It’s National Random Act of Kindness Day! Although we try to do as many acts of kindness everyday, we wanted to share this today.
Mila loves her ‘kids’ and ‘girls.’ These kids consist of all her cousins and her girls are from dance class. She loves the time she spends with them.
When I asked who she wanted to share kindness with, it’s no wonder why she chose them.
We talked about why it’s nice and important to do nice things for other people. There was a mini brainstorming session about what we could do. Valentine’s Day definitely helped the matter!
Mila suggested flowers, so we compromised.
All you need to do to create these lollipop flowers are paper, scissors, and suckers! I used taped to secure the flowers too.
For creating the flowers, I just drew ones on the back of the paper and cut it out. To get the lollipop stick through, I pressed a hole in the middle with the scissors.
On the underneath of the flowers, I put, ‘I ♥ You! -Mila.’ Short and sweet!
We’ll be giving them out as soon as she sees her kids and girls. She loved how they turned out and wanted to hold them like a bouquet.
If we did a large scale random acts of kindness, I’d definitely add a quote to the flowers. These would also be adorable for a birthday party or class treat.
We’re so happy and excited to spread a little extra kindness in the world. This year, we hope we can do more random acts and bring joy to those who are least expecting it.
Let me know what you think about this kindness project in the comments below.
You try to share you love to everyone you hold close to your heart. No matter what’s going on, making sure they feel loved is most important.
There are nights you don’t sleep to make sure everything gets done for them.
When you need something like clothes or a new haircut, you make sure your kids or partner have them first.
Sometimes you spend hours listening to others to make sure they’re okay. You know your problems will work themselves out eventually.
Instead of a long hot bath or shower, you rush through yours or share them with your littles.
Your meals are cold because you make sure everyone else gets full first.
We put them first because we love them. We’re the glue the helps holds those we love together.
But…
You deserve the same love you give to others.
Never forget that you deserve a good nights sleep, a new hair cut and clothes, knowing your problems are important, a long shower or bath, and a hot meal.
That’s just touching the surface of all you deserve and need.
It’s hard to put yourself first or accept the love that we give out. When you do, don’t feel selfish. You are in need of those things too.
You cannot continue keeping everyone else afloat when you’re drowning.
Allow yourself that space. You’re worth it.
When you put yourself first sometimes, you give all those you love the opportunity to be around the best you.
More importantly, you get to give yourself that love that you pour into others.
Valentine’s Day projects don’t always have to be sweet. This spin on a classic science project is just as fun and festive for toddlers.
Most people will have the basic supplies for this already at home too!
Here’s what we used:
Conversation heart candies
Rubber heart tray
Baking soda
Vinegar
Cup
Eye dropper
Before we started, we did a little stacking game to see who could stack the hearts the highest. We also did a color match game too.
These little conversation hearts have so many different and educational uses.
Back to the experiment though.
I had Mila place all the candy hearts into the mini heart molds. Once they were all placed, the fun really happened.
Since it was her experiment, I had her place as much baking soda on the hearts as she wanted.
Then, with an eye dropped, she added vinegar.
Although adults know this reaction and I’ve done this a few times with Mila, she’s always amazing.
She kept saying how cool it was to make bubbles and was perplexed when the bubbles changed colors. It always makes me laugh when we do this too because she ends up pouring everything out.
There’s always a big reaction.
Even after being told that the candies were covered in vinegar, mila wanted to eat them.
Thankfully, she didn’t get any!
This Valentine’s Day science experiment was a fun one for us. It’s simple enough to let them do supervised, but complicated enough to help them learn more through it.
We’ll definitely keep doing this experiment, but this is great you have a science minded kid. It’s fun for them see the hearts and come up with their reasons as to why the hearts have disappeared or gotten smaller.
If you give this experiment a try, let me know in the comments.
At the beginning of the year, I made a jar to document the good things we experienced that week. It’s been fun reflecting, but knowing Mila, she has to make it a little weird.
That’s just what toddlers do!
I will admit, this one is more cute than weird, but I thought it’d be perfect to share with Valentine’s Day coming up.
Mila has had the same thing that makes her happy every week… ME!
When I go to our jar, I date it, then make an “M” for what makes her grateful. Then I ask her what made her happy this last week.
The second time we did it, she just said, “you.” I thought it was the cutest thing ever.
When it came to ask her again, she replied with the same thing. Admittedly, I felt a little bad. I was writing down things I wanted to remember at the end of the year, not just Mila or Jensen. Maybe it was a fluke of her just saying me?
On the fourth week, she said, again, said I was what made her most happy. Still feeling sad, I asked her to elaborate and she said, “playing with you.”
Since that fourth week, I haven’t re-asked her what made her happy and accepted this cuteness.
As much as she loves Pizza, her grandparents, Max, and Mickey Mouse, I always find it a little weird that she consistently chooses me as her happiness. Of all the things in the world and her lame mom is her answer.
Honestly, I’m going to love looking back and remembering that I made her smile for weeks in a row. I know one week she won’t say me and that’s okay.
For now though, I guess she’s just a weirdo, with a big heart for her mom.
If you’re stuck at home or work not knowing how to get motivated, try some of these activities. They may just get you back on track.
1.Take a shower or bath.
The first thing I do any time I’m feeling stuck is take a hot shower or bath.
Water is so healing. Showers feel like they wash away all troubles from your skin just as the water falls. It instantly feels relieving. Baths are like a warm, water hug. All your stress leaves your body and the bath helps recover that trauma.
My favorite thing to do is add aromatherapy to showers and baths. I feel like it helps clear my head. Usually, I use eucalyptus and lavender.
2.Listen to a podcast.
I just discovered podcasts in 2020, but they’ve helped me get through the toughest times.
When you’re trying to get through a stuck moment, find a podcast you want to listen to. When you listen into a conversation about something that inspires you, you want to get up. A lot of the time I do chores or work, I’m listening to podcasts. It definitely helps motivate me.
Some of my favorite podcasts are from the Exactly Right Media, like My Favorite Murder, That’s Messed Up, and I Saw What You Did.
3.Tend to plants.
This one sounds SO silly, but tending to plants might be the most relaxing thing I do.
Any time I get to water my plants, dust them off, or propagate them, it makes me want to do more. It’s like the more I help them, I also want to help myself. Somehow, they’re self care reverse psychology. I want to do a post about the best starter plants for newbie plant parents, but I haven’t gotten there yet!
The connection to nature really helps get a person unstuck and back to themselves. You’ll have to try it out to discover that.
4.Meditate.
Meditation is one of the hardest things to practice, but it really clears your mind.
There’s a ton of meditation music on YouTube or any music app. If you want to try to mediate, put one of those songs on and try it out. I usually sit with my legs crossed, close my eyes, and take deep breaths. After a few minutes, I feel better and try to get unstuck with whatever I’m doing.
I don’t think anyone’s great at meditating their first time. So don’t be discouraged if you try and it doesn’t help.
5.Dance your heart out.
I feel like this one is self explanatory, but I’ll explain anyways.
Getting up and moving with your favorite songs, helps. Once you’re on your feet after a mini dance party, you’ll want to keep going. You just released a ton of endorphins which makes you feel happy. That’s the best way to get unstuck.
6.Call a friend.
One of the most underutilized resources we have are our friends.
When you reach out a friend or close family member, they can help with so many different things. If you’re out of ideas for a project, want advice, or have no idea why you’re feeling stuck, they’ll be able to help out. A person you trust can help organize your thoughts and motivate you to keep going.
Another great option is to reach out to your therapist. Some reasons why you’re feeling stuck goes deeper than surface level feelings.
7.Start a journal.
Not everyone is a writer, but there’s a variety of different journals to get unstuck.
For me, writing whatever is on my mind helps clear it up so I can tackle the things I need to do. If you want to write and don’t think you’re good at it, you don’t have to be. You’re just writing to help you, not impress other people.
There’s also art journals where you can doodle out what’s going on in your head too. Do whatever works best for you. This is to help you feel unstuck.
8. Do a chore.
Chores are boring and I put them off until they HAVE to be done. So how does this help?
It’s almost like when you check something off a to-do list. When you get a chore done, you feel a rush of endorphins. It also lets yourself know that you can get things done. This will help you realize you can do whatever or help motivate you to do more.
This one is the last option for me, but it does get me feeling better. As soon as I start folding laundry, I want to do anything else to stop. You can most definitely laugh at that.
9. Take a walk.
Again with the endorphins, I know.
But really. Getting up and moving releases so many good feeling hormones in your brain and body. It clears up your brain and gets your body moving. If you can walk outside, you’ll have the added benefit of the healing effects of nature.
Plus, if you can go for a long walk or a tough run, you’ll feel on top of the world.
10. Slow down and don’t be too hard on yourself.
Sometimes when you’re stuck, you’re meant to slow down.
When you take on too many things or just need a break, your body will let you know. Maybe this is your body and mind telling you to rest. Don’t be too hard on yourself. Everyone needs a day or week to get back to yourself.
Once you give yourself that time, you’ll feel back to normal.
Process art is one of my and Mila’s favorite ways to be creative. This week we discovered that celery makes the cutest, little hearts.
Isn’t that just amazing or is it just for me since I’m the worst at drawing heart?
Anyways, this celery heARTwork activity is so easy to set up and your child can be as creative as they want. It was also great for us to mix in with snack time.
It takes playing with your food to a different level.
This is all you need for this activity:
Canvas or something to paint on (craft paper makes amazing wrapping paper!)
Paint
Celery
Something to put paint on (I used recycled milk jug lids.)
That’s seriously it! We obviously used different shades of pink and red. You can use whatever colors your child picks.
All they have to do is use their celery sticks like a paint brush. Dip the celery into the paint. Then press it down on the canvas.
At first, Mila wanted to move the celery like a brush. I showed her how to use it like a stamp to clear that confusion. She immediately recognized they were hearts.
Celery transfers the paint MUCH easier than potatoes. That means they don’t have to push down as hard.
Mila had so much fun playing with her food, while eating the same type.
When she would switch to snacking, I had a rule that all four celery paint sticks had to be in the upright position. That made me feel a little more comfortable when she kept switching back and forth!
No paint was consumed during this art project.
I love the way this process celery heARTwork turned out.
She just made the canvas and wrapping paper, but again, this can be used for anything you need hearts on!
The biggest thing to remember while kids do process art is there’s no end goal. This is their time to be as creative as they like.
I think the best part of process art is to see how your child grows with it. They get a better sense of composition, shapes, and colors the more they paint.
Their growth is truly the greatest gift.
As always, I hope if you do this activity, you let me know in the comments.
Almost five years after losing Jensen, grief feels like a blanket of snow.
It comes out of no where and all of the sudden. There’s a sense of beauty to it mixed with the coldest you’ve ever felt. Once you start to get used to it, it melts away and the season changes. Grief is complicated and is always reshaping itself.
I’ve never thought of it as snow or the winter season, usually just the ocean waves as it comes and goes. This year feels different though.
Somehow, it doesn’t feel like all this time has passed. Maybe the weight of time and the part of life I’m in has made me feel this way. When I saw Jensen’s angel covered in this literal blanket of snow, I somehow felt the instant beauty and cold at once.
Grief, for me, has its seasons. I can tell when I’m close to important dates or I’m beginning to feel it more heavily now with his upcoming birthday.
It’s beautiful to look at the love I will always have for Jensen. Mila adores talking about him and seeing his picture. The way he touched our lives in such a short amount of time will always be so touching. Love and grief are so intricately intertwined.
Then when it all comes down and lingers, the weight of the cold and loss settles.
His absence is so heavy. I cry knowing I’ll never have him again or Mila will never be able to play with her brother. Then, five years feels like such a short amount of time compared to how much longer I have without him.
These thoughts make me feel cold and alone. There’s no real protection from the cold and snow. You can put layers on or go inside, but it’s still out there until it’s time to go away.
Just as you start tackling it, the sun starts to shine a little. The world gets a little warmer and the weight of that season of grieving lightens up. Grief is always there. Always. Somehow you get stronger and can carry it through what’s going on then.
You always remember the sting of the cold, but you can live in the warmth of summer.
At this point in my grief, I go through my seasons of heaviness. I think about his loss and the hurt surrounding it. When I can move forward through the coldness, I still always carry him with me. I think about him walking through life with me and picturing his smile. He would want me to smile when I think about him.
I miss Jensen every single day, but the love and guidance he brought me is something I’ll always treasure. Five years later, and I’m just starting to get to this new season of grief.
It takes time and a lot of work, but summer will be here again. Then you don’t have to feel the constant, overwhelming weight of the blanket.
If you would walk into my house, you would be able to tell a few things:
A toddler and a dog reside here.
There’s a lot of plants.
I love art.
My walls are covered with art, pictures, and things that make me happy. Art comes in so many different types of forms and it’s a great way to represent what’s going on inside my head… just on my walls.
I’ve always wanted to get something custom done for just me, but the opportunity never arose. Until a few weeks ago.
On Instagram, someone I followed shared this one-line artwork and I was obsessed. The artist’s name is Ami Pruett and I dove deep into her website. Her paintings and prints really struck me, but one stuck out. She has a mother, baby – rainbow editionthat I thought was beautiful. I was just about to put it in my cart, until I saw she did custom paintings.
Instantly, I reached out and sort of told her my family’s story and how much I longed to have an image of me, Jensen, and Mila all represented the same. All our family pictures we have, Jensen is represented in his bear or a picture, which is amazing and I love doing.
But… thinking there was some way we could be interconnected and together really spoke to me.
Ami got back to me a couple days later and we went for it.
She seriously was amazing to communicate and work with. Obviously, I feel comfortable sharing Jensen and our family’s story with others, but Ami was so genuine in just her website and Instagram, that I felt SO comfortable trusting her with something that meant so much to me.
The process was pretty simple.
Again, I told her my idea of what I wanted the art to portray and we bounced ideas off of each other. She came up with two designs to show me and we both agreed on the one.
Honestly, seeing both of the designs was intriguing. I think just having something custom for me on paper felt surreal.
Anyways, after I picked the design, it went quick.
I could’ve customized it with different paint, but I stuck to black. She gave me different options. So, it was nice to know that people have choices in what works best with their own individual decor style and personality.
While I knew she was working on it, I stalked her Instagram for updates. I felt like a kid on Christmas when I saw her working on it.
After approving the pencil work, she painted. Seeing it completely done for the first time made me cry. It’s absolutely beautiful and perfect; even better than what I had envisioned in my head.
This isn’t the painting’s forever home, I want to get the perfect frame for it. It deserves the best.
I would 100% recommend Ami to anyone who loves her style. She just dropped new prints for Valentine’s Day, which showcase love perfectly. I definitely scooped one of them up.
Ami, if you’re reading, thank you SO much again. You have no idea how much this painting fills my heart. It helps bring my family together in a way we can never be. I’ll have no way to truly thank you for that feeling.
Have you ever gotten a custom painting done before?
If you want to show off the cutest series of photos at the office, in your home, or even as a gift, you should definitely try this out!
‘I love you.’
We have an Instax camera and love snapping pictures. Mila likes how the film instantly come out and their aesthetic pleases me.
I got an idea to make myself (sorry not sorry) a Valentine’s Day present that I can always remember Mila at this time. So, we had a little photo shoot.
Obviously, she loved getting dressed up and making her hair ‘pretty.’ She was all for it!
Then it was time to shoot.
Since I can’t have Mila’s voice always telling me she loves me while I work, I thought of the next best thing… sign language.
In one of Mila’s dance songs, they sign ‘I love you,’ but a little reminder didn’t hurt.
After I got those first three pictures, she wanted to take more. So, so obviously I took the opportunity to take a few pictures of her.
Anyways, I found a perfect, Instax picture frame on Amazon! It’s pretty sturdy. The only issue I had with it was I had to tape the pictures in to stay, but that wasn’t a big deal.
Once I put it all together, it turned out so beautiful.
If you have more than one child, this frame also has a six opening frame too.
I think this would be an amazing gift to parents, grandparents, or anyone your child loves. It didn’t take too long to do either.
Your child will love seeing their pictures instantly and will be happy to give this as a present.
I hope if you decide to make this Valentine’s Day gift, you’ll let me know in the comments below.
With only a few days of January left, I thought it was a perfect time to start thinking about Valentine’s Day. Since Mila loves to paint, I incorporated that and my love for decorating in this project.
I also was inspired by this Instagram post to make Mila’s artwork into a banner!
This little banner looks simple, but took two days to make.
Older kids may be able to do the entire project by themselves. Younger children will need their parents help with scissors and a hole punch.
Here’s what you’ll need for this project:
Paint
Brushes
Paper (we used craft)
String
Scissors
Hole punch
Bubble wrap (optional)
We started off doing some process art with bubble wrap. Anytime we can add new ways to create, we do.
I had Mila paint Valentine’s Day colors (pink, purple, and red) on bubble wrap. Then we set our big pieces of craft paper on top. After it was on top, she rolled her rolling pin over it. I told her to do this to make sure the paper picked enough paint up.
We did this for four pieces of paper. She did different strokes of paint for each.
They all came out so individual and Mila enjoyed how different this looked compared to her usual paintings.
Next, we had to wait for everything to dry.
To be honest, this probably would have taken a few hours. I might have waited a couple days. Oops!
Mila is still too little to draw hearts or cut them out, so I did the next steps by myself. If she was a little older, she could have done these steps too!
I drew and cut out different sized hearts. The size variety is interesting to me, but you can do whatever.
If you have extra painted paper leftover, keep it! I have a cute Valentine’s Day card you can make with them!
Next, hole punch two holes on the top of the heart.
Your child can help you put the string through the holes if you’d like. Mila thought it was cool to help put it together this way. It took her a little whole though!
After they’re all on the string, hang it up where ever.
This simple project is fun to do with a toddler and even older kids. You can showcase their art and have festive decorations that are handmade and cute.
The plan the rest of the wall is to put hearts around the canvas she made with reasons why I love her in them.
I can’t wait to make this February special for Mila.
Let me know if you try this project out and what projects you’ll be doing this Valentine’s Day!
Grey Skies & Rainbow Highs 