Blah, Blah, Blah, Blah, Blah, Blah, Blah, Blah, Blah.

Apparently, when I started this blog I had quite a bit on my mind but I haven't posted anything new in  a while and I'm wondering what the hell is on my mind these days. I've had some pretty great experiences over the last couple of weeks that I wish I'd sat down and written about sooner like getting glammed up by a professional make-up artist and having my photos taken, taking voice lessons from the choir director at my church, catching up with an old and dear friend over breakfast, and attending not one but two girls night out events within the past month.

It may not seem like much to some, but it's a big deal for me being this is really the first time since the birth of my second child two years ago that I'm dedicating more time to me and my interests. I have been able to partake in more activities now that both of my girls are in school but I'm wondering why I didn't make the effort to do some of these things before. I somehow became my own prisoner over the last year or so and as a result I feel like I've lost connections with some of my old friends and wasted time making excuses and staying at home instead of getting out.

Well I'm working on changing that and so far I've been pretty good about keeping up with the goals on my list, well all except for one. A date night is long overdue for the hubby and I so I'm putting it out there right now in print that before this month is over, I will schedule a date night and report back here on the blog :-)

Good night!

Mom's Night Out

Mom's Night Out. What a beautiful phrase and an even more beautiful concept when moms kiss the husband and kids goodnight and get together with other moms for an evening of food, drinks, and conversation which preferably doesn't include talking about the husband or the kids.

This past weekend I attended a girls night out at local night club. For me this was a little out of the norm since I hadn't stepped foot in a night club without my husband since we've been married. So when I got the invite, I was a little hesitant wondering whether I, a women in her 30's with two kids, should be going out to a club.

I thought about it and thought about it until I decided to stop thinking about it and just go and have a good time. The funny thing is after I decided to go, I told myself and the other ladies that I would probably leave by 11:00pm the night of the event. When I arrived at the club that evening, I then said I'd probably leave by midnight. Well, this mama actually ended up leaving at 2:00am when the club closed. Yeah baby! Needless to say, I had a good time and I'm glad I decided to go.

"K" is for Kindergarten (and are you Kidding me?)

The best way I can start this post is to simply say, life happens. Monday was to be the first day of an important milestone in our family. A day my husband and I knew five years ago would eventually come and one that we've prepared for with school tours, information sessions, back-to-school nights, and teacher meet and greets. Yes folks, I'm talking about Kindergarten and out of all 365 days in a year for cold germs to invade my daughter's body, those little suckers picked the day before the first day of school. Are you kidding me?

This was the first sign on Sunday. For someone who despises naps to curl up behind the chair and snooze, I knew something wasn't right. I took her temperature when she woke up and sure enough she had a fever. I was hoping some medicine and an afternoon of rest would make it magically disappear but it didn't. It got worse and by nighttime she was complaining of a sore throat.

So instead of attending the first day of school on Monday, we attended the pediatrician's office. Thankfully it wasn't strep just a good ole viral infection . . . right before the first day of school.

By Tuesday, she was feeling much better but we didn't have the all clear to start school until Wednesday so I thought I'd take a few fun photos of her in one of her school uniforms.  She cooperated for a little bit but then got annoyed with mommy taking pictures. Such a little diva :-)

She's really been a trooper the last few days. Initially, she was sad she couldn't start school on Monday but she kept a positive attitude and followed doctor's orders to get better as soon as possible. I think she learned a valuable lesson of how life can throw you a curve ball every now and then, but your attitude makes all the difference on how soon you can get back in the game. As a parent, I'm really proud of her and this morning we were all ready for her first day.

I think the smile says it all!

Oh Snack Bags How I Love Thee

In my ongoing quest to bring a little more organization to my house I decided to take a little time one Sunday afternoon and separate all of my girls' favorite snacks into snack bags.
 It took maybe about 45 minutes to complete but will certainly save me time when I'm packing lunches or running out the door and need to grab a few snacks to hold the girls over during errands.

 I also like that the portion sizes are controlled so the girls can easily grab a bag of their preferred snack when they like.

What To Serve Sunday

A little late in the evening but this is my first attempt at weekly menu planning for the family and starting What to Serve Sunday. Not sure what to do about Friday yet, but I have some time :-)

• Sunday: Seasoned pork loin & red potatoes {crock pot} ~ green salad mix

• Monday: 15 Minute Chicken & Rice Dinner Chicken noodle soup & cornbread (my baby is sick)

• Tuesday: Meatloaf ~ mashed sweet potatoes ~ green beans

• Wednesday: Chicken & Broccolli Alfredo

• Thursday: Apple Maple Turkey Burgers with Maple-Dijon Sauce

• Friday: tbd

• Saturday: leftovers/clean out the fridge

Not the Menu Planning Mama!

Okay, I will admit I get a little annoyed with what I call the "Supermom Syndrome". You know the moms who wake up at 5am every morning and run 10 miles, come home and feed the kids a homemade breakfast, clean the house from top to bottom, plan the family's meals for the rest of the week, and already have dinner prepped by 9am? And the only reason you know what they've accomplished that morning is because it's posted on Facebook . . . with photos.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not knocking them. I admire that level of energy and organization but that certainly doesn't sound like anything going on in my house. My family have always followed a natural schedule of what works for us and have just gone with the flow of our household. Well, a lot of that is about to change now that our oldest is starting Kindergarten next week.

One area of change will definitely be an earlier dinner time. Of course figuring out what to make and basically cooking, itself, has never been fun for me. It's especially not fun when you have a house full of picky eaters, including husband. I do however, want to embrace a better attitude and have less anxiety about preparing meals for my family and could probably benefit from menu planning.

I don't think I'm ready to join the Menu Planning Monday movement but I do want to start working on planning my family's meals out for the week. Maybe I'll be a rebel and start "What to Serve Sundays", LOL!

Am I Afraid of Money?

Summer is coming to an end which means my brief hiatus from my business is coming to an end as well. My plan when I put my business on hold during this time was to rededicate myself to it again once my oldest started Kindergarten and my youngest was in part-time child care. I certainly didn't want to rush the Summer away but part of me has been looking forward to having a few uninterrupted hours each day to concentrate on work.

We're now in our final week before schools begins and my youngest has already started in mom's day out. So why am I not jumping for joy yet? Probably because before I can reopen on Etsy and take on more orders I have to raise my prices. I started my business to make money doing something I enjoy but I'm barely breaking even with my current rates. The truth is I'm afraid. I'm afraid of losing potential customers and even some repeat business. I've always been a price conscience person and I know what the economy is like right now so needless to say I'm feeling a little chicken shit about doing it.

I've just been praying about it, talking to my husband, and consulting with other mompreneurs but the ultimate decision is up to me and it will get done. I know how much time and passion and care I've put into my creations and I know it will feel good to get compensated accordingly. It's just one of those hard decisions of being a grown up and what I hope, a smart business woman.

Getting Back My "Mamajo"

Somewhere along the way after having my second child and starting my business, I became too tired and honestly, too lazy to keep myself up. I was trying my best to take care of the kids, the home, and my business and I just stopped adding myself to that list. I'm not talking about forgetting to schedule a mani/pedi here and there. I'm talking about getting the kids washed and dressed each day, but my morning routine consisted of throwing on some clothes and brushing my hair back into a ponytail. Sometimes my hair was the only thing that got brushed if I was running late to something. I know, gross, but I'm keeping it 100% on this blog. Forgetting myself also included going into the office once my husband put the girls to bed and working all night instead of enjoying a much needed hot shower and some rest. Of course it just left me exhausted again the next day. I'm certainly not proud or happy with how okay I'd become forgetting about, well me.

On a lighter note, I'm determined to start taking care of myself again and getting my mojo mamajo back. One of the goals on my list to the left is to maintain a hair appointment at least once a month if not every couple of weeks. For me, washing and drying my hair is a chore and unless I'm going for the Don King look, it has to be blow dried and flat ironed, two things I don't have the time or patience to do.

I'm actually very proud of myself and feeling a little spunky since I've not only kept my last few hair appointments and cut down drastically on ponytails, but I also just got highlights. How ya like me now, LOL :-) 

So here's to all of the moms getting their "mamajo" back!

We Were On a Break!

"We were on a break!" Sound familiar? The ongoing phrase between Ross and Rachel of Friends. That's kind of what I'm experiencing right now, with my business that is. We've come to our two year anniversary together and instead of celebrating we're actually on a break. Business has become a bit overwhelming for me this past year, so I put my Etsy shop on vacation for the Summer just so I could catch my breath.

Now the school year is fast approaching and I'm wondering if I want to rekindle things again, at least under the previous conditions because frankly, it was draining. So I've decided that before we can get back together I have to set some boundaries first.

• First of all, no more late nights and all-niters. We've had a lot of creative rendezvous after the kids have gone to bed but I've seriously forgotten what eight hours of continuous sleep feels like.

• Secondly, my weekends will be devoted to more family time and less work. Don't fret! Once the kids start school in the Fall, we'll have more time together during the weekday just me and you.

•  After two years together, I realize that I've underestimated how much my time and work is really worth. So before we go any further, I need to determine my true value.

•  Lastly, we need to define where this relationship is going. It's been an adventurous ride so far learning as we go, but if we're in this for the long haul, we need a plan and some goals.

So those are my terms plain and clear, I just hope I can stick to them. We'll see how it goes.

Not Another Mom Blog!

Yes, I am afraid so. Upon the thousands of moms blogs out there I've just added mine to the blogosphere. Why? I'm not quite sure yet but I think this would be an effective way for me to sort out my thoughts, vent my frustrations, post my goals, and share my experiences of not just being a mom but being a mom, a woman, a wife, and an entrepreneur just trying to balance it all. Honestly, right now I feel as though I'm going through life without some sort of game plan and I feel totally unorganized.

With my oldest starting Kindergarten this Fall I've been telling myself for months that I need to get my house, my business, and myself more organized and balanced. Well now we're down to less than two weeks before school starts and I'm still telling myself the same thing. I think I had this vision in my head of achieving a squeaky clean clutter free house, a schedule of activities for every waking moment of the day, enough time to work on my business and spend time with my family, and of course look fabulous while doing it all. Yeah, right! I'm not saying it can't happen but hello, welcome to the real world.

Needless to say, I'm a work in progress and I hope to use this blog to document my journey. To start, I've made a growing list featured on the left of goals I'm striving to achieve that I feel would add a little more balance to my daily life. The rest I'll figure out as I go.

So here's to embracing the B word!