my dress + hat + bracelets  ||  harper’s  dress  ||  houston’s similar top + pants

Every time I do a question box over on Instagram, I get some form of question in regards to how I “do it all”.  Usually I have a good laugh when I see them, because it is so far from the truth!! If anything it is a reminder to me that Instagram never shows the full picture. And while I like to think I do a decent job, I am far from perfect!! With that in mind, I did make a major mindset change and really lifestyle change over the last year or two to help simplify, that has made all the difference, and I wanted to share that with you today.

About a year or year and a half ago I basically had a melt down. Picture your blockbuster style mid life crisis or mental breakdown and that was me. I felt like everything was piling up and out of my control. It felt like it was all too much, and I just couldn’t do it anymore. I was ready to throw in the towel and give up on anything I didn’t absolutely have to do to function and keep my family afloat. Deep down I knew that wasn’t a place I could stay in mentally, so I called my friend Kristin Andrus.

If you know or follow Kristin, you know she is basically wonder woman. She is a mom of 6, owns Traeger Grills with her husband, and volunteers thousands of hours to serve those around her. She has always been a huge example to me, and I knew she had to have some secret to doing it all and so flawlessly! Her first piece of advice was something that has stuck with me since and something I repeat to myself regularly. It was DO WHAT YOU LOVE, HIRE OUT THE REST.

For me that was such a lightbulb moment though it seems so simple. Society and the world tend to tell us we are allowed to ask for help via a babysitter or nanny. But to me, that is taking away the thing I want to do most out of my “tasks”…be with my family. Why can’t I flip flop it and choose that for me and hire out the errands and other things I despise? So I did just that and made some changes to simplify.

couch + chairs  | leather pillow covers  |  rug  |  round planter  |  coffee table

: CLEANER + LANDSCAPE MAINTENANCE

First I hired cleaners. If you know me, you know I function 100 times better in a clean and organized space. So this one was huge for me. We hired cleaners that come just twice a month to help me stay on top of things. Do I still clean all the time? Yes, but this was a way for me to simplify the task. Joe also hired landscape maintenance as well. His time off is so limited, and it felt like we were spending every day off doing yard work. His time was most important.

: PERSONAL ASSISTANT

One thing I completely despise is returns, grocery shopping, and just the run around of errands. I’ve done Walmart delivery for years to help avoid most of that, but there are always those last minute items. Instead of hiring someone to watch the babies while I did all of that, I chose what I love (my kids) and hired out the rest. I hired a senior in high school that comes and runs errands for us AND helps run kids to different practices. My kids all love her so much and she feels like part of the family. This was another way to simplify the process.

: WORK TEAM

When I first started out online, I tried to go it all alone. I put all of the weight on myself and started to dislike it pretty quick. I knew things had to change. Just like anything in life there are parts of this job I love and parts I don’t. So again I chose to delegate. I have a “manager/assistant” that is the other half of my brain. She has been with me for 5 years now and keeps me sane. Her primary role is handling all of our contracts, campaigns, brand relationships, scheduling, and basically to simplify what I see and do to keep me on task. Ha! We also have a newsletter  + course specialist, my amazing photographer, and a LTK manager. They keep the motor running on everything so that I can make the connections and enjoy the relationships this community brings.

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I’ll say it again and a million times, I am not perfect at this. My goal is to help you simplify motherhood and avoid the overwhelm that creeps in. But you also need to consider your stage of life too. Never in a million years could I have done all of this when we were in school. But know that it is ok to say no to adding more if you feel full. Or taking one of these things and giving yourself grace.

in partnership with JCPenney + ShopStyle Collective

If you read the post I did a couple of weeks ago highlighting my 2022 goals, you saw a big one for me this year is to get better quality sleep!! If you are anything like me, good quality sleep kind of tends to take a back seat. With 5 busy kids, we have jam packed schedules. I often times find myself staying up extra late and waking up early to tackle my to do list. Which results in no sleep. I know that getting good quality sleep makes such a huge difference in my focus, efficiency, and over all attitude, so it has been one of my major goals this year.

I cheated a little on my goals this year and started this one a little prematurely by ordering a few items friends had recommended that make all the difference to them getting in that good quality sleep, and trying out some new habits.  I have already noticed such a difference, so of course I had to share them with you too!

my robe  |  sleep mask  |  sound machine  |  heating pad  |  similar white bedding  |  similar pillows

: PLAN ON GOING TO BED AN HOUR EARLIER THAN YOU REALLY WANT 

As humans, especially women, we tend to overload our schedules and are always adding “just one more thing” to our to do list. One thing that has really worked great for me is to plan on going to bed an hour earlier than my goal. So, if my goal is in bed lights out at 10, I try to plan on having everything done by 9 instead. By doing this, all the extras that come up aren’t pushing me back later than I want to be going to bed, and I am again enforcing that consistency of a bedtime for myself.

: HAVE A SLEEP ROUTINE 

Yes, I want you to treat yourself just like you would one of your kids. Give yourself a bedtime routine. Our bodies thrive off of routine and structure. The same goes for bedtime, which is why it works so well for kids. Knowing what to expect and having that same routine trains our brains to slow down and kind of prep themselves for sleep. For me that almost always includes a bath. It helps me relax, slow down, and take time to process the day without interruption.

sleep mask  |  sound machine  |  heating pad

: GET COMFORTABLE 

If you know me, you know I am always freezing from about October-April! And trying to get a good sleep when you are cold + uncomfortable is nearly impossible. So, I set out to solve this problem and got myself a heating pad to sleep with!! It heats up fast and has a 2 hour auto shut off, so you don’t have to worry. You can grab it here from JCPenney!

: USE A SOUND MACHINE 

The first up is a sound machine. I always used a sound machine for my kids when they were little. It made transitioning to nana’s house or traveling a breeze because their sleeping conditions didn’t change much. It was one of those things we would never leave the house without. So WHY didn’t I think of this for myself years ago? This one from JCPenney has great sound quality and is super relaxing. I love that it is really minimal too so you can store it in a drawer or pack it easily. It has been such a dream for getting in that zen, relaxed state, and not having sound interruptions!

: DON’T FORGET THE EYE MASK 

I have to admit, I have always thought these eye masks were so gimmicky. But I stand corrected. They are incredible! Once I put this on, I know I am guaranteed to have no distractions. It kind of tells my brain, ok I’m ready, time to slow down and relax. I have loved it!

. . . 

While I know these tips + tricks won’t work for everyone, they are worth a shot if you are struggling to get in that good quality sleep. And if you are interested in trying out the items I mentioned, you can shop all 3 of them at JCPenney now with quick shipping and pick up options!

my top + here  |  similar jeans  || harper’s pajamas + bow  ||
bed  |  white quilt  |  nightstand + vase + greenery  |  rug  |  art  |  couch

Mornings can be a pretty hectic time. There is a lot to get done, in a limited amount of time. Add in tired/grumpy attitudes and a lotttt of little people and it can get out of hand. It took some trial and error for us to figure out a system that works for us personally, but it makes all the difference. We put together a fun video to give you a little sneak peek into how our mornings go around here. While the complete system may not work for your lifestyle, I wanted to share 6 tips that you will see in action that have really helped take the stress out of our morning routine. I hope they will for you too!

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Now that you have an idea of how we make things work around here, let’s get down to the tips! Even implementing 1 or 2 can make a huge difference in how you start your day! So let’s break it down…

boy’s pajamas  |  rug  |  beds + nightstands  |  skate art + surf art  |  chair
bedding : sheets + quilts + throws + stripe pillow + gray pillow

:: WAKE UP 15 MINUTES EARLIER THAN NECESSARY

When it comes to your morning routine, I’m sure the last thing you want to do is wake your little people up any earlier than necessary. I will often find myself thinking, oh they had a late night…I’ll let them sleep in. And it ALWAYS backfires!! While they need their sleep, the feeling of being rushed always ruins a morning. If we are rushed we have more arguments, hurt feelings, tantrums, allll the things. And I don’t know about you, but I hate that feeling in your gut when all the people are gone for school and you feel like you left them in a bad mood. By taking the extra 15 minutes, you can move at a slower pace. It gives you time to talk about their day, have them help with chores, and not feel like you are shoving them out the door.

On this same note, take into account how your people like to wake up. The girls hate when I flip the light on before they are fully awake. If I just open the blinds and give them 5 minutes to slowly wake up, they are much happier campers. Sometimes just putting yourself in their shoes can make all the difference.

  beds + nightstands  |  art
bedding : sheets + quilts + throws + stripe pillow + pink pillow

:: MAKE YOUR BEDS FIRST THING IN THE MORNING

It is no secret to any of you that to me a clean house is a happy house. One of my biggest tips to having a more productive day, is to make your bed. Something as simple as an unmade bed in your kids room can instantly make it feel messy. And I don’t know about your people, but that is the last thing mine want to do after a long day of school. We have made it a priority that right when I get in from the gym, I wake them up and we make beds together. It starts our morning on a clean slate and we aren’t worried about messy rooms in the busier part of our day.

:: PREP YOUR OUTFITS AT THE BEGINNING OF THE WEEK

Another way we have found to lessen the stress in our morning and avoid arguments is to prep all the kids outfits at the beginning of the week. We find a time (usually on Sunday) where we can go to their closet together and make a plan. Hunter takes care of hers on her own, but Hayden takes a little more patience and cooperation. She is strong willed and knows what she likes and DOES NOT like. We avoid SO many unnecessary fights and tantrums.

::PREP LUNCHES AHEAD OF TIME

We don’t go all out on this, but we always try to have the dry things prepped in baggies ahead of time. You can see how we have things set up over in our pantry post. They each grab a few “sides” and have them in their lunchboxes the night before, so just sandwiches are left for the morning. To really save on time, you could prep breakfast too. We have done make ahead breakfast burritos, or made a big batch of french toast or waffles at the beginning of the week to use multiple days.

:: EVERYTHING COMES BEFORE BREAKFAST

Raise your hand if your kids are the slooooowest eaters in the morning? Sometimes I think they are still half asleep. Ha! One of the biggest problems we noticed in our previous morning routines is doing breakfast first. They spent so much time eating, that everything else was a crazy, stressed out rush. We recently switched it up to have breakfast last and it has been a major game changer. It sounds crazy, but it kind of gives them the motivation to get everything else done faster, so they can get to breakfast.

:: WORK AS A TEAM

Delegate, delegate, delegate. You should not be doing all the things yourself. You and your kids are a team and should work that way in the morning. For example, Hunter takes on the lunches.  If Hayden’s hair is going to take a little longer, or I am changing after going to the gym, Hudson will change the babies diaper and get her breakfast while he is getting his. Kitchen clean up is also their responsibility before they go to school. Set expectations for them in the morning to help things run smoother.

I hope these tips help you to have a less stressful morning with your people and start your day a little happier! This definitely didn’t come easy for us and is still a work in progress. Just remember what works for one won’t necessarily work for you. So I wanna know, do you have any game changers you do to make your day a little less hectic?