I can’t speak for everyone, but living in Indiana/Midwest during Winter is seriously so hard! Every single year I struggle so much with seasonal depression, the weather is just all over the place while nearing the end of Fall, then you have all of these mad Holiday rushes, and then BOOM, all of the Holiday fun is over, and you’re left with boring ol gray Indiana.

This year I decided to kick it straight to the gray curb though, and I am going to help you through it too!

I had a boss once who said the most valuable thing someone could have told me, “Bundle up that baby, and go for a walk, get outside”. She told me this while telling her how much I missed running after having my first son, not only was I dealing with a little bit of postpartum depression, I was also battling seasonal depression, and I thought to myself ‘you know what, she is right. I will bundle up that baby and go outside”. Your takeaway from this is – Get outside, go for a walk, bundle up and sit in the sun, take a short hike. Just because it is Winter does not mean you are stuck indoors!

Don’t laugh at me, but I will literally use the media to boost my serotines by watching YouTube Vlogs in Florida, or just typing ‘Florida’ into my Pinterest search. Just seeing all of the warmth brings me joy and seeing hot bitches all tan + fit 100000% motivates me to keep up with my work outs, self-care etc.!

Speaking of self-care, that’s next! Do some stuff for yourself that you would in Summer – get a spray tan, paint your nails fun colors, or even wear fun colors! Prioritize your diet – eat lots of fruit, drink lots of water.

Something new I am trying this year (and really loving it!) is Winter decor. We are team take down on the 26th so I rip down every single Christmas decoration in sight, which leaves the house bare, and being someone who decorates Easter-Christmas, the house always seems so sad This year I decided to leave up anything from Christmas that looked wintery. Lots of dark greens and wood tones. Think pine trees and pinecones!

Write yourself letters. I touched on this in my last blog, but in case you missed it… Every month at the end of the month, write yourself a letter about how things went this month, how you could improve next year, words of encouragement, and really just anything you would want your future self to know. Toss that letter in an envelope and write “Open December 1st, 2024), then repeat every month. This December I will open a letter from myself to remind me of the moments to let in, and the things to let go.

Hang in there sis, Spring will be here before we know it and we will be bitching about the return of bugs together. Now go bundle up that baby.

Xoxo,
Mimi

Ahh, a fresh new year already?? What a trip 2023 was for us. If you haven’t noticed, I’ve been a little MIA lately, and for good reason too! So let me quickly (lol yeah right) catch you up. Nearing the end of 23′, I became so unhappy with my job that I truly could not bare it anymore and spent my days fighting off depression all because of a freaking job. I had been there 11 years and finally just said I can’t take this anymore and went seeking something new.

So, I made a new friend (Hi Shelbs!), she helped me get into the world of virtual assisting, then, magically the stars aligned, and her company was hiring. After an interview with her our boss, I became their Creative Content Assistant. At this point I was even more hungry to leave my 9-5, so I picked up a few houses to clean every month and VERY quickly grew my role from Assistant to Creator Account Manager and quit my 9-5!! (Get out the snap cup)

Then out of the blue a few weeks ago, I received a call for my literal dream job. More on this to come!! I am so excited to share with you guys, but I don’t want to announce anything just yet, let’s wait on the ink to dry 🙂

So let’s recap that – In August I made a new friend, got a new job that I LOVE, started cleaning just a few houses, QUIT my soul sucking job, and took on a huge new opportunity. Had I not started my new job when I did, and left my 9-5 when I did, I never would have been able to take on this new opportunity and I am so thankful that I took that big scary leap of faith and trusted God’s plan and path for me. I just know this year He will continue to rain blessings upon us.

I bet you’re thinking, does she ever see her kids? Yes! I actually see them SO. MUCH. MORE. I only clean 2 days a month, my job is 100000% remote and on my schedule, so I work a lot during nap time, nighttime when they’re sleeping, and even the car pick up line at school. Everything is more task based rather than getting 40 hours in a week, it is seriously so much better for me, and I do not take a single second of it for granted. PS, if you need any Social Media Management, look us up!

Now let’s move on to the goals I have in place for 2024!

Personal –
  1. Get back into my daily relationship with God. – While I still pray and worship his name, I definitely do not sit in silence with nothing but the Word every morning with my coffee like I did before. Just 30-60 minutes in the morning before the kids get up with a hot cup of coffee and Joyce preaching is truly what I need to start my day on the right foot. Since I have been working until 1-3 am, I haven’t exactly been on the best schedule, but all of this is going to change soon.
  2. Which brings me to this; Better work/life balance. – Not sure if you guys caught on, but I have 3 jobs (4 if you want to include working for myself). I truly do my best to pour into my boys’ cups, but I could do better. All of this change happening so fast, and then the Holiday chaos would throw anyone off their routine. So, moving forward I will be finding a better balance to work X amount of hours per day, spending X amount of hours with them, and not working until 3am.
  3. Self-care, including better sleep. – I have decided this year I truly want to focus more on myself. I spend so much time filling the cups of others that this year while doing that, I will also be filling mine. Once we establish our new life routine, I will be on a better sleeping schedule. A restful mama = a happy mama. I need to get back on my workout routine, and while I am SO close to my goal weight, that is not even close to being my top priority. Working out makes me feel good, prolongs my life, and makes me strong, which is essential when raising two wild little dirt bike boys. I focus more on how I look/feel rather than a number on a scale, I am only even paying attention to it right now because we alllll want to be back at that post-partum scale number so I’m just curious now and then, but if I never hit that number and love the way I look then I will be 110% satisfied!
  4. Better spending habits. – I cannot believe I am even saying this, but I am going to DO MY BEST and ditch Starbucks this year, and overall, just spend less money. I look at what we made last year and I’m like where did that money even go??? Starbucks and Dollar Spot?? That is ridiculous. Let’s not get crazy, I’m not going on a spending freeze or boycotting the Dollar Spot, but I am most definitely going to be more aware of how/where I’m spending money this year. If I want to redecorate the house or something like that, I am going to try out thrifting or more DIY.
  5. Declutter – Why do we have so much shit? Maybe because of that last paragraph. I honestly feel like I do such a good job at organizing and purging the house every few months but damn, it is just never enough! So, this Spring I want to reallllly dive into Spring Cleaning and just get rid of anything we truly do not need or want anymore. If it is going to take up space in our life, it has to have a purpose, or it’s GONE. With all of that said, I also have a few house projects I want to do! Inexpensive, DIY and resourceful ways to revamp a few areas of our home. Stick around, I might make a post about it lolzzz.
  6. At the end of every month, write a letter for my 2025 MONTH Self. – So, at the end of January I will write a letter about how the month went, how it could have been better, what to do differently next year, and also all the good that happened. Then January 1st 2025 I will open that letter. I technically have already started this by writing an end of December letter for my December 2024 self, I basically tell myself to enjoy the few short weeks of Christmas magic we have and embrace all the chaos. Then every month you will repeat this and have a full year of letters to open in 2025 with words of advice, encouragement, and anything else you feel like future you might need to hear.

Social Media –
  1. Taking back what matters most – When I started this blog, it was my literal baby and I have loved it so much ever since. Any Mother knows, you sometimes lose yourself within motherhood and this blog was a place I could come to be myself, express creativity, help others out and so much more. Then all the platforms just started taking over… Everything I read online to run a successful blog said I had to excel on Instagram, but then IG said I had to have an LTK, and Pinterest, and TikTok, and YouTube, and Threads, and Amazon Affiliate, and Podcast, AND IT JUST NEVER ENDS. This blog was never about reaching an Influencer status, making money or anything more than that first statement. A place to express myself and help others. So, I am taking my social media presence BACK. How am I doing that? By only running this blog, my Instagram, Pinterest for Blog promotion, and my Amazon Storefront! That is literally it. I have already deleted so many things such as LTK, closed my Etsy Shop, and for the Podcast… I have decided for now, I will let the current uploaded episodes remain there. I am asked about it allll the time and maybe one day I will start it up again but right now just isn’t the time to have a podcast. The kids are home with me practically 24/7 and when they aren’t home, I need to be more productive than sitting on my butt recording podcast episodes. So not off the table for life, but off the table for now!
  2. Creating Digital Downloads – So circling back to helping others, I have a few eBooks in the works for you guys! I don’t want to announce them just yet, but they will be very beneficial to you and the topics are on my most requested blogs. (That was a hint!) These will all be available through Stanstore (subject to change) and I will post all the links you guys need to find each eBook. I am so excited about this!
  3. Amazon Influencer Program – Back in September I applied for the Amazon Influencer program, and I definitely did not think I would be approved. (This is different than the Amazon Affiliate program). To my surprise, they approved the request and I have not done a single thing with it. That is going to change in 2024! I get DM’s on Instagram all the time asking where I got this and that, being an Amazon girly, it just made the most sense to use this platform rather than LTK. Now I can share all of my cute and affordable finds with you all in a super easy way. When I first roll out my Storefront I will go ahead and add categories like Hair, Clothes/Accessories, Kids Clothes + Gear/Toys, WFH, and Nails! So right off the bat you guys will have access to all of the things I currently own and love.
  4. Grow a true following – I am not hating on my following at all, I just hope to find more likeminded women who want to grow in their motherhoods, see that we all have messy houses and bad days, learn a new, easy, inexpensive recipe and so much more. I truly want to help others in their journey, no matter what stage of life they’re in.

Let’s wrap this up! So, if something is weighing you down, or not bringing you joy (like a job), just know that God has a plan, and He wants you to live a fulfilled life. Not one you look back on and say “Man, I wish I had done this or that differently”. It is so scary, believe me I know, but He will not give you more than you can handle. Put your trust within Him and take that leap of faith. You can do anything!!! 

I believe in you more than anyone and I will always be your hype girl.
Love always,
Mimi

A super simple craft for your little one to do on those Summer days that are just too hot or rainy to go play outside!

What you will need:

• Construction paper of all colors
• Scissors
• Glue Stick
• A Marker
• Small bowl

What to do:

• First you will take a whole sheet of paper and draw a huge shape, number, letter etc.
• Then you will stack a bunch of papers together and cut little squares out of them. Toss squares in a bowl.
• Set your kiddo up at a table and give them the first paper with your shape, letter, number etc on it.
• Have them trace the shape etc with their glue stick.
• Now they can grab their paper squares and stick them on the shape etc in a tracing form.
• That’s it! Now go hang their beautiful artwork on the fridge to dry!

This is just a super simple thing to help keep your little ones busy and learn at the same time. Enjoy!

Need more? Find a reel about this blog post by clicking HERE!

My husbands work sends us to Holiday World every year and I am so excited to have this as a family tradition as our boys grow through the years. We decided to leave Ace with Nana and make this a 1:1 day with our oldest, Axell. Especially with Ace only being 9 months, there isn’t much for him to do yet

Since Alek had to work for a while in the morning Ax man and I went ahead and got a head start on the day. We live about 2 hours from there so I figured this would be a great opportunity for us to grab breakfast together and check out the park before it got too hot, and busy! Then Alek came down to meet up with us when he was finished with work.

Axell just happened to have a doctor appointment the week we were going so I was sure to take note of his height. He was 42″ tall, now that I knew his height I jumped on the Holiday World website to figure out what rides he could do and also scoped out the map. To my surprise there was a lot he could do at both parks! I will link everything for 42″ and above down below and also the link for additional heights.

Now lets get into our day! It all started with dropping little Acey off with Papp + Nana, then Axell and I hit the interstate and were “Old MacDonalds” bound for some breakfast. Unfortunately we arrived 5 minutes too late and settled on Dunkin for donuts, which no one complained about! We did attempt Parlor Donuts but they had a line wrapped around the building and we were too excited for HW to wait in some big donut line.

Once we finally got there and in our parking spot we made the big walk towards the park. Before crossing the rainbow bridge for the park entrance they have bathrooms (with family bathrooms as well) so be sure to make a pit stop before your little one sees all the things.

After we got our tickets scanned we started at Christmas, just through the gates to your left. They have about 6 rides that are perfect for this age. It also wasn’t overly crowded in that area so this allowed my introverted little one some time to acclimate to his surroundings.

Not even going to lie, as soon as we got home I was totally in the Halloween and Christmas spirit from all the awesome themes they have there!

Holiday World is HUGE with tons to do. They also provide free (including in your ticket cost) sunscreen and have a Pepsi Oasis for all free drinks you desire, they have Gatorade, water other options such as Sobe so it’s not just sugary sodas!

Once the Splash Pad opened we headed down there to grab a locker for our backpack. It is a self serve set up. You will pay at a kiosk where you have the option of 2 different size lockers. You will then receive a scan able bracelet for your locker. Each row of lockers will have a red or green light on them indicating full or not full. Once you find a green row just scan your bracelet and a locker will pop open for you. Quick Tip: Take your own towels as they do not provide them! and water shoes if you don’t want to walk around barefoot.

Axell and I did a few more rides and drank our weight in Gatorade before meeting up with Alek. Once he was there Axell really wanted to show him what we had been up to so we repeated several rides.

Now that it was plenty warm we decided to head to the waterpark! We were there on a prime Saturday so the lines were long and the place was packed. We spent most of our time cruising the lazy river, wave pool and the SplashLand.

Once we had enough water time we got changed back into our dry clothes (They have tons of changing rooms + bathrooms in the park area) and headed to my Husbands company picnic. Holiday World and Splashin’ Safari have tons of food options, you can check those out by clicking HERE.

With our bellies full we did a few more lowkey rides and hit the road for home! Axell loved the 1:1 time with us but he was excited to go get his little bro and tell him all about his big day! Thanks for reading and I hope you found value in this blog. Enjoy your time at Holiday World and make all the memories! Embrace the chaos and remember you’re creating the childhood they will look back on. Quick Tip: Holiday World operates on CENTRAL TIME so please factor that into your day! Cheers!

The following rides in Holiday World are suitable for guests over 42″ tall:

These heights are measured with shoes on. Rides denoted with an asterisk require riding with a Supervising Companion (at least 16 years of age).

Comet’s Rockets • Crow’s Nest* • Dancer’s Fish • Dasher’s Seahorses • Doggone Trail • Eagles Flight • Firecracker* • Frightful Falls* • Gobbler Getaway • Holidog Express • Holidog’s Treehouse • Howler • Just for Pups • Kitty’s Tea Party • Lewis & Clark Trail • Magic Waters • Mayflower* • Prancer’s Merry-Go-Round • Raging Rapids* • Reindeer Games • Revolution • Rough Riders* • Rudolph’s Round-Up • Scarecrow Scrambler* • Star Spangled Carousel • Tippecanoes • Turkey Whirl*

The following attractions in Splashin’ Safari are suitable for guests over 42″ tall:

These heights are measured with shoes off. Attractions denoted with an asterisk require riding with a Supervising Companion (at least 16 years of age).

Bahari River • Bahari Wave Pool • Bakuli* • Cheetah Chase* • Jungle Racer • Kima Bay • Mammoth* • Otorongo* • Safari Sam’s SplashLand • Tembo Falls • Tembo Tides • The Wave • Watubee* • Wildebeest* • Zinga* • ZOOMbabwe*

Additional rides categorized by height can be found by CLICKING HERE

5 useful things that help me run our household.

1. Set laundry days. For me, every Monday I like to wash all the linens in the house. Fresh sheets, bath towels, hand towels, blankets, any and all linens that need washed. I love starting the week off with fresh sheets on my bed. Then usually Wednesday I do all of the clothes laundry, now this is 100% laundry to completion – wash, dry, fold, hang, put away. Throw some headphones on with your favorite podcast, music, audiobook and just get. it. done.
2. Every Sunday I like to plan out dinner every night for a week, then make a grocery pick up at Walmart and Sam’s Club, then I grab these after school pick up on Monday and we have everything we need for the coming week. I absolutely hate going into the grocery store so this saves a lot of time, frustration and money!
3. Clean the kitchen while you get dinner done. I don’t like taking time out of my day to do the dishes when I’m going to be spending an hour in the kitchen that evening anyways, so while you have something browning or baking unload/load the dish washer. Put things away as you cook, wipe down counter tops, appliances etc. Microwave cleaning tip: Pour a little Dawn in a coffee mug with water and heat up for about 2-3 minutes. You’ll be able to wipe down everything inside with ease!
4. Do daily pick ups and have a morning routine. I like to open up the house by opening all the curtains, and windows too if it’s nice out! Make the beds, fluff the pillows and do a quick sweep throughout the house. In addition to a morning routine I also have a nighttime routine. Usually after I put our boys to bed I will make sure all of the toys are picked up, start the dish washer, put up throw blankets etc, make sure dinner is cleaned up, trash is taken out. Just an overall reset. I love my night routine because in the morning I feel like I can breathe when I nestle into the couch with my coffee and see a clean house.
5. Last but not least, don’t be a hoarder! I go on a “purge” every 3 months, if we don’t use it, if its just taking up space etc then pitch it! If it is something of true value I will try to sell it, or if I feel as though someone else could benefit from it then I will donate but otherwise just pitch it! I seriously love getting trash bags and just going through every room to declutter. Kids toys, misc beauty products you shove under the sink, clothes you’re never going to wear, decorations you’ve outgrown. I obviously keep personal and sentimental things but as far as clutter goes, PITCH IT! or donate 🙂

I hope these 5 things can help you in your daily routine, If you have something that works really well for you I would love to know about it! Find me on Instagram @mimipapp_

Hi guys! I hope everyone had the best time celebrating our wonderful winter holidays.

I’m excited to start a fresh new year and knock out some goals. We accomplished several things in 2022 and I can’t wait to see how 2023 will treat us.

Like everyone, my resolutions start with health/fitness, finances, personal growth and so much more.

We don’t have a whole lot mapped out for the year yet as far as travel goes but we do have a few trips planned. We were just in Ohio for a football game, we have a few mom and dad nights for a comedy show and a concert (Koe Wetzel, lfg!), and one of Alek’s best friends is getting married in North Carolina so we will be making a big trip out of that, and hoping to make a trip up to the UP to see the fam!

This year will be the year of protecting my peace. If it doesn’t bring me joy then I don’t need it in my life ✌🏼Hoping to listen to more podcasts (maybe even start one, eppp), more reading and overall more time focused on myself. That sounds so selfish but as a mom you are constantly needed, and while I wouldn’t trade being a mom for the world, it’s exhausting. So don’t forget to take some time for yourself. Do your nails, read a book, scroll TikTok for an hour, whatever your jam is just take time out of your day to do you.

Over the weekend I turned 30. THIRTY! Which is pretty freaking crazy. I’ve always said that your 20’s are for planting the seeds and your 30’s are growing your roots, so here’s to that! My absolutely amazing friends kidnapped me Saturday night and took me out for my big day, I can’t stress enough how much they mean to me and how grateful I am! Alek bought me the freaking car of my dreams and I cried happy tears for daysssss. Thanks babe!!

It’s been a great year so far and I’m looking forward to all the months ahead.

As always, follow me on Instagram for more content @ mimipapp_

Let’s talk about having that second baby… This is probably going to be more positive than your normal 0-1 vs 1-2 blog.

Having a second baby has been amazing. When I had Axell I struggled so much mentally thinking that all the sleepless nights and constant crying + screaming was just my life now but they grow out of that and you eventually sleep again, so when I’m up at night and think “goddddd I just wanna sleep”, I know that one day I will and he won’t be my sweet tiny baby for long. Just try to remember that and give yourself some grace.

Our hardest part about taking on baby number two has been baby number ones attitude. We had a huge huge huge adjustment period with Axell, but it didn’t help in Ace’s first 5 weeks of life Axell had a virus, then double ear infection, then stomach bug, then another double ear infection and then a two day fever. Ace is officially 2 months old now and Axell is back to his normal wildself. He absolutely loves being a big brother and I can not wait to watch these two grow up together.

I truly believe most of Axell’s struggles were related to not feeling well, but we just made it a point to spend one on one time with him (lots of baking!) and try to give them equal attention. If I was doing the mom baby voice to Ace telling him how sweet he was then I would make sure to compliment Axell too.

I love the season we are in and time just goes so fast. If you’re struggling try your best to remember it does get better and one day they will be grown. You’ll miss your house being full of chaos one day.

I know everyone says “Just Wait” as a negative term (I’m guilty of it too!) but if you’re about to go from 1 baby to 2… just wait. It’s amazing 🤍