together, it’s just really cool watching them interact in that way. HOW DO YOU KEEP REALITY AND SOCIAL MEDIA SEPARATE? LEONIS: I’ve curated my feed, and I do that all the time. There are a couple of content creators I used to follow, and I loved watching their creations because it was so cute. But then, I had to really reflect on how it made me feel when I watched those things. It made me feel like dang, I should be doing that. So I had to unfollow accounts that did not bring me joy, that didn’t make me feel good about myself. They made me feel bad about who I was as a mom, and I’ve gotten to the point where I’m not going to let any app make me feel bad about myself. I’m very big on curating my feed daily, getting rid of accounts that don’t make me feel good, and adding accounts that do. There are times when I put it away for a day or two and just unplug if I need to, and I encourage anyone and everyone to do that. As a content creator, reminding myself that I’ve built my account and built my community based on just sharing my life, I don’t have to overcomplicate it. That’s what I built my community on being relatable and doing the everyday normal thing. So just doing that and taking that pressure off has helped me as a creator. WHAT ADVICE WOULD YOU GIVE TO OTHER PARENTS? LEONIS: Always do whatever works for you and your family. Don’t subscribe to a certain type of parenting style or a certain “thing” that you’re supposed to do. No matter what you do or how you do it, do whatever works best for you and your family, and give yourself grace. I think a lot of our mom guilt and anxiety comes from comparing ourselves to other parents and families and how they do things, how we wish we could do things, or how we’re not doing this good enough. But as long as whatever you’re doing is working for you and your family, you’re doing great. QUICK Q’S Guilty pleasure.........……….Laguna Beach Favorite date night?.....................Grabbing drinks and a steak dinner Favorite vacation spot?..................Jamaica Favorite book right now?.......... We Should All Be Millionaires by Rachel Rodgers First thing you do in the morning?..........................Check my emails
I have to turn on and off my brain with three completely different mindsets. They do keep me on my toes and there’s never a dull moment. It’s really cool watching them sit and play together and help teach each other things without me having to step in. It gives my heart the most joy because I created all three of these humans, and to watch them love each other in the way that I love them is LEONIS: Our favorite thing is– hands down– movie night. Before I met my husband, it was just me and my oldest. We used to celebrate Christmas Eve by doing a movie night watching Polar Express. That was his favorite movie for years. When he was in elementary school, they would do this thing called Fun Friday, and you would get to watch movies and eat snacks in class. When COVID happened and he was no longer in-person, he asked if we could continue doing Fun Friday at home. I love doing traditions, so I’m like, sure! He loves old just an indescribable feeling. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE THING TO DO AS A FAMILY? 90s and 80s movies, like the movies that I loved when I was a kid. So I don’t complain because they’re my favorite movies too. We try to do newer movies now and things that Jordan will be into. All in all, movie night is the best time in the Rousseve household. WHAT PERSONALITY TRAITS OF YOURS DO YOU SEE IN YOUR CHILDREN? LEONIS: I see a lot of myself in Jordan, more than anyone, honestly. She is the only girl, but she’s very strong-willed. Whether it’s something that she wants or something she’s trying to figure out, I can see her mind going and she’s not going to stop until she figures it out, and that’s how I’ve always been. Dylan is like me because when I was a kid, my mom said every parent meeting she went to, and every teacher she met, everyone always had something nice to say about me. I was always the sweetest kid and very much so a rule follower… Dylan is the exact same way. He wants everybody to be happy. You can’t meet him and talk to him without smiling. Ryan is still a baby and we’re still getting to know each other. But he’s very mischievous. He likes to do silly things to make you laugh, but not necessarily to get in trouble, just to rock the boat. I think he got some of that from me as well, but they all have such different personalities. And all of them, you can see a little bit of both of us. Just watching those personalities mill
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