Mommy's Home Office

Ok, guys! I’m gonna get a little woo woo in this episode but I want you to stick with me because I know how powerful this is.

I’ve been studying and practicing the law of attraction and manifesting for quite some time now and just recently was reminded exactly how much power I have through it.

So before I go into the whole story,  I want to give you a quick crash course in the law of attraction.

Law of Attraction 101

Basically, it’s the ability to attract into our lives whatever we are focusing on. Meaning that all thoughts turn into things eventually.

So if you focus on negative doom and gloom you will remain under that cloud. If you focus on positive thoughts and have goals that you aim to achieve you will find a way to achieve them with massive and inspired action.

This is something I wholeheartedly believe in.

You are where your attention is! If you are in a negative mindset then negative things tend to happen to you.

We all know that one person that is always focusing on the negative stuff that happens either to them or in the world in general.  It’s easy to get wrapped up in those thoughts.

They say misery enjoys company and it’s true.  The more you surround yourself with the negative the more negative will come to you.

The same is true for thinking positive and practicing gratitude.

If we can stay in a mindset that is full of gratitude and hopeful positive thoughts then we get more of those good positive vibes and feelings.

The universe/god/the creator whatever you want to call it wants to give us what we want.  So if we are in place that is focusing only on the negative then it will help us get more of that and vise versa.

We need to be intentional and clear about what we want and what we focus on.  This way the universe knows exactly what we want and will do everything to help us get it.

Do you believe that you can manifest whatever you want?

Let me tell you what just happened to me and why I am recording this episode now.

My hubby and I went up to Durango a couple of weeks ago.  If you listen regularly you probably knew that but what you didn’t know was why we went.  

We actually went up there to look at a couple of properties that we were interested in.  We wanted a vacation home that we could set up as a VRBO.

Well, I love love love Colorado and was pretty sure that I wanted a house there.  Until I was there.

While we were seeing the houses, I kept getting this heavy feeling. And thinking about all of the work that goes along with owning a house in a state that is a 12-hour drive or 2-hour plane ride and that deals with lots of weather-related issues.

I decided that I didn’t really want to own a home there.  I love to visit but don’t want all of the added work and liability that goes along with owning a home.

So when I got home, I decided to dig a little deeper into my feelings and I realized that it wasn’t about owning a home in Colorado at all.  It was about missing and wanting to out in nature more.

You see, I live in Dallas.  Well, Plano to be exact and it’s basically a concrete-laden big city with not a lot of the beautiful nature that I grew up with in New Braunfels and Austin.  

We don’t have a lot of hiking trails, hills, mountains or rivers here and I really miss that outdoor lifestyle that I loved so much.

I used to go camping a bunch as a kid and young adult. I have some really awesome memories of being off the grid and want my kids to have those too.  

My husband never went camping and grew up in the city with immigrant parents who worked all of the time and never did anything outdoorsy.

They were just trying to make it in the US and give their kids a better shot at life.  We can’t fault them for that at all. They were in survival mode for most of my husband's youth.

I introduced my outdoor lifestyle to my husband and he fell in love too.  Well, mostly anyway. Let’s just say he’s more of a cabin or lodge guy and not a tent camper.  LOL

So, in digging deeper into my why, I realized that it was all about missing my connection with nature and not owning and maintaining a vacation home in Colorado.

I did some research decided that I wanted to get a vintage camper and remodel it to fit our family and go on more camping trips.  

I’m a pretty handy girl and while this might be a little bit of a stretch for me, I feel totally confident that I can do it.

I basically went on a Pinterest binge of everything vintage camper.  

Then, I went onto Craigslist and every other site I could think of and started looking at vintage campers.

I decided on a budget of $4000 for something that I was pretty sure I would need to gut.

Next, I put a couple of pictures together of what I was looking for and sent a text to my friends and family.  I asked them if they knew anyone that had one to sell or to be on the lookout for one that they might run across.  You never know right?

Within 2 hours of me sending that text and reaching out to a couple of people from their online ads, I had a camper.

Turned out that my neighbor’s stepdad had a vintage 1977 Shasta Starflyte that was just sitting on his property as a storage room.  

It was in decent shape and had the super rare extra bunk.  

Best of all, he was willing to sell it to me for $800.  That’s waaaaay less than some of the other disaster trailers that I was actually considering.

I was sooooo excited. I jumped on it.  

There were a couple of issues that came up that could have killed it but possibilities opened up to me when I needed them.

First, we are starting a backyard renovation and I couldn’t actually get the camper until March of next year.

Second, I realized that I wouldn’t be able to get it into my driveway.  We have an alley driveway and a sliding gate. There is no way that I could be able to get it back there.

Third, my Honda Odyssey isn’t able to haul anything.

So I asked if I could wait and get the camper in the spring and he said of course.  I could store it there as long as I needed. Woohoo!

Then I started looking for a place to store and renovate my camper when I did get it.  Well, I found a small self-storage site like a mile from my house that has spaces for campers and RV for less than $75 a month.  Woohoo again!

Now for the hauling.  I’ve been looking for my next car for while and was so torn on what I wanted to get.  Nothing that could fit all 5 of us comfortably really did it for me.

Since I now needed to haul up to 4000 lbs, I was able to quickly decide that I wanted a Toyota Sequoia. Now that I clearly know what and why I want it, I’m sure the right one will pop up soon.

All of those issues could have been a no go on the trailer but I was able to keep the positivity up and was presented with solutions to each of them.

Within 24 hours of me deciding that I wanted a vintage camper so that I could be out in nature more with my family, I had a camper.

And not just any camper. A vintage camper with the rare extra bunk and a bathroom plus it was in decent shape so that I don’t need to completely gut it and it was $3200 under my budget!

If I can manifest this rare vintage camper for that price, I can manifest anything!

So let me recap the steps real quick.

1. Get clear on what you want and why you want it.
2. Do some research to understand all that it entails.
3. Spread the news!  Let everyone know what you want.
4. Stay in tune with what and why you want it.
5. Wait for it to present itself.  It might not always be in the way that you thought.

If you are interested in learning more about the law of attraction and manifesting then check out Abraham Hicks, James Wedmore or TheLawOfAttraction.com.  

Until next time, have a wonderful rest of your week.   Bye for now!

Accountability = Success

If you do have big goals and dreams for your online business and you want to set up a solid strategy to get you there don’t forget I have strategy calls and accountability packages.  

You can check them out over at MommysHomeOffice.com. Have a great week and I’ll catch you in the next episode.

Links mentioned in this episode:

• Mommy's Home Office
• Small Business Workshop
• Online Business Starter Kit

Thanks for Listening! Check out the most recent episodes:

Local Marketing for Service-Based Businesses

Balance is a Dirty Word 

4 Steps to Getting Back into a Routine 

7 Steps to Get Out of a Funk

Check out the most popular episodes:

How to Make $10k a Month as a Virtual Assistant 

Help! I Need an Idea! 

I Already Have a Business BUT It Needs to be Easier! 

To share your thoughts:

• Leave a note in the comment section below.
• Ask a question over on [email protected]

To help out the show:

• Leave an honest review on iTunes. Your ratings and reviews really help reach more moms and I read each and every one.
• Subscribe on iTunes.

Mommy and Kid Routines 

Y’all, back to school has been a struggle for me this year.  

I got sick on the first day of school and of course on a week that my hubby was out of town.  I’m not talking just a little cold. I’m talking hit by a bus, zombie-like sick. 

It’s a miracle they got to and from school and fed that week.

But we made it through.  The second week, I was better but still not 100% so it was better than survival mode but not great.   

I needed to make a change.  

I’m an ENTJ personality from the Myers Briggs test.  I’ve taken this test several times over the past 15-20 years and it never changes.

I am a problem solver by nature.  I may not always have the emotional sensitivity side but if you want a solution to your problem (or the 8 million that I create inside my head every day) then I’m your gal.

So I saw the problem = total chaos, meltdowns, tantrums and listening skills were nonexistent in my kids the past few weeks.

I had to solve it and solve it fast.  I couldn’t go on like this. There isn’t enough wine in the world that would make it bearable.

I took a minute to reflect on why the hectic chaos was happening.

I realized I hadn’t been following our normal school routines.  So, I immediately implemented them and communicated the expectations with the kids and just like that my wine glass didn’t need so much wine to make it through the evenings.  

We all thrive with routines and knowing what’s coming up and what’s expected of us.  Our kids are no different. They need it even more.

I’m not saying these routines make our life perfect but it’s so much better with them than without.

So I want to give you a glimpse into our families routines.  Maybe they’ll help you or inspire to come up with some that fit your family.

I took away all devices on Monday – Thursday.  

This was tough for the first week (like I seriously almost caved and gave them the damn devices) but it got easier. They can watch TV but no iPads or Gaming until the Friday.

This does make my life a little harder but they are finding more ways to play and they don’t seem to miss it anymore.

The first one is a good morning routine.

Getting the kids into a good morning routine is crucial for your sanity and theirs.  

During the school week, my kids do the exact same things every single morning.  So even if they are still half asleep they can usually remember to get them all done on their own.

Our school starts at 7:45.  So I set my alarm at 6:12 to give one snooze before I need to be up at 6:20.  

I find that if I can have at least 10 minutes to myself before my kids get up, I’m in a much better mood and I’m not feeling so rushed.  Both of those are key to good morning in our house. 

If momma ain’t happy, ain’t nobody happy.  

Then I turn on the stair lights and it’s a signal to them that it’s time to get up, if they are already awake and just hanging out in bed.  

They get up and get dressed. Actually, in our house, they sleep in their clothes for the next day.  This started a while back when I suggested it and they thought it was cool. So I went with it.

Let’s face it, I have 3 boys, they mainly wear gym shorts and a tee shirt anyway.  Well, except the little guy, he wears a uniform but wants to be like his brothers so wears his uniform to bed.  Whatever works, right?

This one step has saved me time and a drama.  

For some reason, my kids don’t like to get dressed in the morning.  And I don’t wanna deal with it.

Next, they brush their teeth.  I let them do this one on their own and am more involved in the night brushing.

Then they head downstairs to immediately put their socks and shoes on.  

After the shoes are on, they get their lunch (already prepped on Sunday, hopefully), water bottle and backpacks ready to go.  

Finally, they eat breakfast.  Usually something simple like greek yogurt with fruit, oatmeal or eggs that I have premade either scrambled or boiled.

Let me just put this out there…there is no cooking on weekday mornings in our house.  I have prepared it over the weekend or it’s a cold breakfast.

They are responsible for clearing their plates and straightening the chair that they used.

Then, if they have time, the can play for a few minutes or if we don’t, it’s straight to the car and drop off starts.  

After drop off, I come home and can do my morning routine.  I’ll save that for another episode.

Prepping the night before.

A good morning routine starts with a little prep the night before.

I prep anything that I can the night before and it makes a huge difference.

Things like getting their clothes picked out and making sure their shoes are in the right spot, checking the weekly schedule that I post on the fridge to know if there is anything special the next day (like themed days at school or function), getting water bottles washed and getting backpacks ready to go.

THEN…

I make sure that my kids get to bed at a good time for them.  I know when they haven’t gotten enough sleep because they are melting down too early in the afternoon or they have a really hard time getting up.

In our house, sleep is king.  

Our bodies need sleep. It’s how our brain functions properly.  

It needs downtime to store memories, repair and maintains your body and it’s when you grow.  

Kids are growing constantly so they need more sleep than the 7-8 hours that adults need.

I’m not going to get on my soapbox here but if your child is having behavioral issues or learning challenges and they are also not getting enough sleep then please try to make sleep and a healthy balanced diet a priority.  

If you’re having trouble getting your kids to sleep once they are in bed here are few things that might help.

Make sure the room is dark enough.  I just put room darkening curtains in my 4-year olds room and it has been a game changer.

Reduce your kid’s sugar intake, all day but especially in the evenings.  This includes juice, there is a ton of natural sugar in juice and to your body, it’s all the same.

Make sure they are getting adequate activity and sunlight throughout the day.

Now make sure that you have a consistent bedtime routine in place.  

Routines and actions trigger your brain.  If you have a consistent bedtime routine that is followed by sleep your brain knows what to do and how to prepare when it’s triggered.

We use sound machines and essential oil diffusers in each room, they help trigger your brain for sleep.

Here’s what our after school and bedtime routine looks like this…If we don’t have a practice of some sort.

Come home

Have a little chill time maybe TV

Homework

Play or help with dinner

Dinner

Clean up/chores

Showers

Brush & floss teeth

I read a couple of chapters in our book of the week

They all go to their rooms

I come and tuck in and give some snuggles individually and then it’s lights out.  

If we have a practice or activity after school then things get a little shuffled and reading time gets cut short but it still looks very similar to the above routine.

This next one is a little controversial but I’m gonna go there anyway.

Simplifying schedules.

I know this hard in today’s world and seems like the demands on kids are so high.  

But I believe we really need to look at our kids’ schedule and make sure that it has some free time built in and enough time to get their homework done and enough sleep in.

I see this all the time with other moms in my world.  They have multiple kids and each of those kids participates in multiple afterschool activities.  Like soccer, baseball and martial arts.

Each of those sports has a lot of time commitment tied to them.

Now don’t get me wrong I love a well-rounded kid and one that tries a lot of things but we also need to look at what their schedule looks like.  

Having something scheduled every day after school or multiple things after school is really hard on kids.  

I just had to take this to heart.  

Normally, my oldest does soccer and tennis in the spring and fall.  But this year we have 3 kids in soccer and they all want to play tennis.

This poses a problem.  3 kids, 3 different soccer practices, 3 different locations and 3 different games on Saturdays.  

Now throw in 2 tennis lessons for my oldest and 1 for my littles.  This is a problem.

If it were just one kid we would be fine but I have to consider the fact that I have to drag them to their brother’s practices.

Not to mention that it would be a chauffeuring nightmare because they are at similar times on the same days in different locations.

I’m already exhausted just thinking about it.

So I decided to see how they did this past week with just soccer before I added in the tennis.

Let’s just say that I have made the executive decision to skip tennis this season.  It makes me sad because they all really want to play but we just can’t make the schedules this time.

Something’s gotta give, right?

So this time it was tennis.

Let’s do our kids a favor and give them a little downtime and pack their schedules so tight that we can’t keep up.

Implement the weekly family huddle.

Every Sunday morning, I gather everyone in the kitchen and make a plan it takes about 15 minutes but it saves our butts throughout the week.

We talk about what worked well the past week and what needs improvement.  

And we brainstorm ways to make adjustments or improvements.  

Does this remind you of SCRUM?  Well, that’s where I got it from.  

Then we plan the week ahead and make sure that we know everything on our schedules.

We decide what lunches we want to buy and which we want to bring our own.

Then the kids decide what they want to take to lunch on the days that they are packing (within limits) so that I know what groceries we need.

After the lunches are planned we plan out dinner.

There are 5 in our family of us so each of us gets to pick a meal to have during the week.

These are easy to throw together meals and usually under 20 minutes.  And are easily modified for the picky eaters in the house.

Now I have a starting point for my grocery list.

We have our family mission printed out and hanging on the fridge so we go over it and make sure that we all feel good about how each of us is handling our week.

This is the time that we can talk about any issues that might be bugging us or things that we want to plan for the future or goals that we want to set.

It’s a nice way to end our huddle on a positive and supportive note.

These little huddles don’t take a lot of time but the cover so much of chaos that happens throughout the week and gives us a really good starting point for the new week.

Lastly, I want to touch on a mommy routine that I try to do every day.

It’s acknowledging and making eye contact with kiddos when I first see them at the end of the day.  

I try super hard not to be on my phone or in a conversation with another mom when I first see my boys.

I simply look at them say hi and excitedly ask them how their day was.  They each light up a little, say hi and it was good then run off to be with their friends.  

This is just a little sign of love and respect and it lets them know that I missed them and that they are important to me.

Later in the car, I ask silly questions about how their day was and I get some silly answers and some good insight into their day. 

Along this same note, I telling each kid in the morning that they are the most kind, loving kid and that they are super smart and can learn anything they try to with a little time and practice.  

Then in the evening during snuggle time, I tell them how important they are to me and how much I love them.  I switch it up but I usually mention their unique qualities and how awesome it is to have a kid that is so amazing.  

I tell them that they are in control of their thoughts and dream of anything they want to (this is to avoid scary thoughts at night but it’s also true. 

Ok, so there you have it.  I’m not a perfect mom and these things don’t happen every single day but they happen most days.  And I can totally tell a difference when I don’t do them.

My goal is to raise accountable, responsible, kind, loving humans and to make my mom life a little easier.  I have found through trial and error that this is what works for my family.

Do you have special routines that you do that make your weekdays a little less hectic?  I would love to know.

Until next time, have a wonderful rest of your week.   Bye for now!

Accountability = Success

If you do have big goals and dreams for your online business and you want to set up a solid strategy to get you there don’t forget I have strategy calls and accountability packages.  

You can check them out over at MommysHomeOffice.com. Have a great week and I’ll catch you in the next episode.

Links mentioned in this episode:

• Mommy’s Home Office
• Online Business Starter Kit

Thanks for Listening! Check out the most recent episodes:

How I Plan My Yearly Calendar Based on the School Year

7 of My Favorite Instagram Tools

What to Expect: Having a Baby and an Online Biz with Sarah Siems

Local Marketing for Service-Based Businesses

Balance is a Dirty Word 

4 Steps to Getting Back into a Routine 

7 Steps to Get Out of a Funk

Check out the most popular episodes:

How to Make $10k a Month as a Virtual Assistant 

Help! I Need an Idea! 

I Already Have a Business BUT It Needs to be Easier! 

To share your thoughts:

• Leave a note in the comment section below.
• Ask a question over on [email protected]

To help out the show:

• Leave an honest review on iTunes. Your ratings and reviews really help reach more moms and I read each and every one.
• Subscribe on iTunes.

My business planning follows the school year! 

A lot of people do their planning at the beginning of the year.  

I don’t.

I use the school year.

Because I’m a mom of school-age children and it just makes more sense for me.  

I used to do the yearly thing but then every summer it seemed that my plan got hijacked by the kids, vacations, etc.

So I switched to have my work calendar to follow the school year.  

Now, I feel more ready for the summer when it comes around and I don’t feel so guilty or like I have to work my ass off to keep up.

I enjoy my summers a whole lot more.

Here’s how I do it. My business planning process.

The 1st week of school, when the kids are out of the house... I sit down for an hour or two and plan.

I pull up my Google Calendar, you know...where my life is.

And I also print a yearly calendar.  It’s just one of those calendars that have the entire year on one page.

Then I grab some highlighters.

First, I download my kids' school calendar and I insert all of their holidays and days off into my Google calendar.

Plus, I share them with my husband too so he knows when we can take mini trips or long weekends.

And then mark them off on my yearly printed calendar with a color that I choose for the kids.

Afterward, I mark off any vacations, trips or conferences that I will be away for in another color.

Now that I have all of my days off clearly marked and put into my Google calendar, I can start the planning.

I am a firm believer in 90-day goals.  

I did Todd Herman's 90 Day Year and I’ve been a believer ever since.

He teaches that you should go big picture and then work backward to what you can accomplish in the 90-day chunk.

90 days is a reasonable amount of time to really make an impact on your business/life.

Then I set goals.

I set good, better and best goals.  

That means that I set a goal that is like knock it out of the park amazing like I’m crazy for thinking I could accomplish that goal.  

That’s my best goal.

Then, I scale it back a bit and make a better goal.  Something still amazing but seems more realistic.

Finally, I make a good goal that is basically what absolutely has to happen.

I don’t attach any personal feeling to these goals.  They are just outcomes of the work that I put in.

From this point, I have a good idea of how long it will take me to get to my big goals and I start planning the calendar.

I’ll have special focuses for each 90 day period.  

Keep in mind that this allows your plans to be more fluid and can pivot or change.

For example:  Say I want to set a goal to generate $100,000 in revenue in the next year.

Well, what has to happen to make that happen.

Currently, I only offer coaching. So if that was all I was going to offer I would need to work backward from the $100k to see how many clients I needed to work with.

From there, I would be able to set 90-day goals that help get me to that bigger goal.  

Like promotions or launches or webinars or list building funnels.

Once I decide what I need to do in that 90-day period, I work backward again and plan in 2-week sprints.  

Sprints are usually 2 weeks and I plan each task that needs to happen in that 2 weeks to move me forward.  

Once I've done that all of this, I feel great about my new year and know that I'm going to knock it out of the park.

This is how I plan out my year and it has helped relieve some of the pressure and guilt that come with business planning and kids.

 

Accountability = Success

If you do have big goals and dreams for your online business and you want to set up a solid strategy to get you there don’t forget I have strategy calls and accountability packages.  

You can check them out over at MommysHomeOffice.com. Have a great week and I’ll catch you in the next episode.

Links mentioned in this episode:

• Mommy's Home Office
• Online Business Starter Kit

Thanks for Listening! Check out the most recent episodes:

7 of My Favorite Instagram Tools

What to Expect: Having a Baby and an Online Biz with Sarah Siems

Local Marketing for Service-Based Businesses

Balance is a Dirty Word 

4 Steps to Getting Back into a Routine 

7 Steps to Get Out of a Funk

Check out the most popular episodes:

How to Make $10k a Month as a Virtual Assistant 

Help! I Need an Idea! 

I Already Have a Business BUT It Needs to be Easier! 

To share your thoughts:

• Leave a note in the comment section below.
• Ask a question over on [email protected]

To help out the show:

• Leave an honest review on iTunes. Your ratings and reviews really help reach more moms and I read each and every one.
• Subscribe on iTunes.

Over the past year, I have fallen more in love with Instagram than with Facebook.

I don’t know what it is but it just feels better.

Plus, I’m kind of addicted to Stories.  I usually story 7 days a week with anything and everything that is going in my life.  

I know you’re dying to know what I’m having for dinner, the crazy shenanigans of my 3 boys, what I’m up to each day or where we are traveling to.

So, I can’t deprive you of that info, I would feel horrible.  😂

If you follow me then you already know that most of the actual posts are colorful and bright pics of me, my kids & family, places we’ve traveled to, occasional videos and snippets of this podcast. I like to mix it up.  

The captions are almost always something motivating.  I love these types of posts and so naturally I create posts that encourage and motivate.

But let’s be real.  Instagram takes time.

So I wanted to help you guys out a little and give the behind the scenes and the tools that I use every day to post on The Gram.

Here they are.  My top 7 tools that I use to post on Instagram.

Layout

I use the Layout app for the collage pics that post.  It’s a free app.

Now I don’t do collage pics very often but I do use it often enough that I wanted to mention it.  

I like it because it doesn’t have a watermark and it allows to move borders so that your pics fit the way you want them too.  

Hyperlapse

Ever want to shoot a video for social but you know that it will too long and slow moving.  Think recipe demo, product demo, a bike ride or walking around a city.

Enter Hyperlapse.  It’s free and you can speed up anything!

I used it most recently when I stumbled on a parade that I didn’t know was happening.  I videoed for over 10 minutes but hyperlapsed to 1 minute.

This app has a cool feature that takes away the shakiness of your video.  So don’t worry...You’ll look pro.

Secret tip: You can choose your speed and if you quadruple tap your screen with 4 fingers you can get the secret menu and choose resolution, frame rate, and more speeds.

Boomerang

This one has been around for a while and it’s free too.

It takes a burst of still shots and plays them in an 8-second video loop like a boomerang.  

I have used this for shots of my kids jumping in the pool, me on my 40th bday holding the balloons and moving shots of the scenery while driving.

Movement in the shot is key and the possibilities are endless.  

Continual

This app is awesome for IG Stories.  Cost is $7.99 but so worth it.

It takes longer videos and splits them into 15-second increments.  

I love it because it splits them perfectly without any weird pauses or breaks.  Plus, if it’s me straight to the camera, I don’t have to worry about watching the time.

There is a free app called CutStory (watermarked) but I haven’t used it yet.  

1min+ for Instagram

This is exactly the same type of tool as Continual but it’s for your actual IG posts which need to be 60 seconds or shorter.

This app is $5.99

CaptionIdeas

I just stumbled upon this app and am testing it out.  

It was $7.99. But if it helps me save time then it’s totally worth it.

This app has a bank of captions, quotes and other features.  I’m using for the quotes mainly.

It already has them laid out so all you have to do is hit the copy button and paste them into your post or Plann.

Usually, I use a quote or a statement and then expand with own thoughts for a longer post. Sometimes coming up with those quotes or statements take a bit of time.  So I hope this helps and inspires me.

I’ll keep you posted.

WordSwag

I’m not super big on text overlays for IG but sometimes I do use them.  

For this, I use the WordSwag app. It’ was $4.99.

I use this app more for Facebook posts.

It gives you cool text layouts and fonts for your images.

There is even a bank of images for you to use if you want.

Plann

My most favorite app of all!  

This is my Instagram scheduling tool and I seriously couldn’t live without it.

There is a free plan and a paid plan (monthly).  I use the Basic Plan ($5 a month) because I want all of the analytics, competitor insights and strategy tools.

The competitor insights are awesome when you are trying to figure out what strategy, hashtags and posting times to use.

I love me some strategy.  😉

Plann lets me see my feed and visually plan out what my feed looks like.

I can easily move images around to make sure they are visually pleasing which helps me decide what content to post.

Each week I sit down for a few minutes and plan out that weeks IG posts and stories if want (I have never scheduled stories but I might). 

I upload the images or move them around.  Then I create the captions, emojis and all and finally, I schedule the post.  

It will notify me when it’s time to post so all I have to do is click on the notification and it opens everything I need and copies the captions.

Bonus: It keeps the spacing in the captions so it doesn’t get all bunched up like if I was posting on straight to IG.

After I post, I click back into Plann and copy my preset hashtags to put in the comments and viola! It’s done.

I don’t post and ghost. I try to hang out for at least 20 minutes and engage.  

Alright, ladies, that’s how I run my Instagram feed.  

I really do use all of these apps, some more than others but that’s with everything.

To check out these apps in action head over to my Instagram feed.  I would love for you to follow me so you are always up to date with what’s going at Mommy’s Home Office.

Until next time, have a wonderful rest of your week.  

By for now!

Today, Sarah and I will be digging into how she had a baby while running her online biz.  We'll talk about what to expect and all the juicy bits that go into it.  Check it out!

Biggest Takeaways You Don’t Want to Miss:

• Sarah's biggest mistake when planning for her baby in her business.
• How she took the leap from working in a traditional personal training job to starting her own thing.
• The critical lesson that she learned after having her baby. Hint: It's one of my favorite topics. 😉

I’m not sure why it didn’t occur to me sooner but I think this could be really helpful for those of you that have a small local service-based business.

I don’t know if you know this but marketing is my background.  I’ve done it for years and it was also one of my favorite subjects in college.

If there’s one thing I’m good at its marketing and biz development for a local business.

It’s one of those things that I’m just naturally good at and it comes so easy to me.

Summer is over!  School starts on Monday for us and I have 10 million things to get done before then.

Join me next week, I'll go into how I plan my yearly calendar around the school year.

I get asked all of the time by well-meaning people...

How do you balance working as a mom?  

I stare back at them with a WTF look on my face and say “um, I don’t.”  

There is never a time in my life where I have kept all of the plates spinning for more than a second or maybe two before they all come crashing down.

Honestly, perfect balance is impossible.

There are times when you the weight shifts more heavy on work and then your parenting or family time has to pay the price.   

That’s ok.  

It’s normal.

Or maybe it’s like me this summer where my work has paid the price because I needed to spend more time with my kids and on traveling.

You can never be all things to all people and your attention has to go where it’s needed.

Some plates are going to drop.

Just think about it.

As a mom, society tells us that we are supposed to run every aspect of the house (cooking, cleaning, groceries, laundry, and about a million other things), everything with the kids (childcare, doctor visits, sports, PTA, teachers, homework, playdates, bday parties, gifts, holidays, etc).

Oh and keep yourself in shape and look presentable.

And if you work you are supposed to do well at your job, take care of every that I just mentioned plus have dinner on the table every night.

This is bullshit!

The demands are overwhelming and impossible to keep up with.  So stop.

There might be times when we feel like superheroes and can actually keep it all up but it is short-lived and unsustainable.

Unless you have a full-time housekeeper, private chef, nanny, personal assistant and personal trainer.

Balance is a ridiculous notion.  And I want you to stop trying so hard to attain it.  

You know, I don’t ever see men getting asked this question about how they balance their work with kids.

Kristina Kuzmic did a video about this where she interviewed dads outside of a store and asked them that question.  It was hilarious...check it out here.

By the end of the video, she says that “balance” should be a dirty word and then she bleeps it out of the rest of her video. It’s great.

I want to talk about this today because school is about to start and all of the PTA, sports, volunteering, school projects, school activities, 18 million commitments are about to start.

And then we start comparing ourselves to all of the other moms and can start feeling inadequate or like we suck as a mom.

Look, I used to be a Pinteresty person and then I became a mom and wanted to be that Pinteresty mom but that lasted all of 3 years before I totally burnt out.  

I realized that those over the top decorated theme parties were a ridiculous waste of my time.  

My kids didn’t care that I had spent 4 hours creating Star Wars themed food menu complete with themed names printed out for the food table.  

That didn’t include the next 3 hours of making that said food.  You know red, blue and green dipped pretzel sticks that I called lightsabers or cookies that I decorated as Chewy.  

Finally, I realized I wasn’t doing for them I was doing it to say look how awesome I can make a party and to feel like I was winning as a mom.  Which was crazy.

Maybe this is your thing and this is what lights you then great and more power to you that is awesome!  

But for me, it took away time that I already felt short on and I became a stress ball trying to get it all done.

Now, I can plan my kids' party in about an hour.  

Did your jaw just drop?  Head over to the show notes for the breakdown.

Ok, real quick this is what I do now.  

1. Have your kid tell you what theme they want!  Paw Patrol, pirates, princesses, whatever. As they get older this gets easier.  They don’t want crazy themed parties. This last bday for my now 8 yr-old was super simple.  He wanted to take 8 friends to a hibachi dinner. So that’s what we did.
2. Pick a date that works for you and the venue that you are choosing (if needed).
3. Go on Etsy and order the themed invite or just set up an evite (that’s what I do now).
4. Jump on Amazon and order themed paper products, decor, and a favor.
   1. If you have an ice cream truck that regularly visits your neighborhood, stop them one day and ask if they can make a special appearance at your party and by everyone an ice cream.  This happened by chance at my 4 yr-olds party and it was the biggest hit.
5. Decide on food.  Go easy like pizza, Chick-fil-a or anything else premade.  Plus if you can already put the order in then that’s a win too.  One more thing off of your plate. And choose your sweet - cake or donuts (our family fave) or cookies or macaroons or ice cream.
6. Simple decor is best.
7. Have fun! Take pics! And enjoy the day.  Don’t stress over the small stuff that only you notice.

Or maybe I learned this lesson the time I volunteered to cut 1000 scarecrow feet and hands for my kindergarteners' school hallway.  

Yep.  1000. At the time I was working full time in my biz and had 3 year old and a 1-year-old.   What the hell was I thinking?

I spent almost 5 ½ hours cutting tan construction paper.  Seriously. WTF.

I felt so behind and like I wasted my entire work time cutting paper.

Only to find out that there was a waiting list for other moms that were looking for ways that they could help out.  

And it wasn’t like I wasn’t involved at his school already.

I was the PTA membership chair.

I was doing my part.  Lol.

At the time, I was the type of person that will be the first one to help.

I’d offer to do it all.  

Well, not anymore.  It’s been a hard habit to break but it’s been so worth it.

Now, I let other people help out too.  

Don’t get me wrong if there is a need that they can’t fill I will help but I’m just not the first one to raise my hand.

The message I’m trying to get across today is that it’s ok to let some things slide while you focus on other things.

There is never going to be a balance.

I only get as much done as I do because I have help.

I have housekeeping once a week, I have full-time childcare, I use Instacart for my groceries, Amazon Prime for almost everything else and I still feel like things are crazy and I’m not able to keep up.

As moms, we just need to embrace the chaos and know that we are amazing moms, spouses, friends and business owners.

We need to let go of the idea of being perfect.  

We need to ask for and accept help whenever it’s offered.  

I just started this and it’s magical.  

Whenever anyone asks me if they can help with the kids, take a kid for a playdate or my parents say they can come up and help - I say yes.  

I used to feel bad or guilty or like I should go be there with them.  

I’m a work in progress but it has been this is life changing.  

We need to find the fun.  This time with our kids is short lived. They will be grown up and gone before we know it.

I don’t know about you but I want to look back at their childhood and know that I had fun with them, I showed them that it’s ok to have interests and passions outside of our family and that I taught them to be self-sufficient, kind humans.

Sometimes we stand in our own way and let the control freak in us take over.

It’s ok and necessary to let your husband or in-laws help with the kids and do it in their own way.  

As long as they love your kids and are competent humans, the kids will survive.  

I have a friend that is terrified to let her husband, the father of the kids, watch them alone for more than a couple of hours for fear that he won’t pay attention and something bad will happen.

I’ve told her that this is ridiculous and that she needs to let him father his kids.  

Because we train the people around us to behave in the way that do when they are around us.  

Now, she has taught him that he doesn’t know what he’s doing as a parent and that she will always take care of everything.

So because of this need to be in control she is trapped and can never do anything on her own and he never helps with anything.

This same thing applies to teaching your kids to be self-sufficient.

Whatever age they are, start letting them do things for themselves.

Getting dressed, putting socks and shoes on, bathing or showering, getting breakfast or snacks, helping with chores around the house like laundry, taking the trash out, doing the dishes or tidying up.  

These are all great things for them to do even if they don’t do it exactly the way you would do it.

This will be hard but so worth it.  

Embrace the chaos!

Know that you are amazing and loved and that everything is going to be ok.

I promise, the more we let go of the idea of balance the more joy and happiness we will find in our lives.

 

Every single time I go on vacation or towards the end of summer I get a strong urge to get back on schedule and back into my routine.

We just got home from our vacation for my 40th birthday in St. Lucia. It was amazing and Bin and I really connected again. So it was amazing.

I have been wheels off this summer and barely working. I planned some of this but have definitely gotten less done than I thought and planned for at the beginning of the summer.

By the time our trip was coming to an end, I was craving routine and schedules.

So I thought about it for a bit on the plane ride home and decided to get it together and start the next week fresh and with a schedule.

Today, I’m going to share the 4 steps I took to get me back on track.

1. Get back on a good sleep schedule. Sleep is super important and really plays the leading role in your life.

Everything from weight loss to concentration and especially productivity.

So this is where I started.

I made a conscious decision to focus on getting at least 7 ½ hours per night hopefully more like 8 ½ but that’s a good place to start.

2. Food and Water One of my biggest time sucks are getting bogged down in meal planning/prepping.

So on the plane, I made a list of meals for the week. I just decided to go simple and tried and true.

I also had just indulged a lot on this vacay or really all summer so I wanted to focus on eating a rainbow of colors and less carbohydrate & sugar.

So I planned a week of good whole lower carb meals that are super simple and easy.

Next, I set reminders on my phone one at 11 am and one at 3 pm to remind me to drink water.

Water is super important for all bodily functions and especially your brain so if I’m going to kick ass this week, I need plenty of water.

Usually, I just get 4-20oz cups, fill them and set them on the table so that I see them every time I walk into the kitchen but that hasn’t been working that great.

I’ll end up with 60 oz to drink at the end of the day and then pee all night.

So I’ll set a time to get me back in the habit.

3. Unpack and do laundry

Confession: I am usually the person that leaves my suitcase on the floor of my bedroom for weeks after my vacay. 😱 Yep, that’s me.

But in the spirit of getting back in a routine and on track, I decided to shake things up a bit and unpack and do my laundry right away.

Not the wash now and live out of the laundry basket until I needed to do laundry again method that has been par for the course this summer.

I washed and folded and put away all of our clothing. IT. WAS. AMAZING!

4. Brain Dump and Make a List

You guys know I love a good brain dump and checklists are my love language.

This is the absolute perfect time to use these tools.

So I got out some paper and started spewing.

I had a home and work column and just started listing off everything I needed/wanted to get done before school started.

This was a rather long list so I got out another sheet and pulled out 10 things I could get done this week after looking at what was already on my schedule for the week like appointments and physical therapy.

This 15-minute activity made me feel like I had my shit together and like I was ready to embark on my week.

So then today rolled around. I had my list. I knew my schedule.

I had food prepped and ready. But I came home from PT and felt a little less motivated.

I almost talked myself into watching a movie or going to lunch with a friend...after all what’s one more day.

BUT I was doing so good I had done all of this prep and I had previously made the decision to get shit done this week.

Watching a movie wasn’t going to get the results I wanted this week with all of the goals and tasks that needed to happen.

So here I am working on this podcast. And about to check off 4 things for the day.

I made myself a deal that if I finished the 10 things for this week then on Friday afternoon I could watch that movie.

And if I got them done sooner then even better.

Now that I know I have some time set aside for me to watch that movie and have given myself permission to take that time...I actually feel less guilty about that and more motivated to get it done sooner rather procrastinating like I usually do.

I’m 40.  Now what?

3 Things I’m going to do differently.

Turning 40 hasn’t been as traumatic as turning 30 was for me.  

I feel like I have it a little more together than I did back then.

A lot has happened in the last 10 years.

• I’ve had 3 kids
• 5 surgeries
• I broke my 1st bone
• We live in a bigger house
• We bought a rental property
• I drive a minivan
• I’m not active in the senior living industry anymore
• I started 2 businesses
• I have to color my hair regularly to cover gray
• I lost my 2 fur babies
• I’ve been to 12 countries

I wouldn’t change any of those things because they make me who I am today.

However, there are a few things that I do want to change now that I don’t want to take with me for the next 40 years of my life.

1. Negative Self-talk
2. 1. I have decided to quit this habit.  This is a serious problem for me. I recently heard a quote from Brooke Castillo.  She said something like we need to talk to ourselves like we are supporting a friend.  We would never talk to someone we were responsible for helping the way we talk to ourselves.
   2. So I’m done.  I’m taking that advice to heart and going to see what it’s like when I don’t berate myself for eating sugar or carbs or dairy or soy or anything that’s not whole real food.  I will do my very best to nourish my body with the very best food but when those indulgences happen I am going to release the stress that usually goes along with it and let it be and actually enjoy it.  
   3. Or when I don’t workout or when I don’t get as much done as I wanted or when I don’t make as much money as I wanted or when I lose it with my kids.  All of these times are great times for me to practice positive self-talk and stay away from the negative.
   1. We all have them every once in a while and then we feel terribly guilty and then the negative self-talks comes in.  But I know that I can do better. I need to stop trying to multitask so much when I’m around them.
   2. I want to have more intentional time with my kids.  I’ve started working on this already and I’ve seen such a difference in my kids and myself. I have fewer scary mommy moments and need less wine. Lol
3. Scary Mommy Moments
   1. Let’s be honest, I haven’t been very intentional or putting very much effort into my marriage. I had 3 kids, I was just trying to survive.
   2. I feel like we finally have our shit together a little more, everyone is sleeping and we have good routines and we aren’t in survival mode all of the time anymore.  Don’t get me wrong we have our survival moments but mostly it’s manageable.
   3. So I want to prioritize the relationship with my husband.  I’m making an effort to work on our marriage. I feel like we’ve been on autopilot just getting through it and I think we can be so much more.
   4. I love Bin and I want to spend the next 40 years with him so our relationship needs to be on this list.  
   5. I think I will start with more intimate time.  That’s so easy to put off because we’re tired or it feels like too much work.  But it’s important.
   6. Also, we need to work on our communication.  We aren’t the best at this and I’m guilty of expecting him to read my mind. So I’m going to change the way I communicate with him and see how that goes. I’ll keep you posted.
4. Prioritize my marriage

Well, there you have it.  I feel my 40s are going to be amazing.

These next 10 years are going to have some amazing experiences and I can’t wait.  

I’m always working on self-improvement and these special birthdays seem like the perfect time to reflect and make changes.