A letter to my kiddos on Mother's Day...

A letter to my kiddos on Mother's Day...

Dear Mags and Jags,

Tomorrow will be my fourth year as a mother on Mother's Day.  I want you to know that I waited (im)patiently for you for a long time!  I dreamed that you'd join us, Earthside, during so many long nights and even more days than I can recall.  

My life no longer resembles the life I had prior to 3.5 years ago.  I signed up for that. My career has drastically shifted, I have bags under my eyes, and my coffee is always cold by the time it reaches my lips.  It's hard to feel like a bada$$ - in business, in life - with various bodily fluids gripping onto my shirt threads.  There's 40,789 daily toddler questions and mysterious scratches on my face (didn't I just cut your nails?!)  Date night now consists of squeezing in 10 minutes of Shark Tank on the DVR before the first nighttime feeding.  That's right - hot dates over here in the Allen household.  ;-)

Then….THEN….the sleepless nights!

Sleepless on Long Island.

Sleepless in Love.

I signed up for this.

Ugh.  You know what?  The sleepless nights are HARD, but they're also WONDERFUL.  There, I said it.  This does not mean I can't use this against you in the future, by the way.  Certainly I should be able to squeeze an extra chore or 2 out of you both in the future, right?  Here's the truth.  I kinda, sorta cherish the sleepless nights.  (Shh - don't tell Daddy!)  There's something about the blanket of darkness and silence that calms my hyperactive monkey brain.  As I nourish your body with mine, my soul is overflowing with joy.  You see, I'm not counting the loads of laundry I didn't get to the day before or worrying about completing a client email in a few hours. I'm present.  I breathe you in.  There's this bond that's so overwhelmingly beautiful, it's bone-shattering (the other mamas will understand what I mean).

I signed up for this.

I literally signed up for all of this.

That first appointment I had with the fertility doc happened to fall on a hot summer day.  This was helpful as my tears were camouflaged by the beads of sweat.

I signed the consent forms - all of them - for every procedure, test, poke & prod.  I'd do it all again. Times a million.

I signed up to be your mama.  I'm a lucky, lucky mama.

Now that we're all here, I promise to keep my feet on the ground and my eyes on the stars - thanking them for the dream-come-true.  I'm not perfect (truly, I'm not!), but I promise to do my best - as humans do.  I promise to love you AND YOUR MOTHER.  You see, this business, the food I cook to nourish our family, the active lifestyle we lead…it's for you.  It's for us.  You deserve a mama that's here for you; a leading lady in your life ready to spring into action when needed or help support you through your childhood and adult challenges - changing careers, parenthood, filing for AARP.  Did I mention that I plan on being here for a while?  ;-)

M & J, tomorrow is Mother's Day.  You are 1 & 3 years old.  There may be a card for me, a brunch to celebrate me and the other special grand-mothers in your life, even a period of time in which you see me sit back for a few to take it all in.  Let me tell you a secret… I won't be celebrating me.  I'll be celebrating you.  I'll be thanking my lucky stars and wondering what I did to deserve the best.

Magnolia and Jagger, though I prefer "mama", it ain't so bad being your "mother" on Mother's Day.  Thanks for the title.  Thanks for the moments.  Thanks for the memories and laughter and hugs.  I definitely signed up for this.

In Joy,

Mama

Bathroom Magic

Come on….come into the bathroom with me!  

Weird?  Sort of.  Helpful?  I hope so!  In this short video (read: SHORT - have I mentioned I need A LOT more storage on my phone?  I got 99 problems…and mobile storage is #1)...

…Anyway, in this short video I share 3 products I use daily that I swear by.  These are not affiliates of mine, I'm just a believer in their health benefits!  If you work with me, these may sound familiar to you already as I suggest only the best for my clients.  ;-)  Each of these items are under $10 or $15, last a while, and won't take more than 45 seconds (total) to implement.  

Have I piqued your curiosity?

Ahh, guys…I see my viewership numbers growing here and I'm so excited!  Please let me know what you'd like to see more of.  Leave comments below so I can say hello.  I'm a mama of an infant and toddler - you know that means I need more adult conversations in my day, right?

In health,

Tara

Halloween - The Gateway Holiday & 25 Alternatives to Giving Out Junky Candy

It's October now.  We've survived back-to-school and maybe even are feeling a little more on top of things with a return to schedules and routines.  Gone are the Summer s'mores and unlimited Sangria pitchers.  Now, we may not be perfect (and why should we be?), but let's not run the train off the tracks here with the upcoming holiday season.  I know everyone is aware of the ridiculous overeating that happens at Thanksgiving and the weekly holiday parties and Auntie Anne's mall pretzels that jump in our mouths while shopping in December.  But, can we stop for a minute to talk about the big secret here? HALLOWEEN is actually THE gateway holiday!  Halloween is the start of the chocolate overdoses, candy highs, and resulting sugar cravings that won't go away.  You buy 5 bags of candy to give out to the kids because you ate the previous 5 bags of candy that you bought to give out to the kids.  Before October 15th.  Because they were on sale. A few (handfuls) too many of these fun-sized treats leads to a not-so-fun-sized amount of bonus holiday pounds.  Then what?  Halloween's candy rolls right into Thanksgiving's pies which turn into Christmas' cookies before you can say "green smoothie".  Oh, hello New Years!  Now it's time to proclaim my resolution for a healthier me - the same one I've made the past 12 years in a row - over a few glasses of champagne.  Hmmm.

Or…….

You can try some new options to hand out to trick or treaters this year.  Not only will your neighbors thank you, but when you or the little people grab 1 (or 5) of these snacks for yourself, your body (especially your waist and immune system) and the kiddos (sugar-high tantrums, anyone?) will be much better off.  Plus, what's cooler than being the healthy-ish mom on the block (says the health nerd)?

25 Alternatives to Junky Candy: Tricking and Treating your way to a healthier Halloween...

The items below follow just a few rules.  They are all:

• Individually wrapped (tamper-proof)
• Non-perishable
• Healthier than typical candy
• Can be purchased in bulk
• Slightly more exciting than giving out pennies or boxes of raisins (though that IS another option).  

1. Mini Larabars
2. Dark chocolate
3. Trail mix mini packs
4. Single-serve popcorn
5. Single-serve veggie chips
6. Pretzels
7. Organic candy (No artificial colors or flavors?  That's a win!)
8. Freeze-dried fruit or veggie packets
9. Pureed fruit/veggie pouches
10. Apple chips
11. Beef Jerky (Weird tip from the vegetarian, huh?)
12. Dried fruit (apricots, mango, apples)
13. Mini granola bars
14. Coconut water single-serve boxes
15. Various milk single-serve boxes (regular, dairy-free, etc.)
16. Pumpkin seeds (how apropos)
17. Bananas or apples
18. Applesauce containers
19. Freeze-dried yogurt bites
20. Individual bags popcorn kernels (hold the nasty chemicals)
21. Small packets nut butter / sun butter
22. Gum (sugar and fake sugar-free; bonus points if it has xylitol for their teeth!)
23. Coconut shreds
24. Individual boxes of oats or cereal
25. Hot chocolate mix pouches (look for dark chocolate and one with the least amount of ingredients)

***With the rise of food allergies, it's worth noting that many of the listed items contain common allergens (nuts, gluten, dairy).  These won't work for everyone.  I recommend keeping a separate container of things like stickers, temporary tattoos, and glow sticks around for the children that need to be super careful of what they eat.

Here's to a boo-ti-ful October!  ;-)

In health,

Tara