
Because then they have had the experiences that I’m going to probably experience. And they are such a great resource. So for sure, finding people that can share, and I think you’re right.
[00:14:47] Motherhood is like a Mission
Sheridan: I feel like it’s like a mission, because a lot of people were like, oh, a mission. It’s the best two years of your life.
they just pump it up. But then when you go on a mission, I went on a mission. and it was hard!, no one said this to me at all. I had no idea and mothering is similar, but it’s one of those things you just have to jump into and try it. And then. you just do it. Yeah.
Amanda: It works out.
Yeah. I served a mission as well. I, and I remember just being in the MTC and being like, there’s no way I can do this. I just remember being like, oh, heck no. I don’t even know what that guy just signed up for. But then of course, by the end, I’m just like, Sobbing and heartbroken and don’t want to go home, And I feel like that’s totally, that’s a good, parallel with motherhood where you’re just like some days I’m just looking around at my life and being like, there is no way that I can do this. And especially, I just feel in the world we live in today, there’s so many things, so many threats that are so hard and I’m like, how am I going to prepare my children for this?
And it’s easy to feel overwhelmed sometimes, but. Those are the times where it’s really important to feel like you can turn to the Lord and pray and have faith and just take things one day at a time. And if that’s too much, one hour at a time, and if that’s too much, one minute at a time and just take it in small bite-size steps and you’re not alone, you can do it.
It’s definitely.
[00:16:13] Where to find Amanda
Sheridan: Yeah. Great. thank you so much, Amanda. I really appreciate you coming on today and I’d love for you to share how our listeners can find you. You have a few different places where you are online.
Amanda: Yes, I am definitely active on social media. You can find me on Instagram, @writtenritmos it’s W R I T T E N R I T M O S also on our YouTube channel written ritmos
and then I’m also on Tik Tok um, also written ritmos. And actually I have a video of my most recent birth, which was a water birth with Bria and that’s on our YouTube channel. So if you, are not squeamish, it is not for the faint of heart to watch, but it’s very raw and very real. And to me, very beautiful.
So I love sharing that experience with people and try not to sugar coat things too much and help people prepare for the real rollercoaster of motherhood.
Sheridan: Great. thank you. And I will add those links in the show notes. So they’re super easy for our listeners to click on and go over and find you and follow you on your different platforms.
And thank you again so much for coming on today.
Amanda: Thank you. Thank you so much for having me. It was a pleasure.
