For several months I have quietly been working on some business ventures. I am constantly trying to expand my brand and connect with other businesses. One of my goals this year was to land at least two brand ambassador/representative contracts and I am so excited to announce that I am now a brand ambassador for Prenatal Ease!

I first discovered Prenatal Ease on Instagram earlier this year and I was very impressed with their line of products and their overall brand. I am always researching the best products for my clients and this is definitely one them. Prenatal Ease offers scientifically endorsed supplements for each stage of their pregnancy journey from preconception to nursing. They also have a wonderful plant based skin care line to help keep your skin hydrated and supple. And after speaking with Yan, one of Prenatal Ease's founders, I knew that this would be an amazing opportunity. What I love about their brand is the attention to detail in how the products were made and developed. All of their products are all natural and plant based, gluten free, never tested on animals, no artificial colors and lactose free. Their products are even suitable for vegetarians.

I could not be more excited to about this opportunity. I'm even more excited to introduce Prenatal Ease to my clients. I only want the best for them and their families and I hope to enhance their lives even more with these products. To learn more about Prenatal Ease, please visit their website. And while you are there, take advantage of their bundle deals!

​

We've all been there....

You're running late. You're trying your best to get everyone ready in a timely manner, including yourself, but of course, you leave something at home.​ Yep, the one thing you are for sure to need while you are out and about with your children is the one thing you are guaranteed to need, right?!

A few weeks ago, a video was shared in a mom's group on Facebook and the caption read, "What would you do?" I'll spare you all the details and just tell you that the video starred an infant who was strapped into her car seat only for her mom to find her and her seat covered in poop. And I do mean covered! It looked like the baby's diaper exploded all over the back of this mom's car. This video quickly prompted the moms in the group to start a discussion about what they would do in this particular situation. Here are just a few of the responses:

First comment: "Jesus be ALL the sanitizer! Keep, wipes, clothes, gloves and cleaner in the trunk at all times!"

One mom said, "Water hose everything, including the baby lol!"

Another mom simply said, "Oh My!"

After a few minutes I chimed in and said that this would be a great blog post... so here it is.

For various reasons, it is nothing less than difficult being a parent and keeping a clean car. Between the toys, drawings, school memos, mail, pet hair, crumbs, lip balm, baby socks and everything else, it seems impossible.

Okay, fine. I'll accept that. If you are a parent, your car will never be 100% clean ever again. Not even when you are pulling away from the car wash. (No, really). But wouldn't you at least like to have the things you actually NEED in the car along with all the other junk? Me too.

Here is a list of things parents should make sure they have in the car when traveling anywhere with their children (especially in the Summer):

• Baby wipes
• Diapers
• Moisturizer
• All-in-one wash
• A change of clothes for baby, siblings and parent(s)
• Old tennis shoes
• Nursing pads
• Hair ties/comb/brush
• Nail clipper/tweezers
• Sewing kit
• Tide pen
• Febreeze
• Plastic bags for trash/wipes/soiled clothes
• Deodorant
• Gloves
• Vaseline
• Disinfectant spray and/or cleaner
• Toys
• Books
• Paper/Crayons
• A towel/paper towels/tissue
• Pacifier
• Extra bottle
• Clean water
• Thermos that can hold ice and/or hot water
• Snacks
• An extra phone
• Cash
• Duck Tape
• First Aid Kit
• Roadside Emergency Kit
• A new car seat for the mom in the video (J/K)

All of these things will need to be organized and stored in an orderly fashion so you might want to get a soft storage bin or organizer like the one below (2-in-1 organizer with cooler) to keep it all within arms reach. You never know what you might need in case of an emergency!

This blog post was originally written and published on May 19, 2014 on my mom blog. In honor on Father's Day, I am re-posting this blog about my husband.
​
​My husband and I lead very busy lives. We both work full time with children & families, we are involved in our church, we have a three year old son and somehow we still find the time to volunteer, see friends, work on our individual projects and hobbies, further our educations/careers and spend time together as a family. Of course, we don’t get as much sleep as we used to and God knows that if our calendars weren’t synced, our daily lives would be a total mess. But we make it work.

I was kind of spoiled my first few months working with my NF (nanny family). My first few weeks, I worked 12-5 followed by a nice two week Christmas vacation. And up until April, I was working 10:30-5. This meant that me, my husband and PAC Man could all get up and get ready for our day together and leave together. Man, do I miss our mornings. Now that I work 9-5, I have a bit of wife/mommy guilt and I feel like I’m missing out on family time. Nevertheless, I have to go to work. But I’m never worried. I have THE BEST husband ever! He is always right there when I need him. And he is such a great father and role model for PAC Man. Over the last weeks, he has been so flexible and supportive of me and the things I have been doing and I just wanted him to know that I really appreciate it all!

Today, I want to take some time to share a few things that I want my husband to know.

• How I describe you to others: handsome, very intelligent, passionate, caring, charming, funny & selfless
• Getting out of bed and leaving you in the morning is very, very hard for me.
• I LOVE watching Drumline with you. It makes me feel like I’m married to a movie star ;)
• You make me laugh like no one else in the world!
• I constantly take pictures of you and Preston because I want him to always know how much you love him.
• The more we talk about adoption, the more I want to do it :)
• I really want to give you a daughter :) Not right now though.
• I love when you cook! You make the best bbq, lasagna and sweet potato pie!
• At the beginning of the year I started a list of daily things you did to make me smile. After only two weeks, I realized this task was taking up a lot of my time because you are usually doing just that :) I still have some of my notes :)
• I am so grateful for a mate that puts me and our son above everything else in this world. Being a wife and mother means the everything to me. I am proud to be a Collins woman. You are the only person who truly knows me and I’m so blessed to share this life with you.

​
What do you want your spouse to know?

This blog post was originally written and published February 21, 2014 on my mom blog. In honor of Father's Day, I wanted to re-post this blog about my husband. These words still ring true today.

​Today I am very excited to feature my first Mrs. Vs. Mom blog post! This is a special post not only because it is my first MVM post, but because I am introducing my other half to my readers :) I write constantly about my work life and being a mom, but being a his wife is a huge part of my life and I thought it would only be fitting to write about my greatest love :)

My husband, D, is my everything! We have been married for a little over three years, but in a few short months we will be celebrating the 10th anniversary of the day we met. Me, I fell in love instantly! I fell in love with his spirit, his drive and his brain! He is very passionate about things like community service, politics and his family. But he also loves movies, super heroes and good food. We met in college at the end of our freshman year and have been inseparable since. He is my best friend. My husband truly lives to make me (and PAC Man) happy.

He has worked with children and families for 8 years and he is also a graphic designer. I knew I wanted to marry my husband when I saw him at work one day comforting a very sad child who was waiting on his mom to pick him up. Although he never saw children in his future, he cares for those kids like they are his own. And of course he couldn’t be happier that we have PAC Man! He is a wonderful father!

The things I love about him most are the things no one knows about him. The things that only him and I share. He has taught me a lot about myself, life and love. He makes me a better wife, mom, friend and overall person. To be his wife is like nothing else on Earth. I also love the little things he does like buying me candy every other day, cooking, wrestling with our son and texting me to make sure I made it to work safely like he did this morning :) He is always thinking of me. True story.
​
We have been through so much together in our 10 years, you wouldn’t believe me if I told you. But he has always been there for me. No matter what. Back in 2010, we went through a very difficult time, loosing family, my job and so much more. But God blessed us tremendously with our union and our son and that was all we cared about. My husband knows I am a worrier, but all it takes is him saying, “Don’t worry. Everything will be fine” and I know it will be. I love him because he is a strong leader and always puts others before himself. He has everyone’s best interest at heart. He never says no when someone needs something and he has so much to give the world. His love and his loyalty make him perfect.
​
I just want to thank him for all of his sacrifices. For being able to make me laugh at the drop of a dime. For holding down the fort when I’m away at Zumba. For being an exceptional father to our son. For supporting me with in all of my endeavors. For loving me the way he does. For being the husband he is to me. I love you!

If you are a parent with school aged children, then you have to be just as excited as I am that the school year is almost done. My husband and I went through a school change in the Fall with our son and it took some time for all of us to adjust, but things worked out well in the end. But that doesn't mean that we aren't trudging through these last few weeks of the school year like most families.

But the good news is that it is in fact almost the end. And that means Summer is on the horizon! For many families, Summer is synonymous with beach vacations, summer camp, traveling, family reunions and so much more. My family takes time to relax and "catch up" on things. Things like reading.

Reading is a great way to stay informed, creative and it keeps your mind sharp. And we all know how difficult that is when becoming pregnant and even in the days, weeks and months after giving birth. It's good to have a variety of reading materials around (not just pregnancy and child rearing books) so you aren't bored or overwhelmed with all the parenting advice.

Before my husband and I became crazy busy with family, careers, volunteer work and overall adulting, we used to read so much more. Books, magazines, research articles, the news and blogs too. But lately, we have only had the time to read children's books with our son and the Sunday paper (when we get the chance). So this Summer we have committed to reading more (adult) books. We had a growing wishlist and recently decided to order them all from Amazon. Let me tell you, it was like Christmas when the books arrived!

So what I am reading this Summer?