Had you seen my “About me” page on my website you would know that I was a working mom and now a recent stay at home mom. Blogging was my way to connect to all the lovely moms and parents. I wanted to blog so that I could get all the great information related to kids for parents in one place – that is on my blog. Things have been excellent and were going awesome. Kids were sleeping on time. Breakfast, lunch, and dinner were being served on schedule. So the big little tummies in the house were happy. I started feeling like a Queen of the world. I with my ideas to share, the articles I want to post I decided to start working once my daughter slept. But, that day, this happened.

This was taken when my little one woke up at 4:00 AM in the morning!

That day three weeks before today -I thought about some excellent posts, some giveaways, some learning that I had to do and then I took my daughter to put her to sleep. But she would not sleep!  Each time I would ask her to sleep she would point out to the door saying she wanted to get out and be with her dad and brother. I was insisting her to sleep, and she was insisting on going out. I had finally given up. I took her out and showed her that her brother and dad were asleep.  In fact, they were  putting up a good act. She did not buy my answer so finally, we all gave up. After a few minutes, my son and my husband said goodnight as they had to sleep on time for them to rush to school and office respectively in the morning. So I was left alone with the little one hoping that she would be sleepy at some point. But it only happened 2 hours later. So I put her to sleep and sat to work, and  I ended up sleeping late. This just got worse in the following weeks where I would be all exhausted and would give up on posting.  

For next couple of weeks, the little ones’  nap times were unpredictable. She would sleep few hours in the morning trying to make up her lost sleep or sleep early in the evening only to know that she is up and ready to play at 2 am in the morning or sometimes 5 am in the morning. This made me helpless. I could not complete my daily chores. Laundry started to pile up. The dishwasher was loaded so was the kitchen sink. All things and chores which seemed in control a few weeks back were entirely out of control. I started to survive every day. I was not able to make any time for myself or my work(my blogging).  

I  would find a great deal, or some idea would pop up, and they would never materialize. I was not able to have any time to read or review any books or products. So today while I was still struggling to find time for myself,  my daughter decided to sleep on time.  Ah !   But alas she woke up in 2 hours. Luckily,  I was able to put her back to sleep. While I was putting her to sleep, I heard my husband calling me. My son needed me

I put the little one back to sleep I headed to take care of my son.  The lights in the house were switched off, and it was dark.  I was hoping he might have slept by now. So I made my way through the dark and sat next to him on the bed. I gently ran my fingers through his hair and to my surprise –  He asked, “Amma is that you?” Surprised that he was awake?  I said: “Yes.” His immediate reaction was “Yeah!” and he gave me a big hug. The next minute  I could hear nothing. He was fast asleep. For a moment, I felt very special, euphoric. Like the Queen of the world again! This is what motherhood is all about –  I thought to myself. No one else could experience such a joy but mothers. This brought back life to me. Unknown energy from nowhere and I got back to my desk and started writing this post. I wanted to share my story. I tried to convey that I am just a mother like other mothers out there, struggling to find a balance.

I started thinking “How can I manage my work as well as kids and family?”. This is not new to me. I was working full-time earlier with a child and was taking care of my family. What was it that was missing now? Why am I just surviving every day? What can I do to take control? Each time I  asked myself these questions I had one answer coming back. “Planning”!You need to Plan! I have never (with a purpose)  planned anything ahead in my life. Yeah, I did have a bunch of to-do lists which I would try to finish. But having two kids my day was just not about checking off the to-do lists but more than that. I needed tools to make everyone’s life easy. Have days where the whole family can enjoy and have peace at home,  rather than surviving the moments. So I started on a mission to carve out a schedule and a plan to take control of things.

This does not mean I want to be perfect. I just want to make sure – we as a family enjoy our days then go over the stress daily.  Whatever time we have we want to have good food, clean home, have fun, run around the house,  play the dodgeball  ( which my son loves) – come on who doesn’t love it !.

One quote started lingering in my mind. “If you fail to plan then you plan to fail.” I don’t want this to happen. But I don’t know where to start, how to plan? Not even a clue. Writing this post I still don’t have a plan:( I started looking up online.  Started visiting different sites to print the schedules,  printables regarding planning. I started asking my friends about how they are doing it(I am still in the process).  How are they taking care of the craziness, what are their styles of planning, What are they doing to de-stress themselves?

Then I learned about few options.

Learn something new:
I started learning a new skill. Sewing.I am to-be mompreneur. While staying home after I quit my job early this year, I decided I should learn how to sew. My to-be product will be a bag. I already worked on my idea, I made my prototypes and I am testing the product right now. My product is a mom accessory. So I thought I should at least learn the basic of the sewing. I signed up for few classes in my area. I learned to stitch. Well, a bit. I don’t want to be an expert. I just want to learn few tips and tricks. I had a small SINGER Fashion Mate sewing machine. So I started experimenting on that. It was just $60 when I bought this 2 years ago in 2014.

I started looking up for tips on youtube and google. Also based on what I learned in the classes, I started sewing small pillow covers, table top covers. It was so much fun. Since I a have 1-year girl, I thought why not make some outfits for her. So I decided I would invest in a new machine. This time I looked up for something totally upscale. A Bernina Sewing Machine! I also started watching the TV Program It’s Sew Easy I started taking notes from my mom, my mothers-in-law on how to sew. Youtube was my got to the source. Later I have come across this amazing site Teach You to Sew. It’s a simple and great resource.

I came up with few patterns for sewing tops, skirts, and Tutus! Ah her smile when she looks at her colorful Tutu! Why don’t you give it a try?! I started sewing some bags and tops for myself. Well, not an expert. But good enough for myself.

Go for long walks/runs:
I started going for long runs and walks. My mins started clearing up.I was able to figure out that I don’t have to do everything. Just do one thing. Hey, I am Mom!

Don’t try to be perfect. let it be:
Laundry is always there. Don’t stress. Take baby steps. First get rid of extra clothes!

As I continue to get more and more information and me, promise that I would share it with you guys! If I could help one person through the information, I provide I would be over the moon!I cannot end the post without asking help from you all. What do you think about planning? Does it work? How do you plan? Do you record everything in mind? Do you write down on a piece of paper?  Any apps you use? Any information will be totally worth to me. So please do share.  I would love to learn!