Ashling Drew, Author at Joyful Messes

What Ivanka Trump Taught Me About Being a Work-At-Home Mom

Let’s get the elephant out of the room here first, concerning the recent political decisions and events. I know there is a lot of anger and frustration with many actions recently, but I’m not here to discuss that regarding Ivanka. I want to talk about what she’s taught me about being a work -at-home mother. I saw her instagram post the other day, illustrating a major milestone in her life. It was her youngest son crawling for the first time. He’s a doll face. Then, I went to her Facebook page to see what kind of comments she might have regarding recent events with Nordstrom and other business relationships that are no more. I expected to see something. A politically correct statement of some kind, but you know what I saw? Videos and pictures of her children just like any other mom. See, Ivanka Trump may be handling some dips…

3 Reading Games to Teach Your Toddler Boy to Read

I wrote a post on how I’m teaching my preschooler to read. I recently started focusing on reading because he’s taken an interest in spelling, and his attention span seems to be lengthening to where we can focus for longer periods of time to practice our letters and sounds. One thing I know about my four-year-old is that he loves a game. I can get him to do anything if I tell him he’s a super hero while he’s doing it. I came up with some fabulous games that encourage him to read, with out realizing that he’s even reading! First, we play, READING BATS! Yep, its Batman themed, along with hunting and capturing. My little boy loves a chase, so here’s what we do: I start by cutting paper into squares, or you can use index cards or something that is blank on both sides in a square-ish shape.…

Make Any Picture Professional & Pretty for Instagram

Moms and bloggers are always striving to get the perfect picture, myself included. I climbed on our counters, head cocked away from the ceiling, attempting to capture the innocence of a fun sink-bath the other night. I knew it was dark out, and all I had was the artificial light of our house, (which is not good for photos) but, I didn’t let that stop me. I snapped away, and I just used my fool-proof editing routine to make the picture prettier than it was before. This post contains affiliate links. Now, I am not a photographer at all. I use automatic on my camera most of the time, because I get confused on the settings. So if you’re a photographer reading this, I’m sorry, this is all so beginner/probably against all photography rules, but it works for me. This process is really great for those of us with a…

Why Every Mom Needs A Blog + The Super Easy Way To Start A Wordpress Blog

I started my mom blog just a few months ago. I had been thinking about starting a blog for a long time. I wanted to share my thoughts, tips, failures and favorite things. I wanted to pursue and develop my writing. I was scared to start a blog. I was scared no one would read it. I was scared all I would hear were crickets…I was silly. Every mom should have a blog, and its super easy to set yourself up with one. I’ll give you the run down of why you need a blog as well as the quick and dirty way to get yourself up and running with your own blog before Sesame street is over. I currently make over 3k a month just blogging and raising my babies. I would never have that opportunity if I didn’t just go for it and start. If you want to…

Why Your Workout To Lose The Baby Weight Isn’t Working

I was able to lose the baby weight pretty fast after my second baby. I am on track to lose the baby weight fast this time too, with little weight left to lose, but some muscle and sheer physical fitness to gain back. Update: See how I lost the baby weight by six weeks! I lost all the baby weight fairly quickly mostly because I stayed healthy and active during pregnancy, but not because of my postpartum workout. The truth is, the fitter you are during pregnancy, the faster you’ll lose your extra pregnancy fluff. Easier said than done. When you hit the postpartum mark, and you have your chubby little one in your arms, the itch to get rid of any pregnancy resemblance becomes very strong. Enter postpartum weight-loss plan of attack! Gym membership we meet again. The 5 Best Foods To Lose The Baby Weight and Pump Up Your…

How I Wake Up Happier Than My Kids

Before I implemented some new strategies, my mornings were jump-started with rambunctious toddlers flinging sippy cups in my face. I’d hide under the covers, hoping they’d miraculously go back to sleep. Then, I’d chug my coffee directly from the pot while frantically trying to catch up with my little ones. See, I’m a late-night person. I love the quiet hours after bed time, when there is peace and no interruptions. You might also like: The 5 Best Foods To Lose The Baby Weight and Pump Up Your Milk Supply Increase Your Milk Supply Overnight Prior to my new habits, I’d be just coming out of my sleep coma as I slid half-burnt toast to my zippy and happy children. Now, I have a routine that really helps me win the morning race. Here’s what I do, and I hope it helps every parent out there who likes to stay up…

How I am Teaching My Toddler to Read

Meet guest poster, Katie Pickett, a seasoned entrepreneur and mom of three who has shared her wisdom in crafting this blog post. At joyfulmesses.com, we’re committed to providing you with the latest parenting insights and tips, thanks to contributors like Katie. Stay tuned for expert advice, as we continue to update our blog to support moms like you on your journey. Love, Ashling! We decided to focus on homeschooling our boys because we travel frequently, and we really enjoy being a part of their learning and education. My four-year-old (in 2 weeks!!) has shown a great interest in learning to read, sound out letters, and spelling. His mind is working so fast, and he’s really picking up on things. I have a 3-part technique that I am using to teach him letters, sounds, and sound combinations. I’ve also added a new post, My Small-Space Learning Corner for Home Schooling. It’s…

The Perfect Valentine’s Gift For Your Man Featuring JORD Wood Men’s Watches

Yep, Valentine’s Day is just around the corner. I’ve seen these JORD Men’s Wood Watches floating around on social media, and I instantly knew this would be the perfect gift! My husband loves any accessory. He is attracted to the finer things like amazing leather loafers, Polo briefcases, and designer pens. That is just his personality, and I love it, but he’s never found a men’s watch to suit his style. Until he met me of course. This one goes so well with everything he has! It took me a surprising 5 minutes to decide for him, rather than weeks like any other gift. I took some photos of how well it goes with his guitar. It also fits right in with his loafers, Polo briefcase, and bible! Now, I have to tell you he’s not a jewelry person. He doesn’t like the feeling of heavy, metal items on his…

5 Unconventional Indoor Activities For Busy Toddler Boys

After the holidays, we find that the new toys become old, the busy schedules fall silent, and all the holiday activities have been done and enjoyed. It’s still cold, wet and not friendly outside. We get cabin fever faster than I can poor my coffee, so out of sheer desperation, I’ve come up with some fun and light-hearted indoor activities my boys love! My Top 5 Unconventional, Indoor Activities For Busy Toddlers: Pillow Fight: This really ends up being a pillow attack on myself. The boys love playing on the bed, throwing the pillows around and basically getting to show me their muscles and strength by nailing me in the face. The best part about this game is they really get some energy out. That is pretty much the goal with every activity: make them tired. You might also like: How I am Teaching My Toddler to Read Pizza Pizza!…

The Best Free Branding Resources for Bloggers

I finally created my branding guidelines for my blog. Actually getting to branding the blog will be another story, but I’m almost there. I did it all myself. Now, I do have experience in graphic design and a background in web design, but I was never a branding person. I designed and created marketing materials, email campaigns and more, based off of an already-established brand most of the time. In order to brand my own blog, I needed to do some research on the most up-to-date guidelines and advice. Then, I realized that if I needed brand guidelines for my blog, and I could do it myself, I could help other bloggers as well! So, stay tuned for a freebie coming to the blog soon. Think straight forward branding template and branding guide that explains what things like “sub marks” are, while also helping you understand what the purpose of different…

Ashling Drew