Hey friends! If you follow me on Instagram, then you’ve been watching the (somewhat slow) progress of our kitchen renovation. We’ve done everything ourselves – with the help of my dad – so I wanted to share with you how we approached tiling our kitchen. Let’s get down to it! Here is the kitchen before the tile First, we decided we did *not* want to use putty or any type of sticky adhesive that you smear on the wall before laying down the tile. From what we read, if you were to use that you’d have to set the tile and then wait 72 hours or so to apply the grout. Not only is that not a timely opt ..read more

Around the time we got back from Legoland (August 2023), I had planned on weaning myself off my antidepressants. It was a decision I had thought about, time and again, and finally decided to take the plunge. The trip to Legoland was horrible, to say the least. It was over a nine-hour drive from where we live in Virginia, and I alternated between anxiety attacks and panic attacks for the whole nine hours. I had begun taking CBD gummies with THC in them prior to leaving for New York. I thought they were helping, but nothing was helping enough. I was shaking and crying and breathing hard for the ..read more

On Sunday morning, we left Virginia and made the drive up to Goshen, New York to spend a few days at Legoland! Outside of the repeated panic attacks I sustained on the way there…the trip was (for the most part) enjoyable for me *insert dizzy face here*. The kids had a great time! And hubby, I think he was just along for the ride – but he did seem to enjoy himself too! We stayed at the Legoland hotel, which sits right next to the park. EVERYTHING was Lego themed! The kids were so excited to see the creative ways the hotel incorporated Lego into every area of our stay. The first floor of the ..read more

* originally posted Dec. 29, 2016 This past August I opened up about my relapse into anxiety and panic attacks. I told the world in a seemingly simple Facebook post with a picture of myself smiling and a proclamation about being the best mother I can be to my children. And though I am happy now to be on a new road to recovery, my post was anything but simple – and I want to take a moment to explain a few things about relapsing. Before August, I had not taken a single pill for anxiety nor had a panic attack in roughly two years. That’s not to say I didn’t worry or have my bouts with anxious tho ..read more

If you’re someone who struggles with anxiety, or your mental health in general, this may be pretty self-explanatory for you. But if you’re the partner who doesn’t struggle with these things…listen up. Anxiety changes over time. Anxiety is pretty fluid – which means it ebbs and flows over time. Things that used to trigger you don’t now (yay!) but now there are new triggers (boo!). This can make it hard for your partner to understand what’s happening with you, or know how to handle it. Open communication with your partner about what you’re experiencing and what helps you during your anxious mom ..read more

As many of you know, I’ve been taking anxiety meds on and off since 2011. I’ve been taking them daily since 2014. Though this isn’t what I thought my anxiety journey would look like necessarily, these little pills gave me the strength I’ve needed to get my life back. *disclaimer: I am not a doctor; all the information I give here is based on what my doctors have told me, and personal experience. Things to consider before starting anxiety meds: On average, anxiety meds take 2 weeks to fully saturate your system. It’s recommended that you also do not try to alter your dosage or take yourself o ..read more

If you follow me on Instagram, you’ve seen me talking about the early Valentine’s Day present that I gave my husband over the weekend. If you didn’t hear about it, keep reading! Over the weekend I surprised my husband with the cutest personalized storybook titled “Mark, 10 Reasons I Love You.” This book was totally customized, thanks to Hooray Heroes. The characters in the book are personalized – down to the facial features! As the creator of the book, you pick what your “10 Reasons” are, and Hooray Heroes does the rest. Make sure to personalize the front of the book so that your special some ..read more

The days are short, and the nights are long. My soul is no longer nourished by the warm weather and bright sunshine. Instead, my thoughts have grown dark with the early sunset – And my body aches. My heart hurts, longing for what might have been were I not broken – what days I might have had if I weren’t struggling like this. I look in the mirror, and not only don’t like what I see – I’m filled with regret. Regret over things I never did, things I never said – ways I never pushed myself, or trusted myself. The regret comes in waves, and today I’m the rough shore ..read more

I’ve battled anxiety for almost as long as I can remember. I’m in my early thirties now, and I distinctly remember being anxious shortly prior to middle school – so for the majority of my time living so far…I’ve been anxious. That really sucks to say. Even as someone who blogs and talks about anxiety non stop – I feel a sense of embarrassment when I talk about how long I’ve been battling this nonsense. If my twelve-year-old self was to see me now, I can’t help but think that she’d be disappointed in me. Sure, I’ve overcome a lot in the last few years – but when I think about the life I could b ..read more

These days, at least one in five Americans reports that they suffer from extreme anxiety, or an anxiety disorder. It’s also not uncommon for someone struggling with anxiety to also be affected by depression (source here). If you’re here, that means something has been happening in your life that makes you think you might have an anxiety disorder. Before we go over symptoms and potential treatment, let me remind you that 1) I’m not a doctor and 2) even if you do have an anxiety disorder, you are still loved and valued, and you’re not broken (I promise you). Anxiety Disorder Symptoms: The most co ..read more