Hello 2020 and welcome back to our featured monthly mom blog post. I took a break for December, and am back to celebrate two moms for January. Let’s introduce them shall we?
A big hello to our featured moms Sarah and Rhonda!
Introduction
Rhonda and Sarah have been married for 4 years and have lived in South Philadelphia for the past 6 years. They have two boys who are 2 years old (Fin) and 6 months old (Cole), as well as and a dog and cat. On the weekends they spend their time at the local park playground with their sons and their dog. They love to explore the Philadelphia area as frequently as possible.
Rhonda and Sarah participate in a local kickball league during the Spring and Summer months. (Shout out to Philly Special!) They are active in the community, often meeting with neighbors and discussing community initiatives. They both work full time jobs in the city too. Sarah works for Penn Medicine as an IT manager and Rhonda works for The University of the Arts as the Director of Residence Life and Conduct – (which they said always comes with a ton of interesting stories).
Sarah shared that it has been a challenge balancing work and mom life and they are learning as they go.
I know they are not alone in that. I am right there with them too. 😁
Q&A with Sarah and Rhonda
Q. If you had to pick a favorite moment with your kiddos what would it be?
A. Our favorite moments surround our boys developing their personalities. Our first born Fin is two and is a little bit of a goof ball. He loves making others laugh especially his little brother Cole who is six months. The other day Fin saw Cole laugh at some wrapping paper so he took the paper and tore it over his head as Cole bellied laughed over and over. It is just so fun watching them grow and enjoy each other.
Q. Is there a morning or evening routine that you can’t live without?
A. For our kids, it’s reading books. We routinely read books with Fin before his bedtime and it is really nice to have the 1:1 time with just mom and him. For us – give me my coffee in the morning and give Rhonda a glass of red wine at night.
Q. What has been the biggest challenge in motherhood for you both? What have you done to mitigate the challenge and how has that made you stronger?
A. It has been a challenge managing life with both of us working full time. We started getting short with each other and were stressed out trying to accomplish everything. So we decided to divide and conquer, and increase our communication with our needs.
I am in charge of keeping the house running – bills, cleaning, pets, etc. Rhonda keeps us alive – food shopping and cooking, getting kids ready and picking up, etc. When either of us needs help, we have to ask the other person and do not assume they will just jump in and help. This has cut down on arguments over who does what, manages expectations, and cut down on perceived “un-helpfulness” from the other person.
Q. What has been your funniest laugh out loud mom moment?
A. A few months ago in a sleep deprived state, I managed to cram Fin (2 yrs) into one of Cole’s (6 mos) diapers. Fin didn’t make a peep and it wasn’t until later when he was walking weird did we realize the mistake. Rhonda took over and I went to bed….
Q. If you were offered a chance to live anywhere in the world, where would you move?
A. Rhonda’s family is from Bologna, Italy and she has said she would like to go there. For me, I want to live somewhere warm. We recently visited our friends in Oahu, Hawaii and I loved it. So we will probably compromise and end up in south Jersey.
Q. What advice would you give to moms that are worried about having enough time and sanity to have a career and raise kids?
A. Set realistic expectations for yourself and clear boundaries for others. It is tough – both Rhonda and I work full time jobs and at first we were running ourselves ragged. We were trying to do everything at work and home, and keep up with the Jones’s. We were exhausted, arguing, and not really enjoying each other or our family. We realized we couldn’t do everything – we wanted to but important things were being neglected, simply because we couldn’t be everywhere.
Q. Since becoming mothers, what do you think has changed the most about you both?
A. (Sarah) I have turned into a grandmother – I go to bed by 8:30 and routinely wear thick robes because I am chilled.
…Also, I have discovered, I really enjoy kids. Which, thank goodness, cause that could’ve been awkward.
Q. Would you rather have a lifetime’s worth of Kit Kat bars, or Sweet Tarts?
A. Oh heavens, neither. Give us Reeses!
Q. When looking for trends in fashion, what is your local go to?
A. Hahahahahahahaahahaahahahahaha…..that’s a good one! I have a passion for flannel and Rhonda enjoys clothes with stripes so as you can imagine, fashion comes to us. 😘
Thank you Rhonda and Sarah for taking time to share your motherhood journey, and amazing sense of humor with us! 👏
Check out our other featured moms on the RBP Blog Here!
Be You. Be Resilient. ❤ Mika