Archives for January 2021

Encourage Your Kids to Spend More Time Outside with This Fun Activity

January 30, 2021 by Rebecca Leave a Comment

If you’re like me, you want to get your kids outside more. And if you’re also parent on Facebook or Instagram, you might have come across the account 1000 Hours Outside- if not, definitely look it up. It’s a mom of 5, Ginny, who encourages playing outside every day, no matter the weather. She encourages other parents to get their kiddos outside as much as possible by tracking the hours in a fun way and calling it “1000 Hours Outside”. That’s 1000 hours for a one calendar year. She also has a free printout to track this by paper and pen. I have printed this one out too.

But I follow the most beautiful and sweet account on Instagram called “Ark and Luna” who describe themselves as a “Conscious Kids Store.” It’s a mama in Australia (love that social media allows us to connect to small businesses all over the world!) that is also a big advocate for outdoor play and also has an online shop of stunning natural, wooden toys. On her shop site, Hannah also has a section for free printouts she offers. One of them is a collection of three sheets titled, “Outside Every Day.” The concept of both printouts is the same- get your kiddos outside every.day. Or as many days as possible.

Of course it’s also fun to have a cozy, rainy day inside once in a while. But as this pandemic has raged on for almost a year now, I have felt a deep, deep sense of urgency to get Charlie and Tessa outside as much as possible to counteract and step away from more screen time during this pandemic than I’d like to admit.

Tessa is almost 16 months and has less than zero time in movies or shows so it makes me happy that she has never watched anything other than a movie Charlie is watching being on in the background while she plays. We have a TON of beautiful, child-led play in our house. Hours and hours. Charlie does yoga with me. We dance a LOT. It’s been important to me to cultivate a home of open-ended toys that leave a lot of room for creativity. Both of my girls love playing at home.

But I would be lying if I said a lot of movies and Disney junior haven’t happened in our house on the long days during lockdown with nowhere to go. Normally we venture to the library, play dates, the park, lunch, art classes, open gym time. But with those things gone as options (except the park) during this last year, Charlie doesn’t want to play for 12 straight hours a day. I don’t blame her- I don’t either. So she wants to decompress with a movie. And I’ve let her. I don’t find anything wrong with this but my mom guilt (ugh, it’s real huh) has said, “It’s okay. Let it be what it is. But now try to get outside more.” So that’s what we’re doing.

I have also been incredibly inspired by some of my mama friends who do a beautiful, beautiful job at creating a sense of normalcy in their household about playing outside all the time. It’s raining? Put all your rain gear on and go outside. It’s freezing? Bundle up and go outside. Outdoor adventures are their norm.

Charlie loves playing outside but I will admit that it hasn’t exactly been our norm to play outside when it’s freezing or rainy or muddy. But the more we have played outside every day during all conditions, the more she loves it. Just to make it a little more of a tangible goal, I love these printouts. And Charlie LOVES the treasure hunt page. For walks and just for the backyard. She is already a super collector of leaves, shells, sticks, acorns and rocks. We keep her collections in jars so for her these printouts are a fun extension of her collections.

I went one step further and had them laminated at Staples so we could use them over and over again with a dry erase marker. And I love the list on the back of one of the pages of some fun outdoor inspiration! So go play outside, go let nature heal you and your kiddos. Print these out for your kiddos and let them get cold, let them get muddy and let them get dirty. I bet they’ll love filling these pages out as much as Charlie has. And I bet they’ll love playing in the cold, the snow and even the rain: )

Oh and if you need some good outdoor gear, try these! My friend Natalie shared them with me and they have been game changers to make outdoor play in all weather possible. Have fun!

My New Favorite Healthy Breakfast- Oatmeal Yogurt…Bonus: It’s Kiddo Approved!

January 27, 2021 by Rebecca Leave a Comment

Ok this is not some brand new, revolutionary information here…oatmeal and yogurt are staples in many households. But have you ever put them together?? Yogurt and granola is the norm, but yogurt + oatmeal is my new jam. My stepmom made it for Charlie one day mixed with peaches and oh.my.God. I never looked back! I’ve been mixing the two together for the past few months now. I have eaten oatmeal for breakfast probably 97% of mornings the past decade. It’s just my breakfast thing. So this new combination is a nice switch up.

It gives a texture to the yogurt and a creaminess to the oatmeal. Best of both worlds. You can totally do any yogurt you wanted, but we pretty much only eat Greek Yogurt for the high protein so that’s what we’ve been doing.

To make:

Make 1 pack of organic oats (or about 1/4 cup oats on the stove) with water
Mix in 1 small container of vanilla Greek Yogurt (I use Two Good yogurt because it’s low in sugar)
Top with a tablespoon of hemp hearts
Top with blueberries (or fruit of choice)
Top with almonds (or nut of choice)

Mix all together and enjoy! Easy peasy. And you’re getting fiber, protein, omegas, antioxidants and important vitamins and minerals. All sorts of goodness!

The real bonus of my new favorite breakfast is that my two kiddos- 3 and 1- have been loving it too. If it’s just me and Tessa eating this portion is enough for both of us. If Charlie wants it too, I’ll double it and it feeds all three of us. Sometimes I will add in a bit of monk fruit-sweetened maple syrup if I’m craving more sweetness. But the small amount of sweetness in the yogurt is usually enough. This breakfast is a great way to add in those healthy power foods like hemp hearts and almonds to your kiddo’s diet without them even noticing: ) Try it and let me know what you think! Make it your own and add your own favorite toppings!

Kate McLeod Body Stones | A Lovely Addition to Your Self-Care Routine

January 25, 2021 by Rebecca Leave a Comment

Right now I am all about slowing down, being intentional and relishing in those small moments of beauty throughout the day. I bought this Kate McLeod Moisturizing Body Stone a while ago from a Facebook ad (If you’ve read my blog before you know my running joke that that’s the only way I shop lately. But I have no shame in it. Shopping that way has introduced me to sooooo many small shops all over the world that I get to support.) and it has become such a lovely addition to how I take care of my skin.

I love the story behind this brand. Once a chef, the owner Kate McLeod, created these stones in her kitchen after being encouraged to only put safe products on her skin. All natural ingredients and a message of the magic in being present in the moments where you are taking care of yourself. Intentional self-care. To me that means not just going through the routine of putting your lotion on, doing all the things…but taking a moment to relish in it. Kind of a revelation these days. And trust me, as a mom of two little ones, sometimes it’s a successful day if I’ve remembered to drink some water and take my vitamins. But it feels so so good and indulgent to really take care of yourself….like really show up for yourself. Take your time, love yourself, repeat your affirmations while you slow down and set your intentions on the temple that is your body.

These body stones provide an opportunity for all of this. Yes, they are made with cocoa butter, pure essential oils and other goodness that is healthy and good for your skin. But they require a little more attention than slathering on a bottle of a lotion.

These body stones are probably different than the type of moisturizers you are used to. They require softening in your hands in order to work as they soften with body heat. After softening the stone in your hands for a few seconds you rub the stone all over your body as it softens even more. You can then gently rub in the moisturizer further. It’s thick, it’s luxurious and it’s intensively moisturizing.

The body stones come wrapped up in beautiful muslin material.

The packaging is gorgeous and thoughtful and also sustainably farmed and reusable. Their message is inspiring. And their plant-based product works. I have just loved unwrapping my stone in its beautiful little canister and muslin, using it after a bath while repeating, “My body is beautiful. My body is healthy. My body deserves my time and attention.” Slowing down is beautiful.

These stones have really helped my skin through the winter dryness but the real reason I wanted to write a post about them is because of how great they’ve been for my little girls. My post before this is about baby wipes- but ultimately about putting only healthy ingredients on your baby’s skin and these fall into that category. Tessa has loved letting me rub this into her skin after a bath and it has really moisturized Charlie’s arms which normally have quite a bit of keratosis pilaris on them. To me, they are perfect for little ones. A safe moisturizer and another opportunity to slow down with our children and love on them.

I got the “Mini Grounding Stone” and the bamboo holder. The Grounding Stone’s scent is heavenly to me- vetiver (which is my favorite oil) + bergamot. The scent is light and if I had a critique that would be it- I wish it had a stronger scent. The stones are not cheap, one reason I started with the “Mini”. But you are buying into a philosophy and an invitation to love yourself a little harder and supporting a woman-run small business. As their website says, “It’s everyday magic.” And this mama recommends!

My Mama Review: Water Wipes vs. Honest Wipes

January 20, 2021 by Rebecca Leave a Comment

I know…a riveting post about baby wipes. But if you don’t have packs of wipes in every pocket, bag and drawer, are you even a parent? Insert tongue sticking out emoji. I know I researched this kind of stuff when I was pregnant, so here ya go. And I figure it’s good timing because just last week a mama’s post went viral about Kirkland wipes and their toxic ingredients- including Phenoxyethanol. If you haven’t seen it, her child ended up in the ER because he chewed on the wipes (which if you are not yet a parent…kids just do that sometimes. And they love to pull wipes out of the pack.) So yes, it was toxic to this child because the wipes were in his mouth. But my perspective is…if it’s that toxic to do that at all…do you really want that coming in contact with your child’s skin several times a day? Skin absorbs so much. Skin is our biggest organ.

Before ever having kids and while I was pregnant with Charlie, I was 100% that person who thought I was going to do cloth diapers, only feed my children organic food and maybe even make my own wipes. I remember reading many blog posts about how to do your own wipes. HAHAHAHAHA. Sorry, let’s have a moment of silence to realize how funny that is now in retrospect. Mad, mad props to any mom or dad that commits to that. Blake was not on the same page about cloth diapering, so we ended up doing Honest disposable diapers (which I have LOVED) and our children are very healthy eaters…but they also love Goldfish and Charlie loves Chickfil-A. We found a balance with that. And although I never ended up making my own natural wipes, my intention was the same. Only use healthy things for my children…especially when it comes to their skin. I had seen Water Wipes posted from another mom somewhere and I had to look no further. 99.9% water and a tiny bit of grapefruit seed extract. SOLD. It can’t get much simpler or healthier than that. I could get them at Target and the grocery store (we have Kroger) so they were convenient to purchase in my world. I didn’t even look at any other options with Charlie.

And I will say I loved them for the first couple of years of her life. They are wonderful wipes. I remember her having diaper rash maybe once or twice and it was when her diaper wasn’t able to be changed soon enough. And I felt good that using them to wipe her face, her hands, my face, my hands, there were absolutely no toxic ingredients touching our skin.

But when Charlie was around two, the Water Wipes were out wherever I was buying them and I decided to get Honest Wipes one day…we use their diapers, lotion, diaper rash cream and I already trust and love their brand. They have a few more ingredients but are also plant-based. And they are also 99% water. Ingredients: Water (aqua), glycerin, chamomilla recutita (matricaria) flower extract, cucumis sativus (cucumber) fruit extract, glycyrrhiza glabra (licorice) root extract, punica granatum (pomegranate) extract, peucedanum ostruthium (masterwort) leaf extract, decyl glucoside, sodium citrate, citric acid, silver citrate.

After using them for a couple of weeks, Blake asked if I could buy them from now on. And I realized I too liked them just a liiiiiittle more than Water Wipes. Again, Water Wipes are awesome- healthy and they do the job. Not too much more you can ask for from baby wipes.

BUT. There are a couple of small little details that give Honest wipes the edge to this mama.

A resealable top that clicks. Water Wipes simply have a clear peelable opening that doesn’t restick after a while. Kind of annoying. Something you don’t really care about until you have something that DOES click/seal.
A textured material. Water Wipes are not quilted or woven. Honest Wipes are…and I think that texture allows them to clean the skin just a little better.

Water Wipes on the left and Honest Wipes on the right

Both are soft. Both are healthy and natural. Both do the job. Water Wipes are $3.99/pack and Honest Wipes are $4.95/pack. (I realize these are not the most economic choice…but the healthy ingredients make the price worth it to me.) Both readily available at stores. Both on Amazon. Both come in bigger packs with a discounted price.

Happy wiping those cute little baby bums! Do you use either or these wipes? Which wipes do you like? Would love to hear!

Pulling Yourself Out of Depression When You Have Two Young Kids to Care For

January 12, 2021 by Rebecca Leave a Comment

January and February are hard for me every year. This year there is also a pandemic. If you’ve read my very first post, you have been introduced to the fact that I have dealt with depression and anxiety (D + A) for most of my life- really since I can remember. Being crippled into a frozen existence is no stranger to me. In fact, it has been a shadow for much of my life. I had many moments in my 20s and early 30s before having children where I wondered how I would ever be able to take care of a child, let alone two, when depression and anxiety could grab hold of me tightly at any time. I’m going to be incredibly vulnerable here and put my heart and soul on full display because I do not write this for my own personal journal- I am here to have a community of other parents and people and if this resonates with you and can at ALL help you, then that is why I write. There is no good in sugar-coating depression. In an age where so many people appear to have perfect virtual lives, I believe in the power of true soul bearing- for the sake of reality, and for the sake of connection.

Let me be clear- I have lived a very happy life. I have lived a life of so many blessings- education, travel, a loving family, amazing friends, adventure, a successful career, deep love + a happy marriage, and now two perfect daughters. But behind the scenes I have struggled through D + A.

I never tried to purposely hide it because I was ashamed, but I suppose I hid it in the way that life goes on. You still wake up…chase your dreams, carry on. Try to be “normal”. But I started being more open about it as I got older. Maybe because I started to get a handle on it, maybe because I realized how many other people deal with this behind the scenes, maybe with age brings wisdom and openness- who knows. But more importantly, I started truly taking charge of it- or gaining control over it in the last few years. Reading, learning, seeking. Gaining tools, getting better at knowing how to not only deal with it, but how to get through it and better yet, how to prevent episodes entirely.

Motherhood was a huge part of this. Motherhood has healed me in so, so many ways. When you become a mother, your heart now lives outside of you. Your heart is just out there walking around in someone else’s body. It’s a cliche thing to hear, but your life is truly not only about you ever again. Your heart somehow recognizes that it doesn’t have the time to be depressed or anxiety-ridden all the time. It has the most important responsibility of all of life- to raise a soul. So you are focused on that as you should be. Motherhood also gave me confidence, calm, strength, a sense of belonging, a sense of identity and purpose like I had never felt before and it brought so much happiness. Depression and anxiety shrunk in the light of these beautiful things. And thank God.

In a very practical sense, motherhood leaves you with no room or time to be depressed. You’re taking care of someone else, you’re on the go, you’re cleaning, you’re full-time care-taking all day and sometimes night. When would you have the time to be these things? I found this to be very accurate for me. Too much to focus on other than depression + anxiety. And again, thank God for that.

But that doesn’t mean that if you have dealt with these things your entire life that they magically disappear when you have a baby. Or maybe they have introduced themselves to you only since becoming a mother. And when they do come up- I have found this to be one of the hardest parts of being a mom- you just want to have the time to process and feel and you don’t have the space for it. Your feelings just have to fester under the surface while you have to carry on making lunch, giving baths and giving hugs. And that’s the thing about depression- it WANTS you to lean into it. It tells you that it’s more comfortable there.

And when you’re frozen with anxiety, you’re….well…frozen. Your mind knows the ways to get out, but your heart is stuck. It sounds awful and painful and uncomfortable to even think about getting unstuck.

My husband Blake has always been amazing at loving me through these parts of me. He has always supported me, cared deeply, tried to understand and allowed me to walk through it. And he knows just how to help pull me to the other side as best he can. The way he loves me unconditionally will always be the greatest gift I have received.

But this last week, D + A reared their ugly heads back into my life. Honestly when I started this blog, I never really imagined talking about depression and anxiety that much because they really had not been big parts of my life in the last couple of years. And in the vein of complete disclosure, a big part of this is because I chose to get on an SSRI about a year after Charlie was born and I was suffering extreme panic attacks. I didn’t want to turn to medication in that way, but I realized I needed major help and I am so proud of myself for asking for it. It has done WONDERS for me and I am truly so grateful for how much it has helped me. That is really a whole other conversation- but just know that if you need real help beyond some self-care tools, there is no shame (in fact, strength) in doing what you need to do to be healthy in my book. But here we are. It’s January. It’s cold. It’s dreary. There is world unrest. The holidays are over. Oh yea, there’s a pandemic and being home-bound and only home-bound is the new norm. SSRIs are not magic pills. Mine has helped me so much, but sometimes it’s not enough.

Last week I was a shell of myself. It was like I was in a spell of being a zombie. I was tired and anxious. I felt like there was no hope, but perhaps most jarring was the fact that I had little to no interest in living out my day-to-day responsibilities of being a mom. I still did them because I had no choice. But I didn’t want to make breakfast. I didn’t want to read a story. I didn’t want to play. And let me go back to the tired thing….I was painfully, painfully tired. Charlie went to school for the first day after the break last Tuesday and when Tessa took a nap, I slept. Because I was tired and because I didn’t feel like doing anything else. Wednesday was the same. And I have never once chosen to lay down and sleep since they have been at school or Parent’s Day Out because I am usually so ready and motivated to get things done and take advantage of that time. Not last week. Last week I wanted nothing to do with that. I wanted to sleep. I went to bed around 8:30 all last week because I just wanted the day to be over. Please do not read this as I did take care of my kids, because I did. It was just hard for me last week, while it is usually not.

Needless to say, this was scary for me. Have I had my hard moments during this pandemic? UM YES. LOTS. But not an entire week of really, really not feeling myself. I am happy to say that as I write this, I am fully out of the episode. But I had to CLAW my way back to the light. And I wanted to share with you several things that helped me get there. This is not just for moms or dads- this is for anyone.

Tell others. Ask for help. I am so, so grateful to have a community of other moms and amazing friends. Although it is sometimes hard for me to ask for emotional help, I did. I asked for prayers. I was open. I was honest about how bad I was struggling. It was extremely comforting to know that my friends were there and understood. And that I didn’t feel like I was going through this in the dark and alone. Shining the light on the situation and raising my hand to be seen helped. If you do not have this community- and I’m serious about this, email me. I’ll be that for you.
Rely on partner help. I realize not everyone may have a partner or family help while parenting, so perhaps consider a neighbor or friend. But Blake took over parenting duties as soon as he got home from work last week so I could breathe and have a moment of quiet. I let him help in this way so I could help myself. Don’t be scared to ask for help so you can have some space.
Be honest with your kids. My daughters are three and one so I don’t mean I was telling them exactly what I was going through. But it means I did say, “Honey, I don’t think I can play another game right now. I’m having a hard day and need a break.”
Movement. I have been doing Pilates for almost 5 years now and it has become therapy for me in so many ways. Last week I realized it had been a while since I had done it for whatever reason- holidays, busy being a mom, fill in the blank. And I have a reformer at home but I had no motivation to work out at home. On Friday I signed up for a class at my usual studio because they have a huge garage door that they open so there is all sorts of fresh air. And we wear masks and there are only a couple of other people there at a time. 6:30am class in 30 degree weather- trust me, I wanted to cancel that morning but I made myself go. On Sunday, I also did a virtual heart-centered yoga class with a local studio here in Nashville. Both of these things helped TREMENDOUSLY. Movement is HUGE.
Get out of the house if you can. Get in some fresh air. Get in the sun. I was sitting on the couch on Saturday and the sun was shining in the EXACT spot I was sitting (okay, God, I see you)…the sunshine has been hard to come by these days so I gladly soaked it in for about 30 minutes. Vitamin D did wonders.
Meditate. Meditation is a big, big part of my life but when you’re depressed, you don’t always want to help yourself. In fact, I didn’t want to meditate at all. To feel anything else sounded scary. So this wasn’t the first thing I turned to last week. But after I had done a couple of the others and was feeling on the mend, I then turned to meditation.
Vitamins. One of my sweet friends, who has children the same age, texted me after she knew what I was going through and gave me a list of things that have helped her in the past. Probiotic, magnesium at night, CBD, vitamin D, beef liver capsules and fish oil. She also mentioned a sun lamp and because I tend to have seasonal depression I ordered one right away- I’m excited to try. I went out this past weekend and got a good probiotic and magnesium because I was missing those from her list and I am willing to try anything to remain in a happy place. But take care of your body. Take your vitamins, hydrate and give your body nutritious foods.

I hope this list helps you. Please know that it is not an exhaustive list in any way- just some things that help me. Above all, if you are going through depression, as a parent or not, please know that you are NOT alone. These things are real for many of us, but there is hope. And please know that you have a friend in me. Sending much love.