Lilac City Momma

Lynn

5 Ways to Boost Your Self-esteem as a New Mom

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There is an assumption that new moms must always be brimming with pride and joy, but the reality is that almost all women experience a drop in their self-esteem in some way after giving birth. Pregnancy, giving birth, and becoming a mother for the first time will change your life forever, and while many of those ways are wonderful, others are less comfortable. Some women struggle to embrace their new body; others lose touch with their friends or worry about balancing motherhood with their career. If you are a proud new mommy who is feeling unsure or insecure, here are five ways to boost your self-esteem.

  • Connect with other new moms

It can be helpful to know that you are not alone in the way you feel, so seek out other new moms who you can share your worries with and ask questions of. There are lots of forums, chatrooms, and social media accounts which bring new moms together to support each other and share their experiences.

  • Keep doing what you are good at

When a woman becomes a mom, her baby becomes her whole world, and almost all her time is spent ensuring the baby has everything he or she needs to thrive. This is right and natural, but it can mean that moms push their own interests and talents to the bottom of the list. Over time, moms can lose sight of what makes them an individual and can feel that they have little to offer other than being a mom. Whether it is your career, sport, or a hobby, keep doing something whatever makes you feel good about yourself as much as you can.

  • Look after your health

If you do not look after your physical health, you will feel drained of energy and will not look your best. Try to get as much sleep as you can as this will give your body time to heal and rejuvenate, as well as giving your skin a healthy glow. Eat a diet which is fresh and rich in nutrients and drink a minimum of eight glasses of water per day. You will have more energy, and your skin and hair will be in better condition, and your immune system will be stronger. In addition, it is important to eat well if you are breastfeeding to ensure your baby gets essential nutrients.

  • Revamp your hair

Spending time washing, nourishing, and styling your hair can feel like an indulgence when you have a baby, but clean and healthy hair is an important part of self-care. Consider washing your hair in the evening when the baby is asleep, as this will save you time in the morning. Choose a low-maintenance hairstyle, visit julia-lampard.co.uk for some inspiration, or tie up long hair in an up-do. If you are completely out of time before heading out, try some dry shampoo.

  • Use makeup as a quick fix

If getting enough sleep seems a distant dream right now, don’t be afraid to use makeup as a quick fix if you are not feeling your best. There are lots of light foundations or tinted moisturizers which can give you an even color without being too heavy or laborious to apply. A little white eyeshadow on the inner corner of your eyelid can make you look more awake, and a touch of blusher on your cheeks can give you a healthy glow. Makeup can also help to cover stretch marks and scars if you are particularly self-conscious about your post-pregnancy body.

3 Ways to Take the Stress Out of Traveling with Kids

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When you have children, travel isn’t always the most straightforward of operations. You have to meet certain deadlines, you have to remember to pack certain belongings, and you have to keep the kids happy whenever they get bored, tired and restless.

If you’re not careful, the stresses that you encounter as you drag your family across the globe could end up wreaking havoc on your vacation experiences. To ensure that stress isn’t afforded the opportunity to blight your next holiday, be sure to put the travel advice listed below into practice.

Here are three ways you can take the stress out of traveling:

Book transport to the airport in advance

Booking your airport transport on the day that you are due to travel is the last thing that you want to do. Leaving everything to the last minute in this sense is a recipe for disaster, simply because you might end up missing your opportunity to book a taxi; you could contact all the firms in your local area, only to find that none of them are available at the time that you need them. Should this happen, your chances of missing your planned flight will no doubt increase tenfold. One thing’s for sure — this delay in your travel plans isn’t going to do any favours for your stress levels!

Quite simply, it’s essential that you act sensibly and book your journey to the airport in advance. Once you schedule your pickup with an industry-leading provider of airport transport like Premium Minicabs, you won’t have to worry about being late for your flight. As stated at premierminicabs.com, they will guarantee you a swift, seamless, and stylish journey to the airport every time you and your family ride with them.

Attempt to book direct flights

Connection flights might be cheaper in some instances, but they’re almost always a whole lot more stressful. When you have multiple flights to catch, you run the risk of missing crucial connections and, in turn, you put yourself in danger of disrupting your travel schedule. If you want to avoid the stress that is caused by schedule disruption, you should attempt to book direct flight packages as and when you are able to do so.

Prepare your kids for the journey

If your children haven’t traveled extensively in the past, especially, it’s crucial that you sit them down and prepare them for the journey ahead. Talk to them about the plane ride, make them aware of how long it is going to take to get to your vacation destination, and make sure they understand the importance of remaining vigilant while they are away from home. Once you speak to them about these essential matters, they’ll no doubt find it easier to cope with whatever issues the journey has in store for them.

Do you want to enjoy a stress-free traveling experience and, in turn, a relaxing vacation? If so, it’s absolutely essential that you put all of the advice laid out above into practice.

The Importance of Reading to Your Child

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Reading is one of the simplest joys in life, and it is one you should share with your child as early as possible. While to you it might just be a fun activity to do with your kid, there are also reams of benefits they get out of it! Here are the reasons for reading to your child is one of the most important activities you can do.

Bonding Time

Bedtime reading cultivates a time for you and your child where you can bond and enjoy a story together. Reading brings people together, and you can share the magic of story-telling each night. Once they are older, you will both look back on the time you spent reading to them with nostalgic glee.

Increased Imagination

Children have the wildest imaginations, and there’s no better way of pulling that out than through reading. Let them release their creativity by telling them of other’s adventures. You can find imaginative, adventurous stories at juliana-sheikh.co.uk. A great story can be enough to stimulate your kid’s mind, and soon, they will be telling entertaining stories of their own!

Time Away from Screens

These days, it can be difficult to pull anyone away from a screen, but it is particularly crucial to make sure children aren’t spending all day staring at one. One of the better ways of doing that is to introduce reading as early as possible. Make it a fun time for both of you, and they will be less interested in your phone before bedtime.

An Activity Before Sleep

It can be difficult to get your child into a routine, but reading will help you do that. If you have a regular set of activities that ends with a bedtime story, your child will grow more accustomed to falling asleep after it. You might even find they start yawning before you’ve opened the first page!

Increased Cognitive Development and Language Skills

Reading to your kid makes them smarter. It will increase both their cognitive development and language skills. Think about it, children learn through others, so if they are constantly exposed to an array of different words in the form of stories, then they will be more likely to pick them up. One day they might turn into a story-teller themselves.

They Will do Better in School

Their language skills will help them in school. School focuses a lot on reading, so if your child is already exposed to it at home, then they will thrive when they are in the classroom. You might just find that they come home with books above their reading age, and a well-done sticker from their teacher!

More Chance of Becoming an Adult Reader

If you get your child into reading when they are young, there is more chance that they will cultivate a reading habit well into their teens and adulthood. With their happy memories of reading with you as a child, reading will be an enjoyment for them rather than a chore.

Getting into a habit of reading to your child when they are small will create an imaginative reader who will still be seen with a book in hand way after they’ve left home. Encourage reading early, and watch your child blossom into a creative book-worm.

 

4 Tips For Successful Homeschooling

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As more and more parents are forced to rely on their own devices to keep their children’s education going during these precarious times, the more struggles they have trying to figure it all out.

Navigating the world of homeschooling is not something that comes easily for everyone. Having to wear multiple hats in your family is no small matter. From parenting to teaching, to being the bread maker, these are certainly difficult times for parents.

 

To help see you through, take a look at some of the best tips for successfully educating your child at home.

 

Create a Schedule

 

Children thrive in a routine environment. Creating a similar structure to one used inside of a school makes the most sense. In order for your child to be able to benefit from homeschool, routine is essential.

Creating a daily schedule won’t only just give them a sense of security; it will also give you some sort of idea of how your day will play out. Make sure to schedule everything in from when you’ll take breaks to when you’ll have meals. Doing so will also help you make sure that you get everything done outside of homeschooling. No one has forgotten that you still have a job and housework to take care of!

 

Remove Distractions

 

One of the biggest challenges of homeschooling is that children often associate their home with having fun and relaxing rather than a place for learning. Create a learning environment that is free of any distractions.

Make sure that there is no one around them watching TV or having loud conversations. Create a dedicated area that is similar to a classroom environment, which gives them the maximum amount of focus on their work.

 

Try to encourage other members of your house to stay quiet in this designated learning area and avoid interacting with your student during their working hours.

 

Gather Plenty Of Resources

 

One of the biggest reasons why parents start to feel like they’re failing in their homeschooling efforts is because they have a lack of resources. There are all sorts of great websites out there to give you plenty of educational content to support your child’s at-home education.

In addition to finding resources online, you can also reach out to other parents who are engaged in the same learning method with their children. Chances are that they will probably have something that can be of use to you. By trading information and resources regularly, you’ll set yourself up for success.

 

Make It Fun

 

One of the best ways to get children enthusiastic about learning is to make it as fun as possible. Turning learning into a game will help your children stay engaged and excited about their subjects. While not every assignment can be turned into a game, a lot of them can.

Get creative when you can!

 

6 Cheap and Easy Ideas to Make Your Wedding Unique

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Planning a wedding usually takes a lot of time, effort, and money. Booking a venue, choosing a dress, food, catering, organizing a seating plan, and sending out invitations can leave you with very little time and money left to give your wedding that quirky, personal touch that sets it apart. If you are looking for cheap and easy ideas that you can use to make your wedding unique and memorable, we have listed six of the best here!

Pre-ceremony drinks

Having drinks at the reception is essential, of course, and let’s be honest—a lot of guests will be looking forward to a few glasses of bubbly most of all! However, one way to set your wedding apart is to offer drinks to your guests before the ceremony. A glass of champagne, wine, or a cocktail can be a great start to the celebrations. Make sure not to serve drinks that are too strong—you don’t want your guests to be falling asleep or getting too lively during the ceremony! If you don’t want to serve alcohol that early, why not serve mocktails or iced tea? Non-alcoholic alternatives will also be appreciated by some guests, especially those who are driving.

Custom signs

Custom signage can be surprisingly easy and inexpensive to arrange. For example, you can get a few chalkboards and get your most artistic friend to write custom messages (for example, “this way to the wedding” or “cocktails here!”) in a stylish font. These signs can be left around the venue, or even on roads leading up to it! Custom table numbers can also add some flair to the day.

Creative wedding favors

Wedding favors are small goodies given out to guests, typically items that are useful or fun during the reception, such as bottle openers or disposable cameras. If your wedding has a particular theme, favors that relate to this theme can be fun. If your theme is a little more unusual or “out there” you may have to go beyond any traditional guide to wedding ceremonies. For example, if you have a disco-themed reception, items like novelty sunglasses or glowsticks can be entertaining!

A choreographed dance

The first dance is a special moment at any wedding and is the transition between the formality of the ceremony and the fun of the reception. If you and your partner have some dancing skills, you can really personalize this. Breaking into a choreographed dance routine can surprise and thrill your guests, and really get the party started! Why not start out with a traditional waltz and halfway through change the music and show your best Saturday Night Fever moves? You can even recruit a friend or family member to jump in on the action for an extra surprise.

“To go” gift baskets

Gift baskets to take home can be highly appreciated, as well as being inexpensive and easy to arrange. If your guests are arriving via a coach, you can leave these baskets in there, or you can leave them by the exits of the venue for guests to grab on the way out. If your guests have had a few drinks, you can put together a hangover survival kit, with water, aspirin, and multivitamins to get them going in the morning.

Karaoke after-party

Sometimes guests want to carry on the party after the venue closes. Offering an entertainment option for guests after the reception is over can be surprisingly easy. Let’s be honest, after a few drinks your guests probably won’t be too hard to impress! Booking a room at a karaoke bar, or even getting someone to host it at their place is a great way to finish the night belting out cheesy classics.