5 Thing I’m Working on Right Now
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I’m starting to have expectations for myself again (you know, beyond keeping three humans alive) and it feels really good. We still aren’t doing a lot of consecutive sleep but between Ben’s morning shift and naps, I’m getting enough sleep to function. Here are a few things I’m trying to be more intentional about… five things I’ve been struggling with and am trying to work on.
- PARENTING // The three questions before I discipline my children: I’m working my way through “No-Drama Discipline” again (the physical book this time so I can mark it up) and I loved the reminder to ask these questions before you discipline your kids: Why did my child react this way? What do I want to teach in this moment? How can I best teach this lesson? Almost without exception, my LEAST favorite of my own behaviors are when I react instantly/emotionally to negative behavior from my kids. These three questions help me be more intentional about my responses and result in more teaching (the root meaning of the word ‘discipline’). It’s the third question that I often have a hard time answering though…hopefully the rest of the book has some ideas.
- SANITY // powering through the last hour of the day ( half hour of bedtime and half hour of cleaning): I feel pretty great about this three kids thing until about 5pm each day. By then I’m exhausted and mentally drained. We make it through dinner and baths but sometimes I struggle to muster the energy to actually get the kids in bed. And once they’re in bed all I want to do is collapse onto the couch and lose myself in instagram or netflix. BUT…I feel much more in control when I power through and am present for bedtime and spend the half hour after the kids are in bed getting our house clean. Plus it is much more relaxing to unwind in a clean space than a cluttered one (for me, anyway).
- PARENTING + SELF CARE // affirmations for me and the kids each morning: We have been doing affirmations for the kids in the car on the way to preschool each day (well, each day they have school) and I’m trying to be better at doing them for me, too. I don’t think it’s a coincidence the last time I focused on affirmations was when I was post-partum with Adelaide. There is a strong mind-body connection and saying positive things outloud about yourself makes a noticeable difference (for me, anyway). And after all this affirmation talk recently, I cried happy tears when my church came out with this new mantra for the girls … so excited to learn this with Adelaide.
- PARENTING + SELF CARE // reading physical books to my kids and myself each day: We’ve gotten a bit out of the habit of reading every day together and I haven’t read a physical book in A LONG time (maybe two in the last three years?). My goal is to read at least one book to each child each day. For me, I just need to pick up and read part of a physical book.
- SELF CARE // eating real food (preferably something that is green): Ben hasn’t been home for dinner during the week in awhile and I struggle with motivation to cook interesting, balanced meals when it’s just me and the kids (okay, I struggle to cook interesting balanced meals period). I do a lot of easy things the kids will eat (mac n cheese with peas in it, frozen pizza and roasted broccoli, etc) and end up with a protein shake or frozen meal for myself at 9pm. Today I took myself to Sweetgreen for lunch, though, and filling up on vegetables, rice, and chicken felt really good. I need more of those and fewer bowls of cereal in my life.
P.S. This outfit represents so many things about fall fashion that I’m loving right now.
- This sweater is my favorite fall purchase. The color is beautiful, the quality is great for the price, and it just goes with everything (I wore it over a floral dress here). It comes in a handful of colors but this camel is my favorite.
- This t-shirt is the one I’ve been LIVING in. It’s something you’ll want to wear to bed and then the whole next day. This long sleeve version is on my list.
- I almost got rid of this skirt last year because it was just a little too big but I was SO happy when I pulled it on last week and realized I have a skirt that fits me right now! Also, I snagged it on thredUP a few years ago for less than $10. (all my tips for shopping on thredUP in this post)
- Leopard booties. I saw these beautiful leopard boots on shopbop and thought they’d be such a fun way to add interest to a basic black dress this winter … but not at a price point I wanted to spend on a shoe I wasn’t going to get a ton of use out of. I found an almost identical pair on amazon for a quarter of the price and they’re surprisingly comfortable (not comfortable enough that they’re coming with me to walk all over London this weekend but definitely something I’d wear out and about with kids here in Boston)!
outfit details
sweater: wearing XS and comes in a couple of colors
shirt: favorite Amazon Brand (everything I’ve ordered from here is SO comfortable and good quality) – I’m wearing a M but could have ordered a small. It runs pretty true to size and is a boxy fit to begin with.
skirt: thredUP (lots of similar denim pencil skirts here)
leopard booties: these are selling out quick but a few sizes are still available
crossbody bag: I’ve had this bag for three years and it has held up beautifully. I love that it can fit my DSLR and essentials if needed but isn’t super bulky if I’m just carrying around my wallet and phone
