Three Things I'm Loving Right Now

1. Hamilton: An American Musical.

Yep, we've jumped on the Hamilton bandwagon. And believe it or not, my husband started it. The man who historically hates musicals. We saw the cast perform the opening number on an awards show and we both had to hear more. Now we own the soundtrack and the book, we follow Lin-Manuel Miranda and the other performers on Twitter... we're Helpless (Hamilton joke, hehe). Will we ever get to see it? Probably not anytime soon, because we don't have a lot of money laying around. Maybe we should start a GoFundMe. Ha!


2. Alexander Hamsterton, our newest family member.

See #1. Hamsterton, or "Hammy," is a winter white dwarf hamster. He's really Colin's pet, but I'm the only one who can hold him without getting bit or pooped on. I guess he likes me. :) Colin is often disappointed that Hammy is nocturnal and doesn't wake up until it's almost bedtime, but when he is awake, he's lots of fun. He runs on his little wheel, explores the living room in his ball, and makes the cutest little faces when he nibbles on a teeny tiny piece of watermelon or grape.

3. Mary Kay cosmetics.

I recently took the plunge and became an Independent Beauty Consultant with Mary Kay. If you have questions, want to snag some great products or want to try a sample, please let me know! Feel free to drop me a line at katievaughan at marykay dot com. Oh, and if you want to subscribe to updates, just "like" my Facebook page HERE! :) 

More to come!

WOWBUTTER Giveaway!

If you're anything like me, you often reach for nuts or peanut butter for a quick source of protein. Toast with peanut butter is a pretty common breakfast for me. Recently, though, two things happened that made me think about looking for an alternative:

1. We learned that a close friend has a severe nut allergy.

2. We realized that it is becoming increasingly common for schools to ban peanut products.

And for good reason. Nut allergies are no joke! Our friend has to keep an epi pen close by just in case. Can you imagine? Whenever he's around, we are careful to read the labels of any snacks we bring out, and obviously the peanut butter and nuts stay in the pantry.

"But Katie, I've tried peanut butter alternatives and they're gross."

To be completely honest, I've had the same experience before. But when I received some WOWBUTTER to try, I tasted it and was pleasantly surprised. It tastes like.... peanut butter! Then, I performed the ultimate taste test. I gave it to my kids. Guess what? They couldn't tell the difference!

WOWBUTTER really does taste just like creamy peanut butter, and because it's made in a dedicated 100% peanut free, tree nut free, gluten free, dairy free and egg free facility, it's safe for people with food allergies. It's also made with soy, and is a complete protein, meaning it contains all 9 essential amino acids (just like eggs, dairy and meat). Plus, your peanut butter loving kids will rejoice, because it's safe to bring to school! The jar even comes with little labels to stick on sandwich bags to identify it. Pretty cool!

The awesome people at WOWBUTTER want to give a CASE away to one of my readers! You can enter using the widget below. Good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Do You Know Where Your Chocolate Comes From?

Spring is here, and that means Easter is just around the corner! Since many of us will be stocking up on goodies for our little ones' Easter baskets this week, I wanted to take a minute to talk about chocolate. We all indulge every once in a while, but do we ever think about where our chocolate comes from? If we're being honest, I didn't until recently. Did you know that most big chocolate companies get their cacao from questionable sources, many of which pay their farmers very little and often rely on child slave labor? Only about 5% of chocolate is fairly traded. Here's a short video to help explain:

Equal Exchange was kind enough to send me two adorable little packages of fair trade dark chocolate Easter eggs. My sons are little weirdos who are always sneaking semi-sweet chocolate chips when I'm baking cookies, so I think they'll appreciate these yummy treats. (Mom and Dad may have to sneak a few, too!)
 
As you may have noticed, I don't make a habit out of promoting products or companies here on my blog unless it's something I think you'll love, or in this case, something that needs to be said. Maya Angelou once said, "Do the best you can until you know better. Then when you know better, do better." Now that I know better, I am going to make a conscious effort, whenever possible, to purchase fairly traded goods. It may seem like a small thing, but if this message is shared, we can help make a difference.

So please, help me in getting the word out, and join me in keeping an eye out for fairly traded products. I wish you and your family a blessed Easter. Grace and peace. ♥

I received the products pictured for the purpose of writing this review.

New Frontiers

Well, we've done it. We've officially registered Colin for kindergarten. In his honor, Daddy and I took the day off from work and went with him to meet his new principal and to tour the school he'll be attending. It was a very positive experience for all of us. Surreal, but good. After that, we went to Chick Fil A to eat and play. Colin also got to help vacuum the car at the local car wash, indulge in some celebratory donuts at Krispy Kreme, and visit Daddy's orthodontist, where they have "the best train track ever" in the waiting room. It was a pretty great day!

Kindergarten won't start until August, but that's not all. We've also signed him up for tee-ball through our local parks and rec department! He had to miss the first practice, but will be joining the team this Saturday for his first one. This week, we bought him some baseball pants and his first pair of cleats. My heart might explode when I see him in his little uniform for the very first time!

It seems like just yesterday he was crawling around on the floor and drooling everywhere. Why do they grow up so fast?

More to come!

Three and Five

You guys. Reid is officially a three year old, and Colin is turning five in less than two weeks. How did this happen? Weren't they itty bitty, like, yesterday?

Here's a little update on what's going on with my little men these days.

Colin, at (almost) 5 years old:

• is doing well in his 4K preschool class
• loves music and is quite the little singer
• likes Paw Patrol, Blaze and the Monster Machines, and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
• can play Daddy's college football PS4 game and asks to play nearly every day
• is enrolled in an after-school Taekwondo program
• is getting so tall that his 5T pants are too short. We've officially moved out of the toddler section and into boys sizes!
• is definitely left-handed, although he swings a bat like a righty
• loves to be involved with physical activities like sports, riding his bike, and climbing
• completely loves our dog, Ellie, and cuddles with her pretty regularly
• is a momma's boy who still comes to my side of the bed in the middle of the night and is usually still sleeping there as I'm getting ready for work.

Reid, at 3 years old:

• has curly hair like his brother, but it's a much finer texture
• is in a major dinosaur phase and often pretends to be a T-Rex
• has suddenly developed a sassy side and has learned to talk back (yikes!)
• is transitioning into a big boy bed... and as a result, not sleeping very well... which means I'm not sleeping very well. (yawn)
• is a bit of a picky eater, avoiding most fruits and veggies, but LOVES Greek yogurt
• asks for coffee when he sees me drinking it... little weirdo.
• has recently had his second set of ear tubes fall out, and will be going back to the ENT next week because without the tubes, he's been getting ear infections again. :( 
• like Colin, loves to be physical but is always getting bumps and bruises because he's a little on the clumsy side. haha, poor kid.
• loves "The Gruffalo" and "The Gruffalo's Child" and asks to watch them regularly
• was BFFs with Santa when we went to see him, and gave him a big hug
• enjoys his preschool class, and is learning a lot
• loves to sing and to have spontaneous dance parties.

These boys, I tell ya. They know how to push my buttons, but they absolutely have my heart.

"I don't know how you do it."

Whenever I meet someone and strike up a conversation, the fact that I'm a working mom with two little boys always comes up. They'll ask how old my kids are, and I'll answer "2 and 4." The other person will say something like, "Oh, wow!" or "That's crazy!" or "Time flies" or "Are you going to try for a girl next?" (ugh) But more times than I can count, the response has been, "I don't know how you do it."

Can I let you in on a little secret? Neither do I.

I could say something clever, like, "With a little bit of coffee and a whole lot of Jesus." Which is true.

But if we're being real, there are a few little tricks that have helped me to cope with working a full time job outside the home, keeping the spark alive in my marriage and raising two man-cubs.

I have made expectations more realistic.

I used to get all bent out of shape because our house is never clean. Well, you know what? I have decided not to care about it anymore. There are so many other things I could be doing on a week night than picking up toys (which will only end up in the same spot mere hours later) or dusting the TV stand (that no one will see except us). Things like playing with trains on the floor with my boys, or being a customer in an imaginary restaurant or a passenger on a train. The cleaning can wait.

I have minimized my morning routine.

Don't get me wrong; I'm a girl who enjoys getting dressed up and going out once in a while. But who has time for a full hair and makeup routine every day? Not me. I do put on makeup for work, but I stick with the essentials: BB Cream, concealer, pressed powder, blush, a touch of eye shadow and mascara. The whole process takes like six minutes. As for my hair, I either wear it up in a clip or bun or wash and dry it the night before and touch it up with a flat iron in the morning.

I have reminded myself to be silly.

Busy people often have a bad habit of taking life too seriously. Some days, I feel like all I've done is work, worry, and discipline the kids. Why not do something silly and unexpected to break up the monotony? There's nothing like a good family dance party to lighten everyone's mood! Or sometimes we will all take turns telling knock-knock jokes (most of which don't make any sense and make us laugh even harder). Our kids also love to be tickled. And I do not. Which they, of course, take FULL advantage of.

I have made more of an effort to plan out our meals and shop accordingly.

Okay, so I am certainly not perfect in this area, but we've come a long way from eating fast food 3 or 4 times a week. Throughout the work week, as I have time, I use Pinterest and AllRecipes.com for meal inspiration and I make a rough menu for the week. Next, starting with the ingredients for the menu items and finally adding snacks, paper products, and whatever else we need, I write out a grocery list in order of where things are located in the store. (This may sound tedious, but it doesn't take much longer and it saves me so much time in the grocery store.) I usually get my shopping done on Saturday, either first thing in the morning or during nap time, while Justin stays home with the kids. About once a month, due to a severe lapse in judgment, we'll go shopping as a family and then swear to never do it again.. but inevitably, a month later, we'll try again.

I should note that we don't plan a meal for every single day of the week. We like to be flexible, so a couple days are left open for pizza, or cold-cut sandwiches, or whatever we're in the mood for.

I have prioritized my marriage.

Mignon McLaughlin once said, "A successful marriage requires falling in love many times, always with the same person." Marriage is hard. Marriage with children is really hard. Marriage with children and two full-time jobs is crazy hard. Yes, there are days when we snap at each other for no good reason. There are days when we barely have the chance to talk until it's time for bed, and by then we're too tired. But because we love each other and want to make it work, we put in the effort. We fight to keep our love alive. Sometimes that means finding someone to watch the kids and sneaking away for a much-needed date. Sometimes, it means tucking the kids into their beds and cuddling on the couch as we watch some DVR'd episodes of our favorite TV shows. Sometimes, it's unloading the dishwasher together.

The point is, we know that our marriage is the foundation of our family. That if our relationship is stable and we're working together as a team, rather than against each other, our kids will see it and they will notice.

I have prayed.

Sometimes I'm so tired or frustrated that all I can do is sit in silence at the end of the day and pray for contentment. Our marriage is the foundation of our family, and God is the foundation of our marriage. See how that works? Faith is the glue that holds it all together. In those moments that I feel lost or fed up or I just don't know what to do, I pray. And God listens.

I am so blessed, and so thankful.

That's how I do it.

A few things this working mom wants you to know

Hi there. I'm Katie. Devoted wife and mother of dragons (well, two little boys, but that's basically the same thing). My husband and I both work full-time outside the home. 

Lately it feels like there aren't a whole lot of people in our inner circle who are in the same situation as we are. Many of our friends either don't have kids yet, or have one parent who is able to stay home with the little ones.

Here are some things I'd like those friends to know:

1. Even though it may not seem like it, I really DO want to spend time with you. It's just that my daily life is so hectic that I'm not left with much free time at all. This is how I spend a typical week day:

That's about 6.5 hours of sleep, 8.5 hours at work, 1.5 hours commuting, 1 hour for meals, 3.5 hours as a family, half an hour for housework, and about 2.5 "free" hours to spend with my husband. This doesn't include the time it takes to shower, pick out the kids' clothes, change a diaper, or any of those other little things that may come up.

2. If you want to make plans with both my hubby and me, we will probably try to include the kids. See #1. Simply put, we're away from them all day Monday through Friday, so we miss them and want to keep them close through the weekend.

3. I'm so tired. Getting up around 5:30 every morning to dress and feed sleepy children (and with any luck, myself), getting them to school by 7 and ourselves to work by 8 is exhausting.

4. Our house is often messy. Once upon a time, we tried to keep it tidy. Now and then we still do. But when we've worked all day and the kids are begging us to come outside and play... the house can wait.

5. I've pinned so many awesome recipes on Pinterest that will I will probably never make. I have such good intentions when it comes to feeding my family home-cooked meals and doing cutesy crafts with the kiddos, but once again, there's just no time. We have so few waking hours together as a family each day, and #sorrynotsorry, but I don't want to spend half of that time cleaning the kitchen. Meals in our house have to be quick, easy, and require as few pots and pans as possible.

6. I'm thankful for you. Yes, you. Church acquaintance, fellow daycare mom, colleague, family member, lifelong friend. I see you, and I know that we're all in this together. When I'm feeling burned out and like there just isn't enough of me to go around, you're still there for me. You don't judge me for feeding my family Taco Bell on a Thursday night when I just can't even. You see me smile at church through gritted teeth as one of my kids pulls my shirt down and the other soaks himself at the drinking fountain, and you give me a hug and a knowing smile back. You don't say anything when I wear the same pants two days in a row because I forgot to put the laundry in the dryer. You see me, and you show me grace. So thank you.