Gwyneth Paltrow is a Working Mom

I don't think I've mentioned this one before but I love Gwyneth Paltrow's newsletter Goop.

From recipes to travel tips, she covers everything in an easy to read format that any mom can relate to.

This week Gwyneth featured an article titled "A Day in the Life..."

She takes us through the daily routines of 2 moms and herself. There are some great tips and here are just a few that I've pulled from each of them:

Juliet de Baubigny: Ok, so maybe we can't all have a trainer knocking on our front door on Monday mornings to motivate our weekly exercise routine and a weekly blow out may not be in the budget but...

• I love that she stresses the importance of family dinners (thanks to my FoodFun side)
• Truly devoting an hour to your kids every night (no cell phone, no email, no distractions...)
• Get your girlfriends together - so important, enough said.

Stella McCartney:

• Breakfast is the most important meal of the day (FoodFun again..)
• Reading together is special bonding time.

Gwyneth Paltrow:

• It's all about balance.
• Multitasking is key: hair conditioner while doing stretches

Sure, these are some high power moms but just like the rest of us they are struggling to find a balance between work and family.

Some of my tips include preparing the week's meals on Sundays and making tons of to-do lists. My biggest dilemma at the moment is trying to squeeze exercise into my routine. Although 6am seems to be the only time slot to make it happen, getting up in the dark is making it most difficult.

What about you? How do you get it all done?

Non-Stop

I had a revelation today. I have too much to do.

As a working, stay-at-home mom every minute is a precious one and my day seems to be planned out to the very last second.

Between Hannah, Winston (the dog), our activities and, oh ya, work, there isn't a minute to spare. And while nap time may seem like a momentary breather, that's when I whip out my phone and trusty notebook and start getting to work.

Also, I am a proud Habs fan but I have to admit that these games are taking up way too much of my time. Sure, I write this post between the 2nd and 3rd periods, but 20 minutes isn't nearly enough time to accomplish any given task at hand.

So the bottom line is that I need more time. Namely, a little more time for myself (to exercise, eat and, yes, breathe). While I somewhat loath the prospect of going back to work full time, I have to admit that I find just a little bit of serenity in knowing that I can sit behind a desk for two consecutive hours. So that's what "me" time has come to mean, has it?