It is.  I know because that’s my life; I live it everyday…all day.  I don’t sit with flashcards each night, drilling letter recognition and sounds with my 3 ½ year old.  I don’t have a label on everything in my house in hopes of introducing sight words.  Instead, I looked for activities that I could introduce once, play with my little guy a few times, and then let ‘em at it, without my watchful eye.  I call it my dinner time savior.

I simply took a piece of construction paper and wrote out the alphabet, purposefully not in order, in all uppercase letters, and stuck it on the fridge with some tape.  Pair that with magnetic letters and you’ve got a sure fire way for your kiddo to start learning their letters, while having fun, while you are cooking dinner and entertaining the baby.  Win-win-win.

Finding Time for Literacy with Uppercase Letters

**After a few months, I began challenging my son and did the exact same thing on another sheet of construction paper, only with lowercase letters.

**As soon as he grasps this concept, I may try using clipart and creating a sheet of pictures to match each letter and he can start pairing sounds.

I used to stress over really little, insignificant things, like whether or not I should cut my son’s nails straight across or rounded.  Yup.  I’m not even kidding.

I worried about the daily amount of calcium my son was getting, and how I was going to fit in 5 servings of fruits and vegetables.

I dreaded trips to the grocery store because I knew it meant a melt down in the toy aisle when I said no to getting a new truck- even if it does have doors that open (c’mon, who wouldn’t want that!).

I don’t have time to worry about the little things, so I can take on bigger and better challenges with ease.  Running errands has taken on such a new meaning, that the idea of running to the grocery store doesn’t even phase me.  Now it’s trips to the dentist that have me stressing, but I’m sure every mom of a biter feels the same (you do exist don’t you- I’m not the only one, right?).

Life with two is crazy hectic, and most of the time I am 20 minutes late and most likely not showered, but I am less stressed.  There are bigger bags under my eyes and I now consider my baby carrier an extra accessory to every puke covered outfit, but I’m not sweatin’ the small stuff, because I am too busy sweating….literally…those baby carriers ain’t light people!

Nope, my littlest has the pleasure of being drug from the grocery store, to the post office, through the bank drive through and various doctor’s appointments while his older terror brother is in school.

But, with that being said, I have come to an interesting people-watching conclusion.  People are nicer during the day.

They smile.  They move their cart out of the way when it’s parked in the middle of the aisle and you need to get by.  They let you out on busy streets.  They ask you how your day is going.  I’ve even had a few moms I don’t even know help me unload my grocery cart while comforting my screaming newborn, or chase my toddler son out the door of the library while I was trying to clip my little guy in his car seat.

I think maybe the people who are out during the day have a better outlook on life.  They don’t need to cram all of their errands in on one weekend day, so they move through life with a little more positivity.

I honestly don’t care why they are smiling.  I just know it makes my morning chores a whole lot easier to handle.

Kuddos to you- happy daytime people- keep it up!

A wise friend once told me that the transition from 0 kids to 1 is much larger than the switch from 1 to 2, or 2 to 3, or more.  I have to agree.  So while life is chaotic, smelly, and never EVER clean, it isn’t as overwhelming for me as my first baby was.  I think knowing what to expect means a lot less anxiety and panic driven calls to the pediatrician.  Don’t get me wrong, my doctor and I are still on a first name basis, but she isn’t hearing from me in the middle of the night this time around (yet).

Along with a little more peace of mind, there are some key things that this mom could not have survived this last month without….drum roll please.

#5 Our iPad:
Whether providing light for a midnight feeding, or providing endless hours of pinterest fun, my iPad and I became a little more than friends this month.  I stumble to bed each night with my glasses, some water, and my iPad…what more does a girl need?

#4 My beautiful, amazing, thoughtful, and generous family:
A big shout out to my peeps!  You all rock!  We’re talking wiping butts, cleaning up puke, making me dinner kind of awesome people here!  My family has stepped in 110% to help me and mine make sense of the world this past month and I have NO idea how I would have done it without them.  An extra shout out to the hubs who endured delivery with me and is still nice enough to love me

#3 Gripe Water
If you don’t have some, get some.  It’s the miracle drop and I’m pretty sure neither of my babies would be around to talk about it if it weren’t for this miracle in a bottle.  From gas to fussiness, it helps it all.  It’s all natural, and well, just plain AWESOME.  You’ll have to trust me on this one.

#2 Moby Wrap
I received this wrap when I was pregnant with bambino #1 and used it when I was cooking, cleaning, walking, etc.  My hubby used it for the same reasons and we both agreed it was a nice thing to have around.  For bambino #2 it’s a literal life saver.  I have literally wiped a poopy butt at the park with baby attached in the moby.  This thing allows me to do everything.  It’s cozy for the little one and I have two hands free for making lunches, reading books, exploring outside, and of course, wiping butts (are you noticing a pattern yet…I wipe A LOT of butts these days).

#1 Disney Junior
I’ll admit it…heck, I’ll shout it from the rooftops…MY KID WATCHES DISNEY JUNIOR!  It’s literally 24 minutes of heaven when Mickey Mouse or Jake and the Neverland Pirates comes on.  It’s how I shower.  It’s how I send emails.  It’s how I function.

These 5 things have been vital for Meant to be Mom (and Dad) survival these last 4 weeks.  Feel free to comment if you have other things that have helped you and yours survive life with more than one kiddo!

So, I’ve compiled a list of the top 5 reasons why Monday’s stink, bite the big one, and just all around suck.

1.  Sunday night reality TV-
Why are the shows I wait to watch all week on on Sunday night?  At 9 p.m.!!  I need me some Real Housewives and Celebrity Apprentice drama, but at what price?  I don’t have DVR.  I can’t watch it later.  I. must. keep. eyes. open. and. find. out. who’s. getting. fired.  Late Sunday night reality TV watching makes for stinky Monday mornings.

2.  You choose NOW to sleep in???-
My son loves to sleep in on Monday mornings.  I’m talking like 8:30!  Nope, not Saturday mornings.  That’s a 6:30 wake-up call.  Just Mondays.  Just when we’re already running late.  Apparently the apple doesn’t fall far from the overtired tree.

3.  Gray Hairs and Unkempt Eyebrows-
These things only show up on Monday mornings, when there is NO time to deal with them.  Blowdrying my hair is a chore Monday mornings, but even worse is looking in the mirror with my puffy eyes and noticing things that I could have dealt with Sunday night, if I had known about them.  Curse you mirror!

4.  Daycare Meltdowns- Mom versus Son-
Mondays stink for little ones too.  No one wants to get up and get dressed and sit in their car seat before 8 a.m.  It’s just not right.  So, what better way to sign off on a Monday morning than with an all out tantrum because, well, because 2 1/2 year olds can do stuff like that.  And they get away with it.

5.  Gasless Wonder-
No gas in the car.  Plenty of gas in my house.  I’m just saying…Mondays literally stink in my world!

Oh, and here’s the best part.  It’s only Monday which means we all have 4 more times this week when we get to wake up early and make a mad dash out the door.  Oh, and wait for it, wait for it, it gets even better…we have 4 more days to practice getting up and dressed before 8 a.m. with our wee ones, so guess who is usually trained and ready to complete this mission on Saturday mornings?  You guessed it, the same wee one who sleeps in on Monday mornings just in spite of all of your valiant efforts.

Hats off to you, my fellow Moms, for making it through another stinky Monday.  Let’s hope for a not-so-smelly Tuesday!

I don’t understand why a car drives around the track over and over again, crashing into things, and that makes us laugh.

I didn’t know that boy figurines don’t talk to each other.  Apparently there is an underlying “guy-code” that enables all toys to know exactly which game is being played and who is expected to take on what role.  Barbies have conversations.  Meaningful ones.   Cars characters do not.  This is news to me.

I don’t think stacking up cups to run down the hallway and repeatedly knock them down is fun.  It’s messy.  And loud.  Wouldn’t it make more sense to fill them with glitter and beads and make pretty necklaces?  Boys are weird.

I don’t think standing up and watching myself pee in the tub (or on the carpet) is fun.  I also don’t think announcing “my poop is coming” in the middle of the mall food court is cool either.  Girls are way classier.  We pass gas in private; if at all.  Boys = Gross

Farts aren’t funny…well, not that funny anyway.  Farting on purpose is not a competitive event.  Little boys + Dads + Farts= hours of entertainment.  For each other that is.  I still prefer to blame mine on the dog.

I don’t understand why tools are so cool.  A screwdriver is not a car, a boat, or a train to me.  It can’t fix anything.  It just screws things in, like screws.  It’s definitely NOT my first choice when thinking up new things to play.  Once again, this is where glitter and cookie cutters come in to play.  Face it guys, girls are WAY more creative.  You can’t ignore the obvious.

While I might not understand boy play, I do understand one thing.  Dump trucks, excavators, dirt, and tools can make for hours of entertainment, and really, who am I to complain or disrupt that?  I may play like a girl, but I think like a mom, if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.  Truth is, I’d have to turn to my 2 year old to ask which tool to use anyway.

Developed by two event planning sisters and based out of New York City, these products put the FUN in functional.  From gift tags to photo mats, place cards and more, these write-on, wipe-off products are a great way to jazz up any event, or home decorating project you may have.

I used the sample products sent to me to add some much needed funkiness to my environment!

I used this Any Random Jane gift tag for a birthday my son attended this month! Too cute!

This gift tag went along with my son's Halloween gifts for his daycare friends! Big hit!

This one goes out to all of you! Bottoms up!

Lookin’ to add a little somethin’ somethin’ to your life this holiday season?  Try jazzing up your gifts under the tree with these REUSABLE gift tags and more!  Check out Any Random Jane for more great ideas!  Happy Shopping!

Hire a maid, a chef, a personal shopper, and quit your job so you can stay home and get everything else on your list done.  Yea, I know, a mom can dream can’t she?

This is where winkflash can help.  Last year I wrote a Holiday How-To, which included Christmas cards.  I usually use my fail safe Wal*Mart or Walgreens to create these fabulous tokens of my year, more so because of the insanely cheap cost than the outstanding variety of (blah) card options.

I wanted to break the mold this year, so I found a website called winkflash (actually it found me, by way of mail circular, but that’s neither here nor there).  I went on the site, did some price comparison, found an online coupon code (HAPPYHOLIDAYS- and it’ll save you 20%), and $30 later, I have fabulous Christmas cards being delivered to my home in the next 2 days!

1 thing off my Christmas checklist…199 to go!

I came across this link on facebook and couldn’t NOT share it.  Unbutton your pants people, this is pee your pants funny!

I can’t help that my son is way to adorable for his own good.  I just can’t seem to say no to his cute little face.  Well, that is unless he is screaming while I am at the end of a good book, or when any reality TV show is on.  At that point I turn Mommy Dearest on his little butt.

Coming from a place of yes is my way of “choosing my battles”.  Being a second grade teacher by trade, I feel like I deal with enough give-n-take throughout my day that I am an official pro at it by the time I get home each night.

I’m not going to lie, saying yes is often times the easy way out.  So, yes, I am smart enough now to know that saying yes is kind of like my magic weapon, and I can pull it out like a super hero whenever I need a moment of rescue.  Liiiiiiiiiiiiiike, when I’m in a store and I need to make my way through at least 5 more aisles before I running to my car and relieving my fellow patrons from my screaming banshie of a son.  In this case, I pull out a YES.  Yes, honey you can sit in the back of the cart.  Yes, you can have a snack from the basket.  Yes, you can even drive your big truck over the eggs. 

Sure, my hubby feels like I’m a pushover.  Yea, I’m pretty sure I agree with him.  *Sigh*

Pushover sounds an awful lot like awesome in my book!