Yesterday I stayed home from work because I wasn't feeling well. I had not slept well the night before and woke up with an excruciating migraine. My head hurt, my eyes hurt from light and I knew I needed to just take the day off for myself. I’ve had a very highly stressful week with unexpected things happening. One of the things was that my car wasn’t running safely so my car and I have been staying put. This was the first time in a long time that I’ve given myself permission to take a rest day with no guilt. I knew I had to honor myself in this way. .
This isn’t the first time Instacart has helped me. Even before the pandemic Instacart was a life saver. When I was going through a nasty custody battle in court over my son when he was 3 years old and needed extra funds, I worked for them as a shopper. I remembered years ago that my Aunty Tracie worked as one when she lived in New York City and I thought why not give it a try. Using their mobile app I would shop in various stores and then deliver groceries. It was a decent side gig. Sometimes I’d bring Damian with me and he’d help me shop for the orders or help me when I was delivering. I was grateful for the additional income stream to help with the bills and costs of living on my own since my day job didn’t cover all my expenses.
Then a few years later when we were on lockdown for several months, Instacart came through for me as a customer. Being extremely cautious about leaving my apartment during quarantine, the ease of having our groceries delivered helped me immensely. Every shopper has been nice and when there is an issue, which is rare, is handled right away. Overall I like the customer service, ease and income they provide.
If you’d love to take one more thing off your to-do list and want to give them a try, use my link https://inst.cr/t/MFByWk1NMzM3 to get $10 off your first order and let me know what you think!
It’s officially back to school time. Parents and kids are excited and nervous as we navigate going back to in person classes in the Bay Area.
This year’s start was an interesting one. Damian started off the week in a whirlwind. Day one he got hit in the eye by a new kid who got upset after kickball. I’m so proud of him that he didn’t lose his temper and fight back. Day two he had a really bad tummy ache. Today is Day 3 as I write this and I wasn’t sure at first if he should go to school or stay home.
In the past I would have just powered through it and made him go to school and pushed myself to go to work. This time I talked to a few trusted friends to see what they thought and I decided to trust my gut and keep him home. Years ago I’d be so mad at myself if I needed to take a day off. I’d freak out over how many hours I’d be getting and be worried sick and full of fear. Today thankfully it’s a different story. I know when I trust in God and am open to the possibilities good things happen. Things start coming together more and more and this adds to the belief that everything happens for a reason.
Maybe D was overstimulated and stressed from the transition from our very small circle to over 300 kids and starting a new grade with a new teacher. This was very different from second grade which was distance learning from home with me. Regardless, it was clear he needed his rest so staying home was the best option to spend the day together taking it easy.
I got my child development bachelor's degree years ago and I’m using it in my own way by making a positive impact on families starting with my own. We are more loving and kind to each other and our communication is so much better. I had to work on myself first and I see now it’s how you treat people that impacts people one way or another. In deciding to be kinder to myself, I am reminded that it’s perfectly okay and healthy to take a pause. I used to associate taking a pause as quitting and I don’t like giving up. Now I see the pause as part of the dance. We go forward and back, take a spin here, go slower, or faster there. It’s all part of the journey.
I give myself permission to take a rest day or a break as needed. I understand and appreciate those breaks now. I realize it's a way of honoring and taking care of myself. Without the necessary pauses, we can dangerously burn out like the candle burning at both ends. Let’s enjoy every moment because it goes by so fast! I can’t believe Damian is in the 3rd grade already! I share my light and message of love and care for ourselves, our keikis, and communities. Together we can have our positive impact be felt all over the world.
As a busy mom, time is very valuable. I’m always looking for ways to save time and money. Something that I noticed is that I always feel a little better when I feel more put together. I don’t do my makeup everyday. My style is laid back, comfy and cute. I love my leggings and comfy tshirts and hoodies. I’ve been staying home during the pandemic and enjoying not having to dress up in business casual attire.
I can find a few minutes, I can lock myself in the bathroom if I need to and put on my face. Sometimes I even do this in my car when it’s warming up if I need to go somewhere.
If you only have 1 minute to spare, I would recommend moisturizing your skin. I love my Art Light Moisturizer. Skin is the largest organ in the body and we need to stay moisturized. A couple of other ways to keep skin healthy is to make sure to drink a ton of water and get enough sleep.
If you only have 2 minutes, I would recommend moisturizing the entire face and put some color on the lips. Different colors can make it fun and be an easy way to express yourself. Sometimes I’m feeling a cutesy pink, other times a hot pink or even a bad ass dark red color. I use either lipstick or lip gloss or sometimes a lip gloss over my lipstick for extra color and shine. Play with different color combinations and have fun!
If you have 3 to 5 minutes you can put on foundation and or some concealer and eyeliner and mascara for eyes. I put my foundation first and then concealer to cover up any blemishes or dark eyes. Then I line my eyes and add some mascara and I’m done.
Just like any other products you use, it’s super important to know what ingredients are going to be on your skin. Most of my makeup is clean and made without chemicals or other harmful ingredients. Just like anything, you get what you pay for. Makeup that is high quality will last longer because it’s made with more care and top quality ingredients.
Check out this video on my YouTube channel to see how I do my 5 minute face step by step tutorial.
By far, the best thing that ever happened to me was becoming a mommy. The moment I found out I was pregnant my whole life changed. After hearing Damian’s heart beat at the first doctor’s appointment, I had a renewed purpose and frankly a reason to live again. I got chicken skin knowing this sweet and precious human depended 1000% on me to survive. Part of me felt like I wasn’t worthy. I didn’t feel ready to become a parent. I didn’t plan for it to happen the way it did, but I always knew that I wanted to be a mom and I knew this wasn’t just an accident.
I felt really alone. My best friend at the time told me that I could get an abortion and say I miscarried and thinking about that just broke my heart. I wanted so much for my son’s dad to be there for me and he tried, but he was struggling with his own demons. I think a part of me hoped that having a baby would bring us closer together. I wanted my family to be with me too but because they’re in Hawaii it wasn’t feasible at that time. Thankfully and gratefully I insisted on having a doula for support. Jenn was amazing and walked with me every step from before delivery, to during giving birth (she literally showered me down in the hospital room for what seemed like hours) and checked in with us after Damian arrived. I’m forever grateful that I had the natural birth that I wanted for me and my son.
When I became a Mom I realized how powerful I truly was. I survived a rough pregnancy alone, pushed a 7 lb baby out naturally and left the man that I thought I was going to spend the rest of my life with. After Damian was born the lessons showed up more and more. Lessons of patience, gratitude, trust, faith and the importance of a positive attitude were becoming obvious to me. It was almost like a mirror to show me what I needed to work on for myself to then teach my little one. But the most precious treasure from all of this was now I would experience first hand what unconditional love is: Loving someone who is imperfectly perfect just for being who they are and vice versa.
My goal is to raise my son to be an honorable man who is well respected in the community and serves others. I’m so grateful that I have a little partner in crime to go through life with and I’m excited to see what’s next for our family and how we can help a bunch of families too.
