The Creative Happy Life Podcast Episode 7 :: It's Ok to Not Be Ok

Episode 7 of the Creative, Happy Life Podcast is all about those times when you don’t feel happy or creative. They happen to all of us, and especially in the midst of the events happening in our world right now, there are a lot of big, hard feelings to process.

In this week’s episode, I’m sharing some personal things that have happened during our time staying at home. It’s a bit of a heavier show than usual, but an important conversation to have, about the scope of being human, and the wide range of emotions we experience.

I hope you will join me in the Creative Happy Life Community on Facebook after you’ve listened so we can keep the conversation going, ask questions, get inspired, and connect with other creative minds!

LISTEN HERE OR ON APPLE PODCASTS:

Show Notes

Episode 07

This episode is all about the big, hard feelings you might be experiencing during this weird, uncertain time in our lives and in our world.

I share a personal experience that made the “stay at home” reality feel truly real and hard, as well as the importance of allowing yourself to feel sad, and frustrated. We are experiencing a collective loss in the world. We’ve lost the sense of freedom to go out and do what we want, to go to work, see family and friends, to do all the little things we enjoy in our day to day lives. And if you’re feeling sadness and grief over loss and the heaviness of the world, you’re not alone.

We are not meant to exist in a bubble of feeling creative and happy all the time. With this podcast, I certainly don’t want you to think that’s the message I’m putting out into the world. Do I generally try to see the positive side of things and enjoy being inspired and creative? Of course! But we’re all human, and sometimes we all go through times that are hard, and sad, and not very creative. There’s a balance to everything.

In this episode, I also share a bit of a personal parable from my childhood that is all about falling on my butt, literally chest deep, in thick, heavy mud, while on a clamming outing with my dad. I was physically stuck, the mud was holding me down, and I realized I wouldn’t be able to get back up on my feet without help. My dad, who was taller and stronger and better equipped for navigating the knee-deep mud, saw me struggling, reached out and gave me the hand I needed to stand up and find my footing again.

“When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, “Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.” - Fred Rogers

If you are struggling with depression, anxiety, or need help or support, please reach out to a professional. https://www.mentalhealth.gov/ is a great resource to guide you through seeking help.

My thoughts and opinions on this blog and in my podcast are my own, and should not replace the support and assistance of a mental or health care professional.

Join the Creative, Happy Life Community on Facebook

The CHL Community on Facebook is a gathering place for creative minds and hearts who want to continue the conversation following each episode, connect, discuss, inspire, and get creative!

Currently Loving: Instacart

Under more normal circumstances, I don’t mind doing most of my own grocery shopping. But there are days we’re crunched for time, or I just don’t want to drag the kids to the store with me, and I’m happy to rely on someone else to do the shopping for me!

Enter, Instacart - a grocery delivery service that allows you to select and place your order from a number of major retail stores, your order gets shopped and delivered right to your front door within a couple hours.

Your shopper can text you through the app while shopping and ask questions, make substitutions if your selections aren’t available, and adjust your order as needed. You get real time updates while they’re shopping, at checkout, and on the way for delivery.

In this time of physical distancing and staying at home, wait times for orders are increased, so check your app for updated delivery times and be sure to plan ahead!

Try Instacart and get $10 off your first order!

Share the happy!

If you enjoy this podcast, it would mean so much to me if you’d share it with friends, leave a review in the comments, and join me on Facebook to continue the conversation! Follow @creativehappylifepodcast on Instagram for bonus content and a glimpse behind the scenes.

 
 

The Creative Happy Life Podcast Episode 6 :: Working at Home and Family Life in Covid-19 Quarantine

It’s time for episode six of the Creative, Happy Life Podcast!

This week I have my very first guest - my husband, Sean! We’re stuck at home together, so we might as well make the most of the time, right? In this episode, we talk about how it’s going with both of us working at home, while in quarantine together with the kids, we hear a bit from Lily about distance learning, and how we’re doing adjusting to the weird new normals while we try to flatten the curve.

Join me in the Creative Happy Life Community after you’ve listened to keep the conversation going, make new friends, and celebrate living a happier, more creative life!

LISTEN HERE OR ON APPLE PODCASTS:

Show Notes

Episode 06

This episode features my first guest - my husband, Sean! While we’re all home, practicing physical distancing and hoping to stay safe and healthy away from the Covid-19 virus, we were asked “How are you managing working from home with kids?”

We talk about the whole experience of working from home while parenting, distance learning with our daughter Lily, and how quickly we’ve adapted to a lot of weird new normals.

We also chat about Sean’s comic book collection, communicating and self-awareness, and how in our marriage, opposites really do attract.

Join the Creative, Happy Life Community on Facebook

The CHL Community on Facebook is a gathering place for creative minds and hearts who want to continue the conversation following each episode. Connect, discuss, inspire, and get creative!

Currently Loving: Instacart

Under more normal circumstances, I don’t mind doing most of my own grocery shopping. But there are days we’re crunched for time, or I just don’t want to drag the kids to the store with me, and I’m happy to rely on someone else to do the shopping for me!

Enter, Instacart - a grocery delivery service that allows you to select and place your order from a number of major retail stores, your order gets shopped and delivered right to your front door within a couple hours.

Your shopper can text you through the app while shopping and ask questions, make substitutions if your selections aren’t available, and adjust your order as needed. You get real time updates while they’re shopping, at checkout, and on the way for delivery.

In this time of physical distancing and staying at home, wait times for orders are increased, so check your app for updated delivery times and be sure to plan ahead!

Try Instacart and get $10 off your first order!

Share the happy!

If you enjoy this podcast, it would mean so much to me if you’d share it with friends, leave a review in the comments, and join me on Facebook to continue the conversation! Follow @creativehappylifepodcast on Instagram for bonus content and a glimpse behind the scenes.

Keep Calm and Get Creative :: Tips for Working From Home, At Home Learning Plans and Resources, and 96 Activity Ideas for Kids and Adults

Welcome! If you’re here from Pinterest, I’m a Connecticut-based artist, podcaster and creative mama of two littles. Thanks for visiting!

I originally recorded this podcast episode, and created these printables in March 2020, when we were just learning about Coronavirus/Covid-19 and figuring out what quarantining and remote learning would be like.

Creative Happy Life Podcast Episode 5

Keep Calm and Get Creative

Episode 5 of the Creative Happy Life podcast was recorded on Thursday, March 12 2020, and is all about:

  • tips for people who will be working from home, possibly for the first time

  • ideas and resources for learning activities to do with your kids

  • encouragement for how to tend to your own mental wellness, and perhaps coping and finding calm through creativity

Episode Overview

00:00 Intro

03:00 Practical tips for working from home (also outlined below)

19:42 Practical tips for having your kids home and continuing learning (scroll down for more resources and ideas in this post)

31:05 Self care and using creative interests and hobbies to cope with stress, anxiety, boredom (scroll down for more ideas)

Show Notes

It’s kind of weird and wild out there right now, friends, and if you are making plans to work from home, or having your kids home from school, or BOTH - I recorded this episode to give you some tips. Click the player above to listen, or subscribe on Apple Podcasts to listen on your phone or devices.

As someone who has worked from home AND have done so with one or two kids home at the same time, I would like to offer you some reassurance that all will be well.

With a little planning, patience, and flexibility, we’ll get through this time of weird uncertainty.

Here’s a guide of sorts so you can navigate this post and find what you’re looking for:

  1. Tips for working from home

  2. Ideas and learning resources for keeping your kids home

  3. Ideas and activities to do with kids, your family, roommate, partner, or solo to Keep Calm & Get Creative.

Tips for working from home:

Many Americans are gearing up to work from home for a week, two weeks, or indefinitely, while we ride out the Covid-19, and hopefully flatten the curve of spreading the virus. Even those with jobs that aren’t ever done from home (like my husband’s) are figuring out alternative plans. This is far from ‘business as usual”, so here are a couple tips that you may find helpful in staying productive and mentally stimulated:

  1. Create your workspace. This might be a spare bedroom with a door you can shut, a desk in the corner of a playroom or even your kitchen table. Set up where you think you will be most productive and focused. Make sure you have Internet, remote logins, a way to make calls, and any paperwork or files you’ll need.

  2. Keep to a daily routine. Stick to a schedule that’s as close as your normal schedule as possible. Set your alarm, get up and shower, get dressed, make some breakfast. If you typically go to the gym first thing, find an enjoyable at-home workout video to do instead. Keep your body moving and healthy.

  3. Designate household duty time. One of the biggest distractions from working from home is trying to get housework done (since you’re already home). Designate time that you would normally be commuting for putting a load of laundry in, emptying the dishwasher, or taking out the trash, and then be done with it. Making the mindset shift from “being at home” to “working at home” is important to productivity.

  4. Communicate your plan to your family/roommates/friends. Whether you have a set schedule to log in and work, or a more open-ended to-do list, communicate with those who you share a space with so expectations are clear, and work together to avoid distractions as best you can.

  5. Be flexible. Nothing about this time is normal, and everyone is doing their best to figure it out and keep moving forward. Have patience, keep communications with your team open and honest, and give it your best!

  6. Connect with coworkers or a friend to check in with each other. Especially due to social distancing, it’s no fun feeling closed off to others, and one of my biggest struggles working from home is missing having coworkers or other adults to talk to. Make a daily phone date with a friend or colleague to check in and catch up.

  7. Get some fresh air. Take at least one break that involves going for a walk or getting outside for some fresh air. This of course, depends on your neighborhood and your comfort level with potential crowds or neighbors, but even stepping out on a balcony and saying hello to a neighbor or some squirrels will be good for your brain.

  8. Finish your day and be done. It’s easy to lose track of time working from home, and to just….keep….going….Set your scheduled time to finish, shut down your laptop, turn off your phone, and spending time with your family, make a good meal, watch a show or movie, and get some sleep.

Shop Printable Coloring Pages

Free Activity Apps (or Mostly Free)

Insight Timer - Meditation for Sleep and Anxiety, guided meditations for all ages, music and stories to help you sleep, courses. Choose based on your needs, or search by the amount of time you desire or want to spend meditating.

Go Noodle - Lily told me they use this at school to get up and sing and dance. It looks fun!

Cosmic Kids Yoga - Interactive adventures in yoga, mindfulness and relaxation for kids.

Share the Happy!

Was this post helpful to you? Share the link, pin some images, or leave a comment! Use the hashtag #keepcalmandgetcreative and share activities you’re doing to pass the time. Who knows, you might inspire someone to try something new!