Visor Board Planning for the Bomb Mom

When I was a counselor for a girls school in Orlando one of the coolest things I did with my girls was to have them create vision boards. A vision board is a really simple craft project that helps you to reflect on goals you may have or things you may want to manifest in life. To create a vision board you gather pictures, single words or quotes that you would like to adhere to a board. 

When I was in the preparation phase for Amaya Papaya I created a huge double sided vision board. The board helped me to organize my ideas about various play areas and the type of toys I wanted to have at my facility. This really helped me in establishing my vision for Amaya Papaya as a creative play space called a playlounge that mostly offered kid powered & classic toys.

Join me in the Amaya Papaya Play and Support Group on Facebook (so you can participate virtually) or at Amaya Papaya Play Lounge at 11am daily during the 1st week in January to create your own Vision Board! ALL FOR FREE! 

I will go LIVE during the week in the group to discuss our progress together.

This week I will help you will visualize your goals through guided meditation, set your intentions through Bomb Mom discussions, gain inspiration from other Bomb Moms, create a network for accountability and have fun!

5 Benefits of a Vision Board

Helps you to visualize your goals
Helps you to set your intentions
Helps you to gain inspiration
Help you to stay accountability

What does the Amaya Papaya logo mean?

As we take time to reflect on the importance of Mothering, I would like to share with you my inspiration for the Amaya Papaya name and logo. AMAYA PAPAYA is a TERM OF ENDEARMENT FOR MY DEAREST DAUGHTER (and best business partner ever) Amaya.

When I was pregnant with Amaya I dreaded the thought of getting STRETCH MARKS!! It was not until 2 days before I gave birth that the first stretch mark appeared, from that moment on they spread like wild fire! I was devastated (or so I thought, vain I know).

Once Amaya was born my favorite song to sing to her was MY GIRL by the Temptations. The first line was so true..."I got SUNSHINE on a cloudy day".... Amaya was truly my SUNSHINE in the mist of anything that I was going through as a new mom.

When Amaya began to speak she would ask me about the boo boo's on my belly. I would tell her that they were not boo boo's at all. I began telling her that the stretch marks where SUN RAYS that I was blessed with when she was inside my belly.

As I began to think of a logo for Amaya Papaya, I thought that nothing would be more fitting than the SUNSHINE to represent Amaya and every other child that a parent has been blessed with. If you took the sunshine in our logo and turned it sideways where the sun rays are facing down it would appear as if it were a mama's belly with sun rays beaming from it.  Isn't that beautiful and so true! 

Ask Amaya....she will tell you how she put the SUNSHINE on mommy's belly! If your ever at Amaya Papaya and you hear the song "My Girl" playing please excuse me if I get a bit teary eyed. After all it's "our song" and it reminds me of my forever blessing.....MY GIRL. 

I am ever grateful to have been chosen to be her mommy. I come from a long line of amazing women and I look forward to watching Amaya become an amazing woman as well. 

Now with the addition of my new mission and movement, Bomb Mom, I hope to inspired and support other moms to be their greatest self.  Bomb Mom grew out of my daily interaction with mothers at Amaya Papaya.  Through those moms I see a need for a motherhood empowerment movement that will address the mental health of mom, her need for non-judgemental bonds with other moms and overall support for her on her journey as a mom. 

Happy Mother's Day Bomb Moms! 

Adult Interaction

I just read a thread in a mom group that asked, "How many hours of adult interaction do you get, as a stay-at-home mom, a week besides with your spouse?". About 95% of the women said they got none. Throw on sleepless nights, crazy days, and no friends and you'll find a depressed and stressed out person.

Mama's, you have a very special job of holding down the fort, you GOTTA take care of yourself FIRST! (Crazy right) Accept company at home, no one cares, truly, that a hurricane frequently passes through your home leaving chaos in its wake. We all understand. Go out with a friend or 2, even if it's just to sit around. Join a local play and support group and come to their meet-ups. Socialize outside of the Internet.

To family and friends: Try not to take no for an answer when we say we don't need help or want to go out. It's not easy accepting help from others when we feel that we're supposed to do it all. We don't realize that sometimes we're drowning and need a hand or just someone to talk to. Heck! Come over and just let mama shower alone and sleep alone while you watch the littles in the living room. Bring a meal, even if we don't ask. Help tidy up, even though we all know it won't last long. Every little bit you do makes a difference and that mama will appreciate you more than words can describe.

Lots of love to all mama's out there! You're doing a GREAT job!

Blog written by Ashlie King

Ashlie King is the mom of Isaiah. She enjoys volunteering at Amaya Papaya and keeping cupcakes away from Amaya Papaya's mom! Ashlie is the Happy Momma Orlando for Happy Family Brand Foods.