I’ve been a mother of two for five weeks now and I’ve got to say it’s made me realize how much time I had before I had kids. Sometimes I reminisce about those carefree days and wonder what the heck I did with all that time! Besides the lack of time do everything I want, I’ve also noted other changes in me as I’ve experienced motherhood (I’m wondering if this might foreshadow a book in the future!).

1) Make-up optional – I remember back in the day when I wouldn’t step foot out of the door without putting on some make-up. Even if I were going to make a quick trip out to the store, I’d at least put on some lip gloss. Now, I can go just about anywhere without an ounce of it. It’s not that motherhood has brought out my natural beauty ; rather, I know that I can spend 5-10 extra minutes at the grocery store than if I were to “get ready”.

2) Ready in under 30 minutes…and this includes a shower! I’ve always prided myself on being relatively low maintenance but motherhood has taught me how to be even more efficient. Because kids can be unpredictable, I have to devote more time to getting them ready, which means less time for me. To me, just because I have kids doesn’t mean that I know longer have to abide by the clock. My time is no more important than someone else’s and I just have to allow for more time to get where we need to be - ON TIME (tardiness is my ultimate pet peeve).

3) Cold (leftover) food is okay – back in the day when I had more time, I had to have my food piping hot. It just tasted better to me. Moreover, I wasn’t too keen on eating leftovers. Now, I’m lucky if I can eat without being interrupted or sidetracked. My son is getting a little more finnicky about what he eats too so that leaves me to clean up what he doesn’t (I do have my limits on certain foods, hehe!).

4) Workout when? - Before I had kids, I had a pretty solid workout routine. I exercised at least five times a week – a combination of both cardio and weights…and at a gym! Now? I’ll be lucky to get at least two days. Working out is carrying my 2-year old on my hip. And for strength training, try carrying him upstairs! With a rambunctious son, my workouts have gotten more creative – playing hide and seek, running around the coffee table, pushing my son around while he sits in his Cozy Coupe, etc. I guess I shouldn’t mind not working out so much; it just gives me more time with my family.

There have been some welcome changes as well

5) Speaking Vietnamese at home - I remember growing up, we were forced to speak Vietnamese at home. The problem was that neither me nor my siblings were very good at it so we ended up not talking at all or breaking the rules! My parents were super busy raising seven kids in a country that was not their own so I could only imagine how difficult it must have been for them. Now that I have my own kids, we speak primarily Vietnamese at home. In fact, my Vietnamese has improved quite a bit because I speak it at home with my son. He and my daughter will grow up to be bilingual but I think it’s important for them to learn Vietnamese because I know that once they start school, English will be their primary language. It’s up to me to make sure that they are continually exposed to the Vietnamese language and preserve that part of their culture.

6) Regular communication with my parents – to be honest, I never had a really close relationship with my parents. Being one of seven kids, it was easy to fly under the radar and just check in every now and then. But once I had a kid, that all changed. My kids bridged the relationship gap and it’s been great to be able to share my motherhood experiences with them.

There are a ton more changes that I’ve experienced since entering into motherhood (you can read more of it whenever I get to writing that book!) but one thing remains constant – I’d do it all over again for my kids.

As my little peanut’s first birthday comes closer and closer I’ve been thinking about what type of party to have for her. Of course I turned to some of my favorite blogs for inspiration- and boy am I in awe of some of these party themes. Check these out…

Tinkerbright theme from Hostest with the Mostest blog

When I do buy clothes for my daughter I tend to go with the brightly colored ones since we get a lot of pastels as gifts. That’s what drew me to this one – the bright bold colors used as a twist to a Tinkerbell theme.

Super Mario Brothers theme from At Home with Kim Vallee blog

Mario Kart is one of my favorite Wii games. I instantly fell in love with the Yoshii and Mario statues, the coin boxes and the colors this mom chose. I just might have to steal this idea for my own birthday and make it a Wii party too!

Robot theme from Hostest with the Mostest blog

How darling is the robot centerpiece?! I just love the plates and cups as well. Find out more about how the robot was made and where this mom got the darling plates and cups in her post at HWTM.

Ladybug theme from Hey, Bubbles blog

My baby shower theme was ladybugs so of course I had to include this one!

Fairyland theme from Hostest with the Mostest blog

This one by far is my favorite. From the color theme to the decorations (see the place settings below!!) to the entrance to “Tinks workshop” this party seems like every girls dream. It makes me want to find my own paper wings to decorate.

My little peanut has many more birthdays to come and I can only hope some of them will be as amazing as the ones above are. I’m still recovering from the slew of ladybug things my mom has gotten for my girl since the baby shower so I’m avoiding one type of theme, but I’ve got some ideas and can’t wait to get started. I’ll also share some of them after the big day so stay tuned!

*photos are from the respective blogs they are posted on.

Having been a mother for a little over a year, I learned very quickly that mother/parenthood is all about making sacrifices. And boy did I sacrifice my body! I gained almost 30 pounds with my pregnancy and have since worked my way back into my pre-pregnancy weight. Ironically, I actually fit my clothes better post-baby, but I also lost a lot of muscle tone.

P90X - YogaX

The other day, my son Isaac lifted my shirt up and patted my soft, jiggly belly (what Bridget Jones would call “wobbly bits” ) and it was then that I decided that I really need to tone up. So, I recently started doing the P90X workout again–it’s a series of workout DVDs with trainer Tony Horton. His workouts are about muscle confusion–switching from one area of the body to another so that your body doesn’t get used to one routine and therefore plateauing and not getting better results.

I’m on day 24 and am feeling really good. There are days that I almost talk myself into skipping, but I try to remember the increased energy and stamina I have after my workout. And with a 13-month old who is now walking, I need all the energy I can get!

If your child is like mine, he receives many gifts that–I’ll be honest with you–don’t get a lot of mileage. Don’t get me wrong, I appreciate the thought and the gift itself, but at the end of the day, he loses interest in it. And then it takes up space and starts to collect dust. (Hmmm, I hope I didn’t just talk Isaac out of some presents come Christmas time!).

When I create things, not only do I go for aesthetics, I think about its usefulness. “Will the recipient get a lot of use out of this?” is what I’m constantly asking myself. I find inspiration in its purpose. Can it do more and last longer than a toy off the shelf? More importantly, will he/she (and the parents) really enjoy it months (and even years) afterwards?

Just because something is practical doesn’t mean it can’t also be pretty. I like to create things for my customers that I would be proud to have displayed in my own home. For instance, we have Isaac’s growth chart hanging in the kitchen. He’s too young to understand what it is right now, but I can tell that he is attracted by the colors and textures. The colors are nice and bright but not tacky . It’s like a work of art, if I say so myself!

So in a world full of gadgets and gizmos, I like to create pretty and practical gifts while preserving the art of handmade goods that can be enjoyed without having to buy batteries for it.