Mothers Day // and A Few Random Thoughts on Motherhood

I hope you girls all had a beautiful Mother’s Day! I skipped my standard Weekend Deals + Steals post this weekend and wanted to share some random thoughts on Motherhood and a few things i’ve learned along the way….

First off I just wanted to show some looove to all my mama readers. I feel like since having the kids I have quite a few mama “frollowers” (that’s friends/followers:) on here now so thank you all SO much for following along with us! I hope you all had the best day yesterday.

We had a low key and relaxing one complete with a homemade breakfast in bed (which turned out to be a communal breakfast;)

and the sweetest little homemade book from miss Ava.

I’ve kind of waited my whole life for these little books! (… but 39?! Girl don’t age me 😉

Some sweets with my sweets

He asked for chocolate, traded for my mint chocolate chip and then stole bites from sissy’s chocolate sprinkled banana…the little brother struggle is REAL friends!

My Off the Shoulder Top // Sunnies // Wide Brim Hat // Boyfriend Jeans and Sandals

Ava’s Dress and Gladiator Sandals

Luca’s Black Polo , Shorts and Checkered Vans

Mother’s Day had me reflecting on the last 5 years since becoming a mom (I still CAN NOT believe it’s been 5 years!) so I  wanted to share some random thoughts and a few things i’ve learned along the way…..

first things first…

 Don’t be fooled by the highlight reel

I say this time and time again but please “don’t compare yourself to someone else’s highlight reel”. It is only that… a highlight reel. I do feel super blessed but please know that life is NOT always perfect over here either. My kids melt down at the Target checkout counter, I have my hot mess days too and my house looks like a toddler tornado hit at least 3 times a day. It’s called a highlight reel for that reason….because people are only sharing the best parts of their lives. It’s so easy to get caught up and feel like everyone else’s lives are perfect (and I am totally guilty of feeling that way too) but just know that it’s not always perfect here either.

Do Your Best

I’ll be the first to admit that pre kids I had a lonnnng mental list of the things I would never do when I had my own children.Well fast forward 5 years and two kiddos later and that list is LONNNG gone. From breast feeding to pacifiers to sleep training and vaccinations someone always has something to say. Just know that everyone will offer up their tips, tricks and “advice” but take it with a grain of salt because what works for someone else may not work for you. At the end of the day YOU know what’s best for your family. As long as you try your best everyday, those babes will know they’re loved!

Make Time for Your Significant Other

Life was hectic with one kid but once we had a second the “us time” really took a hit. You sometimes feel like two trains passing in the night. With both of us working, juggling two kids and a new home build it has been hard finding the time for “us”. We started doing a weekly date night about 6 months ago and can not tell you how much we look forward to (and NEED) it. Half the time we don’t even make a reservation anywhere. We just want to go sit at a bar (bc you can’t do that with the kiddos;) and eat dinner. Having that us time to reconnect (and have an uninterrupted conversation 😉 is all we need!

Finding that Balance

…if you girls have found it please let me know, because i’m still looking 😉 You will hear that often but it’s so true. It’s a constant struggle trying to juggle everything. I try my best but at the end of the day something ALWAYS feels like it’s being neglected. If I kick ass with my blog and social posts then usually my workout or me time is neglected or vice versa. It feels like there are never enough hours in the day to accomplish all the things I want. I’m learning to just do what I can and sllllowly understanding that it’s okay not being able to do it all. (still a work in progress on that one)

Don’t Lose Your Sense of Self (make time for you!)

I’ve mentioned this in the past but still maintaining that sense of self after kids is something that I think is SO important.You moms know how crazy life can be between school, playdates, sports, appointments and just life in between. It’s far too easy to be completely consumed by it all and put yourself on the back burner. The kids and hubby will always be at the top of my priority list but I knew I always wanted to have something for me. I started blogging before I had kids (can you believe it?!) and The Honeybee is that little space for me. I will forever be thankful for it and for YOU girls. This is my little outlet, community and creative space for me to be me. Whatever your passion is…whether it’s blogging, yoga or starting a small business venture I HIGHLY encourage you girls to go for it and take that little bit of time for you! Having that little something for myself makes me a happier mama and wife!

Make Mama Friends

Oh yes this is a MUST! Definitely still make time for your pre kiddo friends but there’s no better hood than mommy hood! 😉 Finding a solid group of mama friends is SO important. I was the first out of all my friends to have kids. I tried my best to keep up with my non parent friends but eventually those 9pm dinners just weren’t sounding as appealing anymore (bc you know those 6:30 wake ups were still happening no matter what time I roll in). I didn’t do a lot of playdates or group classes when Ava was young for some reason so I really didn’t get to make a lot of mama friends right off the bat.

I finally met my first mom friends when I started taking Ava to the gym with me (which wasn’t till she was around 1.5) and it was so nice FINALLY having friends that could relate to all the things I was going through as a new mom. Honestly the first year of motherhood for me was a huge adjustment and It probably would have been much better if I had made some mom friends sooner. So to all you new moms…get out there and socialize! Sign up for mommy and me classes, bring your kids to the gym with you or they even have mom groups on FB too. Having a core group of mama friends that you can relate to is priceless!

and lastly Have a Drank (…you deserve it)

I’m not gonna lie, I feel like I am a better mom after a glass of wine. I try my best to hold out for Friday but lawwwrd knows sometimes I just don’t make it 😉 I thought it was supposed to get easier as they get older but the last few months I feel like we have regressed and these kids are just on another level?! I swear they are like little zombies feeding off each others craziness lol okay maybe not zombies but you know what I mean 😉 I wish I could just bottle up half of their energy. So needless to say coffee and wine are two staples in our household so #treatYoSelf!

If you’re a mama, you already know how hard some days can be. Even with all the craziness, stress and exhaustion that comes along with it  you know you wouldn’t trade ANY of it for the world! There’s truly nothing like feeling the love and purpose that these babes give on a daily. So that’s my randomness for the day 😉 I hope you all had a beautiful Mother’s Day!