The Dentist, Anxiety And A Hair Emergency (Vlog 2)

the dentistTaking all four kids out by myself has become easier and easier, and last week proved that. I took Holden and Beau to the dentist with our twins in tow and it couldn’t have gone smoother. I think the fact that Holden and Beau are becoming more independent is making a huge difference.

Also, in this vlog I open up about my anxiety, and how it peaked recently but what I did to take control again.

Oh, and if life isn’t crazy enough, Beau came home from school with a hair emergency. Watch all of this and more on the today’s vlog…

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What I Do To Reduce My Daily Stress

IMG_3378I never truly knew what stress felt like until I became a mother. Some days it’s the little things that get to me, like the stress of getting everyone out the door. Other days its the bigger things like health issues with my kids.

Over the years I have learned that I needed to work a few stress-reducing routines into my day, everyday, to keep myself happy and healthy.

Here are some ways I reduce my stress each day…

I work out. Rarely a day goes by that I miss my mini workout. I find taking those twenty minutes each morning to stretch and resistance-train sets the tone for the day. I know I have done something for myself, and feel stronger throughout the day.IMG_3335

I have a beauty regime. For a long time I would throw sweats, a sports bra and t-shirt on, maybe wash my face, brush my teeth and put my hair in a ponytail and get on with my day. First it was when I was doing the SAHM thing, then it was when I was working from home. I finally realized that doing this was not only making me unhappy, but I was gaining a little weight too.

Now, I take the time each day to shower, (I only wash my hair every three days, let’s not get ahead of ourselves), wear nicer clothes (including jeans) and a proper bra, and put some makeup on. This beauty regime not only helps me keep the weight off, but also reduces my stress.

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I rest and have a treat each day. Every single day, around 2 p.m., after I’ve had my lunch, I stop working, doing housework, or even playing with my kids and have what I call “mommy’s quiet time.” This is when our twins are napping, so I am able to protect this time each day. On the weekends I send our older kids to their rooms for their own quiet time, and often send my husband out to run errands, or he heads out to the gym.

I make myself a coffee, grab a sweet treat and cozy-up under a blanket on the couch and watch whatever TV show I am currently binging on for about 45 minutes. I will often doze off and take a quick nap. Doing this for myself each day is probably this biggest way I reduce my stress and reset myself. I am very protective of this time, and my entire family knows that I am always more patient and happy afterwards.

I go to bed early. I am very protective of my sleep. I always have been. I am a morning person and need to get to bed by 10 p.m. and be asleep before 11 p.m. to make the most of my early morning wake-up.

Doing this has many benefits. I stay healthy (even when my kids are sick), I fight off stress, I am less likely to eat unhealthy and am generally more happy.


Since April is Stress Awareness Month, Nesting Story has teamed up with Casper, the sleep startup that created the perfect mattress, sheets and pillow for everyone. Here is Casper’s napping guide 101, that shares different types of naps and even some reasons why you might need a nap (as if you really need a reason). Visit Casper.com to learn more about their mattresses and sheets.Casper Napping101_LRG

This post was sponsored by Casper. All opinions are my own.

Not Letting Illness Knock Down Our House Of Cards

Yesterday I got the call. We were due, really. It had been two weeks, and of course, like clockwork, it was time for our kids to get sick.IMG_3176

Mia grabbed their bunnies and blankies so that she could make a bed. Mia loves to parent Everly, it melts my heart.

Everly’s daycare called letting me know that she hadn’t been acting like herself and she had a mild fever. I took a deep breath, dropped what work I had planned for the day and raced to pick her up.

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Although Illness is very common when you have young kids, it has probably been the biggest source of tension in our home.For a long time, whenever a crying, sick child would wake us, or hours would pass and no matter how much consoling we did, and we couldn’t seem to soothe our child, those moments would make us snap.

Mike and I are pretty great parents, in my opinion, but it somehow seems like to too much when our kids are sick.

It is an unpredictable, messy, pressure cooker situation. A wrench into our world. A situation that we can try to help, but cannot fully control. It pains us to see them in pain. Mix that feeling of helplessness with exhaustion and you have a recipe for bickering.

We are working on this, and I am seeing progress. This morning we walked into a sick bedroom. We both stayed calm and knew what task was who’s. No freaking out. Just action, communication and making decisions as a team for our sick child.

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That kind of teamwork is a big deal for us. We are growing, both as parents and as a couple.

We know that a couple of events that occurred when we first became parents, have made us hyper sensitive to any time our kids are ill, or struggling.

You can read ‘My Traumatic Start To Motherhood And How It Changed Me As A Parent’ here.

For a long time we couldn’t grasp a healthy perspective when our kids got sick. We would turn on each other and release our worry, stress and helplessness on the other person.

But with time, experience, patience and communication, we are handling these common real-life parenting experiences with strength and calm.

We are no longer letting illness allow our world to come crashing down. Heaven forbid, if we are ever confronted with a real crisis, we will now be able to face it as a team.

Maybe This Is The Easy Part

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Sometimes as parents we are so focused on the future, that we can’t wait to get out of this stage, or age with our kids. So much so, that we don’t see the good parts going on right now.

Recently, my older brother and my three-year-old nephew visited us from out of province. My nephew has not been the easiest child. He is this unique hybrid, of brilliant and heart melting, yet full of intense energy and like most three year olds, he is run by his emotions. I could see in my brother’s face, that parenthood was taking it’s toll, and not at all what he had pictured.

I am the more seasoned parent between us, having four kids under my belt, while he has two.

Like I had always done in the past, I started to launch into my long list of complaints and hardships that I was going through with my kids. I used to do this so that he knew that he is not alone and that we all go through it with our kids.

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Suddenly, I stopped babbling, realizing I was talking about issues that we were problem solving months ago.

Did I even have a crisis going on right now? Oh yeah, my five-year-old daughter won’t stop talking in third person. It can drive me up the wall, and I am pretty sure she know it pushes my buttons, but really? I was reaching.

After years of language delays and childhood anxiety with my older kids, then the chaos of having twins, we were actually… dare I say it… going through an easy phase.

Four kids - Nesting Story

I, like most parents, am so caught up in my to-do lists and so focused on what isn’t going right, that I often miss what is.

My husband and I will often fantasize about the day that we can all go to a restaurant without a sippy cup being whipped across the table, or being able to get projects done around our home, while all four of our kids play happily, without requiring supervision.

But maybe this too, right now, is the easy part?

So what if most of our cupboards and closets in our home are a disaster, or that my car needs a tune up, or that some days my kids forget to brush their teeth, and I am too exhausted to get on their case about it.

Ya, we’ve got kids in diapers, and it is nearly impossible to go out with all four kids without someone having an epic meltdown. But the older our kids get will also bring its own set of challenges.

In this moment everyone is happy. Everyone is healthy. We have some semblance of a routine going on.

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Sure, fights between kids break out, and our twins are approaching the terrible-twos, complete with hitting and biting. But we deal with it in the moment and move on.

Chances are, next week a cold or flu will hit our home and my husband and I will be launched back into that pressure cooker situation we know all too well, when we are cleaning up vomit, or consoling a screaming child during the night. It has been a couple of weeks after all, which means we are due.

As I look around my home, with clutter piling up on our counter, countless things that need repair and dishes sitting in my sink, I think to myself, the to-do list will always be there. It will never be finished. My kids will always find a way to drive me crazy and push my buttons.

This is the easy part. It’s the moments in between illness. It’s the moments between those problems I can’t solve on my own. It’s the moments between those inevitable stressful times, every parent goes through, that tests your marriage, your patience and your strength.

Cuddles with kids

The easy part isn’t perfect, tear free, or sterile. It’s laughter, it’s learning, it’s cuddles, it’s teaching moments, it’s the small triumphs.

It’s parenthood.

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My Kids Broke Me. How I Am Finding The Joy In Motherhood… Again

Four kidsI walked around my home trying to pull together outfits for all four of my kids, so that my husband, Mike could take them out, to give me a much needed break. The screams from bored toddlers and cries from my 5-year-old, who was already in a funk, but her big brother decided to go poke the bear, echoed through our house.

I was done. I could feel my chest tighten and hot tears started streaming down my cheeks.

As I tried to compose myself while quickly wiping away my tears, I couldn’t hide my sniffles as I walked down the stairs. Mike overhead this telltale sound and said, “what’s wrong?” “Everything.” I replied as the sobs started to exit my body. “I feel like I am failing. If I am being really honest, I am not enjoying motherhood lately.” Instinctively, he thought he was supposed to ramp up the discipline. He stormed around the house trying to create order, but really, he was only adding an extra level of tension.

Our kids started to mirror our tension and fights broke out in front of us.

I turned to Mike and said, “the balance is off right now. I know it’s me. I know that my lack of joy and level of impatience is creating a toxic environment that everyone is feeding off of. We need to problem solve this in a real way.” I could see understanding wash across his face.

Before he walked out the door, he looked back at me, as a fresh tears started to appear on my face. “I am failing as a mom,” I sobbed. “No you aren’t. In fact it’s the opposite. You care so much. We will fix this, like we always do.”

While Mike and the kids were out, it dawned on me. I was waiting for spontaneous moments of joy with my kids to come to me. Why was I not initiating activities and outings that I would also find enjoyable and fun?

Once they arrived home, I packed up our 5-year-old, Beau, and the two of us went out to get her hair cut, have a little one-on-one time, and chat about each of us listening to each other better.

Then later that day, we all sat down, as a family and enjoyed colouring together. I love being creative, so this was bliss for me.

By the time we packed up the art supplies, not only were the kids’ emotional buckets filled, but so was mine. Something that in the past, I wasn’t doing enough of.

Of course, the craziness resumed, and fights still break out, but just having those moments of joy with my kids, makes all of motherhood a lot more enjoyable.

Watch our day as it unfolded, starting with my mini meltdown…

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