Los Porchs

Charlotte isn't a morning person either.  She doesn't quite have my love for sleep (there's still time), but she is certain that 5:30am is for the birds. Today was our first opening shift, a shift we rotate to every other day.  It was hard on me:  I hit snooze 3 times and then sprang out of bed thinking it was like 7am and I was going to be fired.  It was 5:11.  I had myself together and the car running (it's still pretty cold here at night, which I consider 5:30am to be) by 5:30am so I ran inside, put socks on Charlotte and swooped her up in a blanket and out the door we went.  She either slept or stared sleepily out the window the entire 15 minute drive (this is where I'm actually kind of missing the 30 minute drive as it made for great cat nap material).  I rolled through the Starbucks drive-through (thank you, Starbucks) and was in the parking lot of the center by 5:50am.  Not too bad, right?!  I took Charlie inside as she was now awake and talking to me.

Today was a very, very long day for Ms. Charlotte as she started a new school.  We had spent 3 days last week visiting so she would be familiar with faces and the environment, but she was still an exhausted hot mess when I walked past her room around 5:20pm and I just couldn't ignore the crying -- I had to go in and acknowledge what a long day she had been having and that her Daddy would be there soon to pick her up.  Luckily, Porch walked in the door just a few minutes later.  She was a sobbing, screaming puddle of toddler as he walked out of the door with her and without me & she realized I was staying behind (I worked until 6:30 tonight). Thankfully, I am right there and know that she had an awesome first day.  She was apprehensive and cried a few times, but all things considered (she's 19 months, hasn't been away from me since December (seriously), and was exhausted going into the day) -- she rocked it.  Transitions and change are hard for toddlers and adults alik

I gave up my Facebook account (sans Messenger) for the Lent season so I could give my head and my heart a mental health break.  Facebook is a dangerous beast; we forget that folks selectively post the moments they share and it's easy to fall into a jealous slump when it appears others have their shit together and you're over here not even sure where all of your shit is, much less how to get it together in an adult-like fashion.  This break has been great for that. What it's not great for is missing those big moments in people's lives that I would otherwise have stalked read about by now.  Weddings have taken place, pregnancies undoubtedly have been announced (sigh), babies have been born, and loved ones (others' loved ones, not my own, I like to think I wouldn't hear of such losses via Facebook) have been lost without my knowledge.  It caught me off guard when I learned some of these things this past weekend.  I found out about them through Instagram which fe

It's no secret that I've been loving the SAHM life since December but my student loans & credit card debt demand that I make a return to my role as a working mama. That's not to say I won't be able to return to this gig later in life (no, I am not pregnant). This is a disclaimer I feel I have to include in all posts that in any way suggest I may be expecting.   Thank goodness for daylight savings! It'll still be light out when we get home from school most nights! And we'll still have time for walks when we get home! I think I'm going to miss our morning walks the most. Charlie and I have enjoyed going to school together every day since she was 6 weeks old. Sure, she's been on the bench for a few months,  but I'm sure she's more than ready to get back into the game. It's me.  Guys, I'm just so anxious. Always. I worry the days will be too long,  that she'll be hungry, that she won't be as loved up on at sch

Huzzah. I once engaged an entire preschool class for our entire 40 minute outside time with 3 simple resources: 1. Paintbrush 2. Cup or bucket 3. Water Go nuts, kid. They spent the whole time "painting" the playground, marveling at how it made things so clean and sparkly. I figured I had nothing to lose and decided to give it the old toddler try.  Charlotte loved it. She especially liked using it over her chalk art. And I was all like... damn. That's an awesome unexpected teachable moment. Chalk is a pretty great medium. In short, we spent most of our day outside blowing bubbles and painting everything with water. That Wisconsin spring is legit! We hit 70 degrees today! Woot woot. With all that fresh air means early bedtime for Mama. I am exhausted! Xo Mama Porch

I shaved my legs for this? After I got out of the shower, mah legs felt so smooth and ready for fun dresses!  Then I looked out of the window and was reminded that it's still very much leggings weather.  Womp womp.  But hey, it's good to know that when shorts-season is finally upon us, my legs will be ready. Part of the Influenster Glam VoxBox I got included the Venus Razors and Venus with a touch of Olay Vanilla Cashmere Shave Gel (the perfect size for our travels).  I have always loved the Venus brand and remember when they first came onto the scene!  I love how close of a shave I get with the Venus razor and wouldn't hesitate to recommend them to you; I swear by them.  It's pretty convenient that when you find a handle that works well for you, you can just pop off the razor and replace that part.  I used the same handle for many years and just recently upgraded to the one that has a ball in it.  The grip on the handle makes it easy to hold and move around those