I’m really enjoying doing these interviews. I’m starting to learn of so many hobbies I never would have even thought of. Take Monika for example. Her mom hobby is Ballroom Dancing.
What is it about dancing that I think of competitions and careers? I mean, whenever I look for activities in the area, I haven’t looked for dancing lessons. I’m really thankful to Monika for sharing her story with us.
Mom Hobby #6: Ballroom Dancing
Monika is a mother of two boys living with her husband in Philadelphia. She’s a Litigation Clerk and, in her off time, blogs at Tulips and Sunshine. It would seem like she’s got a full plate, but she takes time away for herself and ballroom dancing.
Nearly 10 years ago, and before having children, she walked into a studio, curious about dancing. She began taking part in group classes and private lessons to learn Waltz, Tango, and other forms of ballroom dancing. Her curiosity led her to amateur competition.
After kids, she decided to keep dancing, though no longer competes. Her husband helps her to make time for dance about once a week for 45 minutes. On occasion, she’ll use her lunch hour to practice dancing at the gym when the aerobic classroom is available at the gym.
Image Source Danielle Foster Creations
Monika, the mom
Monika always thought she’d have a daughter, but ended up with two boys. This means she’s the only one in the house wearing bright pink and no one sits and begs to play with her makeup, so she considers it a win. She insinuates that she was a bit of a tomboy growing up – climbing trees and never played with dolls. So, she feels like having boys made sense to her.
Parenting doesn’t always seem to be what she expected it would be. Growing up, her mom was always strict about healthy eating and she thought she’d do the same with her own children. But, life has a way of changing us once we have kids. Now, she says her reality is PB&J for dinner is acceptable and toast with butter can be a meal. She feels lucky when her toddler only eats a yogurt. Her take on it, now, is that one day her kids will eat real food, and she won’t have lost her mind trying to force healthy eating over their lifetimes.
The funny side of mom
“[A few weeks] ago, I was fighting my baby (9 months old) to change his diaper. Imagine an angry octopus with a bio-hazard load in his pants.” When her three year old tried to “help” they all ended up covered in poop. Just when she thought she would lose it, she came to a funny realization … “kids can have a bath, mommy [can have] wine, and I really don’t like this carpet anyway.” She says, baby wipes cleaned the mess too well and she’s still looking at the carpet.
Monika has always been “obsessed” with archaeology and has always wanted to go to Egypt. But, she says with the world the way it is, she’s currently settling on reading an “Archeology” magazine. She figures it’s safer and cheaper to day dream.
Follow Monika on Twitter.
WOULD YOU LIKE TO ENCOURAGE MOMS TO FIND A HOBBY?
I want to give you the opportunity to be featured. Any mom hobby, no matter how mundane you believe it may be, can be an excellent source of inspiration for a mom struggling to maintain her sense of balance. If you’d like to encourage another mom by sharing your mom hobby, click here to the mom hobby interview.
Please follow the rules of the interview – mainly, encouraging moms to join or start a business IS NOT the focus and will NOT be featured. It’s okay if you make money from your hobby, but NOT okay if you only started something to make money. We’re trying to free mom from thinking about more obligations.
If you have social media following, this is a good chance to get listed?
Take into account I will try to publish mom hobby interviews generally once a month unless interest warrants more frequent posts.
