Guest Post | La-Tisha Pirtle | How I Adjusted to Life as a New Stay At Home Mom

I've got a great guest post for you today. I think it's super amazing advice and encouragement for any new stay at home moms.

Being a SAHM is a choice for many, but I hear a lot of stories from women over here that didn't have much of a choice. When you move to another country chances are you aren't going to speak the language enough to be able to work at your trained profession. And even if you try to work on base, those jobs are hot commodities in a saturated market. 

It's tough for military spouses to find good jobs over here!

Not to mention the fact that even if you wanted to be a stay at home mom (raises hand) sometimes it just sucks. In my fussiest moments, I used to call myself a STUCK at home mom. Charming, I know. I wish I had had this advice when I started out as a stay at home mom!

So whether you're new to the SAHM crowd or you just need some fresh SAHM encouragement, this post is for you.

La-Tisha is a Christ-Loving, Yoga doing, business owning, blog writing, “gourmet” cooking wife and mother of the year (every year). She also has a passion for personal development and seeing other moms go for their biggest dreams! Please check out her website or connect with her on facebook. 

Finding Purpose Beyond the Cubical:
                  How I Adjusted to Life as a New Stay At Home Mom

The most important day of my new life as a mom was the day that I decided to leave my job and stay at home with my son.  

At that point, I had been working since I was about 18 years old. There were even times in my young life that I seamlessly held down 3 jobs all at once. Leaving my position was a huge leap of faith for me. As my last day of work crept up, I was excited. I couldn’t wait to start this new journey in my life. I had it all planned out! Everything would be perfect. 

Then, reality hit.

About 2 weeks in, I started having a mild identity crisis. I had no idea where I fit anymore. My husband still got up and went to work every day. My friends did the same. It took me some time to finally find my place inside my home again - a place that didn't involve rushing around the house every morning to get to work, insistently checking email, trying to read the minds of clients who had no clue what they wanted, and navigating the waters between my priorities as a mom and the demands of being an employee. 

I'm not saying that I've got it all figured out. What I AM saying is that these are some ways that I've found to reclaim my value outside of the cubical.

1. Get dressed… Everyday. And I’m not talking about your favorite Yoga pants – unless you’re doing Yoga, of course. Seriously, getting dressed everyday can give you a sense of motivation. I remember Saturday mornings as a teenager, getting up for breakfast and putting clothes on. I felt that it was my obligation not to waste a perfectly good outfit just sitting around the house. That meant I had to get out and DO something. As silly as that might sound, it’s the same concept now that we’re moms. Getting up and putting real clothes on motivates us to actually DO something. Granted, that something might just be a nice stroll around the neighborhood with the kiddo(s), but hey, it’s better than nothing! Keeping our routine of getting dressed daily also helps us feel like we’re good for more than cleaning pureed peas and sweet potatoes off the living room floor.
   
   
2. Find a hobby. As women, we often spend so much of our time catering to the needs of others (kids, husband, boss, friends etc.) that we forget to look after our own basic needs. We forget that we need a release from the day-to-day stresses of life. That’s why I suggest having a hobby. It doesn’t have to be anything extravagant. Just a little something that you can call your own. Knitting, crafting, Yoga, running – the list could go on forever. Just find something that you enjoy doing and that you can do in your (rare) quiet time.
    
3. Volunteer. Let’s face it. Just because we’ve made the decision to stay home with our precious babies doesn’t mean that we no longer have a desire to connect with the outside world. As a working mom, I always enjoyed connecting with other adults outside of my household. Whether I was in the office, at the gym…where ever, really. A great way to continue building relationships is to volunteer. Not only are you able to contribute to your community, but you’re likely to meet awesome new people as well. At this point you’re probably thinking, “Volunteering would be wonderful if I wasn’t toting a child around on my hip.” There’s a solution for that - sometimes. Some places in the community (especially the military community) offer child care for moms and dads who volunteer. If child care isn’t available, keep an eye out for kid-friendly volunteer opportunities. That way you and your little one can enjoy the day. If your child is old enough, volunteering together is a great relationship builder.
   
   
4. Find other ways to contribute financially. You can get creative with this one. There are tons of ways to earn an income from the comfort of your own home or from behind a keyboard. Are you a crafter? Make your creations available on Etsy.com. Are you fluent in a second (or third, or fourth) language? Offer lessons. Are you a wiz at finding the best deals? Coupon to save your family money. There are also numerous opportunities to launch a home-based business as well. Research what’s out there and how you can use your skills and network to your advantage. Put those your skills and creativity to work for yourself! Trust me, it’s so rewarding!
   
   
5. Be present. This is by far the most important tip. Remember why you chose to leave the confines of your corporate nest in the first place – that beautiful little angel staring up at you. Yes, the same one that just puked on your shirt. Yes, we give up a large part of our identity to become stay at home moms, but what we gain is so much more valuable. We gain the privilege to be present in every single moment with our child. We gain the opportunity to sculpt their values, observe their personality, and explore the world through their eyes. So, enjoy every second. Enjoy those mid-day naps. Enjoy the sparkle in their eyes as they revel in the pure joy of Mommy blowing raspberries on their belly. Enjoy it all.

To say that making the transition from juggling a traditional job and motherhood to staying home with your child is difficult would be an understatement. Practicing just one or two of these suggestions can help ease the stress that comes along with making such an extreme life change.

What are some of the tips you would give new SAHMs?


------



Thanks so much for the guest post La-Tisha! Your words are very empowering and wise!

If you found her tips helpful, please share this post with a SAHM friend who needs encouragement! 

To Play or Not to Play? Why is that the Question?

As I keep working towards my goals of being a "mompreneur" I sometimes get slammed with a hefty portion of that good old Mommy-Guilt. 

I try to work as much as I can when the kids are at school or sleeping. 

That's the most common "work at home" tip I read for moms. And I get it, it's important that my kids don't always see me at the computer. 

But it's not usually possible. I'm not nearly organized enough for such a rigid routine at this point in my life.

And on top of that, in trying to make my H a priority, when he's off of work I try to be present. i.e. not on the computer. So I work in a fluctuating schedule of some days = marathon computer sessions and some days = none at all. And it seems to work fine for everyone. 

But the kids don't always have as present or active of a mom as I'd like. 

The funny thing is, I don't think they even notice.

I think to myself, "did I play with the girls today?" and when the answer's no I cringe with Mommy-Guilt. I need to snap myself out of that and look around! I'm the only one freaking out here!

I read this post from Monica Bielanko awhile back and it really really REALLY encouraged me to chill with the Mommy-Guilt. Her raw honesty about motherhood is such a relief to read! 

See, the girls are doing just fine with Momma working extra on the computer or at the photo shoots. And I still manage to take them to the park or the playground or the event or whatever... just not as often as I used to. And I'm certainly taking advantage of their budding autonomy by sitting out playtime with a coffee. Or a beer (thanks Germany!) And that's okay! As Monica says,

"They’re at the pool, aren’t they? That’s winning at motherhood in my book. Our kids are such delicate flowers that not only must everyone get a trophy every time they so much as bend a knee at an event but we need to jump in every pool and brave every waterslide instead of just looking up and waving all two-thousand times they shout MOM WATCH! MOM WATCH! MOM! MOM! MOM! LOOK AT ME! MOM, LOOK AT ME!"

So maybe I haven't been able to play as much as I'd like to. Maybe I'm not actually coloring with them (haha maybe I'm even in the corner of the room coloring in my own coloring book, which I've found very therapeutic lately!)

Maybe I'm only going down the slide twice before I tell them the rest is up to them and I'll be sitting over there in the shade with my magazine!

I'm not always working - sometimes when they're around I just need to chill! If you follow me on facebook then you saw that I'm pretty honest with them about piddling around on the great wide internet when I "should" be doing things (like putting them to bed!)

I blogged about how important it is to me to play with my girls a little every day.

But "a little every day" is so different from the crushing burden we sometimes put on ourselves that we should always be playing and never be working in front of our kids! 

I'm proud of the work I'm doing these days.

And I'm proud of the fact that my girls get to see that sometimes.

I'm also proud of them, and so grateful for them... because even if I'm only reading three bedtime stories instead of a 45 minute marathon (YAWN) they still giggle with delight and snuggle me close... and they tell me every day how much they love me. I don't even have to bribe them!

If I play with them a little, hug them a lot, read to them some, and tell them how much I love them, too, then we're all good!

And as long as I remember that, then Mommy-Guilt will die a slow and painful death!

Did this post hit the spot? Then please share with your friends on facebook!

From This Mom to All Moms: Bad Days Happen, Even When Our Intentions Were So Good!

Dear Moms,

Don't be fooled. Just because you had a great morning doesn't mean you'll be having a great evening.

Sure, you got a lot of work done this morning, and rocked German class and a bunch of errands all in perfect time to go pick up the kids. You enjoyed your fresh tomato and mozz baquette from Globus as you rocked out to music with the windows down.

Yes, it was sunny today. So so so sunny.

Oh yeah, you thought you were going to be such a Cool Mom and surprise your kids with a trip to the Dinosaur Park... which is closing for the season on Friday. Good job you!

But wait. 

Remember that spot at the kindergarten that has a sign that says "parking forbidden" which all of you kindy moms ignore if the other spaces are full? Well, today is your lucky day to win the "no one ever gets a ticket for parking here" lottery! 

Oh and don't forget that your children are going to be super worn out from playing outside all day. And of course they're going to be super whiny and uncooperative.

As in "OHMYGOSHMOM I can't get my SHOES on all the way LETSFREAKOUT" kind of almost-5yo meltdowns. With shrieking. While Daddy is sleeping off a rough mid shift trying to sleep upstairs.

And while you think you're being smart for bringing food, you're actually retarded for bringing a new kind of cheese. Just because it has pineapple doesn't mean it's going to get rave reviews. Also, minus twenty points for thinking that it would be warm at the park just cause the sun was shining.

PS you forgot to bring the correct Euro change for the parking machine. And rather than risk another ticket you'll be making a trip into the office for change and then back out to the car.

Yay.

It doesn't matter that you're going to go down the slide three times in a row with those precious little humans you gave birth to... they're still sure as hell not going to let you sit down and enjoy that tiny cup of coffee for five minutes. No way.

One kid will get stuck at the top of some playground equipment and refuse to come down.

One kid will want to see the Dinos but the other won't.

Everyone's going to be miserable. But after sticking it out for 1.5 hours they're STILL going to complain about leaving. Loudly. Complain.

The truth is, and we all know this, sometimes being a Mom sucks. 

And that's okay cause once you get them home and in a nice warm bubble bath... and once you have some coffee... you'll all be snuggly and warm by the fire. Forgetting the whole afternoon. You will still have a lot of work to do after they're in bed. And one of them will probably wake up crying that she's got a sore throat while you're writing a blog post. But at the end of the day, it's just a day.

It was kind of a bad day. But they happen.

And while you know they'll happen again... while you know that you have so much work to do to clean up the kitchen and work on client photos and write and research and organize your professional life... you also know that your girls' fresh soapy hair smells so good as you read ten thousand bedtime stories and they snuggle up on either side of you.

Because even on the worst of days, we all know that being a Mom is as awesome as it is hard. Actually... more awesome. So much more.

And even though it didn't feel like anything about the afternoon went right, you DID take your kids to the park. You snuggled with them and read them a million stories even though you were tired and had a lot to do.

Cut yourself some slack.

Love and goodnight,
    Jess... another Mom in the trenches just like you

Back from One Adventure, Ready for the Next | Colmar, France - Momcation

This is my iPod Touch "photo booth collage" from our trip to Colmar, France this past weekend.

With the countdown to their PCS, Kirsten and I thought a girls-only trip to France was definitely in order before she leaves for Texas. We had such a blast and made so many great memories! Not to mention took some fabulous photos... I only have about 200 to edit!

It's such a blessing to be able to get away from "it all" and truly unplug for the weekend. I can't thank Jesse enough for sending me on such a fabulous trip! 

And I can't thank Kirsten enough for letting me be a total lazy-butt and sleep in until 9am both days! AHHHHH I really needed that!

Great photos, great weather, great food, great city, great conversations, great laughs, great friend. It was pretty great.


.....



And now it's time to welcome my Mom back to Germany! 

The girls don't know she's coming and it's going to be such a fun surprise! Gigi is just going to magically appear... for two weeks of FUN!

This week can't get much better!

Three cheers for fun and friends and family memories! Happy Monday!

German Kindergarten Adventures | Forest Week

Well hey there BLOG! Long time no post!! 

Don't worry, I should have a routine worked out soon that allows some more frequent posts and plenty of time for studying. Right now I'm just too excited about studying for much else... plus I had two photo shoots this month! So all the sudden I realize it's been almost two weeks since Forest Week and if I don't get these pictures up now I won't get them out before we leave on our anniversary trip! 

What is Forest Week, you ask? Oh you know, just a field trip on steroids. When I first heard about it, I mistakenly thought it was a one-day thing. "Oh cool, they're taking the bigger kids out in the woods for a day, how sweet!" 

And then I talked to the teacher after translating the info page and realized it was FOUR DAYS! And they meant business because they literally took a gob of preschool children out in the woods for five hours every day. Brave, brave, souls. 

So. This is Lily after day two...

Before you judge me, I have many defenses to give for her drenched state!

First, it was pouring rain that morning. And I was kicking myself for not buying her a rain jacket sooner. I mean, it rains a lot here but we usually make do with umbrellas and jackets... and even though I didn't think an umbrella was very practical for traipsing through the woods, I had no choice. But I said to Jesse "Maybe they'll cancel it?" to which he just laughed. Of course the Germans aren't going to cancel Forest Week. 

Oh and she WAS wearing a heavy jacket when I dropped her off.

Second, it was SPECIFICALLY stated in the information paper that the didn't want the kids in rain boots. They wanted sturdy shoes. And what preschooler owns hiking boots? So I just crossed my fingers that sneakers would suffice! But I knew. I just knew it was going to be bad. 

You can't send a 4yo out into the woods on the rainy day without expecting her to return a sopping wet mess. 

I was giving our friend Abby a ride to the forest from the kindergarten each morning... so after I dropped Sammy off, I packed Lily and Abby back into the car. And when I first saw Abby's RAIN PANTS I was like WHERE DID YOU GET THOSE??? But she's five years old so she couldn't really help me out. Plus it would have been too late anyways.

Lily just had to be that embarrassing American kid who's mom doesn't truly understand the German phrase "no bad weather, only bad clothing"

So the teacher's set me straight and told me what store nearby sold them... and they were less than ten euros! The teacher's also explained that the "no wellington" rule was only for dry days... on rainy days, rain boots are completely acceptable! The next day Lily was dressed like all the other German kiddos. And was also dry! 

"That's better MOM!"

So what were her favorites about Forest Week? 

- Doing something without Sam. I'm sure it's nice to actually experience the benefit of being older sometimes. 

- Going potty in the woods. Seriously, that was the only thing she wanted to talk about the first night. Delicious. 

- Learning that ticks don't hurt when they bite you... but it does hurt a little when Momma pulls them out (x3!)

- Saying hi to the cows along the paths. 

- And jumping in puddles. DUH.

I'm sure there were LOTS of other fun things (like eating breakfast and lunch in the woods and getting to choose which path to take and learning fun stuff from her adventurous teachers) but in classic Lily fashion, she only talks when she wants to. No amount of pressing for information is going to force that girl to tell me anything! So I just let her have those memories all to herself.

I did follow the group for about half an hour on the last morning. The photographer in me just couldn't resist a few pictures!

I am super proud of how Lily handled the whole week. She's not really my outdoor-cat... she definitely doesn't like getting dirty. But I never once heard her complain about it. Not even after the rainy day without rain pants!

She's basically ready for Camp Cherith now!!!

Throwback Thursday | Two Life Lessons

Today I want to re-post two old ones...

This one from two days ago over at Jesse's Girl Photography. And this one from two years ago here on There & Back Again.

One is a recent lesson that ties directly with my "slow down" New Year's goal. And the old one, the watch one, makes me chuckle... it was the beginning of this journey to discovering just how deep the roots of my awful workaholic tendencies go. The very first hints at my "death to the to-do lists" challenge!

In case anyone else needs encouragement today that it can take years for a lesson to sink in! 

She Just Wants to BE WITH ME.

Sam is teaching me a lot of lessons lately. Or rather, one main lesson... over and over. Because I can't seem to get that one lesson through my thick skull.

"Momma, hold me."

"Momma, I want to be wif you."

"Momma, please I be wif you?"

It breaks my heart how often I hear this. And I'm trying to really HEAR it you know? Like, not just hear it and give her a snack and send her packing to the toy room... but really hear it, and stop. SLOW DOWN. Hold her. Let her be with me.

Be with her.

A never ending internal battle. Who's more important, me or her? Me or Jesse? Me or Lily? My to-do list or my family?

Them. It's gotta be them! Those pudgy little hands just reaching out for a hug. I'm constantly working on stopping to be present.  

I don't like slowing down! AND I'm a slow learner. Such a bad combination ;o)

Get in the Pic Challenge | Baking Together

A local photographer here just started a facebook group to help challenge and encourage us photographer moms to get IN the pictures with our kids! She says it's "for photographers that want their families to have memories that they were there too." I just love that!

This is always a good thing for me to keep reminding myself of. I blogged about it before but I still forget to step out from behind the camera and capture those daily memories with the girls.

I like to make excuses. "Jesse's at work I have no one to take the pictures well"... "the lighting is terrible in here at night"... "My hair is a mess and I'm sooo tired, I'd just rather bake the muffins myself..."

But I had already offered to let them help me bake that evening.  

They were super pumped to wear aprons. And they made me wear mine :o) And Lily kept the princess dress on. It was all a little hectic and sparkly and chaotic and fun... a pretty perfect description of my life with these two monkeys. 

So we baked pumpkin muffins and I used the tripod and the remote timer to take self-portraits of the process.

All in all, I'm pleased with the results. It didn't take that much extra effort, and I captured some memories that both the girls AND I will treasure in years to come.

And that's the whole point of photographing family life, isn't it? 

"Dude... Dude... Focus, Dude...Dude?"

I'm fighting for focus today... dudes.  Actually I've been fighting to focus for the past two weeks, but I'm seriously going to work on it today.

I need to focus on something specific, and it's called being okay with stopping projects to take care of people (and chores, but the chores aren't as fun)... So essentially, I have to shake myself out of the excited-about-this-project-laser-focus that has me trying to focus on the project too much.

What's the project, you ask?  Well, it's kind of a surprise but I'm not very good at keeping surprises SO I'll tell you it starts with a "pho-" and ends with a "-tography business"... EEEEEEEK!!!

But that's all I'm telling you.  For now ;o) 

The main point of today's post is to proactively apologize if the blog is a little quiet for the next two weeks or so.  I was going to take an intentional "blog-break" to focus on my project, but Jesse reminded me that my project is going to take months.  The husband speaks truth.

In classic Jessica-fashion, I assumed that once the Holbeins left in June, everything was going to "slow down"... when will I learn that a) it never slows down and b) I'm not the kind of person who likes a slow pace, anyways!  J is constantly begging me to relax and sit down.  But I rarely do.  And even when I'm sitting down, it's at the computer "doing things." Lately, things for my business :o)

But yeah, I have a lot of creative energy and I guess it has to go somewhere.  Hence the blogging and homeschooling and hippie-homemade-cooking and starting my own business!!!  I just have to be careful not to let myself burn the candle at both ends unnecessarily.  I can function pretty dang awesome on a steady stream of iced coffee, power naps, and yoga workouts. I just have to be careful not to take it to the extreme.

For my kids' sake, my husband's sake, and MY SAKE, I need to focus in the moment today.  And every day.  So the words of Crush will be echoing in my head at each step of the day... "Focus, Dude..." because the reality is that I want to focus on only this one cool exciting thing, but I have tons of other cool exciting things going on!  Like a bakery date with a mother-hen from church who I just realized lives in my village!  And a big batch of chili to sustain us for the next three days!  And a "Christmas in July" play date tomorrow!

As a busy stay at home mom who loves to be busy, I don't have the luxury of only focusing on one thing.  It's focusing on all these things I do... with balance and peace.  One things at a time.  Only the thing I'm working on.  Think about what's next (like, finishing this blog post, waking husband up, and getting his coffee/lunch ready) but don't worry about it.  You'll find the time for "all that other stuff" but it will be in small chunks throughout the day.

Can anyone else relate to needing to FOCUS DUDE?

Busy Momma vs. Big Projects: the "Suffer for 15 Minutes" Rule

This is our new "ABC Tree" felt board.  I made it!  And I'm going to post about how I made it soon... but before I do I want to share a really awesome tip that I read in Gretchen Rubin's book Happier at Home:

When a project seems daunting or never quite gets started, try making yourself do it for 15 minutes each day. Only 15 minutes.  Anyone can do 15 minutes!

She applied this concept in her own busy life by forcing herself to spend 15 minutes a day making family albums until she was all caught up on her family photos.  It was something that was very important to her, but never quite got done... and once you get back-logged with something like that it's intimidating to get started.

Gretchen says, "I've been promising myself that I'd organize an album 'in my free time' but the fact is, I never have any free time.  I never wander aimlessly through the apartment, looking for something to do. But making the album was a priority for me, so I wrote it on my calendar like a visit to the pediatrician.  I would suffer for just fifteen minutes a day." 

So I applied this to my craft project, the ABC Tree.  I wanted to create a hands-on way for the girls to learn their letters, and the supplies had been sitting around for months.  I'm not specifically a crafty person, I mean, I love completing projects.  But I don't craft as a hobby.  So I found that getting started was really challenging.

Anyone, even the busiest Momma on the planet, can do something for 15 minutes a day.  I would write it on my to-do list, set the timer on my iPod, and literally only do 15 minutes of work on the project.  Sometimes, if I was enjoying it and wanted to keep going, I would.  Other times, I'd just pack everything away and move on with my day.

It might seem annoying to get everything out and have to put it away 15 minutes later, but I'm telling you, it works. Instead of feeling like I had to carve out a whole night of "crafting time", I just worked it into the day really quick.  It took about a month and a half to finish it, but I am so pleased with the results.  And I honestly don't know if I would have finished it had I not gotten started!  

So that's my tip!  Got a project you've had on the back burner forever?  Try to suffer for 15 minutes a day.  You'll be surprised how much you can do in fifteen minutes... and how many days of that before you're done!

I think I might channel my inner Gretchen and use this idea to do family photo albums, too!  We obviously have photos coming out our ears, and I usually decorate the walls with my pictures.  But I don't ever take them and put them into albums.  Digital photo books are easy and once I get started, no one can stop me muahahahaha.  Oh but before I do that I'm going to transcribe all my notes to the girls to a safe online storage.  I have been writing to them in their own individual journals since I found out I was pregnant with each... now I write down all their milestones and funny sayings, a "baby book" of sorts. I would be crushed if those precious memories to my girls were stolen, lost, or burned without a back up somewhere.

I just added "type for 15 minutes" to my to-do list today.  What are you going to do?

Oh Snap I Actually Kept it Simple!

I just realized the other night that I can say with honesty that I'm not stressed out this December.  I think this is the first Christmas season in a long long time that I didn't over commit myself!  

Sometimes it's hard to tell myself "no".  I'm realizing more and more that my problem isn't telling other people no, so much as saying it to myself!  There are so many things I think I should do to make the season special, but when push comes to shove the season is special because of Christ and I don't need to do do do do do in order to make it a great Christmas!  It's already wonderful!

Between two preschoolers to raise and a home to manage, I have plenty on my plate each day.  If I added even half of the amazing holiday parties, baking, crafts, events, and tradition ideas that come my way this time of year I would surely get to the end of Christmastime and say bah humbug!

Given my tendency to fill our schedule to the brim and then have a mini-meltdown (or two or three) during the holidays, I have made a conscious effort so far to choose my holiday fun carefully.  It doesn't hurt that we are down to one vehicle right now... and as much as I can get stir crazy being "cooped up" at home much of the week, it's been very helpful in keeping me rooted in our simple home life.  Christmas shopping was easy because we kept the gift list short and sweet, especially for the girls.  Which means less time spent battling crowds in the stores, less money spent, and less gift wrapping!

Sure, I've been doing plenty of crafts and Christmas activities with the girls.  We've also been thoroughly enjoying lots of Christmas movies.  And snuggling while reading Christmas books.  But part of my Advent Calendar is to do one special Christmas activity each day.  And with the quieter schedule, it has been a cinch to fit in those special memories with my girls... rather than another stressful thing on my "Christmas to-do list!"

We hosted our one annual party and I went to Kirsten's cookie swap this week.  Tonight is the squadron Christmas Party, which I am very much looking forward to because I'm using it as an excuse to be Princess for the night :o)  But the pace of the month has been pretty relaxed.  Not too many social commitments.  In fact, friends have even been willing to come visit car-less me, so I've been able to enjoy fellowship without having to take off my slippers or leave my cozy fire (thanks a million, gals!)

I even kept it simple in the holiday baking department!  As much as I LOVED making the fancy sugar cookies last year, I decided that a) they take too long and b) they aren't even Jesse's favorite kind of cookie!  So why bother?  Instead, I'll be baking two batches of Jesse fave's... which are actually super easy.  And I made one batch of ginger snap men for Kirsten's cookie swap.  Cause decorating cookies really is a fun Christmasy activity!  But only having one color glaze cut the decorating time by at least half!  I still got to indulge my creative cookie decorating whim without spending a whole day on the project!

Now, this is not a claim that I have been a perfect bundle of zen-Christmas-chill-ness.  In fact, I have a story about Lily and Sam's first snowman that I'll share soon... in which I was reminded that I can very easily take "giving the girls an awesome experience" and turn it into "make sure this first experience is perfect and DON'T YOU DARE TOUCH THAT SNOWMAN!"  Balance. It's going to haunt me forever isn't it?

Please tell me I'm not the only Momma of little ones who has a tendency to irrationally think that I must. do. every. tradition. perfectly!  I mean, those little monkeys of mine wouldn't even know if Christmas came and went without mention!  They certainly won't remember that Mom didn't make those pretty cutout cookies in 2012.  Nope.  No one will remember that but me.  And I'll smile, knowing it was a good choice ;o)

Will you join me in saying "no" to unnecessary to-do's and "YES" to just enjoying your season this Season?  So maybe I didn't send out hand-crafted Christmas cards.  And maybe you didn't make hand-decorated ginger bread men.  But let's just squeeze our kiddos and give them the best of what we've got to give this year!

Getting the MomSense Started

Vogelweh MOPS kicked off the year with our first meeting yesterday!  I was super excited about the amount of food!  Best brunch ever!

And I was also super excited about the ladies!  I didn't expect it to be such a small group... I thought it would be really big and maybe a little hard to feel connected.  But with less than 25, I think it's going to be a great group of gals to learn about being a great Momma with.  I'm looking forward to learning from and getting encouragement about mom-stuff at these meetings!  Did I mention there's free childcare?  Heck yes!

We meet two Wednesdays a month for the actual MOPS meeting (to include food, fellowship, and usually a guest speaker) and then twice a month on the off weeks for a play date/family outing. 

The theme for the year is a game theme, which I think it super cute.

Some of the meeting topics I'm excited about include: Hi-Ho Cherry-O on portions and eating right, Taboo on intimacy issues, Battleship on organizing a home that looks like a war zone, Apples to Apples on seeing eye to eye with your spouse, and Uno on taking time to care for yourself. 

They say that we'll be learning all sorts of "MomSense" this year (get it?  "Mom intuition + Common Sense = MomSense!") and I'm really excited about it!

A big thank you to Amber for getting me the info on this great group!  I think Wednesdays are going to be very good days!