This is a three-part post in one. There are so many tips and ideas packed in here! I’m sharing the tired struggles of being a stay at home mom, 15 specific ways to battle mommy burnout and my best, simplified discipline advice. There is also a benefit to being a mom that you have probably… Read More When I’m tired of being a stay-at-home mom
I miss you! Writing every other week this summer just isn’t cutting it. I know it’s the right thing to do, but I’m looking forward to getting back into the swing of things with the school year! This has been a summer of growth for me. And not in the fun way like learning a… Read More Summer of growth
I value productivity, but I need balance too. Left to my own devices, I would never sit down, forget to eat and run full force at a project until I see its completion, but that is not how motherhood works! The days that I commit to projects and writing, I feel the tug of quality… Read More How I organize my day with kids and work
My third child is two and a half. She’s killing me today. Over the last couple days she has climbed up the washing machine to get in the medicine cabinet, colored her entire face with a purple marker, destroyed all my makeup as she got “boodeefull,” walked out the front door without a word, refuses… Read More 11 things to do when Mom can’t take any more
Exactly one year ago I was telling my friend Ashby that I need to do something to teach my kids to be grateful. She suggested purposely doing something kind once a month. Yes! So for the last year we have committed to focus on being grateful and kind. It has noticeably changed my kids’ hearts,… Read More The grateful project: A year of teaching my kids kindness
I often describe the troubling times I have with my children on this blog (like here, here and here), but today I had some clarity. As I sit here in a rare moment of being completely alone on a rainy morning, I’m thinking of the ways the kids have enriched my life and character. Yes,… Read More Have your kids changed your character?
Clara has really amped up her game since she turned two. She learned how to open doors and climb out of her crib in one day. The next day I put her down 34 times for her nap. The following day, 60 times. 60 times! We put all the bar stools in the garage because she climbs… Read More 25 effective toddler discipline strategies
What does your spouse do that fills your heart to the brim? What do you do that makes your child’s eyes light up big and bright? We each receive love differently, so if we speak each other’s language we’ll get farther faster. Marcello and I were introduced to Gary Chapman’s book “The Five Love Languages” as… Read More Are you speaking your family’s love language?
This is a tricky post to write. But if I don’t write it, I would feel dishonest. I’ve been going through a bout of depression and lots of I-don’t-wanna-be-a-mom-today moments for the last month. I said it. It’s not pretty. It sounds ungrateful. But it’s still true. Depression is not a common enemy of mine,… Read More When Mama is TIRED
The boys are three and five years old. I have shown them love with my whole heart during their short time on this earth, but I’ve also let them rule my emotions. I have let them get the better of my temper, lost control, yelled and acted like a child myself more times than I… Read More The week I changed the way I parent
Last night my visiting aunt was hysterically laughing at my life. She literally said “I’m laughing at your life,” which made the rest of the family snort with laughter! I love that about her. Watching the ridiculous chaos my kids embody reminded her of when her boys were small. She couldn’t help but giggle at our everyday nonsense of… Read More On going from 2 to 3 kids
What is it with me and my emotions when I have an eight-month old baby? Sometimes they get the better of me to the point I can’t enjoy the sweet little moments because I’m busy thinking they won’t be this small forever. I did this with each of the boys around the same age as well.… Read More Being a mother is emotional