the mom club

When I was pregnant with Miller, I remember a good friend told me she was excited for me to join “the club.” The club that no one tells you about. I remember looking at her confused until she continued with, “the mom club.”

She proceeded to explain that it is the club where you completely understand what each other are going through as mothers. It is the club that allows you to relate to one another in the joy, the heartbreak, and love your heart feels for your children. The club that gives you the support, the listening ear, and love only a mother could understand.

Staying Connected While Staying In

With everything going on in the world right now, I know we are finding ourselves feeling disconnected from much of our daily lives. I have felt disconnected by not being able to travel, not being able to take the kids to the zoo, and not being able to go to the store as a family.

The same thing is true with not being able to go out on a date with Brian. I miss that part of our relationship.

Maybe you feel the same way right now in April 2020. You may be feeling disconnected because A. your “norm” is nowhere to be found, or B. you are finally getting more time together with your family (haha). We are all spending more time at home, which leaves more time for house projects, perfecting a recipe, binge watching television, and spending quality time with your significant other. Right now, quality time looks different than a date night out to dinner, hiring a sitter so that you can grab a drink together, or going on an anniversary vacation away from the kids. Today, quality time is only experienced at home.

I like to believe that covid has helped us to “slow down” in some way. To appreciate what we have and to find ways to connect with those we love in ways we would not have before. This last month has made my heart so happy with Brian working from home. I am enjoying feeling more connected by simply being near one another! While I miss our date nights and getting out of the house for a drink, I also enjoy getting cozy on the couch and connecting with a night of binge watching a tv series or reading our devotional.

If you are finding yourself in need of ideas of how to “date” while at home or just feel connected to your spouse, below is a list of our recommended ideas and “things to do” as a couple to stay connected during this home quarantine!

a couples devotional – Brian purchased this for us a while back, and while we are still working on it, it’s been a great nightly conversation starter for us. We read and chat over this in bed after we put the boys to bed!

little love letters – One of my favorite surprises from Brian is when I come home from work and find a little note he wrote! Even if it is one simple sentence, it means the world to me because it tells me he was thinking of me AND he hates hand writing anything! A little note to a loved one can mean more than one probably realizes.

binge a new tv show – Connect while watching TV?! YES. Some of my favorite hours spent with Brian have always been when we binge a tv series together. Our first one was How I Met Your Mother (still a favorite of ours) and the most recent being, The Witcher. After each episode we usually spend time in conversation about what happened, our thoughts on characters, and what we predict!

conversation starter card game – This is currently in my Amazon cart! I love the idea of keeping these in my purse for date nights while waiting to be seated, while on a long car drive, and/or simply while sipping wine after the kids have been put to bed! I see even those who do not enjoy games picking this up because it’s simply flashcards with questions to ask your spouse!

a question a day book – My sister gifted Brian and I a three year “question a day” memory book that we used religiously for over two years. Now that I have admitted we have slacked, it makes me want to get us back into it! I have found a lot on Amazon!

have sex – Yep. Nothing will make you feel more connected. Have a glass of wine, take a shower, and get busy. **I actually am watching a TV show while writing this and the male lead started kissing his wife and she laughed while pushing him away saying, “It’s not Wednesday or Saturday.” “You know we are allowed to have sex on other days” he stated. Her response? “But it’s so much more fun when we plan it.” Poor guy.

memory book – I just purchased this memory book for Brian and I. I chose it because I am a very sentimental person and love the idea of having all of our important memories written down so that if something happened to us OR I get Alzheimers, our memories will be recorded for our family! Working on this with Brian will be so fun!

go on a walk – Since having miller, I’ve loved going on family walks. It takes us all outside of our distractions from phones and toys to moments of fresh air and fresh conversation! Get outside together and leave the phones at home!

If one of these interests you and you decided to give it a try, let me know in the comments! Hoping you are all staying home and safe during this unusual time! I am thinking of you!

love always, kylie

 

 

Books I Recommend That Focus on YOU, Dating, Relationships, Loving Others and Marriage

As a little girl, Beauty and the Beast was the most watched movie by my sister and I. As an adult, I like to believe it was because of how much I admired and loved the library Beast gifted to Belle. At 30, I still dream of having my own little “library room” full of books floor to ceiling. I love reading. I love learning from others through their words and advice. I love finishing a book and either giving it away or keeping it on my shelf to read again one day.

my recent skin and hair care favorites

Since the age of nineteen I have been taking care of my skin, wanting to keep it as healthy as I can afford! Over the years, I have purchased and tried many products that did not work for me, but I have also found products I now cannot live without. The beauty in the vast amount of available skin care products is that there is a product for every skin type and need . . . but the pain is that it sometimes takes years of searching for that exact product that works for you!

everyday essentials for our home

 

I love being home. It is truly my favorite place to be. Isn’t it for us all?

When I think of home, I think of comfort. Home is often the place we feel most comfortable to be ourselves and most often where we all yearn to be. Especially with what is going on in this world, we are all spending more time at home than our “usual.”

When at home, it is important for me to feel comfortable and for my guests to feel comfortable. That comfort can come from the help of Alexa (Amazon Echo), the yummiest espresso, the ease of cooking, or even the ability to remove a stain from spilled wine and/or quickly kill that pesky fly. Over the years, we have slowly collected items for our home that we now consider to be our everyday essentials in helping us and our guests to feel comfortable and content.

Baby & Mama “Must Have” Items 0-12m

During my first pregnancy, I spent countless hours on my phone researching the “must have’s” for newborns, babies, and mothers. Every single youtube video, blog post, Instagram story, and friend praised different products leaving me overwhelmed. I was “scared” to spend gobs of money on products that would not work for my baby and me. Two years and two kids later, I now know what works for one kid may not work for the next AND that is okay!

mama, you are so worth everything that makes you YOU

Since becoming a mother of (now) two, I often think I have a grasp on motherhood . . . but then I often realize I do not have a grasp on ME. I lose sight of what makes me “me.”

We as mothers all deserve to feel like who we know ourselves to be. I didn’t realize until just recently how far away from feeling like “myself” I had been. While breaking down to my husband, I figured out that I miss many things: wearing my pre-pregnancy clothes, being an ICU nurse, taking a shower that allowed me the time to shave my legs, curling my hair, spending time with my best girl friend, going window shopping, reading “fun” books, having my old (young) body (sans stretch marks, extra weight, cellulite, gray hair, etc), and enjoying alone time with my husband. It was in that moment of recognition that I knew I needed to make changes for me to feel like myself. Would these changes allow me to be who I once knew before becoming a mother? No. Nor do I expect that or even want it. The Kylie that I knew pre-kids is not what I want . . . I want to be a wife and mother more than anything else in this world. BUT, I know to properly love and care for them, I have to love and care for myself.

miller shares his 12 favorite books

Miller has been read to on a daily basis since he was still growing within me! Brian would lay his head close to my torso and read the Bible to Miller in hopes he would know Brian’s voice. And since his birth, we all have been obsessed with reading together!

At a couple of months old, we continued with reading the Bible every single night and when Miller got to be old enough to “pick” a book (approximately six months old and by grabbing for one of two books we would hold up), we also read to him throughout the day! Miller’s bedtime books have been my most treasured moments of each day because of the excitement he has when we say, “want to pick out books to read?” Now at almost twenty-two months old, we read usually six – ten books (sometimes it might be the same book six times) per day AND another two – four at bedtime.

every day personal items worth splurging on

As I have learned how true the saying “quality over quantity” is, I have taken my time in investing in GOOD quality every day products I use. I was once that woman that would buy something she liked because it was on sale . . . or maybe I liked it because it was on sale. While that idea still rings true for minor things such as the Target dollar section (I can’t ever seem to get away from that aisle), for most other areas of my spending, I have come to the realization that some items just are “worth the cost.”

While some of the items below may not work out for you, I hope they inspire you to find every day useful items you will LOVE!

a classic gift for my man: the wood watch

If you have been following along with me over this past year, you probably remember how much I love my wood watch from JORD! Accessories are my favorite addition to any outfit, especially if they compliment the outfit in the most subtle way. A simple necklace, the perfect pair of boots, or a classic wood watch from JORD are some of my favorites.