although i’m not a mama just yet, i sit around a big table each week with women who are. at that table, during our thursday morning coffee date, we share the good & bad. we share our misjudgments, our laziness, our mistakes, our guilt & our successes.
& oftentimes those mamas just need to hear one thing… “you are the mama your kids need.”
today i want to share with you lines of grace, a beautifully-crafted line of encouragement by my sweet friend, melissa!
the lines of grace shop includes hand-lettered prints of encouragement in both digital & print. she also has a fun happy mail society that invites you to subscribe for a small monthly fee. this happy mail society includes both a digital & print option with lots of fun surprises!
i love that melissa offers a digital print option in her shop.
her digital prints are such a good gift idea for friends during the holidays or just a little pick-me-up for an exhausted mama. gift this print to a handful of mamas & it’s only about $2 a person!
no need to buy an expensive frame! i purchase vintage clipboards at our thrift shop for less than $1 each. clip this print to a clipboard & it acts as the perfect frame.
with a cute homemade tag & fun fabric tied to the top, your mama friends will sure feel the love.
sweet melissa is kindly offering up a print of your choice & one month of happy mail society to one natalie creates reader. to enter, simply:
like most, i always look forward to a new month ahead. a fresh month feels like a blank slate allowing us to make better choices with our health, our finances & our time.
one practice that has helped us manage our time better & communicate more effectively is our family calendar meeting.
do you sit down as a family for a monthly calendar meeting?
i am a paper planner kind-of-person & it drives my hubby nuts because he’s a fan of the google calendar. this practice allows us to merge both of our preferences & our obligations/responsibilities for the month into one calendar that’s been discussed & shared.
it’s best to start this practice at the beginning of the month & have your meeting the first week of the month (we prefer the first sunday of the month).
we bring our daily calendars & write down important events such as birthdays, book clubs, & visitors in town. we also talk about potential holiday travel & taking time off of work.
our calendar isn’t really color-coordinated, but you could always designate a color to a specific person’s activities.
i keep the calendar in my office where we both see it regularly. if we need to add something to the calendar, we let the other person know.
our calendar is from hobby lobby. i like the simple white frame that can be hung on the wall or fridge with ease.
the most important piece of this practice is communication! this practice allows us to connect as a family & manage our time more effectively together.
do you have a monthly calendar meeting? how do you manage your time & communicate as a family?