I’m a mom, stepmom, and theatre educator helping exhausted parents access their inner creative playfulness for more connection and joy. No messy crafts, complicated setups, or sensory bins here! Just simple, silly moments that bring your family back together through laughter. My short weekly emails share reflections from real life and a simple invitation you can try for yourself or with your kids.
What do you actually remember?
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I don’t remember many specific gifts I got for Christmas as a kid. The only one I really recall was “Sally Secrets”—a doll with stamps and stickers hidden inside (yeah, it was pretty cool). My husband remembers getting a “WrestleMania” wrestling ring… But what we both really cherish and remember is the feelings and the moments of joy we shared with family. One of my favorite traditions growing up was listening to the Nutcracker. We’d put on a whole living-room performance every year, roping friends into it. (I always played the Rat King) Dad filmed, and he’d sneak whoopee cushion sounds into the background. Our “bloopers reel” had us crying with laughter every single year. These are the kind of memories that have stuck with me into adulthood. What do you remember most? I asked my Instagram community this question, and the responses were heartwarming. My hunch was right. Most of us don’t remember the actual gifts (aside from one or two special ones). What we really remember is: 🎄 Togetherness — family dinners, cousins’ laughter, playing charades. For many, Christmas was the one day everyone prioritized joy... ...and quite a few made a point to say it’s the one day they could count on their parents being happy and having fun. I say this with so much compassion and zero judgment: I think we all hope our kids remember us as joyful and fun for more than just one day a year. Prioritize joy this season That’s why I created “Laughing All the Way,” a playful advent calendar packed with easy, silly prompts to help you make magical memories this December — without adding to your stress (and hopefully reducing it!) 💡 Takes 10 minutes or less each day Let’s be accountability partners for connection and joy this season! 👉 Tap here to grab Laughing All the Way for the price of a fancy holiday latte Warm hugs, ☃️ P.S. I’d love to hear about your favorite holiday memories! It’s so fun to read them, and it’s also a great way to reflect on what made those moments so special. Just hit reply. ❤️ P.P.S. I'll be sending a few reminders about this before the month is up, but you can opt out of them by tapping here! |
Playful Heart Parenting
I’m a mom, stepmom, and theatre educator helping exhausted parents access their inner creative playfulness for more connection and joy. No messy crafts, complicated setups, or sensory bins here! Just simple, silly moments that bring your family back together through laughter. My short weekly emails share reflections from real life and a simple invitation you can try for yourself or with your kids.
(Hey, that subject line rhymes!) We just got back from our first big family adventure visiting family across the country, and as usual I was in hustle-and-bustle mode, drenched in sweat from packing… already running late as usual for our fam… (Side note, I used garbage bags and then sat on them to press out all the air and semi-vacuum-seal our clothes and I felt like a GENIUS… I am going to pretend I discovered this so don’t correct me if I’m wrong, let me have this 🏆) When we got to security...
I recently got punched in the EYEBALL with the corner of a Rubik’s cube. It all started when I felt like I was CRUSHING it at being a mom, doing all of the following at once: Reading to my toddler on the couch (aka she was sitting on top of my chest and flipping the pages before I could read any of the words) Playing the “Jingle Game” with my 10yo stepdaughter, perched on the top of the couch - this is where we give each other random items and then make up a jingle together for them on the...
Father's Day morning was off to a rough start in our house... It was like each kid was taking turns having a hard time... which was then making me more stressed than usual because of the pressure of it to be a happy day for my husband. (Ugh, holidays can be so weird like that you know??) I had a picture in my head of how it was going to go and it was quickly disintegrating. Once everyone was semi-chill and together on the couch, I grabbed the "Dad Libs" I'd made for the Father's Day games and...