Hot Mess Mommy Express

My last blog post was in March. And that just goes to show how fast quarantine life has flown by. Back when it began, it felt endless. To be honest, it still does to an extent. I found out today that my time home has been extended yet again. However, this time...I'm okay with it. Quarantine has taught me so much about myself, my family, my job and the important things in life. I remember sitting at my table, sobbing hearing that Illinois residents would be ordered to stay home for another thirty days.....and then another thirty days....and then here we are another 30 days later. Before COVID changed our lives and before quarantine life became the norm, I was constantly running on empty, overloading my already overflowing plate and wishing life would just slow down for a day. I longed for time at home. I longed for a deep breathe. I longed to disconnect. Then it happened. And despite always holding myself to high standards, I crumbled. I struggled. Balancing mom life, work life

How often do we find ourselves saying "I just wish I could stay home" as we navigate the craziness of our everyday lives. Work, school, parenting, sports, practices, meetings....before we know it another week has flown by and we shout TGIF. If you're like me, you like to stay home as much as you can on the weekends, because you feel like everyone else gets the other five days of the week. Fast forward....enter coronavirus. All of a sudden, we are tossed into staying home full-time. Our nation is in crisis mode. Coronavirus looms in the outside world. We are told to stay home (the wish many of us have expressed). Not only are we parents, but now we're full-time employees, filling the teacher role AND parenting all at the same time. I don't know about you, but it's extremely overwhelming for me. I've tried to remain as positive as possible while putting my full faith in God and the essential workers out there combating COVID-19. Lately I find my social

Yesterday I happened to be in Missouri as the Illinois Governor released a statement indicating that all restaurants and bars were closing. I couldn't help but wonder if stores would soon follow, so I thought that it would be beneficial to go get some grocery essentials, while in a different state. I'm normally pretty good at keeping my house stocked up in general, but being that our routine grocery week is this week, I thought I'd try and pre-plan. So I took a deep breath and pulled into Walmart with my nine year old in tow. I will admit that while I react rather lightly to situations of this nature, I couldn't help but feel a bit of apprehension as I assessed the state of the store shelves, the packed aisles and the long lines. I held my son's hand and couldn't wait to get home to our safe space. However I will say this. This was the first time that I've immersed myself among the people shopping at this time and despite what the media and social media

It was a day or two after Christmas and my kids starting asking when "Valentimes" day is. Some people think it's weird that my littles anticipate such a thing, however it's one of my favorite family traditions. To my kids, it's a legitimate holiday and I'm okay with that! We keep it so simple, yet my kids love it so much. I'll keep our tradition going for as long as they'll have it. Before kids, Valentine's Day was all about fancy dinner reservations, dressing up and date night. While we still plan for those things, we tend to make our plans for after Valentine's Day. Not only is there less pressure, but the restaurants are far less packed, babysitters are available and our date night is far more enjoyable. Valentine's Day is all about our little family of five. Typically I'll get off of work, swing into Papa Murphy's for a heart shaped pizza and cookie dough. In the days prior, I pick up silly little gifts from the Dollar Tree

"My oh my what a wonderful day!" It's the "Most Magical Place on Earth" they said! "You must take your kids to Disney at least once," they said. And you know what? I completely agree with those things. We are very much a Disney family starting with my parents who try to go every year. We recently returned from eight days away in the land of Disney and though I've been several times myself, I find that each and every time I go, I learn something new and it's always a new experience. Taking three kids along for the ride renders new lessons, new opinions and new suggestions for parents everywhere who are in the planning stage, contemplation stage or who are heading out to Disney in the near future. As promised, I am going to share with you my most recent Disney Life Mom Hacks. Disney hacks will differ based on perspective and experience, but if you want my honest feedback, based on my experience with my family of five, then this is what you