Declutter and Lose the Mental Load

Hi mamas!

This week, we’re celebrating a win for working mamas, plus we’re naming our winners from last week’s giveaway of ‘The Power Pause’. And, we’re talking politics and working mom burnout.

Regarding burnout, we’re giving you some resources to declutter your space and to offload your mental load.

Plus, with yesterday’s inauguration, political chatter at home might be at an all-time high. Not sure how to talk politics with your kids, family and friends? Check out this episode with our founder, Paula Faris, featuring America’s Government Teacher, Sharon McMahon (aka @sharonsaysso) .

Speaking of politics, we include an example of how a state government got it right when it comes to pregnant working women. Whoop whoop!

Finally, if your teen is toying with the idea of skipping college — don’t fret. There are ways to work through it that might surprise you.

But before you dive in: we’d like to summon the three winners of ‘The Power Pause’ giveaway. Jenise, Hillary and Diane, please REPLY to this email with your mailing address and we’ll pop your books in the mail.

🎉 Jenise Bland

🎉 Hillary Rose

🎉 Diane Langhurst

Enjoy!

 This week in The CARRY™ ALL, we’re talking about:

• 🤰🏽 A Win for Paid PRENATAL Leave

• 📋 When It’s Time to Outsource Your Mental Load

• 🧘🏽‍♀️ Ready to Declutter? 

THE BIG 1️⃣ 2️⃣ 3️⃣

1️⃣ 🤰🏽 A Win for Paid PRENATAL Leave

While the rest of the country is still fighting for paid parental leave, we have an example of how government got it right! NY is leading the charge on a slightly different battlefield: paid prenatal leave. Read that again. PAID PRENATAL LEAVE. Raise your hand if you felt like there was a target on your back every time you needed to skip out of work for an hour to attend one of your prenatal appointments. 🙋🏻‍♀️ NY State is now on your side, allowing all private sector employees up to 20 hours of paid time annually for prenatal physical exams, procedures and monitoring. Now THIS is the kind of legislation that can lead to gender equity in the workplace!

2️⃣ 📋 When It’s Time to Outsource Your Mental Load

When you list out all the things you do on a daily basis to keep your home running, does it look like a job description? That might be because all of the mental and physical labor that goes into keeping people alive, fed, and clean actually is a full-time job. When Kelly Hubbell realized that work/life balance was a myth, she hired a house manager and a prep chef. Then she founded Sage Haus to help other moms through the process of finding the support they need in the form of outsourced mental load. The best part? She has some freebies on the site to help you go through the process if you’re on a budget.

3️⃣ 🧘🏽‍♀️ Ready to Declutter?

Let’s face it: when our space is cluttered, so is our mind. If you’re taking the new year as an opportunity to declutter your life, you’re not alone. If budget is no concern, we love the work of Neat Method. They come to your house and turn your closets and living spaces into Instagrammable organized perfection. But if you’re more of a DIYer, you can organize pretty much anything with the help of The DIY Mommy. Our favorite is her small pantry organization.

BEEN THERE, DONE THAT 🤎

for working moms with older children

• Has your teen brought up the idea of not going to college? And did that alarm you? Many high school students, and their families, are rethinking the idea of higher education – especially as the admissions process has gotten more complicated, and the return on investment isn’t as much of a guarantee as it once was. This article is a great resource for parents who are navigating conversations with their teens who might have other plans. The key? Provide them with essential life skills, and structured opportunities that can help them find their path. If you want to go deeper, Paula, our founder, did an entire series on college, if you want to check out Ep 1 of that series HERE.

• Youth sports, music lessons, and rehearsals are likely a huge part of how you and your family spend your week. But quality time as a family? That might be harder to come by. One mom developed a plan to maximize quality time, without making quality time feel like a chore in and of itself. In short, two Saturdays per month are spent together – but how they’re spent changes from one month to the next. And we think it’s brilliant. Check it out.