It's NFP Awareness Week! And the week is wrapping up so I thought I'd round up a few of the NFP-related posts around here to share with you from the archives. Our recent podcast episode about NFP: Uncharted Territory: Getting Real About Natural Family Planning with Jenny Uebbing NFP Should Be a Part of Parish Life What NFP Looks Like for Our Family Right Now Why I Felt … [Read more...]
How We Share the “Mental Load” of Homemaking
I was recently intrigued by this visual depiction of women's workload and this related article that describes the "mental load" that is carried by most women who are homemakers. While I'm not crazy about the underlying tones in these pieces of that infer mothering and maintaining the home are insignificant drudgery or that all men are clueless when it comes to homemaking, I think there are … [Read more...]
A Day in the Life of a Work-at-Home Homeschooling Mom
image c/o Holly Fish When I shared about my journey in becoming a work-at-home mom last week, I got some great questions that I hope to answer in future posts. But the number one question was what our daily schedule looks like. That's tricky because it really looks different every single day. I'm not good at sticking to a rigid schedule. And over the past three year's Daniel's work schedule has … [Read more...]
An Honest Look at Why I Work from Home
I think we have a problem. For most of us, it’s nearly impossible to get by on just one income, and yet, having both parents work takes its toll, too. Any parent knows that keeping a home and family running is a full time job. Fitting it all in around a 50 hour work week isn't easy. “But it’s totally possible for one parent to stay home if you’re careful with your money!” people say. But those … [Read more...]
I Don’t Want to Be the Mom Who Yells All the Time
A few weeks ago I shared something with my email subscribers--one of the more intimate "secret" posts I send to them that I do not post to the blog. (Psst! If you want to get them, too, you can sign up for free here). It was all about what my priest taught me in the confessional. When I confessed losing my temper with my kids and being consistently impatient and frustrated, he told me to pray. … [Read more...]
Why I Pulled My Daughters Out of Ballet
I was so excited when my daughters were old enough to take ballet classes. Dance was such a precious part of my girlhood. I studied ballet from elementary school through high school, performing in ballet companies and musical theatre productions. I rediscovered ballet after my oldest child was born when I started teaching at my former studio and working as a rehearsal assistant for the ballet … [Read more...]
How to Pursue Your Passions (And Not Sacrifice Your Marriage and Family to Do It)
A few years ago we were living a life we didn’t want. It included an unfulfilling office 9-5 for Daniel that required too much overtime and didn’t leave enough hours for family time. We just weren’t thriving. Now we’re both doing good work that fuels our creativity. We are all thriving. And I am so glad we took the leap we did to change our lives and get where we are now. When we first announced … [Read more...]
Has Parenting Perfectionism Killed Self-Care?
If you’re a parent, you definitely understand the whole parenting perfectionism phenomenon. It tells us, don’t EVER take your eyes off your child. Interact with them every day 24/7 --no breaks for laundry, sending a text message, or talking to your spouse! Sacrifice your health, your sanity, your passions, and everything else in order to make their childhood perfect. Everything from food … [Read more...]
Making Romance a Priority (Or, How We’re Bad at Valentine’s Day)
This post is sponsored by Melt. Daniel and I are terrible at Valentine’s Day. Just the absolute worst. I think the last time we actually planned something for it was the first year we were dating (2003?) and what we planned was watching Disney’s Robin Hood. So...yeah...not great at Valentine’s. We've tried to plan a date night for Valentine’s, but with three little ones it gets tricky. … [Read more...]
What Homeschooling Looks Like Right Now: Mid-Year Update
photo c/o my friend Holly Fish This is what my favorite moments of homeschooling look like. This is VERY RARELY what homeschooling looks like. Also, you can't see all the mud on the floor behind that pink couch. Just keeping it real, y'all. This time of year is definitely when most of us homeschooling moms start feeling the blahs. Cold weather and burnout make a terrible combination and … [Read more...]
