Ashling Drew, Author at Joyful Messes

Five-Minute Makeup for Moms

As a MAC makeup artist, I loved putting all-out glam looks on customers. Wedding makeup was also super fun, and I wish I had enough time in the world to be a makeup artist on the weekends. As much as I love makeup and playing with it on other people, I don’t actually wear that much myself. I just don’t have time. At the MAC counter, we were supposed to wear 10 items on our face as a method to sell more product. That was always really hard for me to achieve. As the years have gone by, and my little, warrior-painting (see my Instagram) boys have dramatically reduced my time for makeup, and expensive makeup at that. They seriously destroy my brushes, break my powders and dry out my mascaras. So, I stick to Target and Amazon to grab the goodies that I like! So, I dumped out my…

Finding A Routine For The Creative, Non-Structured Mom

I never plan my day. I may have one thing here and there that we go to at a specific time, but I rarely actually look at the clock. I’m by nature, a creative soul who prefers to float through the day like a butterfly. Working mostly off of inspiration, and sometimes I get an inkling, a creative spurt where I am extremely driven and focused to produce an image that I’ve seen in my mind, or write a piece that just comes to me out of now where, and I HAVE to get it out. This doesn’t boast well for being a mom. I hear over and over, from books, parenting experts and my husband that children yearn for a routine. A schedule where they know what’s going to happen next. Something they can count on, so they know where to go and how to behave. Unstructured Mom Enter…

How I get Beachy Waves in 10 Minutes

The messy bun is basically the best mom-hair style ever. It looks cute, and it is supposed to be messy. The other hairstyle I love is the messy, beachy waves look. It doesn’t have to be perfect, but it always looks cute. Contrary to popular belief, it actually is super quick to do as well! Here’s How I Get Beachy Waves in 10 Minutes: First, I wash my hair literally twice a week. My bangs I do more, but my hair is dry and bleached, so it doesn’t need much. Once I do some beachy waves, then I just have to touch them up throughout the week. Also, when you have some of these curls in your hair, your messy buns look better and ponytails fuller, so it’s worth your 10 minutes. Air Dry Your Hair, Or Do A Rough Blow Dry: Okay, first step to making this hairstyle fast…

Getting Your Infant To Sleep the Sleep Nest Way

Creative baby announcements are one of my fun obsessions on Pinterest. I am secretly jealous of how creative parents or parents-to-be are! Being a mom of three now, I’m well aware of the deep fatigue, heavy eyes and dark circles that result once the bundle of joy arrives and no one is sleeping more than a couple hours at a time! Well, I am very excited to introduce you all to Karoline Babaian, Founder of The Sleep Nest. She has a special post for us with all the best tips to get your baby to sleep peacefully! We ALL could use some sleep help, and she is the expert! Just take a look at her testimonials, and you’ll see she’s like the magic sleep fairy coming to your rescue. Check out all her tips and info below and make sure to keep up with her on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.…

My Favorite Place To Receive Products For Free, that Moms and Bloggers Can Join!

It’s no secret moms and bloggers love free items. We are all working hard to raise our kids and offer some sort of financial contribution, which is where free products come in! I love to try a new product, especially when it turns out that I love it. You don’t have to be a blogger to receive complimentary items. How I Got My First Viral Pin There’s a site called Influenster, and you don’t have to be a blogger to sign up. It’s mainly for people who have social impact of all ranges. You can be a mom with lots of Facebook friends and Instagram followers, or a newbie blogger working hard to extend your reach. What I love about this place is there is a product for everyone. I signed up just a week ago, so I am working on getting enough badges to receive items to review. Getting…

To The Mom with Multiple Little Ones: You Will Survive

I let my toddlers watch Cops a while back. We were out of town, and for whatever reason our cable wasn’t working. We had a long day, I was tired, the baby was tired, and I couldn’t wrangle my wild stallions any longer. I needed some TV-time to get us to BED time. “Bad Boys, Bad Boys….Watcha gonna do…” that song is still one they love. Luckily they didn’t really understand what was happening, they were just mesmerized by the police lights and sirens and take down. I was desperate. Having multiple little ones is hard work. They all wine and cry at different times, so it feels like no one is happy ever. Its a world of complete chaos, and some days are so fun, while others are so hard. When you have multiple little ones (mine are four, two and 4 months) there is always some kind of…

Important Spring Break Beach Items for Babies & Toddlers

There is nothing more I love than a sandy, beachy-bottomed baby. I mean it’s the best! We’ve been enjoying ourselves this month visiting family on an early spring break. Finally, three babies later, I have compiled a great list of the items I use on the beach. It’s easy to get carried away and buy everything you might need. Don’t do that. Here’s what you need, and what I use. I find that traveling light with the essentials makes me happier. If I’m spending an hour packing the car and another hour unloading at the beach, my kids are asleep in the car seats before we even get there. I don’t have as many photos as I’d like because I am so busy when we’re at the beach! I look away for a second, and I swear my children are raiding another kids’ sand castle or the baby just ate…

A Letter To My Defiant and Brilliant Child

Hello sweet child. I am writing you this letter today because I walked out on you and everyone yesterday, and I want you to know why. I want you to look back on that night and understand it was because I love you so much. I walked out the door, and I kept walking because I needed to breath and think about why we were butting heads. See, my precious, you are everything to me. You made me a mother. We aren’t seeing eye to eye right now, and I am wracking my brain and reading books to understand you better. I want you to know how special you are. You are incredibly smart. Your mind races from one idea to the next, and you put together the mysteries of the world in the most beautiful, philosophical theories. Your appetite for fun, adventure and danger are insatiable, and sometimes I’m…

The 5 Best Foods To Lose The Baby Weight and Pump Up Your Milk Supply

I’m nursing my third baby now. I’ve finally got the hang of losing the baby weight. While even keeping a tremendous amount of milk supply on board for the little one. I’ve even had a bout of mastitis from over producing, while still losing all the baby weight in about 2 months. Your diet is really key to telling your body its okay to let go of fat, while also providing the nutrients to produce the liquid gold your baby needs. If you are looking for a quick way to increase your milk supply, while not consuming extra calories, I highly recommend Fenugreek. I’ve used it a few ways, but the drinkable versions worked best for me. I also found this resource amazing in helping understand breastfeeding, and how to keep up a healthy supply. I am a firm believer in a nutrient-dense, breastfeeding diet, which is why I created…

3 Ways Millennial Moms Can Make Money From Home Without Needing A Nanny

Millennial Moms are like the popular social group right now. We’re the girls who do it all. We are intelligent, educated, savvy, business owners and full-time moms. We do an insane amount, yet we are always looking for more ways to be home and make money. Its basically one of the biggest dreams we aspire to achieve:to stay home with our children and provide financially in some way. There are a lot of posts listing tons of work-at-home jobs where companies are hiring sales reps and associates, but the pay isn’t that great, and you still need someone to watch your kids while you do your job 8-5 remotely. The insanely creative ideas I have for you are not those. These are ideas that tap into the skills of Millennial Moms, have pay potential and don’t require a nanny because it can all be done on your own schedule. Let’s…

Ashling Drew