I’m struggling with the fact that I have a preschooler.
Where did the time go?
You were just a little rolly polly baby asleep in my arms yesterday, I swear.
Time is such a thief.
Even at a young age, you try to give your child all the tools they will need to succeed in any new adventure in life.
When the time comes to use the tools though, it’s both exciting and scary.
I feel like a tiny part of your innosence will be chipped away as we enter school age, even if it is preschool.
Yet, I want you to flourish and meet new friends and learn all you can at the same time.
Bring me home all the fun crafts you do each day to display, I hope I see a big smile at the end of each day and hear nothing but re-telling of fun things that happened while you were at school.
I know drop off’s will be hard and pick up’s will be exciting and it’s all apart of growing up for both you and me.
I swear, being a mom is the biggest emotional rollercoaster there is.
But just know mama’s, your baby will be fine.
I’m here to convince both you and myself.
Trust the teacher’s.
Trust that you raised a brave, smart and fun little one who will be nothing but great and kind.
And know it’s ok to cry, just hold it in until after drop off as to not scare them.
Know that they are ready, they have all the tool’s you’ve given them.
I know the hardest part will be getting yourself ready though.
I know how hard it is to let them grow, and even harder to let them go just a tiny bit.
Let’s get through the first week of preschool together mama’s!
We’ve got this and know as always, we are in this together.
I think if you asked anyone though, they would all have something different to say about what happiness and success means to them.
For me? Happiness is a slow Saturday morning with my family. Breakfast, coffee with my husband and a morning routine that went as smooth as a babies bottom. Success would be living simply but being able to provide for my family everything they need and be able to give as much as I can to those in need.
Everyday life though, It can defiantly take a toll on how your mind perceives things. One thing I don’t like is negative thoughts! I like a clear, free, happy mindset and it’s defiantly hard to accomplish but it’s one thing I take pride in having.
I try to do little tasks that help get me there and I am even trying to incorporate new ones this year to help keep my mindset positive even more. I am here to share with you 6 ways to help change your daily mindset to be your best self each day.
Positive Morning Routine.
I am starting off with one I am still working on. Mainly I am just not a morning person. I have found though that your morning really does set the tone for the whole day.
Create a relaxing morning routine that helps bring positivity to those early wake up’s. Make your favorite breakfast, sip your coffee slowly. Plan out your day.
Or even make this into your evening routine if you need to.
Do A Weekly Or Daily Brain Dump.
These help so much. Get out your favorite notebook and write down all your thoughts or things you need to do or want to do. Sometimes my mind gets so boggled with ideas and I love putting pen to paper and jotting them all down.
It does not have to be pretty, it’s just a way to help you get things off your mind and put into perspective what you want to accomplish. I love brain dumps.
Get Outside.
Need to clear your mind? I always say the best way to do it is to get outside. Fresh air is just so good for you.
I love a long walk to help alleviate stress or negative thoughts.
I love getting outside and playing with my kids, it feels freeing for myself and for them I am sure. Fresh air is a wonderful cure of a mindset that needs some clearing.
Less Is More.
Another work in progress for me is decluttering. I never realized what a toll clutter can take on you.
It creates so much stress, always having to pick up things or move things or organize things. It takes up so much time and energy.
I am going through one room in the house whenever I get the chance and it has felt so freeing creating a less is more atmosphere in my home.
Find A Hobby You Enjoy.
This is a big one. I love hobby’s. They are such an outlet to a more positive mind.
Find something you enjoy doing and use it as a way to be happy.
I love reading, writing and doing fun DIY crafts with my kids. They make me happy and I always feel better after finishing a good book, writing up a storm or making something fun with my kids.
Find something you love.
Erase The Negativity.
Remove negative things from your life. It may be hard sometimes but it’s worth it.
Listen to positive Podcasts, life yourself up with encouraging words.
Give yourself the strength to end the negativity and bring only positive into your life.
I think this is something we could all work on as human beings in general.
Your mindset is so important and I hope this has helped you find something to help make you happy!
If you have your own ways to stay positive and keep the joy flowing in your life please share them below with us all!
With a busy bee of a toddler running around at all times, books and coloring are so important to have accessible when it’s time for some down time.
Redfin reached out to us and asked to write a short piece describing an at home learning area that would work well.
You can read the full article here but I thought it would make a fun post to show you the little nook my toddler has for all his fun activities.
When it comes to at home learning or activity areas it’s so important to have everything open and easily accessible because I feel like it makes less of a mess. That way your kids will see it automatically and be able to grab what they need.
I love using little bins for crayons, art stuff and activity books. I use this cute personalized basket for my toddler’s things.
Another great tip is storage cubes! I feel like they are so great for toy organizing, book organizing or even learning and school organizing.
Adding pops of colors with books and crayons are always great to keep your kids engaged.
I like to keep our seasonal or favorite books on this bench ottoman and a couple inside it as well for easy reading access since majority of our time is spent in our main living area.
Also it’s a great place to store toys away and still have your living space look nice!
So many fun ideas you can do for a little learning nook but these are some of my favorites!
What type of areas do you have for your children when it comes to their learning and activities?
The other night my husband and I went out to dinner for the first time since we’ve had our newborn baby girl.
I was so excited about it. Like butterflies in my stomach excited. I navigated doing my hair and makeup between taking care of our newborn and our toddler and even the tantrums and the cries couldn’t put a damper on my mood.
I was going on a date with my husband, I was getting out of the house, I was wearing actual jeans, a crisp glass of wine was calling my name.
It was a wonderful night. A fall in love all over again type of night we desperately needed since becoming parents once again.
Life just gets so busy and that’s when I realized, we need to prioritize our marriage.
Between our children, working, his hockey coaching, sometimes “us” as an actual couple gets put on the back burner.
Who else can relate?
I’ve been constantly thinking of all the ways to prioritize our marriage and below is what I’ve come up with.
Set time aside for each other each day.
This goes in with the busyness I was talking about. Don’t put too much pressure on it but just make sure each day you have a little time for each other, even if it’s cooking dinner together or watching a show or just simply asking each other how their day went.
Respect each other.
Respect the wants and needs you feel for each other. Respect in general is just an important thing to have in any type of relationship but especially marriage. We all have different wants, needs, wishes and taking the time to listen, respect and prioritize them in your relationship is a wonderful thing.
Communication is key.
Does it even need an explanation? Communication is just #1. I can’t imagine my marriage without my husband wanting to share his thoughts with me. I can’t imagine him not wanting to talk things out with me. It’s just the #1 thing any relationship needs.
Date nights when able to.
Date nights out are so fun and definitely important. Like in the beginning, we just had our first date night since having our baby girl. Dinner was fantastic but after putting the kids to bed we sat in the living room with some wine and listened to our favorite songs we haven’t heard in forever and talked and laughed for hours.
So date nights out are great but don’t put pressure on it, you can have just as much one on one time at home as well!
Try to be interested in what each other likes.
I thought maybe this could relate to others as well. My husband and I have tons of the same interests but we also have tons of different ones as well. For instance, my love for writing and reading. Yet, he cheers me on and tells me to keep going with my blogging journey or will ask about the books I’m reading. He coaches travel hockey and it’s one of his biggest passions, so I go to as many games as I can and events and I love when he gives me play by plays of the games.
It helps us stay connected even when we are each doing separate things. Plus it’s always nice when someone wants to talk about something you enjoy!
With two kids now, I am definitely still figuring out this prioritizing thing! It’s a work in progress but I already know how important it is to keep a healthy marriage.
I hope these tips helped you! If you have more tips, please let us all know below. Thanks for reading!
As a mom I feel like one of the biggest struggles is staying organized.
It’s a huge goal but it rarely happens, am I right?
I know in my family, I’m the one being asked what time everything is at or what day and where is this and where is that?
It’s a tough job to stay organized!! I definitely struggle on the daily no matter how hard I try. I’ll be good for maybe a week and then I slack again.
So I came up with a list for myself to help me with the areas I struggle with most in hopes that it will stick in the long run. Plus I hope sharing it will help you as well.
So let’s get started on my 5 tips to becoming more of an organized mom ☺️
1. Clean out your purse.
If there’s one thing that makes me feel like a bad ass mom, it’s a clean and organized purse and diaper bag! Throw out those random receipts, old snacks that have found their way to the bottom. Go through your wallet and organize those cards and coins. It is such a relief when your purse is organized and it’s a great start!
2. Keep a planner.
Do I have a planner? Yes. Is it halfway filled out? Also, yes. It starts out so promising but I never keep it up! A planner can be a savior in the organizing department and I’m going to try my best to stick to it! Maybe putting it on display will help my hubby not to ask a million daily questions on activities…maybe 😉
3. Use storage bins/Storage furniture.
Now this I am wonderful at! Storage bins and furniture that is used to storage is my go to! I have an ottoman that stores so many toys and I love it. I always have cute decor bins all around that hold toys and other things as well. They not only help to stay organized but it helps your house stay more picked up!
4. Meal plan.
My downfall. I am a terrible meal planner and my biggest goal is to be a great one! If I am a better meal planner I can then avoid the “what do you want for dinner?” “I don’t know, what do you want?” Argument that happens a lot. Planning dinner ahead and having a cute meal calendar is my goal! So let’s achieve it together!
5. A solid routine.
Let’s face it, it all comes down to routines! When you have a solid morning and night time routine your whole life is just so much smoother. Is it easy? No? Is it worth it? HECK YES! I strive to perfect a morning and night time routine and it’s a struggle but it’s a priority that needs to be made as we navigate through this mom life.
As I work on these organization tips, my goal is for it to help me be a better, a more calm and happy mom.
They all help make our everyday lives easier and therefore we have more time for the fun things!
What do you struggle with the most?
Let’s help each other out! Moms supporting moms it’s my favorite.
As always, thanks for reading and have a great week!
Throw a mortgage, kids, pets, so many responsibilities into the mix and it’s even harder.
You see these fairytale pictures and you think, I want that!
I want the smiling faces 24/7. The cuddles. The date nights, the attention. The fun.
Of course you want it all.
The thing is though, it’s all about comprise. A little give and a little take. A LOT of communication.
All that fancy stuff up there, that’s not even the most important parts. It’s the foundation that’s important and that’s what is built on all the things said above.
So I came home the other day already annoyed from working all day. (I hate when that happens)
So any little thing my husband said I already was prepared to make it into a “thing”.
And if you know me at all, you would know I really don’t like being negative. I don’t like conflict, I don’t like getting worked up. It’s just not my personality. Sometimes I do though because I am human, and who do I take it out on most?
You got it, my husband.
I think all of our spouses get the blunt of our moods, unfortunately.
So I was waiting, and just like I thought, he said something that irritated me and so it began.
We went to bed that night both stewing instead of a good night kiss.
And you know what? When I was laying there replaying it all, I thought it doesn’t even matter who’s right and who’s wrong.
Isn’t that what it’s usually about anyway? Which one was in the wrong.
I wasted a whole night being irritated and sassy and what for?
Nothing.
So a few lessons I’ve learned since then.
1. Never go to bed angry
It’s obviously going to happen a time or two but it’s the worst! You don’t sleep good, you wake up feeling sad or mad still or mostly just regretful. Take the time to talk it out calmly before your eyes close for the night. Give that good night kiss or hug. It’s not worth it not to.
2. Realize your partner will do things differently than you.
Even if it’s folding the laundry or doing the dishes or putting things away or doing bath night with the kiddos. Everyone does things differently and that’s ok. Don’t get frustrated, just be grateful for the help. For the support and that you have someone with you to tackle this life with.
3. Don’t talk negative about your partner to others.
This is such a huge thing. I get it, you just get into a fight and the first thing you want to do is call your best friend and just complain. Stop for a second and take a breather. Go do something to keep your mind busy. Write your feelings down. The worst thing you could do is talk down about your partner in this life.
4. Have fun.
Everything doesn’t have to be serious and grown up talk all the time. I know it’s hard to get out and about in this time in our lives but make sure you still have fun together. Laugh together. Love together. That’s what it’s all about!
So next time I come home irritated and just drained from the day or week I’ll remember all these lessons I’ve learned and tell myself that no matter what it doesn’t matter who’s right or who’s wrong.
What are some tips you use to keep your marriage healthy?
Here I am, two different blog posts written (but not completed), running around the house doing laundry, while feeding the girls a bedtime snack at 10:15pm! My life never ends as a mom. Motherhood for me looks like this on a daily basis. Balancing working, cooking, cleaning, play with the girls, doing “school” work, it’s the season I am in and I am LOVING it.
I love being a hot mess mom. I know that sounds super crazy to some. OF COURSE I would love to have a daily schedule, get work outs in, meal plan, but living with no schedule has allowed me to enjoy every moment that I’m in with my family.
Obviously we are in the middle of this global pandemic. I don’t want to talk too much about it, but during this time, I’ve really been able to sit back and enjoy the life that I have. However, to make sure I don’t lose my mind or the kids theirs, I did set myself some ground rules.
Sleep “Schedule”
I set an alarm for eight o’clock every morning. We’re letting the girls go to bed a little later, so they sleep in a little. Waking up at eight allows me to watch some t.v. and drink my coffee. I also try to get to bed by 11.
School Work
All school work has to be done by noon. Then we have lunch, and the rest of the day is free time! The kids are LOVING that they don’t do school work for 7 hours a day.
House Work
My hubby and I really have tackled this together. We try to get dishes and laundry done while the girls are doing school work, so we can enjoy that free time as well!
I am a hot mess mom, and I am proud to be it! Our life isn’t perfect, but it was perfectly made for me.
Today’s blog post was supposed to be a recipe for my family’s favorite sweet treat: edible cookie dough (YUM!), but once again being a hot mess mom, everything in the universe stopped me from doing it!
However, it will be here next Thursday, so don’t forget to stop back by!
Quirky Workin' Mom's 