Perhaps your kids will also be staying home, or has a variation on the norm. Whatever is true for you, there is so much anxiety around the upcoming school year and how it will be affected by the global pandemic. Through the anxiety there is always hope.

When I realized it was actually my anxiety that was stopping me from playing, everything changed. Her laugh and the joy I felt in that one hour gave me enough strength to quell my anxiety for good. I couldn’t remember the last time I had fun myself. I couldn’t remember the last time I enjoyed my time for no other reason. I couldn’t remember why I wasn’t a “playing-type mom”.

Research tells us play is how babies learn best. We can even think of it as their “job.” (although they’re probably having way more fun at their job than we ever have at ours!) Play helps babies explore the world and teaches them who they are. It also allows babies to practice the skills they need for the future.

When people talk about how important it is to have a village when you have children, you really don’t realize how important it truly is until your village consists of yourself, your spouse, and your child. Suddenly the world is different and more difficult. You don’t have babysitters or friends to have coffee with. You don’t have someone to help out when you have doctors appointments or dentists appointments so your children must come along. It can be be pretty lonely.

As a society it’s our responsibility to be aware of postpartum depression (and other postpartum mood disorders) so that we can fight back as a community and provide help for the mamas that need it. Here are 7 false ideas about postpartum depression, because knowledge gives us the power to defend our mamas and ourselves.

Your anxiety is real. It is not a sign that you are not doing enough, not trying hard enough, going the wrong way, or feeling the wrong things. You can be an amazing mother and still feel anxious. You can be high-achieving and also anxious. You can feel like you’re doing the absolute bare minimum to get you and your little ones through the day, and still feel anxious. You are not weak. You are not incapable. You are not broken. You are not failing. You are mothering in the modern world. You are a single human being doing the work of an entire village.

You are the dream I didn’t know to dream
The love I never imagined could be real
Your presence is healing, challenging, inspiring, and hilarious

For us “oldies” (but goodies), it has become harder and harder to maneuver the tech world of our adult children in order to stay connected with them. If I try to call on the phone (my preferred method), my boys rarely answer. And now with this nasty virus going around I can’t drive over and pop in on them (which they love-NOT). My boys tell me to just text, but texting is confusing for us old folks.

Hey Mamas! Meet the Mindful Mamas App. It’s been a long, hard journey, but we can finally introduce our digital baby to you.

It seems like there are times in the day when everyone melts down all at once, and you, Mom, are expected to clean up the mess. Everything seems top priority there’s no clear plan of attack. That’s when overwhelm can take over and you can feel out of control.

I realized that she needs to start wearing a bra.

I was not in any way ready for my ten-year-old to grow up (and neither was she). Sitting on the floor that night after reading with her and tucking her in, my mind was swimming with all the things I hadn’t prepared her for. I hadn’t talked to her about periods yet.

No one can do it all. So, as a mama, learn how to ask for support, and how to manage all the stresses of day-to-day life with your kids. It all starts with one important realization… 

Asking for help is a sign of strength, not a sign of weakness.

There are endless examples to show that we are failing mothers, but enough is enough.

We have to do better.

Our friends at Motherly have also named 2020 as the Year of the Mother—the year we take a stand for mothers being treated with the care and reverence they deserve.

I want a gradual Christmas decline. I don’t want my family to feel like the end of Christmas is a cliff, and once you fall, it’s just a violent drop to reality. I’m going to descend from the Christmas high gradually! Who’s with me?

This is the year to let Christmas live on a little longer for your kids. Give them the opportunity to ease out of the season gently. Here are some ideas I’m doing with my family this year.

Whether you’re a first generation immigrant or not, most families have particular traditions they carry over from a different culture. And while my kids are still too little to understand or appreciate what comes from where, I’m excited for the years to come when they do grasp the mash-up of customs in our home, both during the holidays and throughout the year. It helps me feel a little closer to home and reminisce gratitude for my own childhood. Happy holidays!

I like Santa. I love that he represents magic and imagination. Santa is the ultimate symbol of childhood fantasy. However, I never wanted my kids to believe in Santa.

Awww, fun road trips with the little kiddos.  What starts out as family bonding time, becomes “let me out of this car” time. With the holiday season upon us, you might be making travel plans, and you might be dreading the traveling part. There is one easy solution- turn on a video and let your kids “veg out” the whole trip. That’s an option I often wish I had when my boys were young. If popping in a video is what you prefer to do, don’t bother to read the rest of this post.  However, if you’d like to make your trip a little more interactive and educational or you “forgot” the tablets at home, I have a few suggestions that might help.

Here are 50 little Mama thanks that we shouldn’t forget as we celebrate all that we have to be grateful for:

Somewhere along my parenting journey I realized something about myself: sometimes when I am uncomfortable and start to feel anxious, I parent in response to the discomfort instead of in response to the situation. It happens in situations we all experience. 

Children love the undivided attention that comes with reading out loud.  Good news, you can make that time even more special with a few easy additions to reading time. With these five “tricks” your story time will be more rewarding for both you and your child.  Your little one will love the extra attention, and you’ll learn more about how your child views the world and help him/her develop a greater imagination.

We are the most overstimulated generation of mothers in history. No matter what is triggering the stress in our lives, whether the world we live in or our own internal chaos, we can practice these important life skills to help recover our equilibrium.

Before school started, I was excited to attend an informal summer picnic to meet her fellow classmates and the teacher. What I experienced at the picnic was an abundance of goodness—such wonderful people, kind families, and sweet kids.  Among the goodness though was hiding one significant moment which brought on a surprising feeling of shame.

Reactive Attachment Disorder is caused by early childhood trauma that occurs before the age of 5 (typically abuse and/or neglect). When a child doesn’t properly bond with a caregiver and suffers the unthinkable, brain growth is stunted and the child lives in a constant state of survival.

You are a loving, dedicated mother who works inside or outside the home. You have strong intentions to be present with your children while you also have to (or choose to) work. The demands from work require your time, presence, and attention. The demands from home require your time, presence, and attention. These worlds need and want you to be available 100% of the time and yet there is only one you… whew! What is a working mama to do!? 

The comparison game: we all do it. It’s impossible to avoid. I am constantly at battle with myself: feeling content with where I am in my own successes then feeling extremely unaccomplished for a 32 year old, newly stay-at-home mama to two.