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Learning To Balance It All

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Hiking

in Goal Setting

March 2021 Goals

It’s pretty surreal entering March. I was at Target the other day and saw all the Easter candy, which was such a flashback to March 2020. It was such a weird moment where it really hit me that we’ve been doing this for a solid year now. As I cross the 1 year mark, I want to take some time…
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Meet Ashley

in Infertility

Secondary Infertility and PCOS

Trigger Warning: Today’s post discusses secondary infertility and PCOS. I’ve fought a lot of battles alone in my life, but time and time again I’m reminded of the beauty of letting others in. I’m reminded of the hope that comes from in sharing my story, knowing I am not alone, and that I can help others to know they are…
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Ashley

in Goal Setting

Moving On and Into 2021

Moving on and into 2021. In many ways saying that brings with it a breath of fresh air. In other ways, the realities of 2021 come flooding to the forefront of my mind. If 2020 was the great pause and slow down, 2021 is the year of patience and transition. Patience as we wait for the vaccine to roll out,…
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Create a Vision Board

in Goal Setting

Create a Vision Board

Despite loving goal setting, I have long wanted to create a vision board. Over the past few weeks I’ve attended a variety of professional development trainings that discussed vision boards, so it felt like it was time for me to bust out my art supplies and dream away. To get started, I gathered magazines from around my house (I always…
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Weight Loss

in Goal Setting

2020 End of Year Reflections

2020. It was a life changing year for me and my family. I started 2020 with a list of goals that I didn’t actually share here on Balancing Today. Save money Simplify our home Decorate the house Focus on the joys within my work Rearrange my work office Go on walk breaks during the work day Go hiking Go dancing…
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End of Year Clean Out

in Organization

End of Year Clean Out

I’ve always loved new years. I love the fresh start, new beginning, and seeing the 12 months before us. Over the past few weeks I’ve taken some time to work on an end of year clean out. One of my goals for this past year, well past few years really, has been to declutter and minimize. This year I worked…
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I'm Ashley, a full-time working mom who lives in the Washington, DC area. Balancing Today is all about learning to balance family, work, wellness, and most of all, life's simple joys! Read More!

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Today was an absolutely beautiful day. This aftern Today was an absolutely beautiful day. This afternoon while the kids were having some downtime I sat on the deck with Theodore and planned out the week ahead. It was heaven.
Easter looks very different than my childhood and Easter looks very different than my childhood and early 20’s. I am forever grateful to have left a cult masked as a church. It’s been 12 years, and though I still very much believe in God, I find him in nature, in the fruits of the spirit, and in his grace. So today, I am spending Easter morning at the park, with my kids and my journal.
Someone said this the other day and honesty, I hat Someone said this the other day and honesty, I hated it. At first I felt discouraged. Thinking about years wasted and some things I wish I could go back and change. 

But then I swung to the other side. She was right! There is no redo. So what am I going to do to make the most of today? What am I going to do this year to make myself proud and to live boldly. 

As I near 40, I’ve experienced this spectrum of emotions. Wishing I had used some of my past years differently but being excited and grateful for the years ahead of me. 

What I’m learning now, more than ever, is all that matters is this moment. All that matters are today’s decisions. All that matters are the people in my life right now. 

I don’t want to waste any more time and I don’t want any regrets. The past is the past and today is today. There’s no redo.
Before March 2020, I was so focused on the grind a Before March 2020, I was so focused on the grind and our routine. Getting the kids out of the house and to daycare, commuting 3 hours total each day, working 8...9-5...:30, and getting the kids to bed so I could get back to work or tackle things before my own bedtime.

It makes me tear up thinking about it. 

My top priority was work and I was so lonely and depressed. I had put myself and my family on the back burner. All because I thought I had something to prove. The harder I’d work, the more valuable I’d feel. The harder I’d work, the more purpose I’d feel.

What this year taught me is that it’s all a lie. I had it all backwards. I knew I had it backwards but I fell into the system that told me to pour myself into my job. That work held the keys to my future. 

What I lost was my health. What I lost was time with my kids. What I lost were all the little moments that make life great. 

I’ve always known the life I want to live, but I was so far from it!! I’ll never stop working hard, but it was time for me to reprioritize my energy and focus. 

This moment on the beach, when my daughter called me over to see what she had done, was a beautiful picture of shifted priorities. I’m so thankful and look forward to all the days to come!
Time off is good for the soul. Time off by the wat Time off is good for the soul. Time off by the water is good for the mind. So thankful for time to rest and recharge, especially by the water.
One of my hidden talents... 🌸 👑 So thankful One of my hidden talents... 🌸 👑 So thankful for this distraction free time to play outside and play pretend.
Today was an extraordinary day. We are on vacati Today was an extraordinary day. 

We are on vacation. A vacation that was paid for entirely by the money I made back in January thanks to my little side business.

That little side business is the same side business I was terrified to start. I was nervous if I could be successful in direct sales. I was worried about what people would think and say. 

Deep down, I knew I wanted this, I knew I needed this, and I knew I was capable of this. 

I said yes, because I needed more extraordinary days. I needed more joy. I needed more time with my family. I needed more money. I needed more friends. And most importantly, I needed to prioritize me! 

Today, just 3 short months after joining Green Compass, I was promoted to Director!

I am forever thankful for my leap of faith and for all of the people I’ve been able to help these past few months. 

The hopes I had for myself before joining Green Compass are becoming a reality, and I can’t wait for all the extraordinary days to come!!
I want to be the best I can be for her. I want to I want to be the best I can be for her. I want to be an example. I want her to look back when she’s my age and say “my mom was a great mom”.

What I don’t want is for her to look back an say, “my mom was working all the time”, “my mom wasn’t really around”, “my mom didn’t really play with me”.

This year opened my eyes to the path I was on in my pre-pandemic life. I allowed work to take whatever I was willing to give, and for me, it was myself. 

I raced to get my kids out of the house, having them eat breakfast in the car, just so I could get to work as early as possible. I worked a full day, having my kids stay at daycare right up to closing time. Some nights I was back on my work computer in those few hours before my kids went to bed and then worked until my own bedtime.

I thought my worth was determined by how much and how hard I worked. And what did I have to show for it? Nothing. Instead I lost time with my kids, my health was in the gutter, and I was still trying desperately to be heard and valued at work. 

Though I’m still learning, I will never go back to being that person. My family and my health will be my top priority, no matter what. 

I am forever grateful for this slow down and opportunity to prioritize my life. I am doing this for her (and Neal and my son), but also for me.
Today we slept in, made breakfast, went on a drive Today we slept in, made breakfast, went on a drive to see the house I lived in in Yorktown, VA when I was in the 6th and 7th grade, played at a park, went for a long walk, ate lunch and took naps, played in the hot tub, and now we are enjoying the shore before dinner. Vacation is so good for the soul and so good for our family. We needed this time together and I am thankful!
They are my why. This vacation is my why. I want They are my why. This vacation is my why. 

I wanted more for my family. I wanted to be able to take them on special vacations and not stress about the money being spent. I wanted the mom on those vacation to be happy, joyful, and fully present! 

4 months ago, I didn’t have a whole lot to look forward to. We had been home for a year, money was tight, and I was unsure of my purpose. 

CBD had already changed my mental health, so after months and months of considering becoming a Green Compass advocate, I took a leap and joined. 

I have been blown away by how my life has changed since December! I am having so much fun helping others who need CBD, I am supporting a team of men and women with their own businesses, and the money I’m making is making vacations like this possible! 

The sky is the limit, especially because I’m my own boss, and I’m not looking back! I’m dreaming big and can’t wait to help others find the same freedom. If I can do this, you can do this!!!

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