Mikaela Martinez

Teacher and Montessori parent sharing her expertise in child development and authentic parenting experiences on Instagram

Mother of Goose (2 years old)

What started you on the journey of creating content for instagram and sharing your motherhood experience?

I started posting about my journey raising Goose and my knowledge and experience in the early childhood field when she was born originally as a private account for just friends and family. People asked me to make it public so they could share with their friends and family and I did. Then, about a year ago, I decided to make it a bit more formal and organized and move forward with an account that had the goal of serving caregivers as they raise or teach young children. As it began to grow I began to see the value I could bring into the space that was unique to me. I began offering our printable resources, became known for being an account that makes sure an authentic motherhood journey is on display, not just a curated one, and Goose became known for her daily outfit picking and love of singing and dancing for the camera!

As a mother and entrepreneur, how are you staying sane and juggling it all? Especially during a pandemic.

Am I sane? Am I juggling it all? Well I am juggling a lot; mom to a toddler, kindergarten teaching during a pandemic, running this side business. I am exhausted. I am probably not sane every day. I wish I had some great tips and tricks, but honestly my motto this past year has been, "I have __ weeks until summer break" and it is getting me through the days! I love what I do and I think that is the key for me. I love my job, I love my family, and I love sharing and teaching parents as well. I have cut out everything I was doing that did not bring me joy (minus the cooking, I haven't managed to figure out how to cut that one out!) and that way I am only giving my time and energy to the people, places, and tasks that fill me.

Tell us something that is bringing you joy as a mother right now.

Right now I am loving the little glimpses of who Goose is growing into. Moments where her empathy for others shines through and I can see how she will become an amazing caretaker one day. Or when she runs to the art closet and digs out her supplies with so much determination, knowing exactly what she wants to accomplish. Also, moments where she's so focused and working so diligently, just seeing her skills blossom and grow right before my eyes is my absolute favorite.

Something that worries you as a parent.

I worry about her growing up in the state of the world right now. The prejudice and challenges she'll face as a biracial female. That people will see her spirit and want to dampen it. I hope she can grow in an environment outside of our home that values her the way we do, and encourages and supports her just as we do.

Mikaela’s top 3 tips to start RIGHT NOW that cost zero dollars:

Read with your kid.

Every day.

Have books in multiple places in your home that your child can access. You don't have to sit down and read them word for word. They don't have to stick around for the whole thing. Just look at books, talk about what you see, ask them questions, point and name what is in the pictures, read with expression and voices. Read every day! (Can you tell I teach kindergarten?)

Less is more. You don't need the fancy, the expensive, the things that you see on all the Instagram accounts. Your child needs you, opportunities for independence and participation in the routines and rhythms of your home and family, and to go outside. Your child will find ways to build all the same skills that can be built with expensive, fancy Montessori materials.

Go out in nature. The beach, a hike, to the park, around the block, just out in your own yard, but being in nature is such a great way to incorporate so many of the Montessori work areas.

What does your typical morning routine look like?

Since I am a working mom our mornings are very routine: I get up and get ready and then wake Goose up around 6:45 am. We use the potty and then go wake up dad. Then we go and choose our clothing for the day. I present 2 options that I put out the night before and she picks which she would like to wear. We are working on dressing independence right now so she does her best to dress herself, and then I tame her head of curls. We make breakfast together and she eats it at her weaning table with Mario while I pack her bag and mine. Afterwards, I head off to work while she finishes eating and she plays with dad for a bit before he takes her to our nanny's house (we do an in-home nanny share with two of my coworkers. Next year she will attend a preschool down the street from our house).

What do you do for self-care?

I schedule a massage and a facial every month. I save up and this is what my money goes to. I don't really have hobbies that require any type of financial commitment, so I choose this. Not only is it an hour to an hour and a half to myself, but I am also bettering myself by relaxing and also committing to helping my skin (which I have put off for over a decade). I also read a lot. Many are professional books or books about child development, but I also read "just for fun" books too!

Any goals you are working on with your daughter?

Right now we are working on potty and dressing independence. We potty trained at 2, but recently she has shown that she is ready to do the whole routine by herself. So, we are really breaking all the steps down and helping her become successful in every step of the process.

She also wants to learn to make her bed, so that will be another area we begin to break down and scaffold for her so she can find success and independence.

We also just ordered her first set of kitchen knives (nylon and toddler friendly of course!) I am not a lover of cooking but she is a lover of being next to me as I attempt to cook, always wanting to cut cut cut. I am going to be introducing cutting with an actual knife over the next few weeks and slowly releasing responsibility so she can become safe and independent and also participate more in the preparation of our meals.

Our current favorites that are used on the daily:

All of the DIYs my husband Mario has made. I seriously can't remember a day we haven't used them all! From her floor bed, to her wardrobe, to the kitchen helper and her toddler railing, I actually did a post about it recently because he is really talented and people had been asking to see his furniture up close.

Also, our Sprout weaning table and chair is probably our best big ticket purchase we have made in the past 2 years. We eat at it, work at it, do art projects at it, play with play doh and eat play doh at it. Use code GOOSE10 for a discount at Sprout Kids.

THE CAR POTTY! We have a travel potty that we keep in the back of our car along with the bags that hook over it. When we are out and about and nature calls, we pop open the hatch, sit on the travel potty, and do our business. No accidents, no gross public bathrooms, no pee in the car seat resulting in an hour long task of disassembling and reassembling that thing. Get a car potty.

Favorite local activities to do with your family where you live (Pacific Northwest area)

Right now, we are at the park or the beach daily. As soon as I pick her up from her nanny's we head straight to one of them. She loves to be outside, I love to be outside, and we go home happy and tired! We also love to go to antique and thrift stores as a family, check out fish at the local pet store, watch dad skateboard at the local skate park, and pre-COVID, head to the library. We are hoping this summer to get back into some of the more social community offerings for toddlers in our community.

Learn more and bring Mikaela’s techniques into your home and parenting here.