Family Vacation

Hey everyone! We just got back from a wonderful family vacation! It was so nice to get away from school and take a break from taxiing kids from school to sporting events. It also helps that we were in Hawaii, the land of relaxation and sun. 

Having a big family means we always must be careful about our spending. Everything seems to get more expensive and our income seems to stay the same or increases at a slow rate. We have learned to be frugal over the years.  

We could easily have skipped the vacation, saved the money, and put it towards basic day to day bills, but then we wouldn’t get those memories. Money comes and goes but time doesn’t.  It just goes and then it’s gone.  Taking those vacations and spending time with loved ones is always worth it.  Its good for your mind, body and soul.  Maybe a big vacation like Hawaii isn’t realistic right now but you can always make mini ones happen.

Till next time.

Cheer’s my Wino’s

May 25, 2019 at 3:53 PM Permalink

Homework day

Homework day’s

Who here hates homework? I do and I don’t.  I understand they need it to help reinforce their understanding of what goes on in the classroom but sometimes it feels like so much.  I am sure its because of all the extra activities we put kids in these days but most of the time its because the kids want to do those extra activities. 

Between school getting out at 2-3pm, at least an hour of homework each night (some times more depending on your kid), sports, getting them to bed at a decent time so they are ready for school the next day and not to mention reading at a minimum of 15-20mins, what time is there to be a kid? What time is there for us to enjoy them being a kid? I mean just rereading that makes my head spin, right?

Today, Thursday, we usually must have all our school work done to turn in by Friday. And do you see how I said OUR??? Yes, it is OUR school work because, we as moms take the hits if the kid doesn’t do or half asses his/her homework. One of my kids put off doing a big part of his homework. I was fine with it and kept reminding him that by today he would have a lot to do before track practice. He kept reassuring me that ‘yes mom, I’ll do it Thursday and not make a fuss about it’.  Well that brings us to today… Can anyone guess what happened when I told him he had to finish it before track otherwise no track practice?? I bet if you’re a mom you are screaming out the answer now. Yes, you guessed it.  A total meltdown tantrum.  Ugh, why oh why do I insist on doing this to myself. After almost an hour of him crying and me pulling teeth to get him to do one page my husband said, ‘let me take him to track because noting is getting done’. I wanted to throw my shoe at my husband and scream ‘because if he goes then everything I’ve said means nothing and he will do this again and again and again dummy’.  But instead I smiled and looked outside, took a deep breathe and said ‘yes, go and have fun’.

As they left, I sat there wondering why we put so much pressure on ourselves to make sure everything is perfect.  I mean I know, don’t back down or else they will see your weakness blah blah blah.  But do I like sitting here watching him cry over a stupid assignment that when he’s in the mood can finish in ten minutes?? No! Do our kids really need to make every practice? Do they always have to do their homework at that moment? Where is the fun?? When do they get to play and be kids? Better question is when do we get to enjoy them at this stage of their lives?? TODAY!

So, they left, and I told my other kids ‘lets go outside, get dirty and play’. Something I have to remember is that life goes so fast so I need to take those days and be selfish with my kids more.  Screw homework/sports/other activities occasionally. I won’t regret time spent together.

Cheer’s my Wino’s

Apr 25, 2019 at 5:07 PM Permalink

Wine in a Can??!!!!

Mommy’s Trip away

A few weekends ago, some of my mommy friends and I got to take a trip and get away for the weekend. It was a wonderful weekend filled with activities I was able to do before kids were in the picture like eat in a nice restaurant, order whatever food I wanted, have a drink whenever I wanted, only having to worry about dressing myself, watching my TV shows, working out whenever I felt like it, etc.  It was so nice, and the place was just stunning!  I mean if your ever up in Avila and looking for a place to stay, I highly recommend Sycamore Springs Restore. 

Anyway, one of the first thing we did when we arrived was rent some beach cruisers, take a bike path down to the beach, and do a little wine tasting.  As we were getting on the bikes, one of my friends handed out waters and some wine in a can to put in our baskets.  It was the first time I had had wine in a can, and it was so amazing and convenient.  Don’t get me wrong I have seen wine in a can before, but I never thought about buying it, let alone drinking it.  How do we all feel about canned wine? It was very convenient, it tasted amazing, never had to worry about breaking any glass, it fits well in a purse, would be perfect for a pool, beach, or park day. It would be so easy to take camping and/or a BBQ party.  I am thinking this is something we can see Mother’s Retreat doing in the future! Keep an eye out!

Until next time,

Cheer’s to my Wino’s  

Apr 24, 2019 at 1:02 PM Permalink

Summer time is coming!

Who’s ready for summer?

We are back to school from spring break vacation. It was so nice doing absolutely nothing for a week. I know, I know most of my mom friends were dying to send their kids back to school and I have a kid who is very reliant on routine so it can get tricky in our house.  But not having to wake the kids up and drive them to school, pick them up, and run to one sporting event to another was wonderful. Also, it was nice having my kids home and doing fun, spontaneous things with them like going to the beach.  It was amazing coming home and letting them play outside until the sun went down while I enjoyed a nice glass of Rose’, and we all know how much I like my Rose’.  It just gave me a glimpse into the summer time. Summer will be here soon enough, and we can all enjoy those summer nights perhaps with a glass of Mother’s Retreat Wine!

Cheers my Wino’s

Apr 23, 2019 at 12:45 PM Permalink

Funny spring morning

Hello my MR wine-es,

Hope you all have been well and are enjoying this spring weather.  I apologize for my absence. Life happened and kid sports. Of course that means so much extra work, late dinners, more meal planning, trying to figure out when in the world can the kids get their homework done, etc. I am now finally coming up for air and hopefully will be more consistent. Maybe. Hmm. I will do my best haha.

So funny thing happened this morning. The kids are on spring break and my husband has the day off because it is Good Friday. What does spring break mean for a mom??? It means nothinhg, just another day but you aren't bound by the timeline of school drop offs and pick ups.  So, a more relaxing morning becasue we dont HAVE to be anywhere. Does that mean I get to sleep in? NO, of course not hahah, sleep in hahah whats that.

Anyway, I went downstairs and started my normal breakfast prep and my oldest had asked me to make pancakes for breakfast.  I made a batch and as the kids trickled down the stairs, I gave them a milk and pancake.  After taking my husband his morning coffee in bed, he finally came downstairs. I decided to take advantage of him being home and told him I was going to go for a run. 

At this point, all of my kids except for one had come down and had breakfast.  I said to my husband "hey, I am going for a run and everyone is awake except Maddison. Can you make sure she gets a milk and give her a pancake when she gets up?". OH MY GOSH, guys if you had seen his face when I said this... I should have taken a picture! It was so funny becasue his face was confused, shocked, and giving me a questioning look.  He then responded with "wait I have to make her a pancake...ummm, ok....wait with what?" I figured I would let him suffer and think that he actually has to make her pancakes instead of telling him that I had some ready for her. This went on for a few mintures and it was so funny watching him panic.  I finally told him that he didn't have to make anything and it was all ready to go for him. The relief that washed over his face was priceless.  But man was that fun! Great joke to play on your husbands! Maybe next time I will tell him he has to do the laundry for the week....hahahhaha.                                                                                                                                                                             I will definitely have a glass of MR Rose' tonight!

Cheers

Apr 19, 2019 at 12:03 PM Permalink

Busy Times

These past few weeks have been an emotional rollercoaster, let me tell you.  Waking up to a local bar shooting, one that I visited often as a teen/ early twenties, was surreal.  It was not only heartbreaking but also unbelievable. All the normal questions came to mind: why, who would do this, are we safe, should I take my kids to school today? Well, I did take the kids to school, but I was uneasy most of the day.  Good thing my kids had one of those running fundraisers at school, so I was there most of the morning anyway. But then the second part of the day hit us with another hard blow.

As I was dropping off one of my friend’s kids, I looked up and noticed smoke coming from the mountain that we frequently hike.  At first, I thought it’s not that big of a deal, the firefighters will put it out quick, but then the wind just got stronger and stronger.  All the sudden we were all on fire watch and we were getting beaten down by wind.  Wind never helps during a fire, but this wind was not stopping and went on for a few days.  I don’t know what it is about the wind but for some reason my kids get crazier than normal. It’s like something goes off in their heads saying ‘ok its time to get into everything and test how far we can push mom before she breaks’. It didn’t help that we were indoors because of the smoke from the fires, but they were bouncing off the walls and I was going a bit crazy myself.  Thanks to my friends and some wine, we were able to survive the rambunctious children.

As soon as everything settled down and we were able to get back to our routine, it was time for the holidays to begin!! Which is always a rollercoaster of emotions! It was like we were at Six Flags going from one scary, heart pounding ride to another. It always starts off happy to see everyone, which then quickly turns into stressed out at all the work that needs to get done, but then your sad when it’s over, and mad that your kids hurt your decorations, and the list goes on and on.  But this season already started off with so many horrible things; shooting, wind, and fire, that even though I am already emotionally drained, I am also grateful for everything in my life.  It is so easy to get caught up in all the big bad thing that happen in this world, but what really matter is all the little, just as important, good things that are easily overlooked.  It is something I need to remind myself every morning, and the days that I do remind myself, I find that my day is a whole lot better. So, let’s cheers today to all the little things, like the kids making their beds or having no laundry to do, or the random hugs we get.  Today, lets cheers to all the good small things that happened in our day and be grateful for all that we have.  Cheers

Nov 29, 2018 at 8:28 AM Permalink

Mom tribe

Nov 7, 2018 at 6:10 PM Permalink

Pick and Choose

Life is a big balancing act. If you pick to do one thing then chances are you must give up another thing. Being a mom, we make these ‘sacrifices’ daily. “Hmm do I fold the NEVER-ENDING laundry or start prepping for dinner?” or “Should I give the twins a bath or do the dishes?”. We only have so many hours in the day and even though some days are endless it still isn’t enough time to get to everything. One thing that I am learning more and more in my life is what are the things that can wait over the things that are of importance. This has taken me so much time to figure out but the older my kids get the clearer it has become to me. Here is an example: Laundry vs. playing soccer with your kid when they ask- laundry will always be there an we will always have something to wear because we have more clothing then we actually need so it doesn’t need to be done right away, but when your kid asks for your to kick around the ball and play some soccer that really cannot wait because the older they get the less likely they will ask and you will miss that opportunity. Plus, what is ten mins out of your day really? Another example: work vs. your ‘you’ time- Technology is a blessing but, its probably the worst thing ever. People used to go to work then come home and that would be the end of the work day. In todays world people come home from work to work more from home, on their computers, cell phones, etc. Work is never ending and there is always more to do and its interfering with family time and you down time. Both are important, and we are not getting enough of either. We’ve ‘scarified’ our personal time for what, more stress, working hard for the same pay, ensuring that we will be grumpy?? This shouldn’t be the sacrifices we make. When you get home, you should turn your phone off, put your computer away, leave the tv off, for at least an hour and go do something for you! Go out on a jog, bike ride, walk, or go read a book, paint your nails, take a long shower or go grab a drink with a friend of loved one. You should do something or anything for you. What’s an hour in the grand scheme of things? If people call, they will leave a message and guess what those emails will still be there in an hour. Remember if you can’t take care of yourself then you can’t take care of anyone else. Take that time for you and your family. Until next time, Cheers.

Nov 3, 2018 at 8:55 AM Permalink

Our First Event

So last week we hosted our very first event with Fit4Mom of Thousand Oaks.  I have to be honest, even though I have known this group for a long time and I owe a lot to these ladies for their constant support and love, I was so nervous!!
For the past 8 years all I have known is the mom life.  I took a step back from professional work when I became a mom.  I am super good at talking with kids and babies, changing diapers, laundry, and all that has to do with kids, but talking to other adults about something that we have created and trying to sound professional, well that is scary!
 These women were great! It reminded me why we created this wine and this brand in the first place. Everyone tried the wine and loved it, but most importantly they were able to get out of the house and have some much needed 'them' time.
I was able to speak to most of them throughout the night and hear about their lives, the daily struggles they go through, and what they do to make time for themselves.  Fit4Mom is a fitness group for moms.  They have classes M-Sat where you bring your children in the stroller and do hard but fun workouts.  They have even expanded it to 5:45am classes for those mom's that want that extra push and take their alone time.  It was truly inspiring hearing how some of these women make it to each class and do the 5am classes as well. 
I owe a lot to Fit4Mom because when my third child was 6months old (about 4 years ago) I never thought I could leave the house and felt really alone in the mom world.  Then I was introduced to Fit4Mom and I instantly got a village.  It gave me confidence and helped me through some tough mom times.  Every mom needs a village and the only way to find your village is to do the something you want/ wanted to do.  There is always an excuse not to do something that you want to do but you will never regret doing it and always regret not doing it.  So let go of the excuses and make time for you! Cheers

Oct 29, 2018 at 11:44 AM Permalink

Monday Fundays?!

Monday's, back to drop offs, pick ups, lunches, laundry and everything else.  You would think that it would be nice to get back to school but this time of year it just seems like there is not enough hours in the day.  As soon as school starts its meet the teachers, back to school nights and homework and we all know that homework is really work for parents to do at home with the kids, am I right?  Not to mention we are at the beginning of holiday season: Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas.  It seems like every weekend is booked up with some kind of event and it really makes it hard to find time for yourself when your running in a million other directions.  But this is the time that you need to find that time to yourself.  Its important so you don't get overloaded and have a breakdown! well maybe not as many break downs haha.  So after you drop off, before you start your load of laundry and millions of chores make sure and try to read that chapter you've been wanting to read, go on that walk, meet up with that friend for some coffee, whatever it is find the time that makes you feel like you again.  One of my personal favorite things to do is put on my music, make dinner and have a nice glass of wine.  Remember to make time for your retreat.
Cheers!

Oct 8, 2018 at 7:54 PM Permalink