Book Review: Motherhood Realized

I am passionate about motherhood, so when I was introduced to Power of Moms which is "a gathering place for deliberate mothers" I was immediately drawn in. I have spent hours and hours listening to their on demand radio and podcasts and reading article after article. I also joined a Learning Circle, purchased some of their programs, attended a retreat and am a Power of Moms Ambassador. I love Power of Moms and I love their new book Motherhood Realized.  This book is a wonderful collection of short essays written by mothers, for mothers

"We believe that family life is beautiful and that motherhood is a privilege.  But we also believe it is often really hard to see all that beauty when we’re in the midst of mothering. So often, we feel like we’re spread too thin. We feel like we don’t match up. Our hearts want to do more than our hands can manage.  And every day, as we cycle through household duties, discipline, errands, conversations, teaching, and hundreds of “unexpecteds,” we’re often left tired, worried, and in need of some extra inspiration and encouragement."

Motherhood Realized is inspiring and refreshing. Regardless to where you are in your journey of motherhood, this book is appropriate for moms of all ages and families of all sizes. There is something for every mom. The book is divided into 4 sections:

1. Becoming Our Best Selves
2. Getting Through Hard Times
3. Shifting Our Perspectives
4. Savoring Moments

The chapters are quick and easy to read with thoughtful questions and challenges at the end of each chapter to help moms apply the theme into their lives. It is encouraging and empowering. I cannot say enough about what a treasure Motherhood Realize has become. 

Check out how to order your own copy today!

Fitness Friday: How Soda Impacts Your Body

I have never been a soda drinker until I became pregnant with my first child. I had really bad headaches and my doctor recommended drinking some caffeine. It was the only thing that helped. A friend of mine told me her mom started drinking soda when she was pregnant with her youngest sister and that she still is addicted and her sister is 18! I was relieved that the craving and the headaches went away after giving birth. Same thing happened when I was pregnant with my second, but the only different is that she is now 13 months and that dang craving has not gone away! I know it is awful and I go in spurts where I get off it for a little while, but then I have a few days of needing a little caffeine boost and I'm hooked again! I read an interesting article on the impact of soda recently, but can't find it. I did however, come across this image from a past news article that I thought summed up why I know I need to give it up. Here's to drinking more water! 

Tips & Tricks Tuesday: Bath Toy Solution

I have been overwhelmed with bath toy clutter for a couple years now and have tried numerous baskets and expensive bath toy holders to no avail. Can any moms relate? For about $12 at IKEA I found the perfect solution! The "trash baskets" are found in the kitchen section and the hangers are found in the bath section of Ikea. This seriously has been a life saver for me. 

5 pack hangers- $7.99 http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/90225793/

trash basket- $3.99 http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/80182237/

red, orange, yellow, green, blue, purple

those are the colors of the rainbow!

This activity provided the opportunity to teach the colors of the rainbow along with a song, talk about colors, sorting (a great pre-math activity), talk about letters in the names of the colors, work on fine motor skills (see here the importance of fine motor skills), practice delayed gratification. It took several steps to complete the project and we broke it up into a couple days and was just a lot of fun!

Shamrock Banner

Kids love helping and they love contributing. Make a clover banner! together. I used my silhouette cameo to cut out the shamrocks, but you can easily find shamrock clipart and print and cut them out. We experimented with mixing blue and yellow paint to make green and Sage and her little friends had fun painting them. My little 13 month old even joined in the fun with green finger paint and painted a few herself. 

Product Review: Melissa and Doug Water Wow

A friend at church had one of these incredible books for her little ones and I knew we needed them! Sage girl got some for her birthday and they are awesome! They have several different versions that include an animal theme, letters, numbers and vehicles. They are perfect for church, in the car, in restraints, doctors office... any place you have to wait! We purchased them at Target for $4.99 or they can be found on Amazon too. 

No-mess painting for kids! This exciting paint-with-water coloring book includes four reusable pages and a refillable water pen. Simply use the pen to color in each scene--details and vibrant color appear with every stroke! Then let the page dry to erase the pictures and fill it in again and again. This animal-themed book includes four scenes to color, and a search-and-find activity for each scene. The chunky-sized water pen is easy for kids to hold and stores neatly right in the front cover, so Water WOW books make ideal travel activity books and travel toys for kids!