Tag: mom advice

Top Ways Moms Can Stay Energized This Summer

Top Ways Moms Can Stay Energized This Summer

by justbloommomsblog ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

Summer is approaching, the weather is getting warmer in a lot of areas and the kids want to be outside, so I’m sure your calendar is getting filled with fun filled activities to get out and enjoy. As fun and exciting as this sounds, i must be honest in saying it can get a little exhausting at times. Planning, packing, setting everything up as far as daily itineraries, long nights, early mornings its a lot! Moms need ways to keep them selves energized and ways to keep their mood boosted so we can be present in these beautiful memories with our families. Here are some ways that you can stay energized all summer long!

Get your sleep: Its easy to stay up all night scrolling our phones or using the quiet time in the house to finally have a moment of peace but we have to try to not let it drag to late into night or even into the next morning. Creating a consistent bed time for your kids and yourself will be very helpful for you and after a few good nights of rest you should start to notice a difference in your overall mood and a boost in your energy. After you put the kids to bed its okay to take a little time for yourself but make sure you try to view sleeping as another important form of self care too.

Drink your Fluids: Start each day with a tall glass of water and make sure you are drinking your water throughout the day. Being dehydrated is a very fast way to lose energy and it can make you feel sluggish and unenergized. Find fun ways to enjoy your water like adding cucumbers, or your favorite fruits, make pretty carbonated drinks or splurge on a cute water bottle to help motivate you to drink your water.

Eat balanced meals: A day filled with fun with the kids can make moms completely forget to eat some days but it is important to try not to skip your meals. Try to eat foods that are high in protein and foods that have healthy fats. Try not to eat to many things that have a lot of sugar because it may make you crash sooner. Its okay to add some snacks for yourself in the diaper bags or in your purse. The kids aren’t the only ones who are going to need snacks for the day.

Move your body: If your starting to feel overwhelmed during the day or feeling like you need a moment take 10 minutes to take a walk or do some stretches. Pull out your phone and even dance around if you need to. This is going to help boost circulation in your body and help you feel better so you can get some more clarity about how you want the rest of the day to go.

Watch your caffeine intake: We all know most moms run on coffee, iced coffee, hot coffee, smoothie coffee any coffee but we do need to be mindful of exactly how much coffee we are drinking because it could give us a great boost for the moment and then make us completely crash by mid day if we drink to much of it. One or two cups of coffee is okay but over doing it can be to much on our bodies and really throw off our abilities to rest once we are ready to finally relax.

Ask for help: If you don’t have to do every single thing alone, don’t do it or don’t try to do it. Moms do tend to like things a certain way when it comes to our kids and how we like to plan or schedule things but doing it all alone can make us feel burned out pretty quickly and can take the fun out of the activities. Its okay to lean on your partner, family or friends for some assistance if you can. Your loved ones can tell when you are over doing it and they will probably be happy you finally asked them to help.

Practice deep breathing and mindfulness: Taking a few minutes out of your day to just focus on your breathing and clearing your mind can be really help for your mental health. You could stop in a mirror say some affirmations to yourself, give yourself some words of encouragement, listen to a meditation audio on your phone or just sit in the the dark for a few minutes. Look for ways that work for you where you can just calm your mind for few a minutes and basically give yourself a little bit of a recharge.

Get outside: The weather is warming up, get outside and get some fresh air, the vitamin D alone is going to help with boosting your energy and your overall mood. Get outside as much as you can, every time you get out it doesn’t have to be a big thing or event, kids can be easily entertained by anything when they are out enjoying the sunlight.

Don’t overcommit yourself: There will be a lot of opportunities to entertain your kids and yourself this season but you don’t have to go to every single event and you don’t have to say yes to every single outing. Make sure you don’t fill your calendar to the point of over load. Make sure you make days that are meant strictly for you and your family to rest and recharge. If you push yourself to do to many things this spring and summer it can start to take the fun out of it and you wont be able to show up as your best self each time.

A well rested, clear minded, well fed, hydrated mommy is who you want to be this summer so you can enjoy every moment of it! Now go drink some water and go bloom and enjoy yourself mama!

Your second pregnancy is different from your first pregnancy

Your second pregnancy is different from your first pregnancy

by justbloommomsblog ♥ 2 Comments

Now that I am halfway through my first pregnancy, I wanted to share a little about how your second pregnancy can feel a lot different from your first and share some of the differences I have been experiencing so far.  I found out very early that I was pregnant and this time around the symptoms started immediately for me, I would have to run to the bathroom every few minutes and that’s how I knew something was up.

People would tell me all the time prior that every pregnancy is different and that you can try to compare them but there is usually something that will stand out that is different. With my first pregnancy I didn’t start to show where it was visible to others until I was about 4 months. I could see it and know it was there, but I was able to cover it with loose fitted blouses and sweaters until I was ready to announce. With my second pregnancy I was showing at 5 months pregnant, I believe it was just bloat at the time, but it was poking out to where others could see it and not just me. I could not believe it. There was no hiding this second pregnancy at all. I was told this is due to your abdominal and uterine muscles being more laxed since they have already stretched before. My first pregnancy I was extremely nauseous and sick the entire first trimester, throwing up every single day to the point where I lost 15 pounds. It wasn’t just in the morning either it was any time of day, and it was awful. This time around I still got nauseous and did a good amount of puking the first trimester, but the puking was not as bad as the first time at all.

I felt more tired the second time around in the beginning. I also can blame that on chasing around an almost two-year-old, there were times and still are times where I just want to sit down in one spot and do nothing for a little while but often with a little one running around there is always something you need to get up for. Whether it be them asking for milk, snacks, ripping off their pamper or trying to get into something they shouldn’t. If you have any help at all make sure to utilize it and enjoy some resting moments to yourself. Try your best to sleep when they are sleeping or if you can’t sleep at least do something small for yourself like take a warm shower or binge some shows, anything to help you relax.

Once the second trimester began, I started to feel right back to my normal self and was still amazed at how much bigger I looked compared to the first time. One thing I noticed right away is that my belly is also much lower this time around which causes me to feel a lot of pressure on my pelvic, pressure that I didn’t feel until the third trimester with my first. This has been uncomfortable and so I am thinking about finding a belly band to hopefully give me some relief. The pressure also makes you run to the bathroom a lot and makes some of your normal daily movements or activities a little bit tougher and slows you down. Something I’m hearing a lot though is that all this discomfort is going to pay off because my second labor experience may be a lot quicker due to my body already being prepared and loosened up more than it was the first time. Remind yourself daily that all this discomfort is going to be so worth it when you see your baby looking up at you and when you see your first child bonding with their new sibling.

Telling everyone I was pregnant was such a joy and having all the love and support is helpful in helping ease your mind into the huge transition. I do feel like the first time your pregnant everyone around you that cares may be overly protective of you checking on you every day and the second time they will still check but maybe not as often. Its not because they don’t care they just know your more seasoned and experienced now. As far as your own emotions you’re probably going to feel a lot less anxious the second time around. My first pregnancy I was anxious about everything, and everything had to be perfect before my little one got here, this time around I am much more laxed and taking my sweet time with a lot of things. I would be scared to eat a bunch of different things and just stressing myself out the first time and this time I’m just happy to finish my first child’s leftovers. I do spend a bit of time daydreaming about how my two kids are going to get along, wondering how my first child will handle the change since we have such a close bond and I try to imagine how I’m going to be with them as a mother of two. I think about how I’m going to split my time between two children, set routines, find time for myself, and just have a system that makes sense for all of us. The thoughts can get overwhelming and there are highs and lows in all of it, but I know we will get through it and do what works best for our family.

I look forward to feeling more experienced this time around, I have been breast feeding for almost two years and I know my journey won’t be the same with baby number two, but I at least feel more confident this time. I feel more at ease thinking about the caring part of things and I just want to encourage other moms to get to this space too. I am of course nervous about delivery and hopeful everything will go well but at least we are more prepared for what to expect and know how to handle things better. You have done it; your first baby is doing amazing and you’re going to do just as good with your new arrival too.

You’re going to be a mommy of two and this time when a lot of things come your way, you’re going to know exactly what to do and will probably shock yourself with how much you already know. You got this mama enjoy your growing family.