First Time Parents- Choosing The Road Less Traveled 

 

Hi- we’re Kelly and Greg, creators of Raising Them Naturally! As new parents, we have so many questions about EVERYTHING when it comes to raising kids and parenting!

But before we get into more about us, we want to talk about YOU. As a parent, can you relate to any of these?

• Wanting to take accountability and do what’s best for your children, but just not sure where to start
• Turning to the internet for answers but feeling overwhelmed with information overload
• Feeling anxiety over what you’re doing isn’t the RIGHT thing to do
• Wanting to take a more natural- common sense approach to raising your children
• Looking for a friendly community to ask questions without being mocked or shamed

We HEAR YOU, we UNDERSTAND YOU, and we STAND WITH YOU- YOU’RE NOT ALONE! Preparing for and raising children can be daunting, frustrating and at times- downright scary.

We know, because we live it everyday- our first child was born in January of 2021- in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic, and it’s been non stop learning for us since day one. 

That feeling of “Ok, now what?” when we first brought our baby home from the hospital.

Or those frustrating, tear filled nights spent online trying to find answers while our baby cried-  wondering how we were going to make it through this abrupt transition in our life. 

As parents, we aren’t given an instruction manual on how to correctly raise kids, and everyone else seems to have an opinion on how to raise OUR kids.

All we want is to raise our kids naturally- as God intended. Physically, emotionally, intellectually and spiritually. 

If you can relate to any of this so far, then you’ve come to the right place. We’ve created Raising Them Naturally as a place where new parents like you can come to relax, let your guard down, learn and get answers to your most burning questions.

We’re building a community of like minded moms and dads who only want what’s best for their kids.

We don’t claim to know everything- after all we’re just like you in starting our own journey into parenthood.

But if we listen to one another and share ideas, I know we can all get through it…… and actually enjoy the experience of parenthood with all the ups and downs that it brings.

If you’re ready to take accountability, find answers to your questions, and take the road less traveled when it comes to parenting- then you’ve come to the right place! We’re so excited you’re here and CAN’T WAIT to help you! 

Changing Our Lives

This site isn’t just about raising children. It’s about raising them NATURALLY! Hence the name of this blog. We live in a world today that has become so far disconnected with our human nature.

Think about it:

• Overly processed food
• Broken family structure
• Overuse of antibiotics and medications
• Lack of a basic understanding of nutrition and how our body functions
• Lack of accountability for raising our own children 

It’s no wonder that obesity, heart disease, cancer and other diseases are on the rise. Emotional problems- the ones that often can’t be seen as easily are also increasing- especially in children. It breaks our heart to see and hear what goes on in the world today. 

This is why several years ago Greg and I made the conscious decision to start living a healthier and more aware lifestyle. This meant…. Studying nutrition and eating organic, non processed foods as much as possible

• Understanding how the body functions and that every part serves a purpose
• Improve our exercise habits
• Implementing alternative methods of healing (Homeopathy, Bioenergetics)
• Realizing that we are in control of our own health

After the birth of our first child it only made sense to not only continue this, but to grow it further as we started our family together. Knowing that there has to be a better way to raise a family than what “conventional, modern day wisdom has taught us”.  

We aren’t perfect by any means!

We still indulge in ice cream and brownies from time to time and don’t always exercise as often as we should. We try and live our lives using the 80/20 rule. 80% healthy and 20% not as much, we’ve found that this is a good balance that works for us. 

How We Met

Greg and I met in college- we both attended Grand Valley State University- GO LAKERS! 

I was going to school studying for a bachelor’s degree in Photography, and he was in the business school.

What was supposed to be a group of us going to the hockey game ended up being sorta like a blind date….

I know- kinda scary right?

Our mutual friend brought his girlfriend along, and invited Greg and I to join. Not knowing each other at the time, it was slightly awkward for the first few minutes. 

We started talking and hit it off really well. We met up after the game, watched the Winter Olympics and talked long into the night. 

Before Greg left, I built up the courage to ask for his number, and the rest is history. Here we are eight years later, happily married and just starting our family together in January of 2021 welcoming home our first baby!

We both work full time, me as a stay at home mom, and Greg as an engineer in the automotive industry. Like everyone else, we have busy lives. But we’ve also work on side hustles- like this blog!

We’re telling you this, because we’re normal people- just like you. We’re new parents, starting out and just want what’s best for our family. 

Working on this blog together with my husband has been one of the best decisions we’ve ever made.

Like really….

It’s brought us closer together and it’s a blast being able to work with him on such an important, and relevant topic.

 One that has a direct, daily impact on our lives! 

 We are working towards Greg being able to quit his 9-5 job and work exclusively on the blog like we see so many others do. We know it’s possible, and we have such a passion for raising our child and helping others along the way.

 When we aren’t working you can usually find us near crystal blue water, usually kayaking or boating. With both of us being born and raised in Michigan, water is what we live for! 

When winter sets in and the water freezes over we spend as much time as we can in northern Michigan skiing and snowmobiling. 

Basically, we’re outdoor people! If it’s outside, we usually love to do it! Greg has also taken up a love for vegetable gardening. Which has really opened our eyes to the possibility of someday growing most of the produce that our family would consume. 

We think it’s so important to disconnect from technology and the stresses of life to get outside and decompress.

It really helps to restore balance in one’s life and give perspective.  

Our Mission

Our mission for Raising Them Naturally is simple….

We work hard to provide you the parents with the information you need to make an informed decision so that YOU can choose how YOU want to raise YOUR children. 

We will never tell you…

Our way is the best, or the only way.

We want you to decide that for yourself- everyone’s goals and vision of raising children are different.    

We know parenting is hard, and as a parent you’re faced with an endless list of questions and not enough answers. It’s our goal that you’ll find our information useful as you go about taking care of your family. 

We feel that more families need to take responsibility for their own health and wellbeing. We hope our blog is a useful tool in helping you do so. 

We want to hear from you! Please leave us a comment below on what goals you have when it comes to raising your kids! What’s worked for you/ what hasn’t? We can all learn from each other.