Warm hearts, cozy winter accessories + grateful kids

I’ll be the first to admit that I’m self-conscious about entitled children. It’s one of my biggest fears as a parent, so in a world where it’s ME ME ME all of the time, we are working overtime to implement gratitude in all things! Please bless I’m not the only parent banging my head on my palm at times? Read on for 4 areas we are focusing on:

1. WORK:
The boys spend plenty of time at Gigi Pip, my hat shop. We opened a brick + mortar last week so it’s a new ball game. They help ship orders, take out the trash, pull orders, etc. We work hard, we play hard together as a family. The boys know we make beds before we eat breakfast. Rigg folds laundry, Jonah sorts it. Simple rules, simple chores, that we set with all fingers crossed that they won’t always just expect me to do it for them.

2. DINNER TIME:
Eating dinner as a family is the place where we feel our words are most effective. This dinner consistency is key for us, as we lead a busy on the go lifestyle. Which makes our dinner time SIT down all that much more important!! We’ve taken turns sharing highs + lows at supper as long as I can remember. Stems back to our dating days. It gives the kids a chance to share one high from their day, one low from their day + we share as parents, too. We tune into each other. Since school started this year, I’ve found myself wanting more information! #helicoptermom
So we implemented another couple of questions earlier this year:

HOW WERE YOU BRAVE TODAY? 
HOW WERE YOU KIND TODAY? 
HOW DID YOU FAIL TODAY?

Some nights they don’t want to talk. Some nights I don’t want to talk. But we haven’t come across a time where we are all feeling in a funk at the same time. I’ve found that asking “Do you want to hear about what I did today?” really helps the boys open up about things they remember from their day. Try it!

3. OTHER’S FEELINGS:  The other day I got flipped off by a random man who wanted me to turn faster. Yes, I felt like an idiot. I was mad. Embarrassed. The boys saw it all. Once the emotions dried up, we had a learning moment at dinner. Jon is the gooood one with this. I’m still learning along with the kids. When we can take difficult situations or one that don’t go our way + try to see them from different perspective we usually calm down. BOOM! Life isn’t always about what we want. Swap the roles, take away entitlement.

4. GRATITUDE:  Rigg came home with a thankful tree from preschool the beginning of the month. I love it. He loves it. It takes a village to raise grateful kids, right? I’m trying to find ways to keep this going throughout the year. ESPECIALLY next month when it’s a WANT WANT WANT in every store we step foot into. We are blessed + I pray my kids will see all that they have. It’s easy to remember as we are gluing on leaves, but what about when we are walking around Target + there are a hundred “guys” we need to add to our collection? I’ve found it helps to remind before we walk into target that we have more than enough. We can find things for others, but we are good. 🙂 My new hat shop is right across the street from Liberty Park. We see first hand less fortunate situations + we are saving up to help share gloves + socks for the homeless across the street in a couple of weeks. I love love a good pair of gloves + socks. It’s a humbling thing to have more than enough to go around.

Speaking gloves and staying warm, ISOTONER has been around forever. Withstood all tests of time with their fleece winter products. I learned in Europe that being cold puts me in a worse mood than missing lunch. NO BUENO. I’ve learned to be smarter about my winter accessories. These ISOTONER slippers do the trick. I have the Microsuede Knit Marisol slippers in dark gray, they have the cute little white X’s on top. Trust me, the 360 surround comfort will make you gasp. So cozy. Perfect for school pick up, drop off, errands + everything in between!

A few more favorite ISOTONER products worth noting:
GLOVES | MOCCASINS |  STOCKING STUFFER GLOVES FOR JON

Anyway, thanks for listening to my ramblings.
We are a work in progress in all aspects of parenting + open to tips + tricks that work for you!

Happy Thanksgiving week! xx