Not sure how to make time for yourself with children in tow? Check out these practical tips on how to make time for yourself as a mom. Moms, we spend a lot of our time working, caring for kids, and cleaning our homes. You prepare breakfast, get the kids ready for school, juggle work, and deal with endless to-do lists. Any breaks you get feel like you ought to do even more, to stay productive. To get one step ahead of the hours that seem to slip so quickly. So much so that any free time to yourself—exercise, old hobbies, even getting a cup of coffee—gets pushed to the bottom of the … [Read more...]

Parenthood takes a toll on any parent. Learn the 8 warning signs that you need to be a patient mom (and what to do to fix it). It happens often, at predictable times. I hop on the computer to look for recipes when my kids interrupt and ask me to fix a broken toy. Other times, they'll whine or complain within minutes of waking up for the day (not exactly a great start to our morning). It could even be when they're being silly and loud—they're not even doing anything wrong—and it still happens. I snap. Yell. I lose my patience. 8 signs you need to be a patient mom We're all human and … [Read more...]

Raising children is difficult for even the strongest of moms. Read 6 reasons motherhood is hard, and different ways you can turn it around. During my first pregnancy, I kept a green binder for articles I’d print out, like how to instill a love of reading or raise a thankful child. I clipped activities and crafts and read books about brain development and growth stages. I wasn’t uninformed. But the day my son entered the world, I didn’t have time to even touch that binder. Most of the articles I saved applied to a much later age, not the newborn one I was faced with. And I didn’t … [Read more...]

What makes a good mom? These 8 qualities of a mother will help you develop a close relationship with your child and thrive in motherhood. We may not outwardly say it, but chances are, we’ve all thought it: I don’t know if I’m doing this mom thing right. We won’t always call a friend and admit it. Nor do we get annual reviews or any feedback to measure how we’re doing like we would in a paid job. And most of what we learn about being a mom is a patchwork of experience, peers, and research. But I hear it time and again from so many moms wondering if they’re doing enough. Feeling … [Read more...]

Motherhood finds you busier than ever, but friendships are still possible. Learn how to make mom friends and get the support you need. Friendships used to be tricky for me. Long before I was even a mom, I wondered why I didn't have that one "best" friend that some people seemed so lucky to have. Sure, I had good friends, but never that one person to call my best, the one that everyone would associate me with. I didn't focus on how to make friends and certainly didn't have many. After I got over myself, I then wondered why I didn't have a group of friends, you know, like on the show … [Read more...]