Making Time for Creative Expression with Kailyn Rhinehart
ABOUT THE EPISODE
Today's Mother Writer is Kailyn Rhinehart. Kailyn is one of Motherscope's regular contributors, and I'm such a fan of her intentional, honest storytelling on motherhood. In addition to her creative writing, Kailyn is a professional writer, and in our conversation today, Kailyn shares what it looks like to make time for both types of writing in her schedule. We also talk about what drew her to writing more expressively and what she does to ensure she completes her work projects despite the unexpected curveballs of parenting. Have you been motivated to use your writing skills for compensated work? Keep listening to hear our thoughts on that and more.
TOPICS DISCUSSED
How Kailyn is finding her way in writing as a military spouse
Recognizing the importance of trusting your maternal instincts
How Kailyn navigates her time for professional and creative writing
Embracing what works for you to make creative expression a part of your routine
The ways Kailyn is meeting her deadlines despite unplanned parenting situations
Kailyn reads an excerpt from her story “Nice Walls and Dirty Floors” appearing in Motherscope’s online journal next month
ABOUT TODAY’S GUEST - KAILYN RHINEHART
KAILYN RHINEHART is a wife and mama to two wild blond babes, currently living in Missouri. She is an avid list-maker, freelance writer, and consumer of coffee in any form. With a degree in Early Childhood Education and Psychology, she is a kindergarten teacher turned mama-writer. A New Englander at heart, she and her family live wherever the military sends them.
Follow Kailyn on Instagram at @kailrhine or her website kailynrhinehart.com.
MOTHERHOOD IN THE WILD
In this week’s segment, we talk about the influx of courses and seminars targeted to moms.
RESOURCES MENTIONED
WRITING PROMPT
What form of creative expression has been calling to you lately? What is the best time of day for you to explore that and fit in some creative time for yourself?
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Jackie Leonard 00:00
You're listening to Mother writer, a podcast by mother scope. I'm your host, Jackie Leonard, a lifelong writer and a mother of two. each week's episode will focus on the uniquely challenging and powerful dance of writing while mothering with a mix of Scylla hosted and guest episodes, you'll walk away with actionable takeaways, recommendations and prompts that light a fire in us right? Share your story and proudly call yourself another writer. Today's mother writer is Kailyn Reinhardt Kailyn is one of mothers scopes regular contributors this year, and I'm such a fan of her intentional, honest storytelling about motherhood. In addition to her creative writing, Kailyn also is a professional writer. And in our conversation today Kailyn shares what it looks like to make time for both types of writing and her schedule. We also talked about what drew Kailyn to writing more expressively and what she does to ensure that she completes her work projects despite the unexpected curveballs of parenting. If you've been motivated to use your writing skills for compensated work, keep listening to hear our thoughts on that and more. I Kailyn welcome to the podcast.
Kailyn Rhinehart 01:22
Hi, hello. I was
Jackie Leonard 01:25
saying before we hit record that it's so nice to see you face to face, it's fun when I have an opportunity after, you know, corresponding and following somebody on social media to finally be able to chat. And I'm really looking forward to this because you are one of my other scripts contributors. And today we're gonna talk a little bit about how we can separate our creativity from the work that we do if it's related to writing especially. And we'll get into a lot of that in just a bit. But first, I would love for you to introduce yourself share a little bit about yourself for those listening.
Kailyn Rhinehart 02:01
Yeah, absolutely. My name is Kailyn Reinhardt. I am a wife and mom, I've got two little kids, an older girl who is six in kindergarten. And then a younger a little boy who just turned three. I stay home with him and do some freelance writing on the side, I have a background in education. I used to teach preschool and kindergarten before I started staying home, my kiddos and I do a little bit of like educational curriculum writing, I do a little bit of freelance writing. But and my husband is in the Air Force. So we move around a lot and get to live a lot of different places. Right now. We're in Missouri, though.
Jackie Leonard 02:48
Awesome. I have all these questions bubbling up. But I'm gonna hold back until we dive into the meat of our conversation. First, I'm looking forward to talking a little bit about what you've noticed about motherhood and the wild lately that you want to share. To get us going,
Kailyn Rhinehart 03:04
right? Yes, I was thinking about this. And I was seeing the kind of influx of courses for moms. And I think that it definitely is attributed to the pandemic and people being home and the accessibility that these days everybody wants things at their fingertips and resources and you know, scripts and things to do and say that I think as a new mom, it can kind of maybe feel a little bit overwhelming that there's these courses that you have to pay for and buy just to teach your kid how to eat and read and be disciplined. And I mean, I My oldest is only six. But I don't remember having that when I was a new mom of the the influx of feeling like I need to purchase something that somebody may also do something simple, like teach my kid how to eat or whatever. And I get that there's a market as a creator, I get the, you know, the product angle, and I understand if you're struggling to have these resources available is is probably a great thing, but just feeling the pressure of needing to maybe look into it or buy it for an everyday situation.
Jackie Leonard 04:17
Yeah, like monetization of knowledge. A lot of that is Yeah, part of what social media is. It's part of what we've seen as like creators and social media and all that stuff like, but it is kind of interesting to think about, like, do we need to like as parents, new parents, what's the impact on a new mom is like when I say what I hear what you're saying? Yeah, it can
Kailyn Rhinehart 04:39
it can cause you to kind of question your innate ability to figure these things out on your own. And I think that in a way, there's a lot of things in parenting that we just kind of have to, you know, Trial by Fire kind of thing, like just figure it out and feeling the pressure to have this sitting in front of you and then fall Although it rather than trust your own instincts, maybe as what rubs me a little bit the wrong way? I don't know.
Jackie Leonard 05:06
Yeah, well, I remember also sometimes feeling like I would see all the marketing, right, and it would work. And I'd be like, oh, like, if only I had this course. Yeah, I would be able to whatever. And realizing that it was outside, like my prayers range realistically that I wasn't going to pay for it and feeling like, oh, well, I am not going to be able to solve this problem, because I cannot purchase this course.
Kailyn Rhinehart 05:27
Yes. And it's like a little bit of doubting your own abilities kind of thing.
Jackie Leonard 05:31
Yeah. And feeling left out. And I think that's so true. Because we all know, I mean, especially you have a six year old by now. I mean, we learned at some point earlier, hopefully than later that there's not a right. Oh, no, no, no. So to have somebody be like, this is the way that you will, whatever. And sometimes I would try certain things, whether it was like a workshop or a course or just something somebody wrote. And I'd be like, that is the work what's wrong? And then I was I realized, well, my kid is different than whoever they tested it on, you know? Yes,
Kailyn Rhinehart 06:02
yes. And I think there's what's the thing like there's, there's no way to be a perfect mom, but like, a million ways to be a good mom or something like that, where it's, there's a million ways to come to one learning experience. But there's no perfect right one.
Jackie Leonard 06:19
Yeah. And you know, I mean, admittedly, I have reached out to, you know, experts in certain things, but I really need it. Oh, absolutely.
Kailyn Rhinehart 06:26
Absolutely. That and, yeah,
Jackie Leonard 06:29
yeah. And that's a given. I know, that's what you're saying. But I do think like, I wonder it's like we've eliminated sometimes the, the, the need to go and just ask people that we trust or, you know, like you said, trust our instincts, just take some time to think about what we ask what works for you. I think because it's so at our fingertips, then we feel like oh, well, I'll just do this, or I'll just or like a quick fix kind of thing. Yeah, a lot of times, it's not quick. Oh, no. Sometimes it works short, temporarily. And then the next thing happens, and you have to revisit my book. And I think there is something to be said about how moms and I think there's people that are well intentioned, we know those people, of course, but I do think that there is something to be said about knowing people know that mothers are very vulnerable. I think there are very vulnerable markets. And I think that does get taken advantage of a bit. There's a book coming out by the writer is Sarah Peterson, and it's called mom influenced. And it comes out in April. And it's all about just like the way that influencer culture but I think I think it's she writes about a lot of things regarding social media and how mothers are marketed to that, I think, is really, really fascinating. I'm glad somebody like his diving dive is diving into that because you're right, those those courses are all catered to parenting and anything that moms need. I feel like there's there's a course and I How to for that.
Kailyn Rhinehart 08:04
And I was just talking about like the overgeneralization I'm not trying to call anybody out.
Jackie Leonard 08:09
Ya know, and I think there's, I think there's a sense in all of the ones Yeah, right. And I think if you too, are like noticing a lot of them and feeling a little overwhelmed or feeling like I might doing this wrong or whatever. You know, it's just like, like you said, trust your intuition. Take a step back. I think sometimes taking a break from social media helps you realize like, oh, I don't really need all this stuff. It just felt like I did. Yeah. Yeah. Absolutely. Well, thank you. I think that's a very necessary thing to bring up. That we don't often talk about, right? It's like you just see it a lot. Yeah. Wow. Like that is there's that's going on all over the place. Okay. So with that said, one of the first things that I really want to do to dive into our writer talk today, is, I just want to hear a little bit about, like, when you first started writing, especially like in a more creative way. When did that start for you?
Kailyn Rhinehart 09:04
Um, first of all, I think I've always I was like, one of those kids who wrote the books and like, handed it to my mom and was like, can you make this digital book and like, as soon as I got access to like, word on the computer, I would try to type out books and chapters and stories and stuff. So I feel like I've always kind of done that as a kid. I think only recently. Maybe in the last like three years, I've really kind of dove into the creative and expression form of writing, like I've always journaled and kind of kept it privately but maybe in last few years I've been a little bit more public about it as far as sharing and finding community and really working I don't want to say perfect it but like working to grow my ability as a writer.
Jackie Leonard 09:52
Do you know what sort of made that click like why you started doing that more intense?
Kailyn Rhinehart 09:59
Yeah, X Please. So my husband, as I mentioned, my husband's in the military. And about two and a half years ago, he is hard to explain, but he kind of like switched careers within the military. And he switched his job. And it was a very transitional period. For us as a family, we were kind of living like you're in there for a temporary amount of time. And I remember deciding, kind of selfishly like, okay, he's doing something like, he's, he's changing and training and doing all this stuff for his career, like, I want to go and do something like I'm gonna, I'm gonna throw myself into something and like, really work on something. And I think like, ultimately, it really pushed me down a path of this writer's world and changing, changing the way that I lived and interacted with people and shared my journey. I think journey is a crazy word sometimes. But you know,
Jackie Leonard 10:54
I know, I almost asked you to share your writer journey. And I was like, I'm not. Yeah. But yes, there's
Kailyn Rhinehart 11:01
not really another word. But yeah,
Jackie Leonard 11:04
yeah. Well, that's really affirming to hear. Because what I've, you know, in the years that I've worked with moms, specifically who writes, I've, I used to think that I attracted people who were new moms, people who had just had babies. But as I talked to more and more people in the community, I realized that it was more it was less about being a new mom and more about like, some sort of transition in their life, to write more creatively, or want to share more have a community of writers that they could kind of, you know, feel a part of. And so to hear you share that it makes a lot of sense that, like you were, you know, doing this life change, you were seeking, you know, to express yourself, but also to be heard. And, you know, you naturally went back to sort of the thing that you always were drawn to, but in a different way. And absolutely, I always love to hear that. I also find that a lot of, you know, people who write creatively have a past with educators, or at least that's who I see. Yes.
Kailyn Rhinehart 12:02
And it's funny. Oh, sorry. No, it's, it's funny because I, I taught in a classroom setting before I had my kids and then decided that, you know, that wasn't really the way that I wanted to go, I'm not closed off to education, like I still write. I do like contract work for education, digital curriculum. And I love that part of my life. And I think I might go back to some form of education, like down the road, but I think I before I really started, you know, quote, unquote, seriously writing, I definitely had this moment of like, Oh, my goodness, what do I want to be when I grow up? Like, I'm not? I can't identify by being a teacher anymore? Because I'm not in the classroom? And like, Yes, I'm a mom. Yes, I'm a wife, you know, yes, I have all these other roles, or whatever, that are fluid and constantly changing. But I was kind of like, well, I don't I don't know what I do. I don't know what I like, kind of thing. And I feel like a lot of moms that I've talked to have that moment of, I don't know what I'm doing. I don't know, maybe that's just me.
Jackie Leonard 13:10
I think becoming a mom, or maybe, you know, during these periods of transition that we're talking about, our lives no longer seem to fit what we do, you know, and so then we're like, what, maybe the identity, it's like, yeah, the identity crisis. That's, I mean, I was a teacher, I was a teacher. And I remember I got to a point where I knew I wanted to do something more with my life, like we were, I was gonna get married, and I was gonna have kids, or I was planning to have kids down the line. And I was like, There's no way that I see what I'm doing now working with that lifestyle, the way that I want it to, and then when I became a mom, I was like, Well, what do I do? I don't feel like a teacher. Just a mom. Yeah. And I didn't want to, quote unquote, just be silly, which I don't think anybody has just one thing. But I felt that way. At the time. And, you know, I'm very intrigued about to hear you share more about writing as a, for your work, and writing creatively and how you can separate the two. Because I, you know, will, I think you've heard these like comments before, where it's like, people don't want to go do the thing that they're passionate about for work. So like, you know, if you're, like, do I want to cook for my work? Am I gonna hate it then? So I'd love to hear how you navigate that.
Kailyn Rhinehart 14:26
Yeah, let's, I mean, it's, it's ongoing. Of course, I kind of had this moment, which I'm still wrestling with, I don't know if it's completely, you know, quote, unquote, right or not, but I had this moment where I was like, This is what I love to do, like, I can kind of make a little money on the side and, you know, help my family contribute, like, feel like I'm contributing, and I can stay home and, and have the flexibility in my schedule and like it sounded very, very appealing to our lifestyle and moving and, you know, in a big transition, and so I kind of started diving into that and learning about it. I think it's something that it's not a clear path, it has so many different opportunities and so many different ways that you could take writing in a professional setting. And, you know, I'm pitching and writing for publications and doing what I do with the curriculum writing. And in the beginning, I thought, you know, I'm a writer, I'm just gonna write, but there's so many unique opportunities
Jackie Leonard 15:24
to do with it. Yeah, I, I like to get into a little bit of the nitty gritty because I just talked to somebody, Christine Carpenter, who has started to do some, like freelance writing for a newspaper. And we talked a little bit about how that came to be. And so I would love to hear, I don't know, like, I know, you mentioned doing some of the curriculum work that you do, like, how did you get to that point, like, yeah, share just a little bit about how you acquired that and like, what that looks like,
Kailyn Rhinehart 15:52
I have a friend who was a teacher as well. And she had kind of mentioned, like, this is what she did, like, what I'd be interested, she would get, you know, she would be able to see the contact on the company, and would be able to put my name in and put in a good word. And I was able to just kind of get into it. And a lot of the opportunities like I've had to go and seek and work towards, which is a little bit of what you were saying, coming back to the like how to separate the the professional paid work with like more creative work. And I think it it's still something that I'm wrestling because I did start as a more creative outlet. And that's always been the the foundation of my writing. And I think it still is, and it's what I want it to be. And I can kind of grow both at the same time in different ways a little bit, which I'm realizing, as long as I'm diligent about it.
Jackie Leonard 16:45
Yeah. So obviously, with your professional writing that you have to do you set like a schedule for it, or you have deadlines that you have to work around. Like realistically, I want to like be honest, because I'm still navigating it like obviously, nobody's perfect. Right? The Senate evolves, it's fluid, right? But how, like, how do you make the time like, what do you do realistically to make the time for creative writing.
Kailyn Rhinehart 17:10
Um, so I've actually recently decided that I, and I'm a night owl, so I write creatively at night, like after the kids are in bed, and I have my time I spend that kind of like decompression time and work on like a prompt or work on a creative exercise, our mothers go prom, and that's my time to kind of unwind, and then during the day, like naptime, or I'll be able to kind of fit in my deadlines. And I think I'm, I'm a fairly regimented person. So meeting my deadlines, and turning in the articles that I need to turn in, is what motivates me to be able to have the time to write creatively almost. And I because I know I need to get that stuff done. And I'm accountable to somebody that's not myself, whereas creatively, generally, I'm accountable myself. So that has kind of helped. Yeah.
Jackie Leonard 18:02
Yeah, I think well, I just know, myself too. And when I've ever whenever I've had writing work that has been paid for by other people, like, you know that yeah, you know, that I'm accountable for like you said, obviously, I will do what I need to do to get that done. Yeah. When I, it's for myself, it's like, well, I'm not getting paid for this. Like, obviously, it's maybe something down the line that I see could become something maybe, but usually, like you just do it for, quote unquote, fun. Yeah. And it can be really tempting to minimize the importance of that. Oh,
Kailyn Rhinehart 18:33
absolutely. Absolutely. And it's definitely taken a while to kind of, and I'm still learning how to balance that. Not letting my creative writing process kind of slide because I have to meet the deadline. And I think just knowing, knowing that they're different outlets for myself, like I write creatively as a form of like emotional processing, and a lot of, you know, more more journaling aspect. Whereas what I'm doing as a paid work is so far from that, that it's not the same release a little bit,
Jackie Leonard 19:04
I guess you could say, yeah, something I struggle with with contracted writing work. Yeah. Because oftentimes, it is obviously not as exciting. As creative writing, how do you kind of find motivation to complete that? Like, obviously, you have, like, you have to do it, but like, what do you do to kind of make it fun? Or to, I don't know, to like, get your mindset? No,
Kailyn Rhinehart 19:26
actually, I'm very big on like, setting small goals and big goals. Like if I have something that I know is due in like, December, then I try to get it done before the time that it's supposed to be due so that I have the wiggle room and especially as a mom, like kids get sick and things happen. So having the flexibility of a longer deadline or having the flexibility of being able to do it. You know, when when my toddlers napping or when I can find the time it takes the pressure off of me a little bit to know.
Jackie Leonard 19:56
Yeah, like I liked what you shared about kind of like starting early but then also like kind of doing it in in like small chunks, that kind of thing. It's not like I have to get all of this done now.
Kailyn Rhinehart 20:06
Yeah. Totally. Because chipping away at it. Yeah.
Jackie Leonard 20:10
I'm like, Alright, three hours, I have to finish it. And then I'm like, yeah, yeah. You know, I think it's really important for people listening, especially moms have younger children to kind of hear what like a day to day or what like a writing schedule or work schedule looks like. For moms, I just saw a writer that I follow had her book come out today. And a lot of times I can start to feel like, oh, like, look at what they're doing how. And she shared in the caption, you know that her daughter just turned 10 years old today. And so her book is coming out on the same kind of day as her daughter's birthday. And I thought, Oh, she has a 10 year old. So it kind of like helped me, like, bring myself back down to like, put it into perspective. Yeah, put it into perspective. And I liked what you shared about how like, you know what your creative writing is for you right now, which is as like a form of expression. So it sort of takes the pressure off of you. Like, I don't need to be writing a bestselling novel right now. I'm writing now. You know what I mean? Like, no, I'm writing something right now to just help me feel good. It's helped me relax, to tap into my creativity. And that's all it needs to be and I love
Kailyn Rhinehart 21:15
Absolutely, absolutely. And I think in a way, like, and I'm like, I don't know, if you're into the any Enneagram I'm a type one. So I'm very like list and schedule oriented. And I'm, in a way I, I think it helps me, especially in this line of work, but I do think it can hinder me in that I am so set on like, I need to do this right now. Like I have this tiny chunk of time that I need to do it, but like, my kid is in my face, or like, you know, or, or I have to go run and do something like I knowing realistically that motherhood is not something that we can kind of like, okay, I'm just going to scoot it aside and then work on what I need to do. Like, it's going to be involved in every single aspect of our life, even writing creatively or paid. And just kind of having a little grace with yourself. And in realizing that that's a season, realizing it's a temporary thing, like you mentioned, the author having a 10 year old, like, I can do a lot more now with a six year old than I could with two under three years old. Like it changes constantly.
Jackie Leonard 22:17
Totally. And I from what I think I heard you share earlier, your three year old, you're primarily the caretaker day to day, and you're navigating some professional work as well. So what is, you know, like, how when do you find the time to do your professional work? Is it is it primarily like during naps? And when they're down?
Kailyn Rhinehart 22:37
Yeah, I think that that is like I call it like my focused hour. Like I know, he has, it's like kind of, I do well under pressure kind of thing. So I'm I'm more focused in that timeframe. But I am able to like he's he's actually a really good independent play, kiddo. And so we have like, a little playroom, and I have my desk. So it's not I wouldn't, I wouldn't say it's very like, focused, laser focused work time, but I'm able to kind of chip away like you were saying and do it a little bit at a time. And then in the you know, naptime or bedtime, I'm really able to like sit down and focus in the small amount of time that moms get. Yeah. Time management for sure.
Jackie Leonard 23:20
Yeah, we get really good about, you know, maximizing those little crumbs of time. Absolutely. I think it's really important that you shared that you do some work while they're awake, too. Because I think sometimes people think like, Oh, when did they get this done? And it's like, well, yeah, sometimes, realistically, the kids in the room and I'm sitting on
Kailyn Rhinehart 23:38
the couch, and he's over there. Yeah, exactly. Yeah. I, it's taken me a while to kind of like think that that's okay to like what you're saying, like, I don't think I'm a bad mom, because I sit on my laptop or my kid is playing. And I'm working, quote unquote, working? Like, that's a very, very nuanced conversation as well.
Jackie Leonard 23:55
Yeah, it's what we got to do. And you know what, I'm glad you brought up independent play, because there is something that yeah, there are studies that say that educational background, yeah, it's important for kids to be able to go play golf. So like, let go of some of that mom guilt. Because I know, I felt that a lot sometimes where I'm like, I'm working on all this stuff. And, you know, I haven't like connected with them as much as I would like, or am I not being a more enough presence, enough parents? And you have to let go of that, like you said, Absolutely. And all of them. Absolutely. Thank you. So many really great insights. One of the things that really stood out to me as like a taiko a big takeaway is to tell people what you're looking for, and like utilize your connections if you want to do like writing work. I'm hearing that time and again from people.
Kailyn Rhinehart 24:43
Yes, absolutely. Like when I first started, and I was kind of, you know, searching, there's so many free resources out there. But that's a whole nother conversation in itself. But I think a lot of what I heard was like no reach out to people you already know and just kind of in a way Put yourself out there, which is terrifying. Like, hey, this is what I do now. Like, if you need anything like let me know kind of thing. And that's scary when you're starting out something and you're just feeling very imposter syndrome and not like you can reach out to people, you know, who will take you seriously, but sometimes it's easier to reach out to strangers.
Jackie Leonard 25:20
Yeah, it's very true. And, you know, word of mouth is like the best way to be successful. I think there's a stigma around like connections to get somewhere. But that's like, that's human. That's like what humans do we have to can absolutely. And so why not use that to our advantage? The other thing that I heard that I thought was really insightful and something that people can walk away and see how it works for them is, like, find the time of day that works best for you to Yes, you know, commit to your creativity.
Kailyn Rhinehart 25:51
Yes, absolutely. I know, so many writers that are morning writers. And we'll get up at like the crack of dawn and say, before the kids wake up, like they'll make coffee at like, 5am. That is not me. I am not a math person. I would not, it would take me an hour just to be functioning to type a sentence. And I know that about myself. So nighttime is really where I thrive a little bit more.
Jackie Leonard 26:14
Yeah. I mean, that's where I do my creative writing. Usually, I journal at night. I'm not like maybe the most clear, sometimes it's like more foggy, but it's like, almost lets me kind of just go and not have any expectations. And that's when I do it. So yeah, figure out the time that works best for you. Yes. And then the last thing that I think is that I really appreciated that you shared was, you know, if you're feeling like you're in a time of transition, like it's, it could be a good time to, you know, pursue your creativity in a new way.
Kailyn Rhinehart 26:46
Yeah, I think if I if I didn't really dive into writing, at that time in our life, like it would have been very, like, isolating almost,
Jackie Leonard 26:55
yeah, yeah. And it gave you kind of the tools or the access to reach out to like, meet new people, essentially. Yeah, yeah. I remember the last thing I was gonna say and that is to not feel guilty about having to divide your time with kicking and pursuing your own creativity or your work pursuits. You know, do what you can do. Absolutely. Yeah. Kailyn before we go, I'm excited to have you read some of your writing for those listening. Can you dive in?
Kailyn Rhinehart 27:30
Yes, this is from a new piece that I have coming out on mother's scope. And it's just about my kids kind of growing up and like having the premises like, one day I won't be tripping over toys in my kitchen kind of thing and like that sounds like really really great right now when I'm really stressed out and have trucks all over my but in a way it's super super sad at the realization that that means that my kids are gonna grow up, but Okay, so we're eating dinner spaghetti and to the dogs delight the two year old is scattering it like tinsel on a pine tree all over the floor. He fleeing strand after strand of noodles until we finally snatch his plate but it's too late. I lift him out of his chair as if trying to defuse a bomb. I remove his clothes and carry him at arm's length into the bathroom. I turn on the shower, peel off his shirt and sigh as I shake the hoarded noodles from his lap into the trash can. I add additional cleanup time to my already follow post bedtime checklists and my inside sigh. One day he will sit at the table with other adults who will be capable of feeding himself gone will be the days of pasta everywhere the walls, my pants, the highchair. One day the hardware will be free of starchy flattened noodles. And so when my bare feet, they simmer and the thoughts drizzled with freedom alongside the complicated emotions that the wispy bond crawls alongside his face will also be gone too.
Jackie Leonard 28:41
Am I like somebody? Like, like relevance are kids in the same age gaps? So So yeah, I feel you. For anybody who wants to read the rest of that that will go live sometime in January, maybe late January. Mother scope.com will link it in the show notes if it's live by then and Kailyn before we go, can you share how people can connect with you after learning about you in this?
Kailyn Rhinehart 29:06
Absolutely. Um, my Instagram is kale Ryan KAILRH I N E and I'm primarily over there I have a website Caitlin KILY. En Reinhardt, r h i n e h ar t.com. All right, just kind of keep off my portfolio and my blog.
Jackie Leonard 29:28
Awesome. Thank you so much for your insight and sharing a little bit of your writing story with us today. And it was so nice talking to you too. Thanks, Jackie. I found so much of my conversation with Kailyn to be really validating as somebody who is trying to balance I don't even know if balance is the right word but to navigate writing professionally alongside creative writing. And whether or not you two are are a professional writer. I think it's safe to say that we all have other responsibilities that are pulling at our time alongside our desire to write creatively. So this week's prompt is inspired by my conversation today with Kailyn. What form of creative expression has been calling to you lately? What is the best time of day for you to explore that and fit in some creative time for yourself?
Thanks so much for listening to another writer. My hope is that you walk away from this episode feeling a little bit seen, inspired to write and ready to proudly call yourself a mother writer. If you enjoyed this episode, be sure to leave us a review. And if you're looking for more support on your writing journey, come join us inside the mother scope writers club, a weekly membership for our community of moms who right just like you learn more at motherscope.com