The Busy Vibrant Mom - Strategic Time Management, Home Organization, Productivity, Christian Mom, Christian Parenting, Declutter

It's almost summer! As we look forward to warm sunny days, playing outside, longer daylight hours, sleeping in, and staying up late.  We realize our routine will change.  Kids will be back from school, and our daily routine that allows us to get things done and keep life together will be upside down.  Yikes!  Here are some helpful tips and tricks to keep your younger to elementary age kids busy.  ...

Summer is coming! Have you started looking into camps for your kids? Especially if you don't have any extended family near by to watch your kids.  Do you have favorite go to camps? Are your kids excited about summer camps or meh? Did you know that you can use summer camps to connect with your kids more?  Seems like an oxymoron right? Listen in hopefully this will give you lots of fun new ideas and...

It's easy to fall into a daily routine with work, school, kids, activities, homework, meals, sports, and all the things.  When was the last time you slowed down and connected with your husband? When you just had fun together? When you went away together overnight without the kids?  Life gets busy and soon we realize we don't even know our spouse the way we thought we did.  Take time now to slow do...

Are there things growing in the corners of your kids rooms?  Toys and books, strewn about the floor like the traps from Indiana Jones? Piles of papers reaching to the ceiling? Dirty clothes or clean clothes strewn about? Oh, the list can go on and on right?  We all want to teach our kids to clean up after themselves right?  So how do we go from swimming in stuff to clean and tidy?  Here are 3 easy...

Are the cupboards in your kitchen overflowing? Are your drawers busing at the seams?  Is it hard to pick out what to wear from the clothes in your closet? Do you use the excuse, I just don't have time to deal with that now.  I'll work on it later, but later never comes. Are you beginning to feel that your stuff is multiplying?  Are the walls closing in ....ahhhhhh (like the classic scene from Star...

Cleaning and kids do not usually go together, right?  Does your house usually look like a family of squirrels has taken over? Toys strewn about, dishes and food all over, beds unmade, grimly kitchen counters, and random stuff everywhere.  Welcome mamma!  It's hard to concentrate on what you need to get done when everywhere you look is a disaster! Here are 5 easy tips to help your kids clean up, an...

Do you have a hard time getting everyone in the car with all the right stuff they need, and to be at all the places they need to be?  Do you feel like you fought a war when you finally start the car?  If you have ever gone through the emotion roller coaster twice, fought over outfits, forgotten shoes, socks, jackets or other articles of clothing that do not belong to you, or only to realize as you...

We all have clutter right?  In the morning getting kids up and packed and out the door on time might look like a tornado hit our house.  During the day things pile up....laundry, dishes, toys, things without a home, leftover food etc.  After school when kids get home and your car looks like you were driving with several small animals.  Your kitchen or hallway (basically the entrance to your house)...

Spring is here!  Can you feel it?  The fresh air, the flowers, the seasonal allergies (ok, no one likes the seasonal allergies), but seriously spring is here! What are some new exciting things that are growing on your heart?  Spring is a time for new growth.  A time to jump into some new fun things.  To listen to your heart.  What new passions are on your heart? How can we love and support our kid...

There is one thing that will change the direction of your day from hot mess day to the BEST day ever!  Did you know that there is one key factor that controls your day (hint:  it's not your kids).  It's having a healthy mindset.  Crazy! Right? Even when our kids are screaming if we have a healthy mindset we can easily defuse the situation and get everyone back on track. In this episode we talk abo...

We love stuffies! My kids and I love them! I have to admit I like those cuddly, cute, furry animals more than my kids.  What is not to love about cute adorable huggable animals? Soft, squishy, and cuddly, they can easily brighten your mood, keep you entertained, or just be a friend.  However stuffies seem to have a way of multiplying like rabbits on a spring day.  I find them everywhere and they t...

Do your kids often say "Mom I'm bored?" There is nothing to do! I don't want to do that! There is nothing to do! I'm bored!" My kids tell me this about 50k times a day that they are bored (a close second is "I'm hungry").  They love to say this especially when they want time on the iPads. They seem to suddenly loose the ability to think of anything to do, weird!  Never fear! I have some tips and t...

The summer seems to sneak up on us.  We finally fall into a routine for school and distance learning, then bang it is summer!  No more school!  The whole daily routine changes.  It's tempting to map out every moment of every minute so our kids are entertained and we can get stuff done.  But wait...we need to give our kids margin.  Time to be creative, to be bored and just be kids!. If you are star...

Do you have girly girls or Tom boys? Do your boys love to wrestle or would they rather read?  As parents it is easy to get sucked into what society and peer pressure.  We want out kids to excel and often feel out of place if our kids like different activities.  God has created boys and girls differently, and that is ok! We need to embrace our kids and how God created them.  Having friends of both...

What? Do you pray that your kids will fail?  That they will have difficult times of trials?  Maybe be called to the principal's office?  Have friendship drama?  Feel alone?  This seems crazy right?  Praying that my kids fail! That seems harsh and not what a parent should be doing, right?  Hear me out before you pull out your ear buds.  Yes, we want our kids to face difficulties, tough decisions, p...

Do you have friends who are in hard seasons? Friends who are having a hard time adjusting to change? Friends who are anxious, depressed, worried, or scared?  Friends who are having a hard time in their marriage?  Many times I know I feel inadequate to help or reach out.  I question what can I provide?  How can I comfort this friend when I feel inadequate?  I know this subject is difficult, but God...

Are you feeling a little down this season? Do the days seem to blur together in this pandemic? Are your kids starting to loose track of what day it is? Maybe you are starting to go a little stir crazy.  I know I am!!!  It is important to have things to look forward to.  In this last year of global pandemic, political tension, fires, and racial issues (you name it we had it! Even a toilet paper sho...

Happy Easter! As a special treat here is a bonus episode about celebrating Easter.  It can be tricky to explain why Jesus had to die on a cross, or the events that lead up to His crucifixion.  Especially to young kids that are still sensitive to violence and death.  The events that lead to Jesus's death, His crucifixion, and His death on a cross are so important!  We want out kids to know the trut...

This is the second part of an interview with Sally Byrd, my mother in law and an amazing Christian author!  Please go back and listen to episode 25 if you missed it.  We had such an amazing conversation about Sally's new book coming out, Beck and the Ugly Princess.  Sally has a unique niche of writing Christian fantasy books.  As busy moms sometimes it is hard to fit in reading with your kids.  In...

In this episode you will get to meet Sally Byrd, my mother in law and amazing Christian author!  She has a unique niche of writing Christian fantasy books.  Influenced by C.S. Lewis and J.R. Tolkien, the books are similar to the Narnia Series.  We will be talking about her most recent book, Benk and the Ugly Princess, and the other books in the series.  Sally followed her dreams of writing Christi...

Teaching kids about money and chores and allowance and saving and giving and all that jazz can be overwhelming. Right?  How much do you give for allowance?  When do you start all this?  What chores do they do? How does it evolve as the kids grow up? What if my kid spends whatever they get?  Here are some tips that have helped our family navigate allowance, extra money, savings, spending, and givin...

As a mom our days can be crazy.  You are the one who remembers all the little things like picture day, lunches, snacks, who has soccer practice at what time, where small toys and books are hidden, names of favorite stuffed animals etc.  Not to mention all things school and distance learning - that's a whole new level on hyper speed.  The list goes on and on right?  Listen up as we talk about some...

Creating and sustaining small heath habits can have HUGE results.  Are you tired of feeling like you don't have enough time in your day? Feeling like you got to the end of your day and don't know where it went?  Are you just plain tired and exhausted?  Me too.  Small healthy habits can seem so incremental and inefficient, but they can actually have a HUGE effect on our life.  Get ready to jot some...

Crazy right?  Has it really been a year since work, schools, and EVERYTHING closed? A year, since we hunted down toilet paper and hand sanitizer.  Since we wiped down every surface with disinfectant.  Now is the time to reflect on this crazy year and this crazy season.  In this episode we go through reflecting on what challenges we have faced.  Reflecting about things that did not serve us mentall...

Do you dread the laundry? Is the laundry like the mail that just keeps coming? It seems like whatever you do it piles up and runs over! It's never ending, right? Just as you finish it there is more!  It's a never ending chore!  Everyone needs a laundry fair and here is a way find yours and make her your friend! Figure out your laundry routine and what works for your family, so that you do not get...