Allison Cooper

The Back to School season is just around the corner, and for many, it has already begun. For moms, this time of year tends to bring on a huge mix of emotions, whether you are sending older kiddos back again or sending little ones for their first day ever.

There are days when you look in the mirror at yourself, nights when you looks at your husband, and moments when you squeeze your son that you wonder if you have anything left to give. You have given so much to being a mom that there are moments when you lose sight of it all. Don’t lose sight of me, the person that you were before and the things that made your happy. Don’t let me disappear.

Yes, I said it. I’ll sing it from the rooftops and admit the one thing that many moms might feel ashamed to say out loud: I live for nap time.

Pregnancy changes more than just your body and your emotions: it changes the “stuff” that you need on a daily basis, too. I didn’t realize just how much I needed — or how the packing game had changed — until I needed to place it all neatly into my (now) overflowing suitcase.

After having a baby girl in August, eight years after having my first child, let’s just say that the changes to my body were a bit different than t

I've noticed an evolution within myself over the past year: I’ve been avoiding leaving my house at all costs.

Family travel helped me see what I'd been missing out on.

Dear Oldest Son, Life these days is all about dividing and conquering. I feel more and more like I’m dividing and conquering so many things.

... there is no joy in the season when mom is locking herself in the bathroom to pull her hair out — don’t let that be you!

Whenever you see a mom rocking her “mom-leggings,” and you judge or shame her, I beg you to take an effing step back, get off your high horse and take a second to understand that she’s just been through a lot and these leggings are giving her life.