One Secret to a Working Mom Success: Make Family Events More Enjoyable With Friends

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Better Together: Why Inviting Another Family Makes Activities More Fun #FamilyFun Sometimes family activities can feel like another item on the to-do list. However, doing those activities with another family makes them more fun! Whether it’s a trip to an amusement park , a visit to the local pool , or trip to a pumpkin patch , including another family can multiply the fun in amazing ways. One of my favorite moms to collaborate with is my friend, Ayana Ledford who's pictured above with her daughter Sahar. We have done all of the things listed as seemingly random examples above and here is how including her and her daughter (and sometimes her son too) has made the events more fun. On the date above, Ayana almost left the venue because parking was a nightmare. That said, she hung in there and we would up having a great time!
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New Year's Resolutions While Pregnant

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#38WeeksPregnant

As you know, I am pregnant. And while there may be no thing as "a little pregnant", right now, I'm super duper pregnant. I have weekly appointments with my doctor, hooked up to a monitor.  I get my Blood Pressure checked. I am weighed because apparently the indignity of not being able to wear my regular clothes isn't enough.  My fundus is measured. In a word, for one hour a week, I am focused completely on me and this baby. And collectively, we are poked and prodded to see if we're done.

(As of this posting, we are not done...)


In some ways, these appointments are a gift because outside of this room life goes on--kids have to go to school, lunches need to be made, groceries need to be purchased, and I am still working full time, which carries its own demands.

Although I have two other children, this is the first time I've been this pregnant at the beginning of a new year and it's been interesting because it makes you pause.  



At a doctor's appointment
Indeed, the resolutions I have read focus on "doing" as opposed to "being". People have been resolving to exercise more, eat less or eat special diets, organize their lives, and similar things.  It's as if everyone in the world has realized that it needs a tune up and is resolving to doing whatever it takes to get better. Although I have been on that bandwagon before, this year, I just can't. The last two weeks of my pregnancy have been plagued with fatigue and  frigid temperatures outside. The combination has been really demotivating. 

My resolution is to be my best self in 2018


Because I've been less active, I've had time to think. All of this thinking has got me wondering whether we have gotten it wrong. Perhaps, our focus should be on "being" and not on "doing". Think about it. Most resolutions are short lived. People give them a try and realize that they lack the resolve to continue their lettuce and two corn kernel diet beyond January 4th. They discover they were never interested in running a marathon, which is why they have never done more than run to catch a bus in their 30 years of life, and they actually enjoy partying more than they like putting their clothes away. In a word, sometime in the first quarter they stop "doing" the things they resolved to do and they go back to just "living". 

I want my resolution to have staying power.


Since I lack the energy to commit to "doing" much these days, I have resolved to commit to "being my best self". My best self is a good mom to my unborn child and the two that are already here. My best self requires me to be strong and lean because that keeps me healthier and better able to care for those I love. My best self isn't stressed out by life because she has found ways to make her life more efficient. My best self is consistent because that's the only way to ensure success. 

I know that this resolution falls short of being a S.M.A.R.T. goal  (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Time bound).  However, it is attainable. It is also intuitive. I'll know if I fall short of being my best self and will self correct. I am also quite sure that my pursuit of being the best I can be will cause me to do some pretty amazing things. Stay tuned!




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