::Back to School | In Style:: Yvonne - Guest Houston Latina Blogger

**This is a guest post provided by a fellow Houston Latina Blogger**

School kicked off yesterday and all over you can hear the cries of chaos as parents rush to get everything ready for the new school year.  Everywhere you go you see “Back to School” sales with the promise of saving you money in the most fashionable way. I’m all about the money saving but truth be told when it comes to fashion we become a little limited because Hailey Bear’s school requires her to wear a uniform or we are limited by the “dress code”. Trust me I get the love behind having to follow a dress code – you get to buy a bunch of polo style shirts and dresses, a few khaki/Navy blue pants and you just throw it into a rotating cycle and watch the school days go by!! 

Where is the fun in that? Yes, yes I know mornings are busy and crazy and whether you are a SAHM or a working mom like me, you might feel like you don’t have time for fun and fashion. Unless you make it easy – so hear me out and maybe after a few tricks and tips you can make uniform a little more fashionable.

Hailey hates the standard khaki pants and she also hates stiff jeans (don’t we all?) so I am always on the lookout for jeggings in different colors like these or these from Crazy 8. I also found this color at Crazy 8 and little bear loved them plus they are tons comfortable and really soft.

I do end up buying polo style dresses for Hailey but I also look for an alternative, the catch is that her dresses have to have a collar and sleeves so I was super happy when I came across this little dress at H&M, we also bought it in a black and white plaid like this. Super cute dress and she loved everything about it. 

So, in the end I find just a few pieces that I can put into the rotation of her uniform and make it a little more fun and not so super boring without breaking the rules. I really love buying her plaid button downs when it gets cold out and tights with different patterns for the winter. 

Another quick-tip to making the morning rush just a little bit easier takes a little work beforehand but it helps out a great deal during the weekday rush! I simply split little bear’s closet into two sections on one side I hang all her regular clothes and on the other I hang all her school clothes. This makes it quick and easy to see what I’m working with during the week and it cuts down on hunting down the “school clothes”.

Also as a plus my husband always knows what’s what and where he can find it!

About Yvonne:

Faith ● Coffee● Love

I’m just a girl that turned into a wife, momma, and blogger! I live every day knowing that thanks to my Faith I have made it this far and when times get tough it’s easy to lean into Faith but harder still is to know that everyday my Faith carries me forward. Of course with a daily dose of coffee to wake me up and always surrounded by the ones I love, my husband of 7 years, my 19 year old giant and my 6 year old little bear. I also survive by finding peace in my garage with power tools building and creating whatever DIY project comes along the way! My life can get a little crazy but everyday my little family and I make while we run our lives in Faith, with a little bit of coffee and a whole lotta love!

::The Word...Millennial::

What does it mean to be a Millennial Mom?

I don’t think I ever saw myself as a Generation X member until a few months ago.  The word didn’t really resonate with who I thought I was. Surely the word meant overachieving and highly accomplished. Here I was “just a Mom”. I knew of the impact that some young 30-something year-old's had not only in my personal life but in many aspects of life in general; technology, medicine, and yes; marketing and social media. But, didn’t see how I could be considered a part of this group.

First off, I never imagined myself a Mom in my 30’s. I pictured my life very much like the ladies from Sex and the City. I know so cliché of my generation. But, being a high powered career woman in charge of her life doesn’t seem so bad these days. I knew marriage might be in my future and children, sure why not? It wasn’t until September 16, 2009 when my son was born, that I realized that this was it. My career and life would make what I think has now become a complete 360. A rebirth if you will.

And, as I sit and reflect on this word and what it means to me I can’t help but think of the generations before me and how as a Mexican-American Mom, I have some pretty big shoes to fill. My Mother and Grandmother didn’t have a lot of the advantages or resources that the last decade or so have brought forth and at the same time those “advantages” bring on new challenges as a 30-something year old mom. For me one challenge has been learning to incorporate traditional advice and methods of raising children while considering and combining them with new research and more current techniques to create the same or a better outcome.  I aim to motivate my children to be educated and hardworking respectful children who will one day be fully functional and well-adjusted adults. Another challenge is the aspect of deciding to be a stay-at-home mom which is a difficult feat or making the sacrifice of leaving your children in the care of someone else to become a career mom. Either one has its pro and cons.

I believe that technology has created a new sense of community with moms, not only in our home town but around the world, which allows me to seek new methods of parenting. The world today has created an openness and awareness that maybe wasn’t there in years before. These days the internet being in every device we can hold gives us an easier and faster way of obtaining information needed in our everyday lives as new Moms and Dads. Some may see these as not the best resource but when you might not have anyone else to turn to it creates a great source of information.

Aspirations and the what if’s of life now revolve around my children, their well-being and our future as a family. The word Millennial is starting to grow on me and who I am, an accomplished and overachieving Mom. I aim high, not only in my personal outcomes but in those of my family. These days the word inspires me to provide for my family as a career woman while attempting to keep the traditional and cultural aspects of my up-bring within our own home.  

Being a Millennial Mom to me means taking advantage of the new resources and communities created while keeping traditions and morals alive in our home in the same way that our Mama’s and Abuelita’s did years ago.

::2015:: One Word + Goals

It's been days since 2015 began. It has had a gloomy start but nothing will hold us back. Starting the year off by giving myself a "break" from last year. A little break from writing to help me focus on life. I say that lightly. I really don't know how to take breaks. But, I have been, thinking. Reflecting on what's to come and oh yes, focusing. 

Focusing on a life once forgotten. And, the future of what will be. 

::Focus::

It's my word for this year. In an effort to focus I created a new blog. Yes, I know. Hectic. But, we will see how far it goes. It's a focused blog on Women's careers', their passions and community. Latina Momma in Houston.

I also started a Vision Board on Pinterest to help me organize my thoughts. I am de-cluttering my home along the way and creating a better space for my writing and imagination to be more inspired and in tune with what really matters.

Focus, such a simple word. 

¹fo·cus

: a subject that is being discussed or studied : the subject on which people's attention is focused

: a main purpose or interest

: a point at which rays of light, heat, or sound meet or from which they move apart or appear to move apart;especially : the point at which an image is formed by a mirror, a lens, etc.

::Goals::

2015 for me will be one of focus, on not just my blogging topics but my career as well. As many of you may know, this is not what I do full-time and honestly, I like that I have  a full-time job outside of Blogging. Helps me keep a good balance. I discovered long ago that staying at home was not going to be an option for me, personally just can't do it. I prefer the chaos of work/life balance, the nonexistent down time and the network I have created through my jobs. 

Focus this year will be on:

- Obtaining a better full-time job, currently the situation is toxic. Not fun. And very much un-motivating. It just never seems to be enough. I have fallen into this place of complacency that isn't healthy. I am afraid to fall into a normal everyday routine, not because I want to but because I have to. It basically sucks the life and passion right out of me. Finding the best place for me has been a journey worth traveling. I have so far learned what I am truly worth, and I can't accept anything less. I have also discovered that I don't want the kind of job that everyone else has because I know that something better is our there. I truly crave a different kind of life. 

-Attending local and very specific events for my blog. Only taking those jobs I really want and find purpose in. Writing only about the things that motivate me and push my blog to a higher place not just what everyone else is doing because it's good for the business. I don't want to be a part of just anything. My blogging will probably be less and more purposeful and informative {due to prior conversations with other blogging and like-minded Momma's } as well as a journal type style about our everyday life. 

-Working with truly like minded people. That's all. 

-Writing at least twice a week on both blogs, January will be tricky but I think I can do it. 

-Finding a school for my children. My kids will start school this fall. Pre-K and Kinder. We will see how this goes. Lots of research in the works. 

-Attend Mixers and Networking events at least twice a month for personal, de-stressing purposes as well as to grow my network. {This is usually easier said than done.}

-De-clutter my home, very much needed. 

-De-clutter my brain and re-gain focus. Which will help in relieving my everyday life from thoughts and ideas that are not serving much purpose. 

I often find myself sighing at work, feeding off of the negative and frustrated air around me. I don't want that. It's not a good way to feel on a daily basis. I am usually a happy, positive person who wants to love their 8 to 5 job and feel good energy around them. These days , not so much. 

2015 must be one of change towards a more focused life.

Last year I craved peace. I now have peace. I have peace in so many areas of my life that once lingered. Those places that are so difficult you feel like you are the only one dealing with them. Thoughts of what others may think, no longer. I am at peace with myself and the universe around me. Discovered that when people are not at peace with themselves they like to make others think they are the problem. Truth is all they need is peace in order to find peace around them.

In all, I have some work to do and slowly by surely it will get done and 2015 will be amazing. We had a minor set back this week, but nothing our little family can't handle.

What about you, what is your focus this year? Do you have a word that you have chosen to make your focus for this new year?