All About: BIG LOVE small moments

For imperfect parents growing intentionally WITH imperfect children

Launched in July of 2020 with the goal of creating a vibrant community of imperfect parents and caregivers raising imperfect children, this site is a place to learn new skills so your family can thrive and grow. It is here to build your confidence so that you believe you have what it takes to tackle this whole parenting thing. If you love to learn new ways to entertain and educate your children, use gentle discipline techniques and pick up ideas on how to organize your home so that it will run more smoothly, then this site is for you. We welcome you and your unique perspective and would love to hear from you. Let’s be honest, life is hard! We’ve got to stick together and help each other out. It truly does take a village and it is my hope to create a village here where we can communicate and exchange ideas and most importantly, keep learning together.

I have a special series coming out on incorporating early language and literacy learning in the home, so keep an eye out for it in the upcoming month. And you won’t want to miss all the fun activity ideas and boredom busters to keep your kids entertained during extended periods of at-home time!

Like our page on Facebook, so you’ll always be up to date on what’s here! We give tips and tricks for maintaining a happy home and we also provide product reviews. You won’t want to miss out!

On this site you can expect to see and learn about…

  • Activities for your kids
  • Fun and creative ways to use inexpensive materials
  • Tricks for organizing your family and your home
  • Tips for understanding your child
  • Ideas for setting boundaries and using gentle discipline to teach your child
  • Encouragement for the hard days and ways to promote mental health

Some careers you go to school for and it takes years of training to master, while in other professions the experience gained in the field can eclipse any sort of book education you might receive.  

I guess you can say I’ve gotten to experience both! Before becoming a stay at home mom, I worked in early childcare for ten years and before that earned my bachelor’s degree in Human Development and Family Sciences from the Ohio State University. I’ve heard the theories, studied in class, and then learned to apply that knowledge in the field but also how to throw the rule book out the window when it just doesn’t work in the real world!  

I thought I’d become an elementary school teacher. I love children and always knew I wanted to work with kids one day, but along the road I realized teaching for 30 years is not for me. My dream was to become a mom and be there for every diaper change, every scraped knee and every new discovery my children make. I wanted to be the one to experience those things with my littles, not someone else! I believe “Big love happens in the small moments” and I wanted to be there for the small moments.

It’s my joy to say I am living my dream today! My name is Jolie McCollum and I am blessed to be the mom to two wonderful children: an 18 month old boy and a 4 year old girl.

On the rough days, I remind myself how lucky I am to be in this situation and on the good days I smile and soak in the giggles and hugs. My husband is always saying he could never do what I do and laughs as ideas for activities snowball and become even more activities. In the high stress moments, words just flow to help guide and teach my children (USUALLY – we all have bad days!)  And to be fair, I could never do what he does either, so we’re both where we should be. It feels like I was made to be a mom. I was made to be a teacher. So that’s what I’m pursuing in life: being the best mom I can be and helping others around me to learn and grow too. This is the whole reason I began this blog: to grow with and help out parents just like you!

My life experience has led me here: planning activities for my kids, homeschooling before I even realized I was doing so, and learning about finances to make my family stronger and able to have the life we’ve always dreamed of. I’m the organizer, the idea lady, the baker, the chef, the housekeeper, the shopper, the nurse, the photographer, the family historian and the maker of childhood. Jack of all trades and master of a few. I am a constant learner, looking to improve both myself and the environment my children are growing in.

I am a home maker and a teacher.

A few more things to know about me and my family…

  • We don’t do a lot of screen time. Don’t worry, I don’t judge you if you do but a lot of screen time just isn’t for us.
  • We are trying to lessen our environmental footprint by doing things to reduce our waste like using reusable diapers and buying reusable paper towels.
  • We are currently trying to pay down debt and are focused on saving money and living frugally below our means.
  • I am artsy and love painting. I do many open-ended art projects with my kids and am not afraid of getting messy.
  • I LOVE to bake and in my life pre-children had a business decorating cakes out of our home. My husband and I had this business together and we made our own wedding cake!
  • My favorite age to work with is 1-2 year olds! No “terrible twos” here!  
  • One of my strengths is planning language and literacy activities. I LOVE TO READ!

In this blog, I share tips and tricks on how to organize your home to make it a calmer, more relaxed environment where you and your children can thrive. I share activities to keep those little ones busy and learning and give you tools to make life a little bit easier. I look forward to building this community with you. Thank you for being a part of this journey with me. 

So, lets get to learning! Together!

Remember to head over to Facebook and like our page, BIG LOVE small moments, so you don’t miss out on new posts! Also, share your favorite post to help our community grow! I am so excited to have you here!