​Mothers Day is just around the corner--that one day a year we take to celebrate all that moms do (which let me tell you, is A LOT!) So what could you possibly give to the mothers in your life to adequately thank them for all the love they give the and sacrifices they've made? Well, I have some ideas for you! Speaking from my personal experience as a mother, these are all things I would love to receive, so I'm guessing other moms might like them, too. 
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Give her a "Spa Day," because moms often put others before themselves and could really use some R&R. (And you don't need to spend a lot of money on this either. I swear, moms love the THOUGHT and effort put into things more than the dollar amount spent.) 

So create a spa experience for her at home with candles, bath salts, tranquil music, a plush robe, a bubbly beverage, and then take the kids to the park so that she can enjoy this moment of tranquility alone. (And don't forget to clean the bathroom first!)

Alternately, you could opt for a spa day gift card, but then you need to make sure she actually has the opportunity to use it. ;)

Give her jewelry with meaning, because moms too often go without hearing "thank you" for all that they do, and knowing how much the work we do matters and means to others can make all the difference in the world. So tell Mom how much she means to you with jewelry that, well, tells her how much she means to you. That reminder on her wrist will reassure her of how much she matters, even when no one is saying it aloud.

I love the company MantraBand because their jewelry is high quality, the messages have meaning, and it looks just as good years later as it did when you first bought it, even if you wear it in the water. 

Here are a couple of top picks for Mother's Day. (And Mother's Day jewelry is on SALE right now, too!)

Best Mom Ever Pendant Necklace 

To the Moon and Back Bracelet (5 color options) 

​They have a lot to choose from though, so you may find some words that better say what you want her to know every day. 

For the gardener (or want-to-be gardener) in your life, this indoor Gardyn is something she'll use year-round. And every time she harvests her produce for fresh meals, she'll think of you. Yay!

Best part, it takes up very little floor space and you barely have to do any work to bring this pesticide-free produce to life. The app that comes with this system makes things super easy, reminding you when it's time to do each step, so it won't be adding extra work to a busy mama's life. In fact, I don't have a green thumb at all, and my plants are thriving. 

The 2.0 is 30% off right now, and you can use code THATBLISSFULBALANCE for an extra $100 off of that! So this is an amazing deal right now if you want to nurture the nurturer in your life with an array of easy-to-grow produce. 
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Give her a night in a hotel...all to herself. Book her a room at a nice hotel with plush bedding and blackout curtains. Have her order room service. Let her sleep for as long as she wants. This is something I think every mom of young children fantasizes about, because breakfast in bed doesn't really feel like pampering unless you don't have to worry about cleaning up the crumbs. 

A sauna blanket for when she just needs a moment to sweat out the stress (because almost all moms probably have adrenal fatigue from running on all cylinders 24/7...yes, 24/7...because even in the night our brains don't turn off.)

In addition to all the health benefits, this HigherDOSE sauna blanket takes up way less space than a traditional sauna, is a fraction of the cost, and you can take it anywhere (like the bathroom...your bedroom...a closet...or you know, when you travel, I guess...) PLUS, they're doing a Mother's Day Sale right now and you can get 20% off with the code: DOSEFORMOM
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I hope those ideas give you some inspiration for how to celebrate Mom this Mother's Day. Just remember, most of all, moms want to feel appreciated. Mamas work so hard every day, so whatever you do, make sure she feels seen, cherished, and loved.

It's almost Earth Day​,​ and although technically every day is a day on Earth and thus an Earth Day, with the holiday coming up, I thought it'd be great to go over some ways that we can give back to our planet and make Mother Earth proud.

If you prefer listening to an audio version of this list, you can check out my podcast episode Thanks, Mother Earth, from The Friend in Your Ear Pod here:
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Here are SEVEN EASY WAYS to celebrate Earth Day with your family. (Of course you can do these even if you don't have children!)
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1. Plant a tree or garden. Let's be real...kids love to get dirty. Grown-ups, too! I mean, it's really good for you on many levels to to feel the earth with your hands. It grounds you and connects you with the earth, and it's a great learning experience for children to watch things grow and to see the cycle of life from seed to fully thriving plant. If you don't have access to a yard, see if you can find a community garden in your area. Or you can do a windowsill garden. OR...you can go the hydroponic route indoors and bypass the dirt altogether, but still instill the values of growth and caretaking. I have an indoor Gardyn and my son is obsessed with seeing how much bigger the plants are each day. (If you use code: THATBLISSFULBALANCE, you can save $100 off a system of your own!)
2. Go on a nature scavenger hunt. This is really simple. You can just write up a short list of various things you might find outdoors and then go to a local park or nature reserve, or even just your own backyard, and have your kids find these various items like pinecones, daffodils, or even just rocks. Fun fact: We have a lot of rocks in our house... Here is a FREE printable I found for an Earth Day Scavenger hunt.
3. Make crafts from recycled materials. This is a great one for reusing items that would normally go out in the recycling bin like cardboard boxes, paper tubes, bottle caps, etc. You can make bird feeders, binoculars, and musical instruments. My son got the idea to make a windchime from recycled materials from a Daniel Tiger episode. He decorated a paper towel tube with paint and stickers, then we just punched some holes in bottom of the tube and tied on pieces of twine with bottle caps that we had glued to each end. Though it's not exactly water-safe, it was still a cute craft idea and I love that it inspired him to reuse these materials and give them some new life. 
4. Read books about the earth. There are a lot of children's books that teach about the importance of the Earth and how to take care of it to get kids thinking about how big the world is and how much it provides for us. Reading these books can spark some deep conversations with kids and inspire them to care more for our world, which is a beautiful thing. A book that I found that I thought was really beautiful is by Patricia McLaughlin, and it's called My Friend Earth. It has a beautiful illustrations and engaging peekaboo pages. 
5. Have a candlelight picnic. What a fun way to teach kids about using less energy while making dinnertime something novel and fun. Turn off the lights and have a family picnic by candlelight. You can eat foods that don't require cooking and give kids a demonstration of how things used to be before electricity. (Isn't it wild how new electricity really is in the grand scheme of things?) 
6. Start a compost pile. Composting is a great way to reduce waste and to create nutrient rich soil for your garden or indoor plants. You can also often contribute compost to the community if you don't have a use for it at your own home. Either way, composting is a great way to reduce your overall waste that you would otherwise be putting into the trash. And if you're not into the outdoor style of composting, you can get a more compact indoor composter. I got one last year called a Lomi, which I love because it just sits on our countertop and makes composting extremely convenient. This style is a lot faster than the traditional outdoor methods too, which makes it a bit more attractive as a teaching tool for children who have shorter attention spans (though...don't we all have shorter attention spans these days? heh...) Either way, it's really crazy to see a bucketful of waste turn into dirt in the course of hours. (Lomi is currently running a sale for Earth Day, so it's a great time to grab one if this level of ease and convenience is your vibe like it was mine...)
7. Clean up your neighborhood. Find a community cleanup event in your area or even just take it up on your own. This might be a better one for older kids, but younger kids still love to feel like helpers, and having them help pick up litter in the park (while wearing protective gloves and with supervision of course) can help to teach the importance of always putting trash where it belongs so that it doesn't cause harm to animals or the earth. 

I hope these seven ideas give some inspiration for celebrating Earth Day!

Hey there, fellow procrastinators of the world! Are you feeling stuck in a rut of indecision and hesitation? Are you constantly putting things off because of that pesky voice in your head saying, "it's not good enough yet"? Well, I'm here to tell you (from my own personal struggle with perfectionistic procrastination) that it's time we embrace the messy middle and just Do the Dang Thing!

Now, I know it's easier said than done. Trust me, as someone who has struggled with perfectionistic procrastination for my whole life, I totally get it. But let's be real, perfection is just an illusion. It doesn't exist in the real world, and it's simply holding us back from achieving our goals. So, let's make a pact to stop letting perfectionism hold us back. Let's get back to our roots, back to how we all are before perfectionism takes hold. Where should we look to? 
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To help us on our journey, let's take a cue from the ultimate pros at just getting started: babies. Babies take their first steps with no knowledge of what it's going to look like, they just know they want to walk. So they try, they fall and they get back up, over and over again until they are walking and then soon running. They don't let those falls deter them for their goal of MOVING FORWARD. They go for it without fear. And that's the key to it: the more we take those first steps, the more easily we'll be able to get up when we fall.

The point is, it doesn't matter how many times we fall--what matters is if we get back up. And the only way to guarantee failure is if we don't try. So, let's put aside those feelings of fear about what our first step might look like. Embrace the messiness. It's part of the process. Let's put ourselves out there! let's be messy! Let's stumble and fall and laugh at ourselves as we wipe the dust from our knees and try again. The key is: we just have to start, and everything else will fall into place.

It's time to stop letting perfectionism hold us back. Let's normalize the messy middle. It's time to Do the Dang Thing, messy first steps and all. The world is waiting for us to put ourselves out there. So let's get moving, and don't forget to laugh at ourselves along the way. After all, it's all just one big, hilarious, messy, beautiful journey. Are you with me? ​

The holiday season begins officially this week, though I've been getting in the spirit since Nov 1st (and maybe a few days prior...) What can I say...I love the holidays and want the magic to last as long as possible.  I know I'm not alone, right?

I've rounded up a nice selection of luxe and cozy gifts for the women in your life to suit every budget and put a smile on her face, because "smiling's my favorite." (And if you don't get that quote, DO YOU EVEN LIKE CHRISTMAS? 

Okay, okay. Let's get rockin' around this gift guide, because we need a little Christmas, right this very minute...and I only have a little while before my sleeping babe wakes from his nap. 
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Baby, it's cold outside, so let's start thinking about the holidays...and presents underneath the tree. But before I get started, I'm just going to whip up a mug of hot cocoa and a batch of gingerbread cookies to get me in the right state of mind. Thinking treats, you know? (I swear...it's purely for holiday brain fuel!) If you want to join me, be my guest. ;)

Most of these gift ideas are things I've already bought or are going to be buying for my baby boy (who will be 4 months by Christmas), so keep in mind that most of these gifts will be for that age-range, but some of these ideas will work for older kids, too. There's a range of price-points, which I will mention in the text below each item, and every photo will be a clickable link to make it easier for you to shop (because parenting is time-consuming as it is!)

Cocoa in hand, let's begin! 
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Double, Double, Toil and Trouble. Cauldron Burn and PUMPKIN bubble!

If Fall makes you pumpkin crazy and you're looking for another way to indulge, whip up this simple smoothie! Depending on your mood and occasion, this HEALTHY and yummy smoothie can be made two ways: a spookier green slime version as seen above (great for kiddos or a creepy Halloween party treat) or the more traditional look of pumpkin pie....but in a cup. 

The fun part of this is that the spooky kid-friendly version actually has a TRICK in its ghoulish glass...extra VEGGIES! And you can't even taste them! It's just pumpkin spice and everything nice.

One of my "nesting" obsessions while pregnant became turning our empty downstairs patio into a relaxing oasis. I'm not entirely sure why this became an obsession, but pregnancy does some weird things to your priorities and timeline. (Around the same time I became obsessed with organizing the fridge.)

We had a hot tub installed on this patio last Fall, but the rest of it was just completely blah and blank. It's under our 3 season sunroom, so it's covered, and I wanted to make it feel even more like an outdoor room so that it was more aesthetically pleasing to look at from the hot tub and could also be an additional entertaining space (or a place for me to sit and relax at while Evan went in the hot tub since I couldn't while pregnant). With the baby on the way though, I didn't want to splurge too much on the furniture and decided instead to invest in a few key decorative pieces to keep the project stylish but still affordable.