The “Why” Behind the Website
We have all heard the saying “the days are long but the years are short.” Well, if you are like me, this statement can place a lot of pressure and blame. If I am having a day where the kids are sassy, I am snippy, and there is a mountain of laundry silently judging me THAT statement is anything but helpful.
I aim to be an involved mom, a purposeful mom, a mom with a tidy home, the chef mom, and a mom that doesn’t miss a moment but the fact is there is always a trade-off. No matter what you do during the day - laundry versus laughing or dishes versus dancing - there is a very real trade-off. We all know we can’t be “playing” with our kids all of the time because well we have to do life. All of life. The fun and the monotonous parts of it.
So what do you do when you decide you ARE being a “fun mom” today. You go to the internet of course. You start seeing a bunch of ideas and if you can get through the “paralyzed by indecision and overwhelmed” phase of looking through Pinterest you may just find your answer to being a “fun mom.” You might start out very excited about this wonderful Pinterest craft you are going to do with your 3-year-old only to find you are missing a very crucial object to complete it. That’s okay you take a deep breath and remind yourself YOU are going to be that fun mom and it will only be a quick trip then off to having fun! Off to the dollar store you go. Well, they don’t have the item you were looking for but you know Target does. Let’s just pop over there real quick. Great….little Suzy is melting down. Doesn’t she realize I am doing all of this for her? I am trying to be a fun mom doing the things all the other moms are doing. Okay in the car with my annoyed toddler but hey we are almost home and this is going to be so fun for her. You start imagining the “fun mom” picture you are going to take with Suzy smiling and you holding up her perfect Pinterest craft….. It is going to be magical and she is going to remember this her whole life and thank me for being the best mommy ever.
Okay - we all know this isn’t going to happen but we do set very unrealistic, unspoken expectations on our children when we spend so much time trying to be the perfect mom doing the perfect things.
We all know how this story ACTUALLY goes. Mom is tired after running around all day, Suzy ends up not being eternally grateful for the not-so-perfect Pinterest activity, in reality only gave us 5 minutes together before she was “done”….and the picture. That “I was a good mom today picture” you know the ones I am talking about ;) You just need one of her smiling with that little craft to prove to yourself you were a FUN MOM!! But was this fun?
I am not ending this by saying “buy a box and you won’t have to do this.” I am ending this by saying I see you. I am you. I have sacrificed the real-time with my children hoping I could just be “the mom” I hope to live up to in my mind. You don’t have to have the answers. You don’t have to have it all together. None of us do.
I created these boxes because I was thinking about my friends, their husbands, their grandparents, and thought I can help with the time element. Your kids want your time and attention - that is all. Taking the planning, prepping, and organizing out and allowing space for families to connect over activities is my mission. I am offering digital downloads and fun “all-in-one” boxes to help facilitate time together.
Did you or Dad just get home from a long day at work, only have 15 minutes, but are honestly too drained to come up with much? I got you.
Are you a stay-at-home mom who wants to give more “you” but feels pulled in 1,000 directions? I got you.
Are you a grandma of a toddler and just want them to WANT to spend time with you but have no idea what “toy” will do it? I got you.
Are you an aunt who doesn’t know what to get your sister and her kids because “man they already have so many toys and I don’t even know what a 3-year-old likes…” I got you.
Need a gift for a friend but have no idea? I got you.
I hope you will stick around, join my little village, and get that little reminder that you are enough every time you visit.
Made with love,
Amanda Craycraft
