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  • .⠀ ‘TO THE WORLD YOU MAY BE ONE PERSON; BUT TO ONE PERSON YOU MAY BE THE WORLD.’ —Dr. Seuss⠀ .⠀ 9 years ago today, this adorable blue-eyed gal made me a mom. She was 6 days early and has been living life on her terms ever since. She is the strongest and bravest girl I know, and I am so very proud she’s mine. She challenges me in ways I never dreamed a child could, lol, but I wish I’d had half of her sass and assertiveness when I was her age. She knows exactly what she wants out of life, and she’s not afraid to do whatever she needs to do to get it. Her enthusiasm and love for life is contagious, and I love experiencing the world through her eyes. She is fiercely loyal to the people she loves, and has made me a better person in so many ways. ⠀ .⠀ Happy 9th, sweet girl. I’m sorry we won’t be able to celebrate with your friends the way we had planned, but I hope your birthday is just as special. I’m so lucky I get to be your mama, and I’m so damn proud of you. 💙
  • .⠀ ‘A NEGATIVE MIND WILL NEVER GIVE YOU A POSITIVE LIFE.’ —Unknown⠀ .⠀ 👆🏻this is your Saturday morning reminder to look for the positives today. ⠀ .⠀ It’s so easy to focus on all of the negative ways our lives have changed lately, but try to be mindful of where you spend your energy. Easier said than done, I know, but when you catch yourself going down a rabbit hole of negativity, remember that we’re all in this together, and think of ONE thing that brings you joy right now. Maybe it’s the memes your BFF sends to you throughout the day, the increased time with your family, or the fact that you haven’t had to change out of your PJs for days on end. Whatever it is, hold onto it when the weight of this feels too much.⠀ .⠀ Be good to yourselves this weekend! Xo
  • .⠀ ’IF YOU CAN’T BE KIND, BE QUIET.’ —Unknown⠀ .⠀ Oy. Social media has been an interesting space lately. For the most part, I find we’re all doing our best to keep each other’s spirits up by sharing funny memes and making light out of the way we’re trying to stay sane. I love the sense of community it’s creating, but every once in a while I notice a post or comment from someone that’s less than kind. ⠀ .⠀ If you post a funny meme, you aren’t taking this seriously.⠀ .⠀ If you complain about your kids climbing the walls, you obviously don’t love them enough.⠀ .⠀ If you post an old photo taken outside of your house, everyone assumes you’re defying the social distancing rules.⠀ .⠀ If you post a photo of your kids being homeschooled, you’re deliberately trying to make other moms look bad.⠀ .⠀ If you post a photo of your child playing video games, you’re allowing them way too much screen time.⠀ .⠀ And on and on it goes.⠀ .⠀ Let’s be clear here friends: this sucks. While our realities and struggles may be different, it’s all relative. It’s hard on all of us. We’re all cooped up. We’re all mourning the things we once took for granted. We’re all scared. And we have no idea how long this will continue.⠀ .⠀ This is a time to come together and build each other up, not tear each other down. ⠀ .⠀ Be kind. 💙
  • .⠀ ‘WAKE UP AND SMELL THE ROUTINE’. —Unknown⠀ .⠀ I decided to take a break last week and give myself and my family grace as I digested everything that’s going on right now. My 8-year-old and I have been home for over 2 weeks already since we made the decision to cancel our March break plans, and as we adjust to our new normal, I realized this past weekend that we really need some sort of routine.⠀ .⠀ So, we spent some time figuring out a realistic plan that allows my husband and I to work while my sweet girl learns and exercises her creative side, and while it’s not perfect, it felt good to wake up with a greater sense of control and purpose today.⠀ .⠀ Whether you’re scrambling to create a homeschooling schedule to keep your kids learning while they’re cooped up inside, or you’ve decided to give yourself grace and take it one day at a time, we’ve put together our best tips and ideas to make surviving a school closure as painless as possible. Click the link in my bio, and comment below with the things you’re doing to stay sane during this difficult time!
  • ALEXA: skip to 2021. 🌟⠀ .⠀ This definitely hasn’t been the March break any of us imagined or planned. Some people aren’t taking it very seriously - others are crippled with anxiety over it. Wherever you fall on that spectrum, remember to keep perspective, be good to yourself, and keep your sense of humor up. Enjoy the time with your loved ones as best you can. Find joy in the small things. Try to keep some sort of routine so you don’t lose your freaking mind. And try to figure out all of the lessons this is trying to teach you.⠀ .⠀ Be safe my beautiful friends.⠀ .⠀ AND WASH YOUR DAMN HANDS! 🤗
  • .⠀ ‘YOU DON’T GAIN ANYTHING FROM STRESSING. REMEMBER THAT.’ —Unknown⠀ .⠀ I have suffered from anxiety since I was about 8-years-old, but grew up at a time when mental health wasn’t discussed. I know my anxiety impacted my family, and that attempts were made to ‘deal with it’, but I cannot remember anyone ever sitting with me and talking to me about it. I knew there was something very wrong with me, but learned to keep it to myself and figured out ways to cope with it on my own. Sink or swim, right?⠀ .⠀ I’m lucky in that I did learn to cope, and my anxiety mostly went away until my late 20s. It tends to come on when life gets hard, and I’m so glad I’m raising my daughter at a time where we can talk about and own our challenges without worrying others will judge us or make us feel ‘less than’ because we struggle with things they don’t understand. Mental health isn’t something to be ashamed of.⠀ .⠀ I’ve since learned that many of my friends have anxiety, and I find it fascinating to find out the different ways they cope with it as we all have our own unique strategies, and I’m always searching for new things to try. Here is what works for me!⠀ .⠀ ✔️LOGIC. As I’ve gotten older, I’ve become more open with my anxiety, which allows me to reach out to others when I need to ground myself. I used to be so embarrassed to confess the things that caused me to worry, but now I just own it and I find it incredibly helpful to ask someone for their perspective when I catch myself being irrational. ⠀ .⠀ ✔️MOVEMENT. In case you haven’t noticed, cardio is my jam. I workout for 45 minutes every single morning, and sometimes sneak in a second session if I’m feeling particularly overwhelmed.⠀ .⠀ ✔️MUSIC. We have speakers in every room of our house and I stream music all day long. When I’m feeling particularly anxious, I crank the volume. I’m pretty sure our neighbors hate me.⠀ .⠀ ✔️FUNNY MEMES. Whenever I find myself in a situation where I can’t move or listen to music, I mindlessly scroll through my Instagram feed and save funny memes to share with my BFF. Humor was how we coped with things when I was growing up - laughing reminds me not to take life too seriously.⠀
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