Search Results for: WAHM

My Life As A WAHM (According To 30 Rock Gifs)

March 26, 2013 · by Tara ·

I know I’m late, but I’ve really been spending way too much time reading gif blogs. I read #WhatShouldWeCallMe every day and I’m guaranteed a laugh every time. Here’s my sad attempt at recreating it, WAHM-style. “30 Rock” was one of my favorite shows and I’m still mourning the fact that it’s over. Seven seasons just don’t seem like enough.

When I spend one too many days indoors with the kids

When I do something cool for a client but there’s no one around to congratulate me

When I take the kids to the park and all the other moms have buddied up before they got there

When I take my kids to a birthday party that serves “healthy treats”

How I want to run out of my kids’ room at night when I finally get them in the bed

Filed Under: Featured ·

I’m a WAHM – Why Do I Feel Guilty About Sending My Son To Preschool?

October 31, 2011 · by Tara ·

The most popular misconception about work-at-home moms is that we don’t work. Or rather, we work, but only for a little bit each day. They figure the rest of the day is spent watching TV or cleaning or cooking or hanging out with friends.

This could not be further from the truth. I’ve never worked as much in my life as I have in the past year. I told my husband recently that I am by far the toughest boss I’ve ever had.

My goal for this year was to 1) work on my business and 2) spend more time with the kids. I spent the first half of the year unsuccessfully balancing quality time with the kids and getting enough time to do quality work. As soon as I found that sweet spot, my daughter started school and so it’s just me and the little guy all day.

It’s so much harder having just one child at home versus two. When my daughter was home, she’d occupy her little brother and even teach him a few things while I busted out some work. But now, my son is just kind of there, with nothing to occupy him but Nick Jr. And I know I want more for my son.

So I’ve been researching some preschools in the area, trying to find some affordable center for him to go part-time, a few hours a day. It’s difficult because I was trying to make it to January having him home with me. I love him and when I’m not under a completely stressful deadline, it’s fun to just hang with him and be in his face all day. But the reality is that I have too much work to handle during the two or so hours I can wrangle throughout the day. Having him in preschool will allow him to socialize with the other kids, learn a thing or two and then come back to a mama who’s not so frazzled. At least that’s what I’m hoping. *FINGERS CROSSED*

Why are some of the most necessary decisions about motherhood also some of the most difficult to make?

Filed Under: Career, Money + School · Tagged: featured, Money + School

YML Live: Mommy Camp 101 – Making The Most Of Summers Home With The Kids

April 20, 2015 · by Tara ·

With summer fast approaching, it can difficult for work-at-home and stay-at-home moms to figure out what the heck to do with their kids all day. Overnight summer camp can be expensive and spending your summer taking your kids to and from a day camp can be a drag as well. But hosting your own “Mommy Camp” can be a solution that’s fun, affordable and educational.

I’m teaming up with my blogger buddy K. Elizabeth from YUMMommy.com to dish out our favorite tips on planning a memorable and easy “Mommy Camp” on the next installment of YML Live. Join us Tuesday, April 28 at 9 p.m. EST for a candid conversation about how to get work done, keep the kids entertained and fed, and stay sane by the time school starts back up!

We’ll cover:

Budgeting and planning for activities and groceries.
Activity ideas (beyond Pinterest!)
Setting goals for your summer
Building a tribe with other WAHMs/SAHMs
Getting in “me-time” while you’re watching the kids all day

Will you be joining us? We’d love if you shared it on Twitter!

WAHMs/SAHMs, learn how to keep your kids busy this summer (for cheap!):

Tweet This

Link to watch: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LEht18d47FA

Link to RSVP: https://plus.google.com/events/c95h4iv8b7omc3ug0ue9cku97ao

Filed Under: YML Live ·

Welcome To The New YML!

January 10, 2013 · by Tara ·

Did I really just write a post talking about my new site four days after it launched? Why, yes. Yes, I did.

Part of the reason for the delay is because I’m still trying to figure out what I want to do with the space and what it’s supposed to represent.

Here’s what I’ve got so far. I started this blog in 2008 because I felt like “I” was missing from the conversations about parenting. No one looked like me. No one had a life like mine. A brief reminder: when I found out I was pregnant with my daughter, I was 20. I was unmarried. I had no health insurance. I was making about $400 a semester. In short, I was not feeling very confident about this journey ahead of me and the fact that every mother who seemed to have a voice about anything was a) white b) older c) rich and d) married, I just felt so out of place and unheard.

So I started writing. About everything. About anything.

And people started writing, telling me that my stories were inspirational. And really, I could have been anybody. I still don’t think my story is all that compelling compared to people like Lisette or Gloria. My point is that just being here, in the space, was enough to give other people hope.

So I kept writing.

And then I caught the attention of folks in high places. Traveling to conferences and making speeches and presentations. That is fun. I definitely enjoy that.

So I kept writing.

I tweaked my formula a bit, starting being a bit more open with my life story and who I was and what I stood for. Then the rug got pulled out from under me when I lost my job. But I just considered it an opportunity to go full force with this here community.

So I kept writing.

I wrote about the ups and downs of trying to build a career where you fit your work around your children, versus trying to fit your children around your work. I talked about working from home, about blogging, about everything that I was doing as I was still trying to figure out how to do it. This could have potentially been embarrassing, as living your life out loud can sometimes be.

But I kept writing.

And that leads us here, to today. I’m still writing because I need to. We all do. We all need to share our stories and be our most authentic selves. We need to talk about what bugs us, what gives us hope, what makes us laugh, what gives us strength. We need a community to give us that space to simply be ourselves.

I want this space to be comfortable for you. To see a new post and instinctively know that yes, you are welcome here. This new redesign is all about capturing that spirit and putting it into digital form. I hope you enjoy it.

And I will keep writing.

Filed Under: About The Blog, Featured, Love + Family, Mom to Mom, Weekly Inspiration, You + Your Kids ·

Goal Diggin’: My Goals For The Rest Of 2012

August 15, 2012 · by Tara ·

My shero, Allyson Felix

I am still on a high from the Olympics and seeing all the young moms REPRESENT like they meant it! Too awesome for words.

I devoured the coverage like a fiend and when I got to Allyson Felix’s Facebook page, this photo stopped me in my tracks. I love how they work hard for such an short event. Hours of training for a 30-second (and in some cases, shorter) race. Insanity.

It got me thinking about my goals for the rest of the year. I want to continue to grow and learn and push myself. But at the same time, I want to learn when to listen to my body’s cues that I need to rest. So here are my goals for the rest of the year: with regard to school, family, work and marriage.

School

Finish school strong. I’ve come too far than to falter at the finish line. I’ve never completed a thesis before, but I’m a great student and I know I’ll do a great job and this will NOT be a roadblock to me walking across that stage in December 2012.
Find my groove early in the semester in terms of balancing school, work and my family. I’m menu planning again and already life seems a little easier. If I can keep my head above water until late November, I’ll be set.
Figure out what I need to do to gain my certification as a Certified Family Life Educator. From what I understand, I can either take a few more classes (no!!) or take a $200 exam and cross my fingers and hope that I pass.

Family

My daughter’s school be trying to kill me! LOL. They are very big on parental involvement and my eight hours at the school each month felt like drops in the bucket for what they were asking. I want to be as involved as I can (part of the reason I was so gung-ho about being a WAHM in the first place), but I also need to be realistic. I’m not going to be able to be at the school volunteering every week. Maybe once a month, maybe twice a month, but no longer will I have those unrealistic expectations.
Get back to doing parent-child dates. I really feel like I need more time with my daughter and my husband needs more time with our son. So once a month or so, we’re going to make that happen, even if it’s just a trip to the park to walk around.
Re-build our emergency savings account. We had a nice chunk of change sitting there when I got laid off in 2010, but alas, 2011 put a hurtin’ on it! We’re finally at the point where I feel comfortable setting aside a certain amount each month and we need to keep doing that consistently.

Work

Exhale once September rolls around and I will have the house to myself three days a week! BOTH kids are heading to school this year and I am relieved. From Wednesday through Friday, I will be able to come and go as I please, work on projects uninterrupted and not have the nagging guilt that I’m ignoring the children right as I get into a good groove on a project.

Marriage

We’re in a good place in our marriage and I’ll have to attribute this to the fact that I am much more laid-back and less controlling. I let my control freak tendencies get the better of me, but now I have more trust that my husband will be exactly what I need. To keep things going smoothly, we’re planning a mini-vacay at the end of September (coinciding with a business trip). I hope a few days away from home is the key to destressing (even if I’ll be handling business during the day).

What are your goals for the rest of 2012?

Filed Under: Goal Diggin' · Tagged: featured, goal diggin'