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Four Reasons To Drop The Mom-Guilt NOW!

A new mom that can’t breastfeed, a young mother of two who will miss her son’s first soccer game, and an older mother who can’t be with her sick daughter who lives across the country.  What do all these things have in common? MOM GUILT!!  I’ve been told that no matter how old children get, their mothers never stop worrying about them and I’m of the opinion that the same goes for the dreaded mom guilt. It never goes away. The truth of the matter is being a mom is hard and we need to give ourselves a break and here’s why:

  1. You aren’t perfect: No mom is!  You shouldn’t feel let down if you aren’t able to be in ten places at once and anticipate everyone’s needs and every sickness your child is going to have.  You are not a robot with endless energy. You are human and are doing your best.  And your best is good enough. In fact, it’s perfect. Trust us.
  2. Your guilt doesn’t help: If you are beating yourself up about coming up short all the time, you are never going to be able to enjoy the moment and what you do have.  Sure, guilt from coming up short might motivate you temporarily, but carrying guilt for too long will only make you feel worse in the long run  Let it go and move on.
  3. Your kids love you: It’s true, they really do!  They will be fine even if you forgot to dress them in pajamas for pajama day.  I promise, your child will survive. And chances are, if you are beating yourself up about something, they will feed off that energy and make you feel worse than your already do.  Are all their basic needs met? If the answer is yes, your kids love you.  If the answer is no, your kids love you. Twenty years from now your kids will not even remember.
  4. You can give yourself a break: True story time. I’m missing my daughter’s first softball game of the season this week because I have concert tickets with my best friend who I haven’t seen in 6 months.  When I told my daughter, she gave me a little grief and for a brief minute I thought about cancelling plans (sorry Amy!) I made 7 months before my daughter even decided she wanted to play softball.  Then, I told her that her daddy and brother would be there and I would make it to the next one.  She gave a whiney “OK” and then moved on to talking about something else.  The point is that I gave myself a break and you can too.  Your life does not have to be all about the kids, all the time.  Just be sure to cheer extra loud at the next game. Do your best, be present and remember you are human too.

What is your best reason for letting go of the dreaded Mom-Guilt?  Let us know in the comments below!

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The Stork Bag Recipes: Yummy and Colorful Fruit Pizza

The Stork Bag Recipes: Yummy and Colorful Fruit Pizza

How could you not love this easy, colorful recipe that puts a fun twist on pizza.

Check out this yummy recipe straight from the kitchen of The Stork Bag Founder, Ericka Perry.

What you need:

2 Cans of Pillsbury Grands Homestyle Biscuits (Not sponsored) They fluff really well and taste extra yummy with the cream cheese and fruit.

1 package (8 oz) cream cheese (Softened)

1 tsp. of lemon juice

1 1/2 Tbsp of White {Cane} Sugar

Kiwis Peeled and sliced

1 1/2 Strawberries rinsed, dried and sliced in halves

1 Cup of Blueberries (rinsed and dried)

1 Cup of Raspberries (rinsed and dried)

*or substitute similar fruits to make your own yummy creation!

Directions:

Step 1: Remove biscuits from cans and set aside in a bowl at room temperature.

Step 2: Place softened cream cheese in mixing bowl, add lemon juice and mix on medium until well blended. Set cream cheese and lemon juice mixture aside.

Step 3: Remove biscuits from bowl and place on lightly greased flat surface. Next you’ll want to mold the biscuits together and flatten until the biscuits are in a rounded pizza dough like form. Place your biscuit “pizza dough” on a cookie sheet and bake at 350 degrees for 13-17 minutes or until golden brown. Remove and cool for 15 minutes.

Step 4:  Spread your cream cheese mixture over the entire cooled biscuit crust.

Step 5: Place all of your fruit on top of the cream cheese and sprinkle with sugar. Place completed Fruit Pizza in the refrigerator to cool for 1 hour.

Step 6: Enjoy!

We hope that you enjoy this yummy treat!

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Review: The Power Of A Positive Mom

The Stork Bag - Review The Power of a Positive Mom

*This article from our archives was written by The Stork Bag founder Ericka Perry.*

Hi mommas, this is an unsponsored, ‘in a nutshell’ review of one of my latest reads, The Power of a Positive Mom by Karol Ladd. I received this book as a gift and I have to say, I love it.

The breakdown of the book is great for busy moms, as it gives you 7 different principles broken down into separate sections. I totally don’t want to give away the wisdom within this book but I will say that the power of mommy’s actions and thoughts directly impact that of the child and families. One part of this book that was my favorite was having an ‘Attitude of Gratitude’. This section of the book speaks about ‘Creating a Thankful Environment’ where the author uses real life examples to illustrate the meaning and importance behind this. Karol also writes about gratitude being contagious and how we shape our children’s attitudes by implementing a consistent attitude of gratitude.

This book also explains the importance of ‘Harmony With Hubby’ and ‘The Power of Strong Relationships’. The breakdown of this section within the book provides ‘Fire Builder’ tips, which help with ideas to keep the flame going in your marriage. Exemplifying strong relationship skills is key to leading by example for your children. When children see the positive impact that having strong relationships can have on life, they are more inclined to want these types of relationships as well. This is incredibly beneficial to the social development of your children.

‘Living Lesson Books’ is also one of my favorite parts of The Power of a Positive Mom; it illustrates how our actions speak louder than words. I think as parents it is important for us to not only tell our children what is right and what is wrong, but to also show them this through our actions. Our children are watching us even when we don’t realize it, and as parents we have the responsibility of shaping another person for this world.

The Power of a Positive Mom is a great read for every mother.

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Adventures of Motherhood: Planning (Shared By A Mommy of 3 Under 3!)

The Stork Bag - Adventures Of Motherhood: Planning?!–Shared By A Mommy Of 3 Under 3!

*We hope you enjoy this guest blog from The Stork Bag Archives.*

Planning. Yep, you read it right! This mom of three under three had plans and NOTHING was going to keep me from them. The snow had us house bound for the last three days but I was determined to have the last say. We were breaking free from the house and I had my mind set on a day of outside fun and adventure for me and my kiddos. I was determined to plan a fun day for myself and my young children.

The night before I had done some browsing on the Internet to find a few things we could do the next day. I found an indoor hands museum for kids and right next to it, a new ice cream parlor with all the fixings that had just been built. Plus, on the way home, we would stop off at the Dollar Tree so the kids could pick out a new toy. BINGO! There you have it! My plans were totally awesome and sure to get me “oohs” and “aahhs” from my kiddos. As a matter of fact, these plans would deem me the best mom on the planet. Darn it, I should get a star on boardwalk after all the time I put into scheduling the day. (I know I’m a bit dramatic but bear with me!). I bathed the kids and picked out their clothes the night before and laid them down to bed by 8:30.

“This mama was on a roll and quite honestly, I was proud of myself. Adventure, here we come!”

 

My alarm went off by 8:00AM and I was determined to be out of the house by ten in order for us to arrive at the museum by 11. As I’m scrambling to get the kids dressed so they can eat breakfast, I heard my husband yell, “Hey honey, can you make me a breakfast sandwich really quick? I’m running behind to get out the door for work.” Breakfast Sandwich? Breakfast Sandwich? It wasn’t what I had factored into my morning 2 hour timeline but it would only take about 5 minutes or so to fry an egg and bacon right? So why not! I hurried up and dressed the kids and sat them down for breakfast while I got started on hubby’s sandwich. “Mommy my hair!” my two year old Chloe reminded me. She’s a princess in every sense of the word and has to look her best at all times. “Ok Chloe. Eat your breakfast first and mommy will do your hair,” I reminded her. I managed to get all the kids seated for breakfast as well as make my husbands breakfast.

“I checked the clock – 8:45AM. I’m still doing OK.”

Once I helped get hubby out of the door, I went to the back and grabbed the brush and comb to get started on Chloe’s hair. When I called for her to come here, she answered, “I coming Mommy! I ate all my food!” Well folks, that was an understatement. She ate all her food and apparently her shirt did too! There were bananas and milk all over her face, hair and clothes. This could not have happened at a worse time! I rushed to get her cleaned up, changed her clothes and got her hair squeezed into two ponytails. Her hair wasn’t particularly a work of art, but hey, it would have to do. The clock read 9:15AM. We were cutting it close but we could still make it!

As I got the kids ready with their hats and coats on, I realized I didn’t have my wallet on me. Where the heck could it be? I searched the house up and down and couldn’t find it anywhere! After 18 minutes of searching, I finally located it under the couch. As I got ready to place my 11 month old in her car seat, this putrid smell filled the room. What is that awful smell?! I went from kid to kid investigating the source of the smell and quickly realized the baby had a blow out that went all the way up her back. It had seeped out of her clothes and into her carseat. Welp, there goes our plans. I undressed the kids from their coats and got the baby cleaned up.

“I felt deflated and defeated.”

The kids were sad when I told them we weren’t going to be able to go because I had to run Haven’s car seat cover through the wash and we wouldn’t make it in time. I managed to find some ice cream we had had in the freezer and 4 measly maraschino cherries in the refrigerator. To spice things up a little more, I rummaged through the cabinet to find some sprinkles from the kids Christmas party 3 months back and let them use those as well (don’t judge me!). After we got our sundaes situated, I popped some popcorn, and we all nuzzled in front of the TV to watch Tangled. I felt awful – as if I had let them down. Here I was with these big lavish plans to get them out of the house, and they all fell flat, leaving us bound to the house again.

Right before I was about to sneak to the bathroom to privately sulk, my son Josiah turned to me with his ice cream mustache smile and said, “Mommy I happy! This is so much fun!” Those words penetrated every frustration I had had in that moment and completely melted them away. At the end of the day that was my main purpose, wasn’t it? Here I was upset about my plans falling through. I was so upset that I almost let the possibility of creating amazing moments with my kids at home slip by. Whether at a fancy new ice cream parlor, or at home eating ice cream sundaes with Christmas sprinkles from months before, the things that mattered most to my kids were that we were together and creating another memory.

“I quickly learned to be easier on myself and give space for the unexpected things to happen.”

Plans don’t always go as planned and that’s ok. Sometimes we have to make the best of the current situation we are presented with. Don’t let the disappointments of what could have been steal the joys of what is. The kids and I had a cozy afternoon together and I was so grateful to be able to still spend that quality time with them at home. The day turned out amazing… better than if I had planned it myself.