7 reasons why I probably shouldn't be a dance mom

So here's the thing.... I danced for over 18 years.  Was I the best, no.  Did I work the hardest, no.  Did I think I was pretty good, yep!  Am I beyond competitive, yep!!  I'm going to be brutally honest in the most loving way possible!  We keep it real in our house! The girls had there dance show this weekend and it through me into a tailspin of OMG!  Capri's potential is beyond and Peyton is living her best life in her costume with full makeup.  So that's the situation.  Capri is a dancer in every form but can't retain choreagraphy and isn't that excited about practicing.  Peyton, is pretty hard core but has a serious knock knee, sickle foot scenario going on.  All the heart and not that much natural talent.  What I realized is this, I probably shouldn't be dance mom, and here's why....

Reason 1.  No one wants you fogging up  the glass during class while your daughter is dancing.  Disclaimer on this one... I did ask Capri if she wanted me to watch her practices and she said yes.  My intensity level was apparently accepted. 

Reason 2.  No one wants you, as a grown woman, doing the Jr. Jazz routine almost full out in your chair.  

Reason 3.  Calm down, the pirroute prep situation is giving you a major eye twitch.  Can she just turn the correct way?  Don't even get me started on Peyton's turnout!

Reason 4.  My panic ensues when we are off count.  

Reason 5.  Can we just let it be fun and not be about being the best?  I'm not sure on how to even deal with that basic question. 

Reason 6.  Capri forgot half of her 2 routines in her first show.  I broke out into a cold sweat.  

Reason 7.  There was a mother/daughter dance at her show. Should I even tip my toe into that situation?  It took every restraint to not bust a serious move.  I thought about it but for sure knew I'd rip my hammy so that settled that.  

So overall, I'm trying to be a good dance mom.  It's taking a very large effort and I'm working really hard on making sure the girls aren't aware of my level of crazy.  What I can say is we are pretty situated in our stage hair and makeup game.  #wegotthis Parenting is no joke! Any other dance moms feel me? 

Day in the life of a momprenuer

I had a funny conversation with a friend the other day about what was on my agenda for my "average Momprenuer" Monday.  I was saying how relaxed the day was going to be and then got to really thinking what my "normal" Monday would be. Momprenuer life is no joke!  Mom's wear many hats and then add in work life the hats double and triple.  I am so fortunate to have a couple businesses that allow me most of the time to work from home.  Nevertheless, my days are run like a well oiled machine.  Not every day is the same but here is my Monday from this week.  Don't miss the big GIVEAWAY at the end of this post!!! It's a good one!!! Let's get into it!

7:00 am I rustle up throw on my robe over my pjs and get to the morning routine. Yes, I am 100% the mom that rocks her robe to school drop off!   Peyton is not a morning kid and loves to be cozy so she takes quite a while to get rolling.  Capri is much more like me and once we are up , we are up.  We check the weather and quickly decide what to wear that day.  As the girls wake up and get dressed, I start breakfast. Our hens are giving us so many eggs so mornings consist of scrambled eggs, berries and english muffin. As the girls eat, we listen to some music and I work on lunches.  Lunches consist of half a sandwich ( peanut butter only for Capri and peanut butter and jelly for Peyton- Don't mix them up mommy!!) a piece of fruit like a cutie orange and a healthy chip or pretzel with juice.  Snacks get packaged and put into backpacks while the girls grab their vitamins and start working on brushing their hair.  Hair done, teeth brushed, shoes on and off we go!  

7:40 am Off to school.  We love to listen to music and chat on the way to school.  I really try and make mornings fun so it starts our day off great!  

8:05 am We roll into school drop off with kisses and love

9:00 am 2 cups of coffee and email checking begins while one load of laundry gets started.  

9:30 am I make a couple protein pancakes or eggs and get to responding to my emails, making grocery lists for the day, list of things I need to accomplish that day ie. change sheets, pay bills, clean bathrooms, workout, bleach teeth, shower etc.  

10:00 am Start to do list.  Fold and restart new load of laundry. Strip the sheets on the beds.  Clean dishes from morning and clean kitchen countertops and reorganize living room.  Run Puppy ( Roomba) 

Smile Brilliant before and after results

10:30 am Workout for the day ( quick Tone it Up workout or a class) and beauty maintainence.  This would be doing some self tanner, giving myself a mani pedi, face mask or teeth bleaching. This may seem silly but being a blogger and work in the wedding industry it's important for me to keep my self situated.  Nails are in my bride's wedding photos and in my blog photos.  We randomly need to shoot a look or something quick for the blog so self tanner helps me not look scary.  Teeth bleaching was on my 2018 goal list.  I partnered this year I partnered with  Smile Brilliant and have the prettiest teeth I've ever had.  I've used white strips in the past and would be so frustrated with them sliding around and missing the stains on my gum line not to mention ouch to my sore gums.   Smile Brilliant bleaching trays have been a game changer!  I got customized trays that fit my teeth perfectly, bleaching gels and even desensitizing gel to keep my gums happy.  I pop in my trays and get on without a hitch in my to do list.  I can tackle phone calls without sounding funny, do a workout, take a shower or even run an errand and they are virtually undetectable. I brush my teeth to get my morning coffee off, pop on my trays with bleaching gel in for 30 minutes.  Brush with wet ,sans toothpaste and follow with desensitizing gel for 20-30 min.  I rinse and viola! I pop in my trays and get on without a hitch in my to do list.  I can tackle phone calls without sounding funny, do a workout, take a shower or even run an errand and they are virtually undetectable.   
 

11:30 am  possibly shower and back to computer.  This time I follow up on morning emails and start working on timelines for upcoming bride trial runs and weddings.  Next, emails go out to my team to keep them up to speed on upcoming appointments or weddings.  This is my time for brainstorming on new blog posts and/or shooting them and online shopping for items for upcoming posts or trips.  

12:30 pm  out of the house chores.  This Monday,I dropped my car off at car wash and walked over to  Target to get a competition team little present for Capri's competition team sister, more La Croix ( obviously) and trash bags.  Next was grocery store for week's worth of groceries and Erik's meal prep items.  

1:00 pm Run home with groceries.  Throw together a simple lunch ( I love leftovers or lettuce wrap or salad).  After lunch, I put away the morning's laundry and listen to a podcast ( I'm into Goal Digger or Lady Gang) 

2:00 pm I grab a La Croix and head to pick up the girls from school

3:00 pm I prep a snack for the girls while they relax and start getting homework out.  We like crackers, celery and peanut butter, apples or pretzels and quac or hummus. Snack plates and fruit bowls are big favorites.  

3:15 pm Homework for both girls while I go through their school folders to see what's up for the week from their teachers.  

4:30 pm  Capri gets ballet gear on and hair up in bun and off we go do dance for the night.  Monday's dance schedule consists of Ballet and Lyrical for her. 

5:15 pm  Peyton finishes up homework or works on some chores while I start dinner.  Tonight we are having spaghetti.  Ground turkey, yummy Rao's sauce, whole wheat noodles for girls and zoodles  for me and Erik.  After dinner is ready Peyton and I play a game or watch a movie together. 

7:00 pm We pick up Capri from dance and daddy gets home from work. 

7:30 pm We gather at the table for dinner ( non-negotiable) and chat about our days.  We have our routine of "Best Day"  we each take a turn discussing the best part about our day.  This could be something awesome that happened that day or something simple like the pretty weather or great song we heard.  It gets us all talking and connected.  I'm a big believer in family dinners and lots of conversation at the table.  

8:00 pm Girl's jump in shower, brush teeth, brush their hair and night time books picked out for reading.  Hugs and kisses and na night time.

8:30 pm Erik usually tucks in around this time too for his early morning wake up call (3:00 am) while I clean up after dinner.  I usually hit my emails one more time to make sure I got any lingering emails answered, blog posts finished or projects wrapped up.  Tonight I finished up my computer work and plopped down on the couch to work on my bible study lesson for Thursday.  After my study, I either play on instagram and watch all my favorite stories, watch a quick episode of my shows ( The Crown or Animal Kingdom) 

10:30 pm Lights out for mommy! 

Every day is different and I keep a tight eye on my schedule for the week to make sure to stay ahead of any things that may need prepping.  Girl Scout badges needing sewing, school party treats, new dance tights etc etc etc.  In honor of all you busy working mamas, I've partnered with Smile Brilliant to giveaway $149 credit towards your own Smile Brilliant bleaching kit and 15% to all my readers using the code below! 

COUPON & GIVEAWAY DETAILS:

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Giveaway link: www.smilebrilliant.com/g/lifewithlipstickon

Tooth Whitening Gel

Mommy Monday-which shoes?

I find these ages of 8 and 6 to be my favorite.  We are in such a sweet spot. I don't know if it's me feeling more peace and joy in my own life or absorbing my little's lives.  I find myself often worrying or anxious if  day to day I am doing a good job of creating a life for the girls that they will remember and want to replicate.  I cherish my childhood with my family and always aim to recreate the same feelings for my girls.  Of course we are all different, but I know exactly what I hope to create for my girls.  I want them to feel confident, included, loved, special and secure.  I want them to trust their instincts and know their opinions.  I want they to be fiercely confident in what makes them happy and strive to have that feeling daily.  

I had a great conversation recently with my dad about the girls.  I love that we can talk so openly about what his feelings were raising me and my brother with my mom and his male perspective. My dad and I are incredibly alike and I value his masculine opinion greatly.  It helps me see things clearly from a different angle.  We are both very self competitive and strive for more all the time.  We aren't perfectionists but see things very fast moving.  Always quickly moving towards the bigger goal.  That is a really hard perspective to carry when raising kids. I teeter on the line of " to much and not enough" never sure what's the right thing.  I want my girls to feel independent from me but still feel me close if they need me. 

My dad gave me the best advice and interestingly enough it was things I had been mulling over for some time.  He said " make sure they feel included in your decisions". So simple.  This I hope makes the girls feel that their opinion is good , valued and taken seriously by me.  I had been adopting this practice but didn't know I was doing it.  For example, I would be getting dressed for a date with Erik and ask the girls to pick out my shoes that they thought would work with the outfit I had on. They would scamper into the closet and come out with options.  Some super "wow" and some really great!  I would try them all on and we would discuss which was better and why.  Then we would move onto earrings, lipstick and coat.  This seems frivolous but made my heart so happy.  They knew mommy wanted to look nice for my date with daddy and wanted to help.  

I remember the silliest things about my mom getting ready for a special event and I want my girls to remember their own special memories about me.  

Mommy Monday-Back to school blues, Destruction and bed buddies

We have officially started back to school this week. I have been feeling so sad about our lazy days coming to an end.  I am not however sad about the constant mayhem and destruction that these two tazmanian devils cause.  OMG!!!  How can two little girls make such a hurricane of a mess every day.  As August rolls around, we typically travel a lot and keep slower days when back home.  The means, loads of endless eating, fort building, slime making, scrapbooking, etc.  SO MUCH MESS!!  My girls are generally pretty messy all the time but they love to play together and are super imaginative.  As I write this they are converted two large boxes into forts and are closing each other into them with tape and "shipping" each other off to exotic lands.  They are giggling so hard that each of them has basically peed themselves.  While I'm scrubbing surfaces and sweeping slime supplies I can't help but adore those giggles.  That is what imagination is all about right?  With that said, I think my melancholy about back to school has worn off a bit. A quiet house for 80% of the day is pretty heavenly!

This week we got the girl's room lights installed. They both have pendant lights now above their beds for reading.  I adore how they turned out!  While they love their new additions they are both total scardie cats when something changes in their rooms.  Peyton was first with her imaginary fear.  As I was tucking in Capri for bed and discussing her day, in comes sissy worked up about something in her room.  Of course I knew it was the new light.  Capri offers to share her bed with her for the night so she wouldn't be scared.  Big sissy protection.  I wash my face and get into bed so giddy to binge watch Game of Thrones and in comes my two little babies.  Both now are spooked by something so in my bed they come.  While I know I'm getting no sleep that night I can't help but love them all cozied in with me while daddy was gone.  I remember the feeling of calm that would come over me as soon as I was let into mommy and daddy's bed when scared.  I'm hoping they are over it tonight though!  Peyton likes to sleep on my head for most of the night and Capri grinds her teeth out of her head.  It's super restful!  

'til next week....

Mommy Monday- Summer tutoring, delirium, groceries and game day

We have heard nothing but daunting claims that 3rd grade is the most challenging  academically. Man, I thought 1st and 2nd gave me a run for my money with my not so studious big girl.  She comes by it honestly though.  The academic part of school was not my specialty.  Ha!  I had the social part down though!  Learning new skills still are hard for me.  I have to work really hard to master something and Algebra was never one of those things.  We are supposed to tackle multiplication, division, long addition and subtraction and ALGEBRA!  What the heck!!  I was planning on doing some tutoring with both girls this summer to hopefully get a head but we are into August and mostly have been just partying!  I decided that since all I've done is work on the fashion part of school next year, I should probably get going on this "getting ahead biz".  Math is her biggest struggle.  I called a couple local tutoring centers and they were all so pricey!  I thought maybe I would skip a formal atmosphere and get them something online that they would think is fun.  Challenge accepted. We do Jiji math at their school but I wanted to try something not as familiar for them to hopefully keep it fresh.  We landed on Splash Math and it seems to be going well.  They start with an assessment and then we move on slowly through the different lessons to really hit all angles of the new skill.  Both girls seem to be enjoying it and most of the time they are able to get the hang of it themselves.  So far so good!  

Today was filled with church and solid delirium for both the girls.  They were so giggly and looney!  This makes me nuts!!!!!  I love the giggles but the loon nonsense makes me crazy! They just start getting ornery and stop listening.  We have been staying up really late and I've decided it might be time to start inching towards our normal bedtime to avoid days like today.  The day ended nicely thoug.  I fired up my Chris Tomlin worship music and sent them outside to jump on the trampoline for 4 hours.  Work that energy out while mommy get's rid of her crazy eyes.

Next thing that I can't understand is the sheer amount of food my family eats during summer!  Any other mamas find this to be a struggle to keep up with?  I'm talking meals and snack plates every hour!  I really try my best to feed my family fresh and organic.  I know this isn't for everyone but it's really important to me and something I try to stick to.  We have a great produce stand around the corner from us that I make weekly trips to stock up on all of our fruits and veggies.  I recently tried Butcher Box for our meats and we gather fresh eggs from our hens daily.  My girls are super picky as I mentioned last week in my Mommy Monday post and my hubby is pretty picky too. I'll eat anything so I'm super easy I think!  Erik is a big guy so to feed him is literally 3 servings of our dinner or meal.He likes what we have coined "goulash" meals.  That means basically anything that looks like a casserole and is all wet and mushy together.  He also is trying to keep the lbs. off so he wants me to make healthy " goulash" . What?!  He loves mexican food, won't eat fish, no pork, minimal fruit and some veggies.  Okay, good luck to me!    My struggle is not spending an million dollars a week on feeding everyone.   How does anyone else battle this?  I think it may be time to get back to Costco trips!  

Lastly, I had such a happy mommy heart this week with my whole gang together.  If you have followed for a while you know my hubby is a police officer.  We don't see him as much as we would like to.  When he is home our time together as a unit is gold!  He took the kids with him running errands the other day and came back with two games. They picked up LIFE and Battleship.  We decided on LIFE first.  We got our snacks all ready and gathered around our sweet new breakfast nook table to play.  We giggled and played together for about an hour.  Man do I love my little group.  Time like that is so priceless and makes my heart so full.