Madrehood

As a Latina mom juggling everything from home, work, school schedules, sports and child activities, and yes, meal preparation while having sense of mental sanity can be challenging at times. Through trial and error I have adopted many practical approaches in my home organization, including yes, blasting la música while cleaning.  These are all items that I use in my home and that have changed the way I organize and I can't wait to share them with you In hopes that they can help you too.

I'm a very practical person and I love giving gifts that people will actually use or that I know they enjoy.  These are my favorite things that I have either bought for myself and gifted them as well or that I know that the person will love and enjoy.  Perhaps it'll give you some ideas on what to get your friends and family this year :)

In what was supposed to be the happiest month of all year, December, I got the news that my mom, sister, and father tested positive for Covid-19.  In a matter of days, my dad was hospitalized and passed away. That being said, as hard as it has been and continues to be, I wanted to share with you all the things that have helped me over the past weeks.   I'm no where near "moving on," "getting over," or "turning the page," but I am slowly, and I mean slowly, getting better.  A lot of it has been because of the support of friends and family members.  If you have a friend or family member that has suffered loss perhaps this guide can help you.  If you yourself are grieving perhaps you can find comfort in my words.  

When the year began, the last thing on our mind was transforming our 1970's drab basement into a modern and fabulous home school remote learning setup and play space for our  child.  Having a 5 year old starting Kindergarten from home was not what we had envisioned. The option of sending our child to school literally changed by the minute.  Needless to say, we are doing remote learning and that meant that I had to figure out a proper setup for my daughter as her little corner in my home office was simply not going to work.  Take a look at how we transformed our 70's drab basement into a wow home classroom and play area!

It's been a while since I've sat down to blog, why?  Well, Coronavirus happened and my whole world turned upside down.  Remember back in January when the first episode of the season 2 of The Latina Mom Legacy podcast aired and it was about setting goals?  In case you haven't listened to it, here's a quick link.  Anyway, back then it was the beginning of a new decade, the beginning of new mantras, a new you...blah, blah, blah, doesn't that seem like a thousand years ago now?

The truth is....

 

With only a few days til Christmas, it’s very easy to get overwhelmed, stressed out, and even grumpy.  You may need an extra cafecito or two to keep you going!  As a mom, you know all too well that most of the burden is on you, but it doesn't have to be.  The key is to spend a little time getting organized, have an action plan, and then the rest is possible.  Don't stress out if it's not picture perfect, remember, life is messy and perfection doesn't exist!

I finally have the keys to our new house.  I can't believe this dream is now a reality.  Although, I must say, this dream turned into a nightmare pretty quickly and now we're just grateful that the process is over.  It has been a long process full of mistakes, tears, and lots of anxiety.  I wanted to create a free guide for you...

The potty training journey has now come to a full end in our home and I feel like an entity has passed on.  It has been a long journey for us.  When I read about moms that have potty trained their kids in days or weeks I can’t help but sigh a little.  I wish I potty trained in weeks!  I wish my little girl would have gotten to the end of this journey sooner.  But I know that every child is different and what works for one child may not work on another.

Sometimes you have those weeks where you seem to be going somewhere and the road you're on has a detour after detour road sign.  Maybe you feel like the saying, when it rains it pours, or you feel like you're going "de mal enpeor." (from bad to worse).  How do you get from the madness or darkness to the light?  Here's my story...

There is one phrase I always tell my family and friends, “As long as my daughter can grow up and not be an asshole, then I think I did a good job as a parent.”  Of course, I want my kid to grow up and one day accomplish bigger and greater things than I have, but for me, it shouldn’t be at the cost of being a decent human being.  Trying to raise a kind kid with empathy, concern, and care for all living things so she can grow up making a difference is at the top of my list, like so many parents.  Here are some things that we can teach them...

Oh, Valentine's Day, El Dia de Los Enamorados as we Latinos call it.  An event to celebrate your love and affection, your union to your loved one, and all that blah blah blah.  Do you know what I really want?...

 

It's a new year and your daily family routine may be a bit off.  I know mine is.  It's easy to get off track after a long winter break, sleeping in, and going to bed late.

Let's face it, as parents, success means getting your kids to school on time without forgetting to pack their lunches or remembering to pack the diapers for the nursery.  As moms, we have so much information packed inside our brains and it really doesn't help that after we give birth, scientifically speaking, we get the "mom brain."  So how can we get back into the grind and make our lives easier and everyone happier?  Let's take a look at what works...

As some of you may know, I took a trip of a lifetime with my best friend to celebrate our birthdays.  At first it started as a simple "mamacation" for both of us to get away from everyday mom and work life but what transpired over those 10 days was simply life changing and honestly unexpected.

First let me start by saying, I’m not rich.  I’m Janny, a just turned 40 year old mom to a 3 year old, wife, working 2 jobs, paying bills, mustering enough energy to cook, clean, and get everything done—Not perfect, but done.  Sound familiar? I dream of one day acquiring enough wealth to not have to worry about bills.  I’m sure that sounds familiar too.  However, the fact that I’m not rich (yet) has not stopped me from giving myself a gift to treasure for a lifetime and here’s why you should do the same.

As a mom to a 3 year old, I can say that we've had tantrums, meltdowns, and full blowouts over somethings as little as not having an apple juice at night or as big as an ear infection, which I had no idea about.  I reached out to my sister, 20 year experienced preschool teacher, Dasy Perez, about reasons why young children act up and how we can help.  I've also included some resources that can help.  Here's what Dasy had to say.

We're in the middle of summer and it has been hot, full of swimming lessons, outdoor play, baseball games, and family fun.  My daughter will be attending a new preschool in September and I asked my sister, 20 year experienced preschool teacher, Dasy Perez how I could help my daughter get ready for school after a fun filled summer?  Here are her suggestions:

Having a child will change your life.  I know, everybody says that, but until you actually have a child you don't fully understand what that means.  Whether you have a child in your 20's or 30's doesn't matter, because they will bring you such joy.  However, there are things that are definitely easier to do when you don't have kids and there are things that you will benefit from, if you do them early enough.  Here's my top list of things to do, most of which I did and some I wish I had done like #9.

My daughter is now 3. Is she fully potty trained? Well, yes kind of sort of, um I guess the right answer is no.   When I hear parents say that they potty trained their child in 2 days, I am baffled. When should you start potty training? What should you do? What are some tools you can use? When should you not potty train?  Because this is such a huge part of toddlerhood, I wanted to ask my sister Dasy Perez (18 year experienced preschool teacher) for her advice on the matter.