Reflections on the Past Year

There’s so much to do, and so little time that it’s often hard to stop and reflect. In preparation for the start of my 34th year, I wanted to think back on some of what I’ve learned with balancing now two littles with my hubby, working, managing the house, and trying to keep my adult relationships (family, friends, preschool teachers and parents, church acquaintances, etc.) all intact. I’ve always wanted to have a list that matches the number of years for that birthday, and had the realization this year that it was only going to get harder as I keep adding a year. So, then, this is the year! Here we go! So, 34 years, 34 personal truths. 

Grilled Cheese Bar Birthday Party

Birthday celebrations are fun, but can sometimes bring challenges. In my family for birthdays we tend to get together for dinner – either out to eat at the birthday person’s place of choice or dining in with a favorite meal – give gifts and eat cake. It’s a great formula for birthday success! This year, I felt home bound by our adorable kiddos. Dining out is just not much fun these days, so I didn’t want to get everyone out just to be forced to wrangle kids in an unfamiliar-to-them environment and be stressed through all of dinner. But, what to eat?! After much deliberation and restaurant take-out research, I landed on a favorite childhood meal, but with a twist.

Enter the grilled cheese bar. My mom makes a mean grilled cheese, so I wanted to take advantage of her mad skills, plus see how we could adventure to make new, maybe more adult grilled cheese combinations. I Googled this grand idea, and sure enough, it’s a thing! Bloggers and celebrities have shared the idea, so I took what I thought would work best for our family and pitched the idea to my family. Thankfully, they were game. And, we had quite the spread!

Grilled Cheese Bar Spread

Gear Up! Nursing Essentials

Breastfeeding is hard. There, I’ve said it. It’s true. It’s a challenge and it’s not for everyone. No judgement here. I didn’t end up breastfeeding Lil’ O, but have been able to stick it out with Lil’ Chica. It’s different for every mom, every child, every life situation. Part of finding balance is picking our battles. For those determined to give breastfeeding a try, bravo.

If your breastfeeding journey is like mine, and I sincerely hope it’s much easier, you may benefit and find encouragement in gearing up for the task. Through much trial and error, here are the products I’ve found to be essential on my journey. I hope other moms find this useful.

The Rocky Road of Breastfeeding – My Breastfeeding Trials & Triumph

Lil’ Chica is now eight months – eight months! – and through some strong determination, coupled with the grace of God, I am still breastfeeding her. It has been far from easy, but she and I persevered. If I’ve learned anything from this, it’s that stubbornness can sometimes be a virtue. My crazy goal was to breastfeed her for six months. We’re already passed that, so everything now is bonus.

Sometimes struggles turn into personal journeys. We persevere, we grow, we learn.

Staying Positive – This Week’s Pick-Me-Ups

This week has been the usual grind of kid care, house chores, errands and more. So much to do! Maybe it’s that we’re getting into a pretty set rhythm, so it feels like we’re just coming up for air, but I feel so behind! And, so tired. Now that we’ve managed the basics, there are hobbies to pick back up, blogging to do, Lil’ Chica’s first year baby album to compile, family memories to capture, and friends to catch up with. Phew!

I’m trying not to get overwhelmed or bummed out by it all. In that effort, here are some of the fun things that are getting me through this week.