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	<title>WIRL Project &#187; Motherhood</title>
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	<description>What It&#039;s Really Like.</description>
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		<title>Let Kids Be Kids!!!</title>
		<link>http://www.wirlproject.com/let-kids-be-kids/</link>
		<comments>http://www.wirlproject.com/let-kids-be-kids/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 31 Jul 2015 09:00:03 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[Ashley]]></dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Family]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Life/Leisure]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Love/Relationships]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Style/Beauty]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Bruise]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Bullying]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Children]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Dirt]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Dirty]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[explore]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[get dirty]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Girls]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[kids]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[let kids be kids]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Little Girl]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Mean]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Motherhood]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[parenting]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Playing]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Playing Outside]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Sweat]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.wirlproject.com/?p=6256</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[If you can, think back to your younger years, maybe when you were grade school age, or even younger if you can. What were you like? Did you have fears and worries and doubts or anxiety?? Kids can be cruel. Let&#8217;s face it, adults can be cruel too. The world isn&#8217;t by any means a perfect place, it&#8217;s far from it. But as a parent, you want to try to instill good morals and selflessness and sensitivity. You want your child to be kind to others, to not make fun of another kid because of their clothes, toys, or choices even. Often times we hear about kids getting bullied in school or kids committing suicide because they had no friends, nobody who understood them or cared enough to try to get to know them. It&#8217;s sad! I have an almost 3 year old daughter and she loves princesses, but she also loves getting dirty, and sweaty and running around covered in filth and food. She almost always has stains on her clothes because she likes to get into things, she likes to &#8216;help&#8217; her daddy fix things (which usually ends up with her covered in cuts, scrapes, and bruises). And you know what?! I&#8217;m fine with that. I&#8217;m okay with the way she is. She&#8217;s happy, outgoing, lovable, kind-hearted, sweet, selfless, hysterical, and most of all&#8230;she&#8217;s my daughter. &#8230;she likes to &#8216;help&#8217; her daddy fix things (which usually ends up with her covered in cuts, scrapes, and bruises). And you know what?! I&#8217;m fine with that. I&#8217;m okay with the way she is. Normally when we take her places, within 5 minutes she is covered in sweat, her face is beat red, and her clothes are barely hanging onto her body. She&#8217;s amazing and adventurous! I love the life in her eyes and the gentleness of her soul. To me, she&#8217;s perfect. But there are still those people that make comments. I have had people refer to her as a &#8216;hobo&#8217; because of how she&#8217;s dressed. They&#8217;ve said she looks like she belongs &#8216;in a trailer park&#8217; because she was outside, in just a diaper, and someone told her she was a &#8216;hot mess&#8217; because she was sweaty and wearing raggedy, dirty play clothes from Wal-Mart that were covered in food of some sort! In what world do people think it&#8217;s alright to speak to a not even 3 year old like that, let alone a little girl?! Self esteem can be broken so easily. It really angers me and even breaks my heart to know that one day I&#8217;m going to have to answer some pretty tough questions from her and I pray to God that I can be strong enough to be honest with her and at the same time sensitive to the subject at hand. I pray that we will raise her right and she will be strong enough on her own to stand on her own two feet and know that people sometimes say hurtful things that aren&#8217;t true. They&#8217;ve said she looks like she belongs &#8216;in a trailer park&#8217; because she was outside, in just a diaper, and someone told her she was a &#8216;hot mess&#8217; because she was sweaty and wearing raggedy, dirty play clothes from Wal-Mart&#8230; I, of course, do not know what the future holds, but I pray for the future of ALL of our children. That they be kind and wise in their words and actions and that their parents teach them the difference between right and wrong. And parents, even though a child may not fit into your perfect mold that you have set, please also be kind with your words and actions and consider that child&#8217;s feelings before saying such hurtful things. Just let kids be kids!! It&#8217;s okay!!]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.wirlproject.com/let-kids-be-kids/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>What It&#8217;s Really Like &#8211; The Story Behind WIRL Project</title>
		<link>http://www.wirlproject.com/what-its-really-like-the-story-behind-wirl-project/</link>
		<comments>http://www.wirlproject.com/what-its-really-like-the-story-behind-wirl-project/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 29 Jul 2015 07:30:45 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[Sara Brennan]]></dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Life/Leisure]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Work/Money]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Alike]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Assuring]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Baby]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Billion Dollars]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[blogging]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[CORE]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[education]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Famous Podcast]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Heart]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Instagram]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Life]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[More]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Motherhood]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Sara Brennan]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Selfies]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Share]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Struggle]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[T.v. Williams]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Tall]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Teaching]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[What It's Really Like]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[WIRL]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[WIRL Project]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.wirlproject.com/?p=7969</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[I had the privilege of being invited by T.v. Williams to be on his Famous Podcast a few weeks ago. I recently shared Part 1 of the show featuring a few stories about me and my personal life. Today I&#8217;m talking more about my professional life and how I was inspired to create the WIRL Project platform. In this particular portion of the show (Part 2) I am talking about: My son Mason (a quick blurb) My career as a teacher and how I always felt compelled to do something &#8220;more&#8221;.  How my Father pushed me to follow my heart, even in his last days How I ever got started blogging in the first place How T.v. called WIRL Project the next &#8220;Billion Dollar Company&#8221;! (Hint: He compared it to Instagram!)  Why I believe that people are all alike at our core How you can get involved and start sharing your stories on the WIRL Project platform &#160; As I said with Part 1, was very honest and real in this podcast and I&#8217;m looking forward to sharing the other parts with you in the future. I love the idea of podcasting because not everyone has time to sit down and read everyday, plus you get to actually see the show in action! I also love podcasts because they&#8217;re something you can play on your phone while you are driving or cleaning your kitchen or while you have a few minutes to sit on the couch and relax. The video link is below, let me know what you think! &#160; &#160; Thanks for watching and thank you T.v. for having me on the Famous Podcast! &#160; &#160; &#160;]]></description>
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		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>My Most UNEXPECTED Reaction to Becoming a Mother</title>
		<link>http://www.wirlproject.com/this-is-the-story-of-my-most-unexpected-reaction-to-becoming-a-mother/</link>
		<comments>http://www.wirlproject.com/this-is-the-story-of-my-most-unexpected-reaction-to-becoming-a-mother/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 24 Jul 2015 07:30:36 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[Ashley]]></dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Family]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Life/Leisure]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Motherhood]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Pregnancy]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.wirlproject.com/?p=3341</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[This is just a little story about me, it&#8217;s kind of personal and very honest. I hope that, maybe someone who is, or has felt the same is given some piece of mind knowing that there is someone else out there like them! So I&#8217;ll start off by saying something you probably aren&#8217;t used to hearing from a woman&#8230;I never dreamed of having children or being a wife. Shocking, right?!? Most little girls dream of their wedding day, and their children (how many they&#8217;ll have AND their names). I never did that. I was a very shy little girl who grew up with 3 brothers so I didn&#8217;t have a lot of &#8216;playing house&#8217; or &#8216;girl talk&#8217; involved in my daily activities. My brothers and I played a lot outside, climbing trees, playing baseball, swimming, and exploring the woods around our house.  I also grew up LOVING animals, like they were my passion! I wanted to be a veterinarian and help sick animals. So with that little bit of background being said, being a mom wasn&#8217;t something that I felt the least bit ready or prepared for! My husband and I got married in July 2011, and we decided to go off of birth control and just let things happen however they were meant to happen. We were &#8216;trying&#8217; to conceive for 6 months and NOTHING was happening. I made an appointment with my dr and she assured me that everything was fine, that I was a healthy 27 year old girl, and that I hadn&#8217;t given it enough time, that it would happen. After what at the time seemed like years, 3 months later we found out I was pregnant, and we were ecstatic!! Don&#8217;t get me wrong, we were also terrified of what we had hoped and prayed for for all this time&#8230;&#8217;what if we weren&#8217;t ready?&#8217; My entire pregnancy was relatively uncomplicated and easy, so to speak. We were discussing name possibilities and getting a room in the house all prepared for HER, this little creature that is going to soon come into my quiet, ORGANIZED, controlled environment&#8230;and I would soon have zero control anymore.  If it hasn&#8217;t been established yet, I&#8217;ll throw it out there&#8230;I am an absolute control freak!  I have severe anxiety and had depression through out my college years. My life revolves around to-do lists, and time&#8230;ohhhh time! I must look at the clock a bazillion times a day, and if we are ever 5 minutes late for something&#8230;I can literally feel my heart ready to jump from my chest. It&#8217;s awful. So anyways, back to this little &#8216;thing&#8217; that is about to disrupt all of my lists and make me late for everything. Even as a pregnant woman&#8230;I never felt that instant connection or protectiveness that you read so much about. People would gush over the idea of there being a precious little baby girl inside my belly, and I felt nothing. Don&#8217;t take that literally, I felt all the kicks and stuff, just not the &#8216;instant motherly bond&#8217; you hear so much about. Now, fast forward through my 9 months of pregnancy towards the end. I felt like, &#8216;when this baby comes out I will gladly let anyone babysit who wants her!&#8217; &#8216;I just want my normal life back&#8217;. I was due on January 12, 2013, and my little bundle of joy decided to put on the brakes, she apparently was just as not ready as I was. I was scheduled to be induced on January 18,2013 and that is the day that Ailyn was born and my life was forever changed. That &#8216;instant connection&#8217; you hear women say they have when they find out they&#8217;re expecting, I didn&#8217;t get that, however&#8230;I DID instantly feel this huge bubble surrounding me, my husband, and my new little, not so disruptive all of a sudden, sweet little angel from God. I say it all the time, I may not have realized how much I would love her when I was pregnant with her&#8230;but the absolute second that I layed my eyes on her little face, I knew that she is the reason I&#8217;m here, in this particular point in my life, my heart was whole again&#8230;and I have never felt so perfect in my own skin. In the few months after Ailyn was born, people wanted to hold her, and feed her, and babysit her&#8230;and I could not, or would not give her up. I didn&#8217;t care about how tired I was, or how sore and achy I was, or that I hadn&#8217;t showered that day. I only wanted to hold my baby, and breathe in the smell of her skin. I felt like she is the reason I was put on this earth, and still to this day&#8230;over 2 years later, I can honestly say that I still feel exactly the same. She is my best little friend and we do everything together. So to wrap things up, it&#8217;s ok to be scared at first, orrrr throughout your entire pregnancy.]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.wirlproject.com/this-is-the-story-of-my-most-unexpected-reaction-to-becoming-a-mother/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>2</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Rest Now or Pay Later: Importance of a Sabbath Day</title>
		<link>http://www.wirlproject.com/rest-now-or-pay-later-importance-of-a-sabbath-day/</link>
		<comments>http://www.wirlproject.com/rest-now-or-pay-later-importance-of-a-sabbath-day/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 22 May 2015 09:00:56 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[Alisha Askew]]></dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Health/Fitness]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Life/Leisure]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Business]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Career]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[depression]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Entrepreneur]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Mompreneur]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Motherhood]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Relaxation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Stress]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Success]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.wirlproject.com/?p=6321</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Why has living in the hustle and bustle of life become the new norm; where every waking second of our day is preoccupied with “something that absolutely has to get done, no matter what”? The only time that we truly think about taking a break is when we have over exerted ourselves and are burnt out. Can you honestly enjoy your break when you are, at that point, too tired to rest? Can you honestly enjoy your break when you are, at that point, too tired to rest? Last week started off very exciting and then ended with overwhelm. I launched my new Shine Bright Bold &#38; Beautiful mini 5 Day eCourse which empowers mothers to overcome self-doubt and overflow in self-empowerment! I made a big business no-no of completing each video and content on the same day that the eCourse was sent out to subscribers, so I always felt behind and time restricted. By end of day Friday, there was a complete difference in my temperament, my focus, and my motivation. All I can say is that I don’t think that I have experienced a happier entrepreneur moment than when I submit that last and final mini eCourse video to my subscribers! However, the sad thing was… I was so anxious to start another project on Saturday, despite any overwhelm and fatigue that I was feeling from that week. As soon as I picked up my computer to start another task, the words “Just Rest” came to me. That is when I started thinking about the Sabbath and how I told myself over a month ago that I was going to start resting on Saturdays. I slowly put my computer on the table and a sense of peace flowed throughout my entire body. No guilt. No remorse. Just an inner peace and stillness that my body, especially my mind was yearning! That is when I started thinking about the Sabbath and how I told myself over a month ago that I was going to start resting on Saturdays. I slowly put my computer on the table and a sense of peace flowed throughout my entire body. No guilt. No remorse. The thought of taking a day of Sabbath, or a rest day, is naturally frowned upon as we have been conditioned to work, work, work! In the beginning, I was even uncomfortable with myself for saying, “Today is my day of rest!” As the day went on, I felt like I achieved a major accomplishment of cherishing the moment, celebrating my Sunday-Friday work efforts, and being at peace with myself to take a load off, be easy, and “just rest”. So what exactly did I do on this day of rest? I did everything that may have been unintentionally neglected throughout the chaotic week. I prayed, meditated, and read in the morning, noon, and evening. I truly enjoyed quality time with my son and family. I released the negative energy from the week. I opened my mind and my heart so that I could more easily receive the guidance that I yearn on my purpose driven journey. I took a beautiful, rejuvenating, and well needed nap. And I just enjoyed the day for what it was. The benefits of rest and relaxation are endless, and many are priceless to the one and only precious life that we are given. During the week I may find some “Me Time” to balance all of the pressures from the day, but I am claiming Saturday as my day of Sabbath; my day of rest! I would love to hear how you find time to “Just Rest” and what are some of your favorite things to do during this so called “frowned upon” down time that is well needed and highly deserved?]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.wirlproject.com/rest-now-or-pay-later-importance-of-a-sabbath-day/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Crap My Three Year Old Says</title>
		<link>http://www.wirlproject.com/crap-my-three-year-old-says/</link>
		<comments>http://www.wirlproject.com/crap-my-three-year-old-says/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 04 May 2015 18:00:09 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[WIRL Project]]></dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Family]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[3 year old]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Funny]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Motherhood]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[parenthood]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Toddler]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.wirlproject.com/?p=5825</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Arden turned three in March, but has run the roost since she was just a couple months old. We knew that she’d be a spitfire but, given the choice, I still would have preferred a spitfire over a wallflower. I’ll likely be eating those words when she’s a teenager. As parents, part of our jobs is embarrassing our kids, usually not on purpose, when they get older. This entails showing up at school drop-off in our pajamas, answering the phone when their friends call, and generally just breathing and being alive. On the other hand, when our kids are young, we pray they won’t say anything in public that is mortifying or likely to get us shot. Like loudly commenting about the overweight lady eating a hot dog in her bikini at the beach. Or the stinky European guy at Disney with the long armpit hair. The list goes on. So far, in her first three years, Arden’s managed so say some hilarious things. Luckily, none have gotten us shot. Here are some of the gems: Arden: Mommy, what’s that mole doing on your chin? Me: It’s not a mole. It’s a beauty mark. Arden: No. Pretty sure it’s a mole. _____ Arden: Mommy, can I wear this princess dress to school? Me: No. It’s a 5t and you wear a 3t. You can wear it when you get bigger. Arden: Okay. And when I get bigger, I can drink beer and wine and coffee. _____ Arden: Mommy, put Elle’s hand on the stove. _____ Background: Arden and her girlfriend, Emerson, are each enjoying their own brownie sundaes. Husband: Arden, can I have some of your brownie? Arden: Hey Emerson, wanna give my Daddy a bite of your brownie? _____ Arden [pointing at food that dropped on the floor]: Don’t eat that- it’s a casualty. _____ Me, trying to diffuse a temper tantrum: Arden, stop the drama. Arden [dramatically]: This isn’t drama. It’s real life. _____ My sister: Arden, what noise does a pig make? Arden: Oink, oink. My sister: What noise does a cow make? Arden: Moo. My sister: What noise does Kuma [our geriatric labrador, who practically has one paw on the plank of the rainbow bridge] make? Arden: pants heavily with tongue out. _____ Background: Arden is in the car seat returning home from a trip to the grocery store with my mom. Arden: Grammy, I have to go potty. Grammy: You need to hold it for a little while. Arden [confused]: Do I hold it in my hands? Man, I can’t get enough of this kid. What are some of your favorite things your kids have said? Cheers! &#160; The content and image in this WIRL was originally written by Jennifer Burby and published on The Champagne Supernova. You can find Jennifer on WIRL Project here. &#160;]]></description>
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		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>The Realities of the Tightrope of Life. What Does Work/ Life Balance Mean For Me?</title>
		<link>http://www.wirlproject.com/the-realities-of-the-tightrope-of-life-what-does-work-life-balance-mean-for-me/</link>
		<comments>http://www.wirlproject.com/the-realities-of-the-tightrope-of-life-what-does-work-life-balance-mean-for-me/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 30 Apr 2015 12:00:22 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[Maureen Carlomagno]]></dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Family]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Health/Fitness]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Life/Leisure]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Love/Relationships]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Work/Money]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Balance]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[family life]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[fatherhood]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[functional imperfection]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Life]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Motherhood]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Parent]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[parenting]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Success]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[wellness]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[wellness success]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Work]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[work life balance]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.wirlproject.com/?p=5711</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[&#160; Like most women, I wear lots of hats in my life. Finding an equilibrium that suits me and my family is a constant, free-flowing evolution. As a lifestyle and wellness coach, I see a lot of the same themes with my clients as well. Sharing these common themes with each other is really important, so we don’t feel so isolated in our experiences. I’m going to lead by example with the list below. In my mom, wife, and business owner role, I have learned: To normalize the duality of parenthood and my career aspirations by showing those around me that I can blend motherhood and a career successfully. Originally, I felt that I had to hide the fact I was a mom. Over the years I have come around. I think it&#8217;s important that as working moms, we show the world how we can have our kids with us and still get things done. Breaking down my big dreams into little pieces so they are manageable has been invaluable. I have had to put some things on hold or slow down in order to achieve this balance. It’s hard to be patient and wait. If I were to completely stop every time there was an obstacle, I wouldn&#8217;t be able to move forward in reaching my main goals. Making time to communicate with my partner has kept us from becoming strangers. When you are both juggling so many different balls, it can be easy to put your relationship into auto-pilot. This takes a lot of work, but is worth it. &#160; In my life balance/wellness coach role, I have learned: We are all trying to get by the best we can. Asking for help (lots of it) instead of trying to be a jack of all trades can be a life saver. Choose sanity over all the other stuff. Live a life that is true to you. Peeling back the layers of what I “need” versus what I “want” can be very powerful. What do you really value most? Are you doing the activities that will lead you to those end goals? Take care of your body. If you aren&#8217;t filling up your own tank daily, you can’t be your best self for those around you. Getting enough sleep, eating a healthy diet, and exercising are so important. As is taking time to truly connect and communicate with your loved ones. Do activities that replenish your soul frequently. &#160; For me at this point, it is all about striving for what I like to call “functional imperfection.” I&#8217;ve learned to embrace the waves of uncertainty. Real life is a bit messy and unpredictable. Let’s not be afraid to share our struggles and successes with each other. &#160; Maureen Carlomagno is an enthusiastic advocate of integrated wellness, community engagement, and following your heart. She provides a unique and dynamic style of coaching that inspires clients to find their way to a healthier, happier life. Maureen works with her clients by focusing on personal development through smart decision making and increased self-understanding. Find out more at www.your-wellness-coach.com. &#160;]]></description>
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		</item>
		<item>
		<title>By &#8220;Work/Life Balance&#8221; You Must Mean: All Work, Bye Bye Life, and No Balance</title>
		<link>http://www.wirlproject.com/by-worklife-balance-you-must-mean-all-work-bye-bye-life-and-no-balance/</link>
		<comments>http://www.wirlproject.com/by-worklife-balance-you-must-mean-all-work-bye-bye-life-and-no-balance/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 30 Apr 2015 09:00:25 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[Sara Brennan]]></dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Family]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Life/Leisure]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Alone]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Balance]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Career]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Life]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Lonely]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Mom]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Motherhood]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[new mom]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Stay At Home Mom]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Work]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Work/Life Balance]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Working Mom]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.wirlproject.com/?p=5675</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Since becoming a mom, I&#8217;ve learned that there are NOT enough hours in a day. Many people often wish for &#8220;super powers&#8221; and mine would be the ability to survive without sleep! I actually hate going up to bed at night. Why do we NEED to do this!? There are so many more &#8220;productive&#8221; things I could be doing instead of laying down in a bed for 7-8 hours doing NOTHING resting! Before becoming a mom, I used to be a middle school science teacher and my day was filled with talking/socializing/teaching all day long, followed by the freedom to do whatever I wanted. I loved a good shopping marathon or DIY home project; I was very independent. When I decided to transition to the &#8220;glamorous&#8221; lifestyle of a stay-at-home mom, nobody prepared me for the difficult transition I was about to face. Everyone KNEW I&#8217;d made the decision to stay at home once I had the baby and not one person warned or prepared me for the emotions and changes I was about to face. I would hear comments such as, You will never regret staying at home with your kids or It&#8217;s such a great experience, I wouldn&#8217;t have traded it for the world.  I understand they probably didn&#8217;t want to &#8220;rain on my parade&#8221;, but seriously, I wish someone would have been honest with me and talked about how difficult it can be! So, I left my job, had my son (who I love and adore more than anything), and knew I &#8220;should&#8221; feel bliss, but after a few weeks and months I started to feel alone and trapped in my own home with this baby who couldn&#8217;t tell me what he wanted or needed&#8230; I started to lose it. My work &#8220;friends&#8221; got busy and didn&#8217;t care too much about me anymore. I take that back, in my crazy, emotional, tired, and slightly lonely head, that&#8217;s probably a lot more of what it felt like than the truth. To their credit, I wasn&#8217;t exactly contacting them regularly either. I just felt like nobody could relate to me anymore and that I was very uncool. I couldn&#8217;t go on shopping marathons, mani and pedi outings, or to cocktail hour anymore (unless I brought my baby!) because I was breastfeeding/pumping&#8230;I sometimes felt like a prisoner. I&#8217;d always been a very driven and &#8220;Type-A&#8221; person, so I decided to bottle this strange and unexpected negative energy and put it towards something more positive. I dreamt up an idea, built a website, started my own internet business, and became an entrepreneur! I created a website where real people could share real stories about life and what it&#8217;s really like (WIRL) and I called it WIRL Project. I knew I wasn&#8217;t the only one who had been slapped in the face with this reality that nobody wanted to talk about, so I created an online place where people could cut the crap, be real, and share their stories about life. Since it&#8217;s taken off, I am super busy doing work that I LOVE, but I also have a 19 month old toddler. Sure, I get out of the house several days a week and do something for myself, but now I am faced with GUILT beyond explanation. When I voluntarily leave the house to &#8220;work&#8221;, it means being away from my son. When I&#8217;m with my son and not working, I am constantly thinking about my business; it&#8217;s the epitome of a catch 22. Who knew motherhood could cause such drama (lol)! To avoid the guilt, I try to work as much as I can while my son is sleeping. But, often times this leaves very little time for my husband and I to hang out. Oh, and date nights? Few and far between. I am used to be really fit, I don&#8217;t hardly work out at all anymore, there just isn&#8217;t time for it! I know, I know, everything I&#8217;ve talked about so far comes with the territory of being a (new) mom&#8230; the sleepless nights, the guilt, the exhaustion, the multitasking, all of that, and I don&#8217;t really know how it would have changed things if I&#8217;d known this in advance, but I still wish people would be more realistic about this transition and stop making it out to be so &#8220;beautiful&#8221;. So, back to my super power&#8230;if I had an extra 8 hours per day to accomplish &#8220;life&#8221;, I&#8217;d be much better off! Sleeping just doesn&#8217;t fit into my schedule anymore and I wish that could be the thing I &#8220;quit&#8221; doing! But, unfortunately, my son doesn&#8217;t know (or care) that I&#8217;ve stayed up late, so he wakes up at his regular time every morning, ecstatic to see me, and I go through everything all over again the next day! Don&#8217;t get me wrong, I absolutely love my son and being his mom is awesome. But, if you were to ask me about a work/life balance&#8230; I&#8217;d say there really isn&#8217;t one, not for me anyway, each day is different, yet the same, and crazy! But, I&#8217;m not going to cover it up and make my life seem something it&#8217;s not. I work, I have a life, I balance it as best as I can and I&#8217;m honest about it. That&#8217;s the best I can do right now, take it for what it&#8217;s worth.]]></description>
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		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Be Careful How You Hashtag</title>
		<link>http://www.wirlproject.com/be-careful-how-you-hashtag/</link>
		<comments>http://www.wirlproject.com/be-careful-how-you-hashtag/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 29 Apr 2015 18:00:00 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[Sara Brennan]]></dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Family]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Life/Leisure]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Hashtag]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Instagram]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[MJB]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Mom Moment]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Motherhood]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.wirlproject.com/?p=5668</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[&#160; When I had Mason, I swore I wouldn&#8217;t be one of those moms who blasted social media with my baby&#8217;s photos. Even during my pregnancy, I&#8217;d share a &#8220;bump&#8221; photo every now and then, but tried to keep it to a minimum because, let&#8217;s face it, it can be annoying! So, when I had my new baby boy home with me and he was resting peacefully, I found myself taking a lot of adorable pictures of him. I wanted to share them, but I wanted to make sure I was doing it in an &#8220;appropriate&#8221; way so I came up with a few hashtags that I would use with each post (to Instagram) and was confident and excited about sharing my photos of my sweet little angel baby! Although I LOVE social media, I wasn&#8217;t super knowledgable about how to use these outlets for things other than keeping up with friends. For example, I thought a hashtag (#) was just a way for me to keep track of my own photos&#8230;like organize them. So, I tagged Mason&#8217;s sweet baby photos with #MasonJames, #MyBabyBoy, and #MJB. Things were working out perfectly, until one day I accidentally clicked on the #MJB tag and I then realized why people used hashtags. I quickly learned that the tag takes all photos with that same tag and groups them together. Well, I did not know that Mary J Blige (MJB), the Grammy Award Winning &#8220;Queen of Hip-Hop Soul&#8221;, went by the hashtag #MJB&#8230; so, can you guess what was grouped in the middle of all these photos of this celebrity? Random photos of my little, precious Caucasian baby boy sleeping on my couch! He was amongst pictures and videos of R&#38;B singers, rappers, MJB herself, etc. which was SO NOT what I was initially going for!!! Although many of you probably had no idea that this even happened, I was so embarrassed for 1) Being so dumb when it came to social media and 2) &#8220;Tagging&#8221; my baby in such a WRONG group on social media. Although it may not sound that bad, but moms, especially new moms, are so caught up with emotions, guilt, fear, sleepless nights, etc. that this just rocked my world at the time (lol)! I felt so stupid and uncool! haha So, next time you go crazy with your #hashtags, make sure you know what you&#8217;re getting into!]]></description>
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		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Children Bodily Fluids 101</title>
		<link>http://www.wirlproject.com/children-bodily-fluids-101/</link>
		<comments>http://www.wirlproject.com/children-bodily-fluids-101/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 24 Apr 2015 14:00:00 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[Andrea Curtis]]></dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Family]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Baby]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Bodily Fluids]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Boogers]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Child]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[kids]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Motherhood]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[parenting]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Poop]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Potty]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Potty Training]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Puke]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Runny Nose]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Snot]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Warn]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[What It's Really Like]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Wipe]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Wiping]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[WIRL]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.wirlproject.com/?p=5512</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[&#160; The other day my 4 year old told our roofer proudly she could wipe her own bottom now when she poops. I was only slightly surprised she said this to him knowing her personality. I laughed it off and began thinking about the ugly process of teaching her and her two older sisters how to properly wipe. No one prepared me for this! I thought of parenting as moments in hallmark movies. Boy was I off. Granted there are moments of pure joy. But on a daily basis. We deal with bodily fluids with young children. There is no dealing with Children&#8217;s Bodily Fluids For Idiots book. So heres my cliff note version of dealing with children&#8217;s bodily fluids 101: Wiping. I can&#8217;t help you with boys, I&#8217;ve got all girls. I literally bent over and demonstrated the process and the importance to wipe away form their vagina. I showed them about how large of piece of toilet paper to use. My first daughter was a disaster, she used tiny pieces of toilet paper, getting poop on her fingers and wiping the wrong direction causing an infection! They don&#8217;t know this stuff, so I have to teach her!  When is comes to diapers and poop, Huggies dealt with poop the best for us. Unless you want to get a whiff of poop next time your tuck your hair behind your ear, don&#8217;t stick your finger anywhere near the edges to check for a bowl movement. Just assume the worst. Puke! Puking is the worst of all bodily fluids. Although it&#8217;s not as common, thank God. It&#8217;s the most disgusting. They don&#8217;t understand they are about to erupt like a volcano, they just stand or lay there as it comes pouring out of them with a confused look on there face as they see us running with a look of disgust and fear all at once. When my girls were little toddlers the fast approaching or hovering buckets scared them and confused them. In turn the buckets didn&#8217;t help much until they understand. Dangling them over a sink or toilet is just not realistic for a bouncy toddler either. Since I am not a fan of scrubbing puke out of carpet, fabric, bed rails, and carseat buckles I have come to this&#8230; we stay at home in a practical designated area; usually the family room. I make a play area of layered towels, only allowing hard and easy to clean toys. If they want to sit on my lap, I drape a towel over both of us as if it were a blanket. When puking begins I pull the sides of the towel vertical to prevent spilling over the sides. When vomit session ends I roll up her vomit contaminated towel and wash it. During sleeping times I made beds of towels layered on the floor and I would sleep near by. It was so much easier to clean up and get them back to sleep. Making a bed over and over on a puking night, is horrible. Keep it practical keep it easy. Snot and Boogers!! It&#8217;s all the time! They are either teething, have a cold, or allergies. Snot is gonna happen. Nose picking is gonna happen. We have all blown our noses and still couldn&#8217;t get that wretched dried nasal mucus, so as civilized adults we quickly retrieve it and dispose it and promptly washing our hands. We have all done it! So how can we expect our little humans to not reach for an aggravating piece of dried nasal mucus in their nose. It&#8217;s what we do with the booger thats important. Yelling and asking them to not pick their nose may just lead them to hiding the evidence by eating it! (retching sound) That is not ok with me! I keep those little packs of tissues everywhere! In my purse, my van, the diaper bag, in each room in the house. Every time I catch them digging for gold, I hand them a tissue. Now they come find me, &#8220;Mom, I have a booger!&#8221;&#8230; Hey I prefer it than scraping boogers off of walls and furniture. Someone should warn us parents about this stuff. There are books that share about what toys are good for fine motor skills. What about this stuff?! This is what its really like.]]></description>
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		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>PPD Forces Changes</title>
		<link>http://www.wirlproject.com/ppd-forces-changes/</link>
		<comments>http://www.wirlproject.com/ppd-forces-changes/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 22 Apr 2015 09:00:00 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[Becky Babo]]></dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Family]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Antidepressants]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Baby]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Body]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Daughter]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[depression]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Emotional]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Faith]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Mom]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Motherhood]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[new mom]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[postpartum]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Postpartum Depression]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[PPD]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Pregnancy]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.wirlproject.com/?p=5401</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[&#160; My beautiful baby girl just turned one in March, and motherhood has forced it&#8217;s fair share of changes on me, the least of which being my pants size. The elephant in the room is Postpartum Depression. I was diagnosed with Postpartum Depression (PPD) four weeks after I had my bundle of joy. I wanted to be happy, but I couldn&#8217;t stop crying. The bottom line is that postpartum depression has changed me. I&#8217;ve always been an emotional person, but generally I&#8217;ve been able to see the good in situations, not just the bad. Now, I feel like I&#8217;m not the person I was before I became a mom. I&#8217;m not the perky, bubbly person who was so sure of herself anymore. I&#8217;ve become someone else that I don&#8217;t quite recognize. I&#8217;m trying to beat this &#8211; trying to overcome what I&#8217;m feeling and what my body has decided to do. My doctor has me on antidepressants, my third different brand, and the fact of the matter is, I&#8217;m scared. What if I always feel like this? What if they don&#8217;t help? What if being on them is going to make me a bad mom? Research tells me that PPD is a chemical imbalance, and that it&#8217;s a lot more common then most women know. Why? What makes it so hard for women to talk about? Maybe it&#8217;s the constant feeling that you&#8217;re just not good enough. Or the sadness that comes around when you really should be happy. This is not an easy road for me to walk. This is not what I expected. And yet, I know that this is not my fault. I don&#8217;t understand why &#8211; but this is happening to me for a reason, and God is truly in control. If He put this in my path, then I have to walk around it. I have to overcome this obstacle. And if it brings me closer to Him, and turns me into a more sympathetic and better mother, then it&#8217;s worth it. Until then, I will keep trying. For her.]]></description>
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