Meet Kathleen

Hello everyone!  Welcome!  Thank you so much for taking the time to check out my corner of the internet. I am so glad you are here and I truly hope you will find information that is useful for your life.  My goal here is to give the best content I possibly can.  With that goal in mind, I am always happy to hear input from my readers!  I want to know how I can help you!  You are always welcome to send an email to Kathleen@thebalancedmomlife.com.   I check and respond to every email as quickly as I can (which isn’t always easy with two little ones at home!)

Crazy career path.

You might be wondering who I am and why I started this website so let me tell you a little bit of my story. From 2013-2018 I was a high school science teacher in an inner city district with many challenges. Prior to that I had worked in ophthalmology for nearly a decade and prior to THAT I jumped around between several jobs including being an insurance agent (hated being chained to a desk), a veterinary technician (loved it but bad pay), a horseback riding instructor and barn manager (loved it!!! but again, bad pay) and other jobs like being a waitress. All of those experiences were incredible and have shaped the person I am today.

Babies and a big change!

It was during my teaching career that my life changed most drastically. I got married in June of 2013 and by July we were pregnant with our first baby. I was so happy!! Having kids was always in the plan and I had waited a long time to finally experience being a mom. In April of 2014, our first little bundle of joy arrived and my life was changed forever. Two years later in April of 2016, we welcomed our second bundle of joy and our family was complete. I had an amazing family. Life was good, except for one minor thing. My job was killing me.

I was exhausted, sick all the time, stressed, and feeling overwhelmed on a daily basis. I struggled with putting my kids in daycare (hated it really). I so desperately wanted to be able to stay home with them. It was during my fifth year of teaching that I decided it would be my last at that district. I had truly met my limit. I wasn’t sure what the next step was but I knew that I would figure it out. Once I had made the decision to not stay at my current job, I needed a plan.

TBML is born.

I started researching ways to make money that would allow me to also stay home with my kids. I looked at starting a home daycare, working from home for an insurance company, medical transcription, tutoring nights and weekends….basically anything I could think of. During my extensive research and googling “work at home”, I found a sea of opportunities I never knew existed. One that really stood out to me was creating an online business. To make a long story short, I did many weeks of research (as I often do), eventually came across a great blogging course, hemmed and hawed, and finally, in March of 2018 I signed up. I knew that I could make this work and be the mom I wanted to be and The Balanced Mom Life was born.

I truly love helping others and believe in my core that this is my calling. I made it through full time school while working crazy hours. I made it through teaching in a high stress environment through both my pregnancies. I made it through caring for my mom round the clock while also taking care of my own children and everything else. I manage to (somehow) work on this business, raise my kiddos, facilitate distance learning/homeschool, keep my house in order and still have time for homemade bread, yogurt, and all sorts of other goodies! I have learned A LOT of lessons along the way and I am ready to share them with you.

Being a mom is incredibly hard at times and it is the most important job. We, as parents, are responsible for raising good human beings that will grow up to contribute wonderful things to this world. I want to do what I can to help make that easier. I want to share the systems, lessons, and resources that I have found to make being a mom (and a boss mom) easier.

My greatest heartbreak.

I lost my Mom in December of 2018 and it was the hardest thing I ever went through but taught me very important lessons. She was the best role model I could have asked for and I wish I could still ask her questions, share my crazy stories, and most importantly, have her see her beautiful grandchildren grow and thrive. She is always in my heart and guides me with her lifetime of advice and high expectations. I can share what she taught me with the amazing readers here at The Balanced Mom Life and her legacy lives on.

The loves of my life.

Being a mom is the best. I am so proud of my two kiddos. They are smart, beautiful, sweet, funny and full of curiosity and energy. I am a lucky mama. You will not see them on my blog though (in a way that identifies them). I choose not to include them for privacy reasons even though it is SO difficult not to post every adorable picture I have (and there are many hundreds) but I feel this is the best choice for our family.

Stay balanced.

As always, remember, balance isn’t about being perfect. Balance is about doing what you need, what your family needs and what is right for you. Don’t worry about what your neighbors or friends are doing (unless it’s for awesome inspiration). You do you.

I’m here to support you. Our community of amazing women is here to support you. Moms have so many difficult decisions to make and I hope to help you by providing valuable resources based on research and experience. I will never post things that I have not fully researched and can recommend in good faith.

Don’t ever forget that you are beautiful, amazing, and have wonderful things to offer this world!! I am so glad you are part of my community and look forward to hearing from you.

Please don’t hesitate to reach out with any questions or comments!