Meet our Newest Family Member!

Amaya Papaya is closed all week! I get to play, complete projects or do basically whatever I want to do for 7 full days!  I'm calling this time my "rejuvenation week". I plan to relax, complete some projects, refocus spiritually and organize my house for summer!  

One of the things I've wanted to do for the longest was adopt a dog that I could make my running buddy. He would ultimately be Amaya's dog so he'd need to like her a lot and be willing to sleep in her room or close by.  Since I'm off for a few days I figured this may be the best time to incorporate a new addition into our family life. On Monday, Amaya and I headed to the animal shelter after school to check out the dogs that were available for adoption. We visited the Pet Alliance of Greater Orlando and Seminole County Animal Control. There were so many dogs. Most of them were older. We definely had our hearts set on getting a younger dog that could grow through the tween and teen years with Amaya. We finally came across a cute boxer named Benji. We were able to sit with him, walk around with him and interact. 

He was perfect! We decided to rescue him and immediately completed his adoption paperwork. One of the things we noticed was that he didn't really respond to his name. Amaya decided that she wanted to change his name to one that fit our family personality more. That would mean naming him after a Disney character of course!  After she selected a few names I posted to my Facebook page asking for help with deciding upon the best name. Stitch was the overwhelming choice of most. Luckily it was......that's the name Amaya picked as well!! 

When he arrived at our home. We introduced him to our 12 year old chihuahua Simba. Simba has been with my husband and I since before we were married. He's seen us get married (literally, he was in the wedding) and he was right there when Amaya came home after she was born. I think it may take a few days for Simba to adjust. He's not used to being around other dogs. Please pray that his adjustment is peaceful and fast. ☺️.  

Stitch loved his first encounter with our huge back yard. He ran in circles so fast! He's also great at fetch! Currently, he is sleeping at the foot of Amaya's bed. He's snoring so loud! I hope this finally keeps Amaya in her own bed. 😁

I'm looking forward to our new journey with Stitch. I hope he likes his new home. Amaya is sure happy that he has join our family.     

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! 

Captain America: Civil War Epicness

I had the chance to see an advanced screening of Captain America: Civil War.

The action was continuous from start to finish! My husband, daughter and I are huge super hero fans. We have seen every movie that Marvel has released over the years. This movie delivered what all of those movies of the past deliver and more! It was by far the best Marvel production ever! The stunts were epic. I think my heart palipitated through the entire movie! The roster of super heroes that joined the cast in this movie was a super hero fans delight. Each hero delivered on their individual character and we even got to see some huge surprises.  By far,  my favorite character was Mr. Chris Evans, Captain America himself. Ladies, this man in gorgeous (sorry, I had to say it, lol). I am Team Captain America...because his heart was in the right place, of course. 

This movie is a must see for the entire family however,  I will caution parents that there is some language to be mindful of(the movie is PG-13).

*The views expressed in this blog are those of Amaya Papaya's mom. I was not paid to review this movie. 

Mommin' Ain't Easy

Ok let's face it, we moms are our own worst critic. We spend our days taking care of little humans, trying to make sure we are the best parents possible and still at the end of the day some of us feel like we didn't do enough. Our not enough is not doing enough for our kids, not doing enough for everyone else and most of all not doing enough to take care of ourselves. Truth be told, we most likely meet the needs of everyone and every obligation except for those of ourselves. How many times have you bathed your child, brushed their teeth and made sure they went to sleep peacefully yet, you crash on the couch without a bath or clean breath? 

The past few weeks I've been feeling uneasy. So many things regarding motherhood in general, my community and my own parenting journey have had me on edge. I want to find answers, I want to be my best, I want to help as many moms as I can achieve peace. 

I've wondered to myself some of the following things:

1.) How do I create my tribe? 

I have friends. I do not have a best friend. I have friends but I don't have that group of friends that I call my tribe. I think one of the reason I'm in a constant state of oneness is because I'm an only child (disclaimer: I'm my mothers only child, I have siblings via my father however, I was raised as an only by my mother). Finding friends has always been easy. Creating temporary best friends hasn't been a problem....keeping a real long term female best friend has never happen for me. (Disclaimer: my first best friend passed away when I was 14. She's been irreplaceable) 

2.) How do I not feel guilty when telling people that I can't or that don't want to do something? 

I've mastered the art of saying no. In most cases,  I'm often a giver of no fucks.  Then there are those times when the guilt of saying no consumes me. This happens especially when those people I say no to are those that usually say yes to me. I feel selfish....but man, I'm usually saying no because I'm just so tired. 

3.) How do I help my child free friends/colleagues understand and not take personal me not wanting to participate in extracurricular activities...especially ones that take place after I've worked and mommed all day. 

I just want to go home, put my child to sleep after dinner and disconnect. 

4.) How do I protect Amaya from the crazy world? 

Yikes! I walk a thin line between being a mama bear and the mother of a free spirited child. I want Amaya to experience the real word but at the same time I want to protect her from the unfairness of the word too. I don't want her to experience heartbreak yet I want her to be tuff enough to deal if it should come her way. 

5.) Am I living up to my greatest potential? 

There are so many things that I want to achieve in my lifetime. There are so many people that I want to help. How do I achieve these things while also being fully present for my family? 

6.) Organization. 

How do I keep life organized when living life? One of my favorite sayings is: homes are not messy, they are lived in. How do we achieve complete organization while raising children? Will that mother come help me? Please? 

I believe that everything happens as it should. I guess that is what helps me during the times I feel so overwhelmed. I believe that God never puts more on us than we can bear. I just wish my inner self  would acknowledge this!

What inner dialogue do you have with yourself about mothering?