Playful Rooted

What. a. month March has been for us. We started the month away from home in Chicago, then road-tripped back to KC and immediately (seriously, five minutes after we arrived home) started hosting out of town guests for several days. The day after they left, Ben went to Phoenix for a week, so I was solo parenting when Luca got a horrible cold that kept him up coughing and sniffling all night long for many nights. That was a really tough momming week. I’ve also been super busy with a crazy hard biology class that takes up three whole evenings every week and half the day on Saturday, and even though Ben is back now, he’s been constantly occupied with work and home projects. We’ve barely gotten a second to breathe or just see each other! And now, we’re leaving for Europe in less than 10 days. (Omg. Cue the freak out. I’m SO excited but there’s so much left to do!)

In the midst of all the crazy, lately I’ve been turning to a few things that have made my life easier, cheaper, and/or generally more manageable. I thought I would pass these ideas along because they seriously are SAVING my life!

Instacart delivery from Sprouts (!!)

I hate grocery shopping so, so much. It seriously sucks the soul out of me. So I was unbelievably excited when we moved to Kansas City to discover that our regional grocery store, Hy-Vee, offers delivery. Hy-Vee is pretty good, (and delivery is free over $100!), but Sprouts is by far my grocery store of choice. In fact, even when I ordered delivery from Hy-Vee, I would normally still have to go to Sprouts for a special few things that Hy-Vee doesn’t have. So when I got notified a few weeks ago that Instacart had started offering delivery service from Sprouts, it was basically the greatest day of my life. I may NEVER have to go to the actual grocery store again! (Picture the dancing lady emoji because that’s me in response to this news.)

A huge perk of Instacart is that you can tip ON THE APP. This is perfect for me because I never have cash, and it was always a hassle to find tip money when I ordered from Hy-Vee. Not to mention, the Instacart app is so intuitive and user-friendly, and it works across multiple devices, so I can stand in the kitchen and add something from my phone right when I run out of it, and then when I place a big order from my iPad three days later, the thing I added from my phone is still there. I’m in love, I’m in love, and I don’t care who knows it!

And you guys!! If you want to try Instacart and SAVE $10 on your first order, here’s a link!

Libby app.

You probably already know about this amazing service. I just discovered it a handful of months ago and couldn’t believe I had been paying for books unnecessarily for years like some sucker. But if you haven’t heard, you can use Overdrive with the Libby app to check out books/audiobooks from your local library for FREE and read or listen to them on all your devices.

Okay, to be fair, I knew this existed long before I actually started using it, but I didn’t investigate it much until recently because it seemed….complicated? I really don’t know. But let me tell you, friends, it’s extremely easy to set up and use, and I’ll likely never pay for a book again! I’ve read and listened to so many great books these past few months without paying a dime and without actually visiting the library (not that I’m against a library visit, but you know….effort). Honestly, if you spend any money at all buying books for your Kindle or on Audible, drop what you’re doing and look into Libby!

Gentle parenting mantras.

My sweet little baby has entered a new phase of life: some call it Leap 10; some call it toddlerhood. That baby sweetness is still in there for sure, but now it’s combined with a whole lot of sass and many daily meltdowns. It can be SO difficult some days (especially when Ben is out of town and I’m on my own allll day long). I find it really helps me to stay calm if I repeat a mantra during the meltdowns. My favorite:

This reminds me to take the focus off myself and try to step into his shoes. Turning my perspective around allows me to sympathize and connect instead of just being irritated. It’s a daily struggle at the moment, but I know we’ll get through this challenge and onto the next. Parenthood! It’s a hoot.

Planning great things.

Many years ago, a beloved mentor gave me the advice that you should always be planning something amazing in the next month or two. Whenever you’re having a tough day or you feel lonely or stressed out or otherwise down, you can look forward to the thing you’re planning, and that helps get you through it. It’s some of the best advice I’ve ever gotten, and I really try to stick to it. Whether it’s a fancy meal out, a trip abroad, a concert or play you’re excited about, a nice spa day, or even just a long coffee date with a good friend, it’s such a comfort to know that there’s something wonderful on the horizon. This week, I’ve been planning our upcoming trip to Ireland and the UK, and it’s such a thrill to research and map things out and daydream about what we’ll see and do. Sometimes the planning is even more fun than the experience itself!

Up First podcast.

You know how before you have a child, people tell you to enjoy your free time because you’ll never have it again? And you roll your eyes and think, ‘Hello, surely I’ll have time at least to read the newspaper.’ And then you have a child and…free time? Not so much. Crazy how those people were right!

I gave up my efforts to read the newspaper months ago, but it was around that time that I serendipitously heard about the Up First podcast. It’s published (is published the word? idk) daily and serves up the most important news from the past 24 hours in about 10 minutes. I may not be able to read the newspaper, but I can easily listen to a 10-minute podcast while making breakfast.

Obviously since it’s short, it doesn’t go too in-depth, but it’s enough news to keep me semi-informed of what’s going on in the world. And these days, that’s honestly the most I can ask for.

What about you? Have you tried any of these life-savers? What would be on your list?

xo!