Lifestyle

Bible Verses for Stressed Out Moms

September 30, 2019

I’m not going to lie, it has been a long and stressful last two weeks. We have had a lot going on and when we are in a busy season, I tend to get stressed. It’s funny though, because I also feel like that stress drives me to be super productive. For example, stressed out Logan turns into cleaning the whole house Logan. What can I say, it gets the nervous energy out. However, I have definitely turned to scripture many times over the last couple of weeks when I started to feel a lot of stress, anxiety or worry. I thought I would share some of my favorite bibles verses for stressed out moms because I know I am not the only one who feels it sometimes. Being a mother is the most stressful, wonderful job there is! I hope these verses give you comfort and encouragement.

“Start children off on the way they should go, and even when they are old they will not turn from it.” Proverbs 22:6

“I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” Philippians 4:13

“Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.” Isaiah 41:10

“The Lord is my strength and my song, and he has become my salvation; this is my God, and I will praise him, my father’s God, and I will exalt him.” Exodus 15:2

“Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might.” Ephesians 6:10

“There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love.” 1 John 4:18

“but those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.” Isaiah 40:31

“So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.” Isaiah 41:10

Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go.” Joshua 1:9

“You should be known for the beauty that comes from within, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is so precious to God.” 1 Peter 3:4

First Day of Fall

September 23, 2019

Happy OFFICIAL first day of fall, y’all! Like every basic girl out there, fall is my favorite time of year. The weather finally starts cooling off a bit and I absolutely love watching the leaves turn to my favorite color palette. The crisp air, football games, boots (and all of the fun fall fashions), pumpkin patches, etc. It all makes me so happy. I think for me, some of my favorite memories and events have happened in the fall which is what makes it so special to me. Our anniversary and Ryan’s, Hampton’s and Weston’s birthdays all take place in the fall. We have had some of our happiest days during this season that I treasure.

Mug // Pumpkin // Candle

I wanted to give you all a little life update because I haven’t written one in a very long time. My sweet baby boy will be 6 months old next week! I can NOT believe that. His first six months have flown by and it has all been a pretty big blur. At the same time, I am really trying to enjoy every minute I can with him and soaking up all the baby things. It is so emotional knowing he is my last baby. It has been tugging on my heartstrings, but I feel like everyone goes through that with their baby.

Hampton is THRIVING in kindergarten. We had a tough first couple of weeks because like him mama, he doesn’t like change. With everything being so new, it was hard on him, but now he is loving it and looks forward to going every day. I am so proud of him.

Sophie is doing great in preschool. We made the decision to move her from a 5 day program to just 3 this year so that I could spend more time with her and we would spend less time on the road. It has worked out really well and I have loved having my three littles all home with me on Mondays and Fridays. She also started dance classes again and is still loving it.

Weston started MMO this year and has done really well. Of course, we are dealing with typical two-year-old things with him right now, but he is so fun and knows how to make us all laugh. He is the sweetest boy.

Ryan and I are doing really well. He is still traveling a lot which is tough some weeks, but it makes the days he is home so much sweeter. We have started being more intentional with making time for one another when he I home and it has been so nice.

I have been struggling with anxiety since having Tucker, but I am doing much better now. I have had to make some lifestyle changes that have helped tremendously. I am also learning how to ask for help when I need it and be okay with that. Exercising and taking breaks when I can has been a game changer for me during this season of life.

We are planning so many things for the next month including a camping trip with some friends and Hampton’s birthday celebration! We can not wait to check some things off of our fall bucket list!

5 Daily Habits That Make My Life Better

September 4, 2019

As you all know, I had my sweet baby boy 5 month ago. He is absolutely precious, but has not been the easiest baby. He is still not taking a bottle despite our constant efforts and that does not give me a whole lot of time to myself these days. I noticed my stress levels were high and my anxiety started creeping up again a few weeks ago and I knew I had to do something before it got out of hand. I want to give me babies and husband the best version of me and in order to do that, I have to take care of myself a little bit, too. Here are 5 things I do daily that have helped me be a better version of myself:

Drink a ton of water and then drink some more. – I have always drank a bunch of water, but I have been really focusing on it and drink around 100 oz. a day now. That is way more than half my body weight, but I am nursing and exercising again, so I go through the water. It helps my energy and also helps me feel better all around.

Exercise – this may be a strong word for what I do. I try to move every single day. Some days it is everything I can do just to hit 10,000 steps on my fitbit, but other days I feel good enough to run a couple of miles. I have been really listening to my body and am trying not to overdo it right now. Tucker is waking up 2 to 3 times a night, so I have to be careful and savor my energy some days. I love to do the Tone it Up workouts and have enjoyed doing a few of these each week so build muscle tone again. I have found that any movement feels a lot better than none, so even a walk around the block can make a world of a difference.

Quiet time – This has been essential to my mornings and starting my days off on the right foot. I spend about 10 minutes every morning reading a short devotional and having prayer time. It has done wonders for my mood and for my entire day. Giving the day over to God before it even starts has given me a great amount of peace. It also helps having those few minutes before the chaos of our day begins. I have loved going through this daily devotional book this year! They are short and sweet, but so good!

Eat Well – I am a firm believer in balance when it comes to EVERYTHING in life. Have fun, but also work hard. Eat healthy, but do have treats. You get what I’m saying. I have not done great since the first round of Faster Way to Fat Loss a few months ago and I am trying to get back in the habit of eating (mostly) clean. Now don’t get me wrong, we still have pizza on Fridays and we still have dessert every once in a while, but eating good foods that nourish my body makes a huge difference in the way I feel.

Plan and Execute – I read all the time how planning is everything, and it is unless you are super A.D.D. and get distracted all day long from that to-do list. I love to plan and am an avid list-maker, but when it comes to execution, I struggle. So, in order to do a better job of getting stuff done, I schedule everything that I do now. I give myself a certain amount of time to clean and do laundry, a certain amount of time to get ready, a specific time to do everything and if it doesn’t get done then it doesn’t get done. There is nothing I hate more than an unfinished task, so that is motivation enough for me to hustle during my windows. With that being said, I do cave out time to rest. Normally the kids go to bed around 7:30 and I give myself one hour to fold a load of laundry and get everything laid out for the next school day. Then I have my rest time from 8:30 – 9:45 which is when Ryan and I watch a show or read or just sit and talk. It is probably my favorite hour of the day because it is peaceful and relaxing. I then feed Tucker one more time and we go to bed around 10:30 so that we get plenty of sleep (well, depending on baby T ;)).

What do you do every day that makes your life better?

Seven Years

August 26, 2019

Seven Years. It has been SEVEN years and one month since I published my first blog post. I started before scheduling a post was a thing. Before Instagram. Before anyone really knew much about blogging in general. I can still name a handful of the girls that were also blogging and that I talked to back then and all but one are still blogging and successful to this day. I started back when I was going through infertility. Maybe some of you remember reading about that a long time ago, but for the newbies, that is basically why I started. We had been married nearly one year, decided to start trying and then ran into some issues and it was a very dark time for me, so to distract myself, I started writing. It was so helpful and gave me an amazing outlet during that time but I never would have imagined it would turn into what it is today and I have you to thank for that.

To me, you all feel like old friends. I feel like I can talk freely to you and that you care. I love to talk about fashion and babies and marriage with you guys. I love to celebrate wins with you and cry with you over losses. You have been here through nearly my entire marriage and through all four of my babies (God is so good).

I want to be transparent now. A few weeks ago, I confessed to Ryan that I wasn’t happy with my blog. I haven’t grown much over the last couple of years despite hard work and effort. I have started doing more fashion related content and while I do love fashion and have a huge passion for it, there is so much more to my life and at the end of the day, my closet is a tiny, tiny fraction of that. My kids and family and friends are my world. I love to read and write and I miss doing that. It is therapeutic for me and I haven’t just sat down to write in a very long time – until now.

With that being said, I wanted you to know that I am planning to share a lot more marriage and family content on here again. I am planning to get back to recipes, sharing our life, motivation, a little fitness (more on this soon) and more! I am sorry for getting so off track lately, but to be honest, fashion is easy. People love to see it on Instagram and it is easier to sit down for 20 minutes to throw a try-on post together rather than an hour or two working on a well-written post. Now that the kids have started school and we are getting into a new routine, I am planning to sit and write every single day. I don’t promise a post every day, but will try to be more consistent in posting Monday, Wednesday and Fridays again. I am sorry for being super inconsistent over the past 5 months, but honestly, life since having Tucker has been very demanding. I am working on getting back to a healthier me and a healthier routine which starts with this. And water. And movement.

I will continue to share fashion throughout – maybe once a week or so, but for the most part, I want to get back to blogging. Really writing and connecting with you all, because that is why I started this in the beginning and what I love to do most of all. Thank you for sticking around and sticking with me through the craziness of life.

Now, I would love it if you would let me know what kind of fall content you want to see from me this upcoming season! Let me know in the comments or shoot me an email! Thank you for hanging out with me over the last seven years. It is truly humbling and I am so thankful for each and every one of you! Until next time…

xoxo
-Logan

Summer Activities for Kids

June 3, 2019

Summer is finally here and we have already enjoyed a few of these summer activities, but I am excited to check some more off the list throughout the season! I love the summer because we can make our own schedule and it is so nice! We do have days – like many of you have expressed as well – that are long and I hear “mom, I’m bored” one-hundred times a week, so it is good to have a list of prepared activities to keep the kids moving while you enjoy a loose schedule! These summer activities are a combined list of things I thought of and some that you suggested to me on Instagram! Let’s get out there and play!

Splash Pad
Zoo
Water Park
Pool Day
Park
Picnic
Get Messy with Chalk
Slip n’ Slide
Turn on the Sprinkler
Bowling
Water Table
Play ball – baseball, basketball, soccer etc.
Lemonade Stand
Make Popsicles
Dance Party
Ride Bikes
Wagon Rides
Play board games
Outdoor obstacle course
Ice cream party
Pizza night – make your own!
Make S’mores
Fly Kites
Movie night/camp out in the living room
Build an indoor fort on a rainy day
Read a Book/Go to the library
Take them to a craft store and let them pick out a craft or art project to do
Go to the Movie theater
Water balloon fight
Activity pages or workbooks
Playdates with friends (see this list of toddler playdate ideas)

Amazon Summer Essentials

May 22, 2019

I am 100% an amazon prime mom. It is just so incredibly convenient – especially when you have a newborn or multiple children! When I take my kids to the store, they fill up the cart and I can only really grab a couple of things at a time. Amazon is so easy and more time efficient and just makes sense for us. So, when we started preparing for our Memorial weekend vacation, Amazon was the obvious choice. I ordered what we needed and everything was here 2 days later. Easy, peasy! I am linking some of the summer essentials we already have and love that are all available on Amazon prime as well as some other great options that have excellent reviews!

Tips For A Stress Free Morning for Moms

February 25, 2019

Tips for a Stress Free Morning for Moms is sponsored by The Hillshire Brands Company!

I don’t know about you, but mornings can get super stressful – especially if you’re a mom. Being responsible for yourself and (in my case) three little ones can seem daunting. Preparing 5 breakfasts, packing lunches, getting everyone dressed and out the door on time can be tough. Here are some of the things I do to have a stress free morning!