I thought I would do a mid-year review and I hope this encourages you to also stop and take some personal inventory. And I actually highly recommend you do, as I was writing this I was blown away by how much I’ve accomplished this year. It’s so easy to forget or discount what we are doing when we’re in the thick of mothering but seeing it out like this will give you a boost of motivation, I promise. It also makes it easier to complete a FULL year review which I plan to do with you all December 2026 to plan for 2027 — isn’t that crazy to even think about?

January: Started Wednesday trash truck parties 🚛

This is one of my favorite things. Basically I just started tracking when the trash trucks come and they come consistently every Wednesday between 9am-10am so I started bringing out blankets and baked goods and it is now fully a thing. I have our trash truck drivers’ numbers and I know them by name and they love the strawberry cake I make. I also get to invite neighbors into it and it’s a blast. I can’t believe I’ve been doing this for 6 months!

February: Did a 40-day digital fast ☏

I decided the day before Lent (February 17th) to just delete Instagram and TikTok. I was tired of feeling so addicted to my phone and knew I needed a big change. My husband deleted those two apps from my phone and it gave me time to reframe my relationship with my phone and also my brain chemistry and dopamine. I was sent the book Dopamine Kids from Avid Readers Press and read it instead of scrolling and the subject matter solidified more of a 90s mom approach to living and I loved it. I also downloaded Substack at this time, lol and started with 2 subscribers, and as of today I am about to get 1,000 very soon which is crazy!

March: Planted my first garden 🌷

With all the extra time and space without TikTok I started to work on one of my dreams: create a pollinator garden outside my kitchen window. My kitchen window is gorgeous (we live in a 90s home and I love details like my arched window) but it looked out to dirt and weeds the first year we lived here. I recruited help from my neighbors, I even made an invite on Canva and together, we made a butterfly garden and the other day I was washing dishes and saw butterflies playing out there and felt soo accomplished.

April: Started an in person mom’s bible study 📖

My husband and I host a community group every Saturday and one of my prayer requests was to have a mom’s bible study. A few other moms in the group said that would be so great and the next thing you know we had a meeting the following week for 6 moms. We chose the workbook called Moms Set Free and have been meeting this summer and it has been so life-giving. We meet up once or twice a week, we pray for each other, we share the highs and lows and I think it’s gotten me through what happened to be a pretty tumultuous summer.

May: Started to take Substack more seriously 👩🏻‍💻

On May 1st I wrote my first “and other 90s mom things” article! It got approximately 5 likes but it was the start of a really fun creative project for me and kickstarted my journey on writing weekly on Substack. It was also the beginning of building a wonderful community of other creative moms who are writing during nap times and reflecting on the beauty of motherhood. So grateful to start these cute weekly articles with one recipe, activity, and product to try all around being a 90s mom!

June: First real trip away from my daughter ✈️

Tears were shed when my husband and daughter dropped me off at the airport, my daughter was so confused why she wasn’t going with me and it was hard to go get on a flight after that but I did it! I went to visit my long distance friend who was just about to have a baby for a girls baby moon to give the mom-to-be support! It was such a nice trip in Tacoma, Washington and I am proud of myself for going and pushing myself to do that.

July: Wore a dress everyday in July 👗

I got this idea from and my friend Paige! I wrote a note about how Paige wore a dress to the library and I want to be like her and so I randomly decided on a whim to challenge myself to 31 dresses in July and it truly changed my brain chemistry. Sometimes, I felt out of my comfort zone and not as comfortable as my usual shorts and shirt set but I also gained confidence and felt great as a mom. Unfortunately, I only made it to 24 dresses out of 31 dresses this year because of some female health problems but I will be back next year!

Thank you so much for reading my mid-year review and I really hope you take some time to list out the first 6 months of 2026 and what the wins were for you, I’m sure you did so much! I would love to hear one or two in the comments. Here’s to creating the life of our dreams one day at a time <3

xoxo

Andi 🌷

Welcome back to another episode of The 90s Mom with your host, !

I decided to start this podcast to have real and genuine conversations with other creators here so we can all get ideas and inspiration on how to be more present and more joyful in our motherhood journey.

Today, I’m sharing my interview with ! She is not only a bestseller on Substack but just one of the most delightful and down to earth people I have ever met.

She first found my article on 10 Things I Really Miss About The 90s and her thoughtful comment made me reach out and immediately ask if she wanted to either do a podcast together because I knew she would have a lot of great ideas to share. She replied that would be fun and I was right, she has soo many great ideas and thoughts on being a joyful 90s mom!

Here’s what we covered in our conversation:

🌷 Her CD and DVD collection and how to replicate that by going to the library and making media decisions as a family to make it into an experience

🌷 Favorite 90s mom crafts and sticker collections (and actually using your stickers)

🌷 Creating family reading challenges with creative prizes

🌷 The importance of having family dinner together and protecting this ritual

🌷 Having physical games like PASS THE PIGS as a way to get off our phones

🌷 Her favorite 90s mom recipe is: one pot vegan hamburger helper

🌷 To summarize: having something physical in our hands is the antidote to being glued to our phones

I absolutely loved this particular part of our chat and have to share:

Hope you loved listening to this, we would absolutely love to know your thoughts and what your takeaways are to bring more joy into your life whether through physical media (like games, dvds, cds, and stickers) or by cooking and creating! Thank you again for being here!

Joyfully,

Andi and Brittany

P.S. Subscribe to Brittany here: In Joy with Brittany Viklund (paid subscribers get the cutest printable downloads like reading trackers and challenges!)

Subscribe to Andi here: The 90s Mom with Andi Kay (free 7-day AIM trial)

Hi, it’s Andi again with another roundup of 90s mom recipes, activities, and products to try out!

I am also ✨celebrating✨ over here because I learned that if your podcast gets over 1,050 downloads in the first 7 days you are in the top 5% of podcasts and y’all somehow my first podcast got 1.5K in the first 7 days!

So grateful and excited to keep creating content in this way! I just interviewed and it was a lovely and packed conversation with so many ideas and tips on how to be a more joyful 90s mom. Cannot wait to share it out next week!

But for this week’s activity recommendation, I am recommending that you go to Olive Garden 🪴. Because when is the last time you’ve gone to an Olive Garden? We went for a girls dinner with 4 of us and 2 toddler girls and we really, really enjoyed it.

We got The Tour of Italy (which is Alfredo Fettuccini, Lasagna, and Chicken Parmesan — YUM), and Shrimp Carbonara. Both came with soups so we tried the Zuppa Toscana as well as the Chicken Gnocchi: roasted chicken, soft potato dumpling gnocchi, and spinach in a creamy, comforting broth.

The toddler girlies loved the chicken gnocchi and the endless breadsticks were a huge hit and they kept them very occupied so us grown ups could chat. And then we ordered the chocolate cheesecake for dessert because why not?

The vibes and the food were all excellent and it felt like a very nostalgic 90s girl dinner. Visit your local Olive Garden! 🪴 (PSA they have a deal right now where you can order a whole entree to go for only $6!)

And my product recommendation of this week is the book Atomic Habits by James Clear! I lucked out and found two copies of this book up at my local Goodwill and got both because I thought I could form a little two person book club with my mom friend. And you guys, I am learning so so much and so excited to implement what I’m learning in how I am growing in motherhood and on Substack.

Here is a quick example of what I’m learning:

Implementation Intention

The simple way to apply this strategy to your habits is to fill in the blank:

I will [BEHAVIOR] at [TIME] in [LOCATION]

“People who make a specific plan for when and where they will perform a new habit are more likely to follow through..

Too many people try to change their habits without these basic details figured out. We leave it to chance and hope that we will just remember or feel motivated at the right time. An implementation intention transforms notions into a concrete plan of action.” — James Clear

I have done this with my Substack by intentionally announcing I will be deleting Instagram and instead challenging myself to write one article a week and just this simple implementation intention” has helped immensely.

I have also done this with telling my husband I will go to the gym by our house during her naps Monday - Wednesday and I have gone a lot more regularly than if I hadn’t said that out loud.

There will be absolutely more to come because this book is also teaching me about creating identity-based habits (deciding the type of person you want to be and then proving it to yourself with small wins) and designing your environment for success (hello, office makeover?). And all of these ideas are also giving me a lot of inspiration for how to utilize AIM (Andi’s Instant Messenger) so we can grow in having 90s mom habits while keeping each other accountable. So absolutely love and recommend this book, you can either hunt for it secondhand or grab it here ↙️

And then for the recipe of the week, I am sharing with you the very best and most classic chocolate chip cookies. I made them for the garbage truck drivers this week and the recipe was highly requested so I’m really excited to share with y’all the recipe that has made our household kind of known for having the best chocolate chip cookies, just saying. It is my absolute favorite to make during the holidays too and I think we could all use a little something to look forward to in those holiday months right now! Here’s the recipe:

Please try them and let me know what you think or how they turned out, I honestly love making these and it will make me so happy to see you making them too! Okay, I’m off to pick up my neighbor from the airport (so 90s mom lol). But I love writing these for you, it honestly makes me so happy and is such a fun recap of the things I’m loving and can hopefully inspire you in your week.

Also, I was so honored to be included in this list by Chloe and totally agree with her recommendations, I love every single one of these writers and how they make motherhood delightful. If you like my articles, you’ll love theirs too:

Here is to making motherhood delightful together! 🌷

xoxo

Andi

Hi! It’s me, Andi — your 90s mom friend coming each week with a product recommendation, recipe, and activity to try out to become more like the 90s mom you are meant to be!

I hope this article finds you well, but if it doesn’t I also get it! It’s funny because I feel like I’ve been talking to so many friends who just feel like they are going through it, whether it is car stuff breaking down or growing through conflict - like we are not alone, we’ve got each other and that is a blessing. So let me know how you are really doing, I’d love to know!

Anyways, let’s get into this week’s Friday faves! I was driving home and saw a garage sale sign in my neighborhood and I thought to myself, let’s just go see what they have. To start off with, they had 5 vespas in the front. I was on the phone with my friend and I asked her, “Should I get a Vespa??”

This was the best garage sale I’ve been to since the 90s and it really brought me back to being 8 years old in 1998 and my parents gave me a Ziploc bag of quarters to go to garage sales and I felt so rich. Like I could buy so much with my little baggie.

That’s how I felt today, for $20 I walked away with a brand new Shrinky Dinks Maker, a Children’s Cookbook, Rifle Paper Co Airpod case and more. So that’s the activity I am recommending to you, this weekend there WILL be garage sales around you — you just might have to look or pay attention to the signs and also grab your partner or friend and say “Hey, Andi said the activity of the week is to go to a garage sale so we have to go!” Or you could even host your own garage sale! I have been eyeing corners of my home and thinking quietly to myself, do we really need that anymore? So yes, garage sales!

For the product recommendation, there was a laminator for sale at this garage sale too (I know, they literally had everything). I would have gotten it but my brother-in-law got me one for Christmas and the power to laminate things is so 90s mom. It is the easiest thing to do, you just sandwich what you want to laminate in between the sheet and run it through, and the opportunities are endless. So far, I’ve really only made bookmarks and my husband made me mahjong cards but I will be using this for more and I think you should look into it too or add it to your wishlist! Also, if you do have a laminator already — let me know what else I should make, I would love ideas!

Scotch Laminator

And lastly, for the recipe of the week I would love to remind you that you can use your free will to make a pitcher of frozen strawberry lemonade, and it is ridiculously simple but will bring you and your kids and guests so much joy.

Here’s what you’ll need for Andi’s Frozen Strawberry Lemonade:

Ingredients:

1. Lemonade

2. Frozen strawberries

3. Crushed ice

Directions:

1. Blend in a blender

2. Serve in a pitcher

3. Take outside and enjoy on a picnic blanket

Keeping it super simple for the recipe for the week but you guys, try it and take a picture and let me know what you think! It pairs well with burgers and sandwiches and I’ve heard cold or warm drinks are grounding and can help us regulate our nervous systems, so if you need some of that in your life — try this frozen lemonade! <3 (or go get a smoothie because it is smoothie weather!)

Okay, that’s it for this week but this has been such a fun Substack week. I can’t believe that there are now 800 (??) of you beautiful souls tuning in and becoming 90s moms with me. Truly, thank you! I will see you next week!

P.S. I released my first podcast episode and was so nervous about it but have gotten such a sweet response from this community and I’m so grateful! Feel free to listen over the weekend and let me know what you think!

xoxo

Andi

Today, I am so excited to be sharing a conversation I had with the lovely , author of What, Like It’s Hard here on Substack for the first episode of The 90s Mom podcast! 🎉

Her writing has stopped me more than once and had me restacking and sharing with everyone I know. I love how she writes about the responsibility we have as adults to cultivate curiosity in kids, but more than that to put our phones down and get on their level and look at them in the eye. Because really, what could possibly be more interesting on our phones than these tiny little humans we’ve created who are figuring out this world?

Here’s what’s included in the conversation:

🌷 Going 5 days unplugged on a family vacation

🌷 What we lose out on by being so plugged in

🌷 Practical ways to opt out and the steps you can take

🌷 Hope for the future and for change in how addicted we are to our phones

🌷 Some product recommendations to live more 90s

Some things mentioned in this podcast:

• Dopamine Kids book

• Bluetooth Phone

• Join AIM subscriber chat for 7 days

• Kodak Pix Pro

And if you want to listen on Spotify, here’s the link:

The 90s Mom Podcast

I hope you loved listening to this! Please let us know your thoughts and what you are doing to become a more present 90s mom, we would love to hear from you!

xoxo

Andi and Courtney

Hi, I’m Andi! I am a certified 90s mom living in the 2020s and here to be your guide to live more 90s which means a budget-friendly, unplugged, happy lifestyle. To me, it’s the antidote of the noisy, over-consuming culture we happen to live in. And I love it. Let’s get started on 15 small things you can do to become a 90s mom, today.

1. Keep a journal 📝

   1. My personal favorite is my Moterm leather cover, a Walmart journal inside and a Hobonichi planner. But I take this guy everywhere I go. It’s where I actually wrote down this list I think in the middle of waiting for my next pickleball game. It’s the notes app but on paper! Also so cute for grocery lists!

      

2. Get a library card

   1. It’s free, it’s easy and it’s magical because it unlocks worlds for you. I am currently on a “living wild” / “becoming self-sufficient by raising chickens streak and borrowing all kinds of books on this from the library and learning so much. It’s not just for your kiddos, but they highly benefit from going to the library too. Look up local storytimes and go to the library! It’s so 90s.

3. Join your local YMCA

   1. This is not free, it’s actually more expensive than I thought it would be BUT there is free childcare and the vibes here are sooo 1999. It’s so cute, honestly and like stepping back in time and the community (and pickleball open play hours) are sooo worth the $99/month. I go twice a week for two hours, they know my daughter by name and she watches AquaFit for 20 minutes like it’s her favorite Bluey episode. Highly recommend 10/10

4. Host Mahjong for Moms 🀙🀚🀛

   1. I grew up playing Mahjong as a Chinese-American girlie. My grandma taught me when I was 7 so I associate mahjong with the 90s, now in the 2020s it’s wildly popular and almost everyone knows about it and wants to play so host mahjong! You can get a set on FB marketplace or Etsy, learn the rules and it’s such a fun way to get moms together to socialize and eat snacks together while playing a fun game!

   

5. Do a digital detox (at least 14 days but I recommend 40)

   1. I am so passionate about this, it could be a whole series I share on Substack but for now let me just say this is the most bada** 90s mom thing you can do is just disconnect and disappear for two weeks. No one has to know lol, just ghost. It’s good for your mental health, well-being, connection to your kids, husband etc. Just trust me on this, more to come in a Substack series with statistics and all the goods but just try it out, or think about it!

6. Get an embroidery kit

   1. Over Thanksgiving this year, I decided to get a $1.99 embroidery kit from Hobby Lobby and it was so great to have something to do with my hands, it helped a lot with my anxiety. Shortly after I found my neighbor is really into it so we would stitch together at our houses and found a ATX Stitch Club hosting events and it was just such a cute, wholesome thing to do without our phones!

7. Pinterest the seasons

   1. At the start of every seasons, create a Pinterest board with inspiration for that season, include: outfits, crafts, decorations, bucket list things to do as a family! I just think there’s so much great inspiration on Pinterest so utilize that to set the vibes for the seasons.

8. Make an outdoor cart

   1. I repurposed my breastfeeding cart to be an outdoor activity cart! I have a boombox I thrifted from Goodwill, bubbles (of, course), sticker sheets, a remote-controlled car, a box of tissues, chalk and whatever else on there and I just roll it out for my trash truck parties (see next:)

      

9. Host a trash truck party 🚛🎉

   1. Start observing when your trash truck comes, if it’s at a regular hour — make it a whole thing! I set out a big blanket, some chairs and roll my outdoor cart out there and invite neighbors and friends out there and we cheer when the trash trucks come and the trash truck drivers honk their horns. It’s literally a mini parade every week and it’s the highlight of my week, not even kidding!

10. Shop at Hobby Lobby and Old Navy

    1. Every time I go to Hobby Lobby I find 90s treasures, like games that bring you all the way back and you forgot even existed. There’s also a lot of educational or DIY things you can get for $1! And Old Navy is my favoriteeeee place to shop for clothes. It’s 90s mom style on a budget, so cute.

    

11. Also shop at Goodwill, FB Marketplace and thrift stores

    1. see above!

12. Set up a “computer room”

    1. Dedicate one space to be where you use the internet, and don’t use it anywhere else. We have to re-imagine the recreation room now that internet can fit in a smartphone. We have to MAKE the boundaries, so that we use the tool instead of the tools using us. And the best thing I’ve done is decide I only use my phone for social media in one room of the house. Bring back the dial-up / landline days for free by just establishing new boundaries. You don’t need a brick for this! Just discipline.

13. Go to church

    1. Obviously, this is a personal one and I was debating putting this down but there is something so 90s about going to a church — being with community week after week and learning about the God who created us. Again, I don’t want to push my personal things on you but I guess look for spaces of community that remind of you of the 90s and be a part of that on a weekly basis!

14. Once in a while, ditch the GPS

    1. We are so reliant on navigation system that sometimes I embarass myself when I put down directions for somewhere that is 0.7 miles away. Once in a while, let’s just try to get somewhere on our own and if we get a little lost - that’s okay! We might find a coffee shop we didn’t know existed or see a restaurant we want to try now. It also just helps our navigation skills + memory keeping I suppose lol!

15. Go on walks everyday

    1. We must go outside, get Vitamin D like our ancestors did. There’s something about walking, being outside and exploring that is so so good for our soul. I’m not strict about this so you can listen to music, a podcast or whatever it doesn’t have to be a silent walk, although silent walks ARE so 90s. But just go on a walk :)

That was just a starter list, I could go on and on but these are some ways to become a 90s mom and some things that I do every week that I think make me a cool 90s mom!

Let me know what’s your favorite or what you would add!

Let’s bring back that magic of the nineties back in our day to days — I think it will be really healing.

xoxo

Andi

Back with your recipe, activity, and product recommendations of the week! I will be so honest too, I am going through it. Usually, I try to write these with as much joy and light as I can, but this month has not been easy.

I am going through some interpersonal conflict (I won’t name names, or I actually might later because I think a lot of us can relate), which as an Enneagram 2 is never fun. I am also going through health stuff, which truly does shine light and perspective on how easy it can be to take health for granted. And then the AC in my car broke, which in the middle of a Texas summer is just the worst.

I’m sharing all that not to be negative, but because I do want to share some behind the screens, to let you know that I, like so many of us, am going through things while I show up! And that is o👏🏼kay.

Moving on! For this week’s recipe, I cannot stop making this easy bone-in chicken thigh roast that is so simple but so delicious. Low effort, high yield.

90s Mom Chicken (OG recipe: Spend with Pennies)

Ingredients:

• 6 bone-in skin-on chicken thighs

• 2 tbsp oil

• 1/2 tsp paprika

• 1/2 tsp garlic powder

• 3/4 tsp salt

• 1/4 tsp black pepper

• 1/4 tsp dried thyme

Directions:

• Preheat the oven to 425 degrees

• Dab chicken dry to remove moisture

• Place in baking/casserole dish with skin side up

• Drizzle with 2 tbsp olive oil and rub seasoning into the skin

• Bake uncovered for 35-40 minutes

• Optional: turn the broil on high for 2-3 to crisp if needed (usually not necessary)

I’ve made it thrice now, and each time the skin is delightfully crispy and seasoned and the chicken meat is tender and the juice is the best part. You spoon the juice over when it’s all done and put it over rice and TRUST me. Convinced you can’t mess this up. Also little tip: always over season.

The weekly activity I am recommending, is Morning Pages, have you heard of it?

This is a creative practice taken by the book The Artist’s Way by Julie Cameron. This book is incredible and all about the creative journey, overcoming blocks, and just showing up. It is THE guide for creatives, and chances are if you subscribed to me - you are a creative person!

One of the concepts in it is to do morning pages, which is waking up early and writing 3 pages of your unfiltered, subconcious thoughts - whatever comes to mind. The goal is to empty your mind of all those little things we think about like: Do I need to do the laundry? Is that person mad at me. Here’s my new Substack business plan.

I have been doing this for the last two weeks now and it has been so helpful. And the best part is, it’s free! It just requires a little extra discipline like going to bed early to wake up early but you can do this. Also, technically you are supposed to handwrite these in a journal but I just created a Google Doc, named it Morning Pages and aim for one full page typed out right after reading the bible and it WORKS.

I think it’s partly why I’ve been able to grow so much this past week (almost 100 subscribers in two weeks is CRAZY). It is also how I’m getting through this month — writing it out and becoming more self-aware of all my thoughts in the middle of my personal storm. So if you are curious, go try it and report back. I want to see if it works for you! Even if you can just do one page next week, I think you’re going to love it.

P.S. Join us in AIM (Andi’s Instant Messenger) and keep me updated on if you do it or not / I will check in there to see if you complete them next week!

And then lastly, the product I am recommending is so cute, it is this sweet pink landline phone I found!!

Isn’t she lovely? I will say, I have no idea how this works and I have not bought it myself yet however, it has 4.2 reviews on Amazon (out of 23,640 people) so that’s good enough for me. It also is for AT & T users it looks like, which I am, but if you’re not - I suggest you look for an alternative as cute as this one! It’s under $20 and just would be so cute to use. And then let me know how it works too, please. Lol!

Alright, that is it for today but thank you again so much for reading these! Makes me whole entire week that my emails are being opened and read by you! And if you too are going through it, I’m with you. It’s going to be okay. Let’s take it one day at a time and look for small moments of joy this weekend.

Oh wait, last thing! I am planning to go live next Tuesday at 1pm CST with ! It is both of our first times going live, so come join! I’m going to be talking with her about how we are the last generation of adults to know no internet, and how we should start putting our phones away and listening more, especially to our children. Hope to see you there! (And if not, you can catch the replay <3)

xoxo

Andi 🌷

Subscribe now

I started posting more about being a 90s mom two years ago on TikTok and gained a following of 9,300 on TikTok which was so exciting (especially as an elder millennial). I had no idea about Substack until I took a much needed break from other social medias and did a 40-day digital fast in February of this year.

During those 40 days, it was kind of like I broke up with a toxic (but sometimes helpful) app that was designed to keep me addicted and kind of numbed out to my actual life. I finally had space and margin in my life and was like I’ll give Substack a shot, why not? I posted my first note!

And I immediately found other moms who could relate. I started writing more and now I am so obsessed that I am literally not going back. These are my thoughts on why I, and so many others of us millennials, are healing through Substack.

It is so much less overstimulating

After doing a 40-day digital fast, I was worried about going back. I thought I would get addicted again but when I signed back onto TikTok I’ve found that I physically cannot watch more than 5 videos at a time. I think I reset my nervous system so much that I actually feel sick with the speed and the intensity and the volume of each video.

It’s a video of a girlie sharing about her new pair of shoes but I swear she’s yelling at me that if I don’t buy it right now the world is going to end. And also, TikTok was never going to be my home base - I am in my mid 30s for goodness sakes. I did try, and I grew to almost 10K followers and still have a lovely community but “I love ya but I ain’t staying here”. It is exhausting. I need something slower and more meaningful.

It is therapeutic to read and write again

I just love to read and write, don’t you? I’ve loved it ever since I was a little kid. Well I think a lot of us did because we had no internet from 1990-2000, there was literally nothing else to do.

But with that space we filled it with books, imagination, and writing.

When we were 7 we were writing short stories, publishing newspapers for our family just because, submitting poems to our librarian. In middle school, we were part of scrapbook and yearbook club. In high school we wrote notes to each other and wrote about our crushes in our diaries. That is our world.

We were designed to read long form content but short form content was just what was offered to us by Meta. I think we’re now realizing that it does not satisfy. Now that we are offered a space where we can both consume and create long form content, I think we are all collectively taking a breath like, “finally, yes please”. This is why I think so many of us are saying Substack feels like coming home. Our inner child is thriving!

It feels human again

Here, people share from their hearts, not just for likes and views. Also, most people are sharing without AI and there’s something way more authentic and real. The lack of ads or consumerism is also so refreshing. Instead of 10 things you need to buy, it’s 10 things you need to know. My life has felt richer since being a Substack member and I’m getting my brain back too.

Substack is more of a community

In the early days of Instagram (like 2011), it was cute. We would upload without overthinking and call it a day. But now, it has gotten to a point where everything is so polished and pretty and it’s almost impossible to hop on there without feeling inadequate. It also sort of feels like a hierarchy exists where you’re either somebody or you’re not. But there is a sense of community and collaboration here that is so special, you could reach out to someone and they’ll be generous in their responses. It feels like we all want to see each other win and help each other out!

We are all trying

I was wondering why I don’t have the same level of imposter syndrome that I usually have when trying something new here, but then I realized that it’s probably because we are all trying. It is not embarrassing to be seen trying because we are all putting ourselves out there and writing again and there’s so much support!

It reminds of us OG blogging

Millennials thrive when we can decorate our online space. Like Myspace, LiveJournal, Xanga. We do it for the fun of it, not to get famous. And I think this has been so healing for us, to have a space that is ours and that we can rearrange and build little publications and communities has been so cozy.

Speaking of… I am creating a cozy corner of the internet with my new subscriber chat that I am calling AIM (short for Andi’s Instant Messenger)!! I don’t want to be dramatic but this is the best idea I’ve ever had!

When you join, I will have thoughtful weekly prompts like helping you craft your own away message again (remember those?). Or keeping you accountable on days we want to not be posting and checking (Thoughtful Thursdays). I even want us to eventually share screenshots of our weekly screen time on Sundays. Not at first, but we’ll get there because I know that number can be a jump scare.

Anyways, I’m so excited about it because this is your buddy list of millennial mom friends who are done and exhausted with Instagram and want to actively work on being more present so we can become the moms we were always meant to be. I’m offering a free 7-day trial for the rest of this month while I’m experimenting there and then it will be $7/month! The goal is for us to keep each other accountable and grow 🌷

I’m SO excited about this!

xoxo

Andi

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Hello! And welcome back to another round up of ways to bring more intention and thoughtfulness into our day to day lives so we can be more like the 90s moms we admire and want to become!

It has been such a fun Substack week! I have not only been able to get to 300 subscribers (in just 3 months, thank you SO much for being here 🎉) , I also got to virtually meet with and on the East Coast to chat about doing Substack Lives together around becoming more of a 90s mom next month - a dream come true!

Right now I am scheduling these lives for every other Tuesday at 1pm CST in August because I was thinking between nap times would be ideal.. let me know in the comments what you think of this time!

And speaking of collaborating with amazing moms on Substack, I got so inspired by ’s idea to do a Grocery Store Scavenger Hunt so I asked her if I could share that here as the 90s Mom Activity of the week and she said yes!

Her note immediately brought me all the way back to when our parents or teachers in the 90s would do things like this for us. They made a simple trip to the store or a fast food place an experience. And it really just takes a little bit of magic and intention. For Emily, it was a clipboard and a camera and a little independence to make this a core memory for them (and her)! This is what she writes about how she did it:

So I gave them a clipboard, a pencil, a scavenger hunt, a Camp Snap camera, and a little freedom.

Their job was simple: work together to find everything on the list.

My job was: To hang back. To watch them read signs, scan shelves, debate whether something counted or not. To see them take turns, negotiate, lead, and follow. To notice what caught their attention that wasn’t even on the list.

My husband and I shopped from a distance.

And somewhere between the produce section and the pasta aisle, I found myself remembering another grocery store, years ago, in Massachusetts.

Back then, their little hands reached up for apples so they could proudly hold them in front of the camera. They couldn’t read the signs yet. Now they’re reading the words themselves and navigating the store on their own…cue the waterworks!

They worked through the list together. Solving problems and helping each other along the way. A preschool teacher even stopped me next to the yogurts to tell me what a fun activity this was.

Here is her article with the Grocery Store Scavenger Hunt download she made, it is so cute. My daughter is 2 years old and can barely reach for the apples now, but in a few years we definitely will be doing this and using her sheet!

Okay, while you’re at the store doing your scavenger hunt, here are the ingredients for the recipe of the week: Cosmic Brownie Cookies (inspired by Little Debbie Cosmic Brownies) ⭐️

Ingredients (BROOKIES):

• 1 box of Ghirardelli Triple Chocolate Brownie mix (Costco has a pack of 6, just saying)

• 1/4 cup flour

• 1/4 cup vegetable oil

• 1/2 cup (semi-sweet) chocolate chips — I like the big yellow bag from Tollhouse

• 2 eggs

Toppings (easy chocolate ganache):

• 3/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

• 1/4 cup heavy cream

• rainbow chip sprinkles

Directions:

• Heat oven to 375 degrees

• Mix all of the cookie ingredients together

• Measure 2 tbsp dough on cookie sheet

• Bake for 8-10 min

• When they come out, tap firmly on stove to flatten a bit

• Cool for a few minutes

For the ganache:

• Separately, heat 1/4 cup cream and 3/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips in the microwave for 30 seconds, push the chocolate chips down and let sit for 3 minutes and then use fork to stir

• Spoon ganache on each cookie and top with rainbow chip sprinkles and that’s it!

I made these on a whim on a Saturday morning for our community group and it brought so much whimsy and joy. You really can’t go wrong with these. Can’t wait to see how yours turn out!

Which, my product recommendation for the week is to get a camera. I am not picky about what kind of camera but there is something so beautiful about having a camera that isn’t your phone. For my birthday this month, my friends got me a Kodak Pix Pro and it takes 90s kind of photos that are so cute and the flash is amazing. I also do have the Canon G7x, actually inherited it from my dad, and the Sony ZV-E10 which I do recommend both but you do not need anything fancy.

recommends Camp Snap, a digital camera without a screen, to capture memories (like the scavenger hunt) without being distracted by another screen. They are a vibe and if you use her link, you get $5 off!

And again, you do not need to go buy another thing but I always want to recommend thoughtful and cozy items that will bring back more magic in your life and I am pretty sure an old school camera will do that :)

That’s it for now but I have a super exciting announcement coming on Monday about how I want to utilize my subscriber chat and I am just giddy about it because I think you’ll get a kick out of it too.

I hope you have a wonderful weekend! See ya next week!

xoxo

Andi

Hey, I hope you had a good week! Can you believe we are mid-year of 2026? So happy to be on Substack here with you, it feels like the right time to just get started and I am so honored you have chosen to get these weekly emails!

Alright, let’s get into this week’s 90s mom recipe, activity, and product recommendations!

For my birthday last week, my neighbor friend decorated the car and took me to Goodwill Outlet, alternatively called “the bins”. My first experience with “the bins” was last month during my girls trip to Tacoma, Washington. This is the hunting and gathering of thrifting, where you literally thrift by the pound and you never know what you’re going to get! I happened to find something so 90s and so beautiful and that is…

Chicken Soup for the Kid’s Soul — do y’all remember these? They were so beautifully written. Kind of like packaged up Substack stories that touched your heart. Anyways I was so excited to see these again out in the wild so that is my product recommendation for the week <3

Also how cute that my neighbor decorated her car for this thrifting trip? We are so used to just planning our little ones’ birthdays and this was such a sweet surprise!

Tying right into the recipe of the week, I have to share with you this chicken noodle soup I made, because it is and I quote “the best chicken noodle soup I’ve ever had” — my husband. My daughter loved it too! I kind of made up the recipe and measured by heart but added estimates if you really need them. Here it is:

Andi’s Best Chicken Noodle Soup Recipe:

• In a large pot, heat olive oil over medium/high heat and sear chicken (thighs) for 4-5 minutes each side and then move to a plate

• In the browned bits, add more olive oil and (2 tbsp) butter and add (3) carrots, (1) onion, celery (optional) and (3 cloves) garlic and sauté for 5 more minutes

• Add chicken back and add chicken broth + water (2 cups of each should be good)

• Add spices (measure with heart, but lean towards more than you think): oregano, thyme, garlic powder, salt, pepper, one bay leaf

• Simmer for an hour, chicken should be easy to shred by this point

• When you’re ready, add egg noodles for the last 15 minutes — then taste and see if it needs more salt/spices and then it’s ready to serve!

Pairs well with caesar salad and crunchy, buttery toast! I think this will become my go-to postpartum meal train option, or if someone is sick and needs me to drop them off a meal. So simple and delicious!

Lastly, the 90s mom activity I am recommending is to go to the coffee shop and watercolor (by yourself or with a friend or a neighbor)!

A few weeks ago, the activity I recommended was to go on a walk and say hello to the people who live around you. I shouted "I like your outfit” to a girl my age across the street who had headphones in and she took them out and we realized we had a lot in common! This is also the neighbor I gave a ride to the airport the other day (which is also 90s mom vibes). She invited me to watercolor together and we chose a coffee and tea place right by us and it was so much fun. An hour really goes by fast when you’re doing something creative, don’t have kids to worry about, and can just let your mind rest and play for a while. I was actually so happy with what I made too, it turned out so cute and so summer ☀️

So don’t forget to include yourself in setting up a cute and creative craft this week. Also, her watercolor set was so good I have to share as another product recommendation because I’ve been on the hunt for a good set. The color is so saturated and not watery for watercolors if you know what I mean!

Kay that’s it for now, let me know in the comments if you’re planning to watercolor, cook soup, or go thrifting - I want to know :)

Ooh and last thing, as much as I talk smack on Instagram lol I was able to snag the90smom handle but it’s also a little lonely over there. If you want to follow me there I would so appreciate it! https://www.instagram.com/the90smom/

See you next week! 💫

xoxo

Andi

My heart was already in two because I just dropped off my screaming 2-year old daughter at my neighbor’s house so I could go to a 8:45am doctor appointment. This was an emergency-ish appointment because I’ve been experiencing a heavy and irregularly long cycle and I needed some answers.

So my head already felt fuzzy and frazzled as I pulled out of their driveway and made my way to where I thought the appointment was.. then I realized I was going to the wrong location, and the real location was right back where I started from, just 2 minutes from my house. I was going to be up to 10 minutes late, so I called the doctor’s office to let them know.

An AI Assistant named Lisa or something answered the phone and replied in her robotic voice: “If you are 10 minutes late, please still come in and we will try to see you. If you are past 15 minutes, we will ask you to reschedule.”

I pulled in a spot and literally ran inside, up the elevator, and down the hallway. I tried to check in at 8:54am for my 8:45am appointment and that’s where they said.. we can’t see you. I couldn’t help it but I stepped outside and I cried, like not cute crying but panic attack crying.

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Happy Monday!

I have been growing in so many ways since writing here and I wanted to share 10 things I’m learning to both encourage you and also me when I am further along in the journey and might need to be reminded of a few key things.

So here are some small and big things I’ve started doing to gain more traction the last few days. And by more traction I mean: hitting 250 subscribers (3 of which are paid, which is SUCH a blessing), getting on #27 Rising in Parenting List, my articles are getting over 20+ likes and several comments! It has been so exciting and surreal but let’s get into some lessons learned.

1. Be okay with starting small

   Not too long ago I was writing to the void, but you know what? I enjoyed it. Getting 4 or 5 likes on my post was thrilling, and getting my 5th subscriber ever was such a joy! Do not fear small beginnings, it really is a chance to get comfortable on this platform and a safe place to start sharing your thoughts. Don’t worry with views or numbers because what actually matters is the ability to…

2. Make genuine connections

   This is a special place where you aren’t just ‘talking to your followers’ but you have the chance to make real connections. Direct messages are actually my favorite part of being here and I feel like I am making virtual mom friends by the daily. Or sometimes I feel like an article was written exactly for me or what I wanted to share, just better. (In particular, words from these ladies always inspire me, just to name a few: | | ) And on that note, always be ready to…

3. Support others

   The best way to grow is to help others grow. Restacking posts and notes do not go unnoticed. I really think restacking is the nicest thing someone can do (besides of course supporting your work)! And when you support others, it just comes back around to you - I don’t know the science of it but just trust me on this!

4. Don’t overthink your notes

   I know it’s easy to want to schedule your notes out or proofread them a lot before they go out but I think notes that are done quickly and straight to the point do a lot better than anything overly edited. My most viral note is of my car basket where I just snapped a quick picture of my passenger car seat!

5. Create a (publishing) structure for yourself

   Deciding to challenge myself to write ONE article a week was such a good decision! One, it brought others into it who are also trying to do the same and we’ve kept each other accountable / cheer each other on ( and ) and it was just a good and attainable goal for myself. Once I decided to share a recipe, activity, and product each week - it helped me a lot with how I decided to focus on one consistent article.. which leads me to -

6. Consistency is E V E R Y T H I N G

   I really do think Substack rewards consistency and connection over quick growth and I love that. But being consistent does require showing up even if you don’t feel a creative spark or don’t know what to write about. I try to keep a running list in my notes app or journal of different prompts I’m passionate about and can yap about so I can pull from that!

7. Update your bio

   And ideally update your bio to what you are delivering. I think a big switch went off for me when I did this. Before it was more vague and something like: here to help you become the 90s mom you were meant to be, which is cute but then I changed it to: Hi, I’m Andi! ⭐️ Every week I share a recipe, activity, and product rec for moms who want to slow down and bring a little 90s magic back to everyday life 🌷 — which is so much more clear on what I am promising you as a subscriber. Take out the guesswork for someone who is new coming to your profile!

8. Don’t be too attached to the outcome

   This one is so very important and it reminds me of the first point, be okay with starting small and talking to the void and making the list and then getting off the list. Once we become too attached to the outcome, it’s easy for things to make or ruin our day but in order to be consistent - just be okay with things being slow sometimes or not working out how we wanted it to. Substack really is just a big creative experiment and playground if you will for us to explore. As long as you keep going (for your 2028 self, I always like to say) one step at a time — that is all that matters.

9. Celebrate small wins

   But at the same time, when you do achieve little milestones — celebrate them! Celebrate every single milestone because the small wins are what keep you going to the next one. And you deserve to be celebrated, showing up here and putting yourself out there each time is a small act of courage. I’m proud of you and you should be proud of you too!

10. It’s okay to ask for (paid) support

    This one is new for me and honestly still scary. But a helpful reframe is that you are simply being honest about what you're building and inviting people into it. And I’m learning that people do genuinely want to support you and be a part of what you are building here, which is so cool! It’s okay to ask for that (even if it’s a little scary or out of your comfort zone!)

So with that, happy writing this week! And to practice what I preach, I’d love to invite you to become a paid subscriber to the 90s Mom Club. For $7/month or $60/year you get my weekly letter with a recipe, activity, and product recommendation — plus access to our club chat with weekly challenges launching in August.

Subscribe now

Thank you so so much for being here!

xoxo

Andi 🌷

I cannot believe that 4th of July was just last weekend, it feels like forever ago with how this week has gone but I have been so excited to share with you my product recommendation: buy a piñata

Getting a piñata has been making a comeback in my circle here in Austin in the best way. I was out of town for a friend’s baby shower but they had one so at another gathering we went to, someone brought a piñata and let me just say, if you want to have a 90s moment - go get one.

They got it at our local H-E-B grocery store for $7 and it was 100% worth the laughs and silliness of getting blindfolded and trying your best shot. Please let me know if you do this, I think you and your kids will love it.

Okay for the recipe of the week, we had a lot of burgers over 4th of July weekend and what made my burgers extra special was “special sauce”. I just think this sauce is now mandatory for all future burgers because of how easy yet elevated this is. Alright here’s what you need for smash burger special sauce:

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup of mayo (I love my mayo around here LOL)

• 2 tbsp ketchup

• 2 tbsp chopped pepperoncinis

• 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce

And that’s literally iiiiiit 🎶 for the best thousand island-ish sauce for your burgers. I also made a lot of burger bowls from the leftovers, which is just: brown rice, burger, red onion, lettuce, tomato (chopped), and special sauce. It is what I am calling “hamburger helper bowls” for the fun of it - I know that’s not what it actually is but will our kids ever know that?

Alright, after all that food over the weekend my activity recommendation that I am recommending to you, my fellow 90s mom, is finding a local track and doing laps around it. I stumbled upon a lovely track by a pickleball court and I fell in love. It is part of a middle school but open to the public and there are so many people of all ages there at all times of the day just on the track improving their physical fitness and it is I N S P I R I N G! I absolutely love it.

I also love that I can just turn my brain off and walk in circles. I don’t have to worry about cars or the route I am taking, I just start and keep walking. I am trying to put my phone in the glove compartment when I walk too and just use the pedometer I got but we’ll see if I need to pop in an audiobook at some point.

Let me know if you end up taking a long walk on a track, I’d love to see that and cheer you on! You can also use this link to find a local track near you: https://runtrack.run/

Alright! 👏🏼 I am so thankful for this wonderful corner of the internet, it’s been lovely to share life with you and I am especially thankful for you paid subscribers joining this and keeping me going, you know who you are!

Speaking of which — if you've been thinking about upgrading to a paid subscription, this week is a really fun time to do it. I'm partnering with Avid Reader Press to send a free copy of Dopamine Kids by Michaeleen Doucleff (retails $30!) to the first 10 paid subscribers who join in July. It's a science-backed guide to raising kids with less screen dependence and more real life magic — basically everything we talk about here every week, in book form. I loved it and think you will too!

Subscribe now

See you next week for more and hope you have a lovely weekend!

xoxo

Andi

I had the random thought the other day of how weird it is to have been born in the year 1990. We were at the CUSP. We had literally zero internet days, we were also there for dial up internet days and then the Motorola Razr came into play and then quickly the iPhone changed e v e r y t h i n g. Now I have noticed just how much the world has changed and how much I miss things in the 90s. Here are 10 things I really really miss.

1. I miss conversations on the plane

   I just got back from a girls trip and I accidentally forgot my airpods and what an experience. On the plane ride there I noticed everyone around me was plugged in.. so I watched a TV show with sound on because I wasn’t disturbing anyone. Then on the plane ride back, same thing and something eerie I noticed was that there was NO conversation. No small talk whatsoever, everyone was plugged in. And it made me sad. Not that I love small talk, or making conversation with strangers all the time but I do remember a time when that was a thing and it is simply no longer a thing.

2. I miss going to Blockbuster

   Listen, I love Netflix (or rather I loved it when Gilmore Girls was on it). But there is something so magical about going to Blockbuster on a Friday night and browsing the aisles for one or two VHS or DVDs you could take home with you. And we even had to rewind them after we were done for the next person. I have to say that some magic has been lost when all we have to do is press buttons as we swipe through the thousands of options on our streaming platforms.

3. I miss commercials having a place and time

   Back in the 90s, advertisements were in 3 distinct places. Billboards on the highway, in the TV, and in the weekly newspaper. Now, everyone and anyone is trying to sell to you. Our phones have algorithms that listen to us and then show us what we need. Influencers are constantly telling us what we need for our next trip or next baby. It’s exhausting and I am so over being sold to 24/7!

4. I miss not knowing the answer (sometimes)

   I fear that the times of simply not knowing the answer to something no longer is an option. It is all too easy to get the answer, and I do miss being able to ponder and solve through asking questions and sourcing information, even from the library! Having the answer to literally everything at our fingertips turns out to be convenient but also kind of sad.

5. I miss hearing and telling stories

   I do think we still do tell stories BUT we have this compulsion of if I didn’t capture it on my phone, it didn’t happen. Do you know what I mean? Like if we go to a concert, our phone is out just to make sure we have visual proof vs. just telling someone about it. Or if an amazing moment happens, we have 10-15 photos for it too which I think makes us less dependent on storytelling and I miss that.

6. I miss creative voicemail greetings

   One of my favorite memories growing up was recording a personalized voicemail greeting for our landline phone. When I was 7 years old, I rehearsed and recorded and felt so responsible for making that little 10 second greeting. (Ours was to a Sound of Music song, what was yours?) I miss that! I also do just miss landline phones and sometimes not being available by text.

7. I miss neighbors dropping us to and from the airport

   Now that we have Uber we just don’t have to ask our neighbors as much for favors like driving us to the airport but I have started doing this more! Our neighbor dropped us off and even got a car wash before and it was so nice. I then asked another neighbor who mentioned she’s going on vacation if she wanted a ride and she said yes! I feel like this is a lost thing that can just make a big difference and we should do it more.

   

8. I miss making mix CDs

   No offense to Spotify but making a playlist there just isn’t the same as hunting and gathering songs on Limewire, and then creating a SPECIAL playlist for a special someone and writing with a sharpie on it and then listening to it in the car and only having those songs be your option to listen to. It shaped seasons, if you know what I mean. I even miss the sound of a CD going into the car..

9. I miss when malls were cool

   Okay yes to online shopping for convenience but having a central place to gather was also so fun. I also feel like malls in the 90s did a great job of making malls feel alive and fun and happy. Have you been to a mall lately? Not the same, it’s just not the same.

10. I miss getting mail

    Whatever happened to pen pals? Or the excitement of opening your mailbox and finding something actually addressed to YOU — not a bill or a coupon but something real and personalized? Something that someone spent time and energy putting together and putting a stamp on it to be delivered right to you.

This last one is actually one that I’m dreaming about! More to come, but if you become a paid subscriber - you will be the first to find out more of what I am talking about!

If you’re interested, I’d love to have you!

Subscribe now

P.S. And speaking of mail — if you upgrade your subscription this July, I'm partnering with Avid Reader Press to send you a free copy of Dopamine Kids by Michaeleen Doucleff (retails $30!) in the actual mail. First 10 paid subscribers get one — this book is so good and so 90s mom, and I cannot wait to send it straight to your door. 🌷

And I’d also love to hear from you, what do YOU miss about the 90s and wish we could bring back?

xoxo

Andi

I’ll start with the “activity” if I can call it that, because you may have seen me post about this a lot on notes this week and yes… it is wearing a dress to the library.

Which may seem like no big deal, but hear me out. I am a strict, Old Navy athleisure girlie since becoming a mom. I have my Monday, Wednesday, Friday fits - all in navy blue and under the price of $20. I like that system.

But I have been meeting my friend Paige at the library on Wednesdays after our trash truck parties and she is always wearing pretty dresses. And after a few weeks I decided, okay let me try this too!

And I went to the library in in a dress and let me tell you something, it was a nice experience. I just felt better, lighter, and dare I say prettier? So the next day, I tried it out again and same thing! Not only was it comfortable and easy (I didn’t have to choose an outfit, it was just ONE thing to choose) but it impacted my mood for the rest of the day.

So, maybe try this out and report back.. I think I am going to do a July Dress Challenge of wearing a dress a day until I run out or oh no, I have to go buy more dresses. Let me know if you’re going to join me in this one! I think it’ll be fun!

Next, I have been so excited to share with you my after pool spaghetti. Let me set the scene. It was Tuesday, the day I came back from my solo trip and I was craving something homey. We all went to the pool in the afternoon and I couldn’t stop thinking about making a big pot of spaghetti.

I used this recipe, which is typically for lasagna and it is one of the BEST rated recipes on AllRecipes, with over 20,000 positive reviews. Instead of doing lasagna though I made a big pot of this delicious red sauce w/ meat and boiled spaghetti and let me tell you - this has been the best spaghetti I’ve ever had. You NEED to try this.

Here’s the recipe: World’s Best Lasagna

Another thing you must report back on ASAP, and also you have to go to the pool before eating this - I don’t make the rules.

And a product to make your dining experience better and more 90s.. laminated placemats. My daughter is so into her ABC’s right now so I got her this laminated placemat with letters but you could also a geography one? Names of all the presidents one? Having a laminated placemat is not only so nostalgic and 90s but it helps you as a mom while you’re preparing food for your children to have something to look at and learn from!

You can also so easily make this for yourself OR have me make you one! I am going dreaming up of 90s mom subscription boxes and I want to test this out by sending out laminated placemats to YOU (while supplies last). Message me if you want me to send you one :)

Alrighty, thanks so much for being here AS ALWAYS. I cannot believe I have over 200 subscribers now, never ever would I have imagined. Go have a fabulous 90s mom fourth of July!

BTW bonus, here are some ideas on how to make this weekend veryyy 90s 🇺🇸💌

xoxo

Andi

5-5-5 Japanese Crockpot Curry

Ingredients:

• 5 small potatoes (Yukon gold)

• 5 carrots

• 1 onion

• 1 lb chicken

• 5 cups water

• 2 packages of S&B curry medium

• (Optional: broccoli and frozen peas)

Directions:

• Peel and cube potatoes and carrots

• Place curry blocks on the bottom

• Place chicken on top

• Then carrots and potatoes and onions

• Cook on high for 5-6 hours

• Put broccoli and peas during the last hour

• Serve over rice

This is my go-to meal train drop off. It is so easy and so delicious and hearty. You will need to hunt for some of these curry cubes though at your store and if not, Target has them. But try this and let me know, it’s such a cozy 90s mom meal and the best part is you can get at least 5-7 meals out of one sitting. Love to see it.

Which brings me to, when it comes to recipes - write them down! Writing down recipes is sooo nineties mom and it doesn’t really take that long. If you need extra motivation, might I suggest this whole set from Rifle Paper Co? It’s on sale right now for $35 which is not bad for something you might use like every single day. Like look how CUTE!

Which also yes is also the product I am recommending to you! I got the (blue) recipe binder for $34 from $40 (on sale right now) and I am definitely considering getting the red one too. The details are soo beautiful on this recipe binder and I think it could easily be much more expensive than it is. Grab it before it’s gone!

This is a shorter one today because I am actually on a solo trip by myself without my daughter and I have more thoughts on that / I’m processing!! Bear with me, LOL and also give me all the tips if you’ve done this before - it’s so hard but so good.

xoxo

Andi

Hi! I am having soo much fun on Substack now that I’ve organized my thoughts more into sharing a weekly recipe, activity and products for my fellow 90s mom who want to bring more magic in the everyday.

So thank you for being clicking subscribe and opening these emails, it makes me so happy!

For this week’s recipe and some backstory lol, I got sick when we returned from vacation and I’ve been struggling..

However, my husband’s birthday was on Wednesday and I wanted to do something special so I made a Portillo’s Chocolate Cake from the city he is from. If you’re not familiar, this is a world famous chocolate cake from a restaurant in Chicago. But if you don’t want to travel all the way to Chicago, follow this recipe and you can try it yourself (like tomorrow)!

It turned out soo good and my first thought when I saw it was Matilda and the chocolate cake scene.. anyone else? Now it is making me want to re-read Matilda..

Next, my product recommendation and activity kind of go together this week. I ate a lot on this past vacation and I was feeling super heavy.. so I told my husband: “Hey, when I return I am going to do 10K steps a day.”

And to motivate myself, I got a cute pedometer because I don’t want another reason to be glued to my phone! I did some research and this one looks like the most reviewed and the easiest to use.

While I did not achieve my goal because I got sick and had to do a lot of horizontal parenting this week, I will be back at in July!

In fact, please let me know if you also have the same goal because I’m thinking I could create a little 90s mom club to keep each other accountable in the summer to get those steps in..

Which also reminds me, the activity that I recommend to you for this week is to take a walk without your phone and/or take out your earphones and make conversation with other people when you’re walking around. I know this might not seem like the most exciting or lucrative activity that I am suggesting but I think it’s the right one for us to try out.

Monday was the only day I tried to do the 10,000 steps before I failed lol, but on that walk I was listening to a podcast when I ran into a neighbor who is a grandma living down the street. I took the AirPods out and we ended up having a 10 minutes conversation where she shared with me a list of things to do in Austin this summer with a toddler. Which yes, stay tuned - if you’re interested I can compile this list to share later!

And then I walked by another neighbor’s house whose hydrangeas I’ve admired and I took our my AirPods and told them so. Immediately, they asked if I wanted a cutting and before I knew it I walked away with a plastic bag of hydrangeas to plant in my own garden!

All this to say, try out a walk where you intentionally take out your earphones and make conversation with someone on your walk! I think we could really all use a little more connection.

That’s it for this week, I would love to dream up of a 90s Mom Club where we can go on unplugged walks, read books, and catch up virtually about it all. Let me know if that’s of interest and have an ama

zing weekend!

xoxo

Andi

So I wanted to keep my promise of writing just ONE Substack article a week, even when I’m on vacation - I am in Destin, Florida but I still wanted to check in and share with you a recipe, activity and product to try for moms who want to live that slower, joy-filled 90s life in the 2020s.

For the recipe, I need to share a summer sandwich that is so fresh and sooo easy. Also a good one for us 90s gardening moms with lots of basil in our gardens. I think this one is slowly becoming viral but let me just share it here in case you haven’t heard it before. It’s a take on Stanely Tucci’s favorite sandwich using only 5 ingredients.

5-ish Ingredients:

• some slices of bread (think ciabatta or a sourdough, something crustyy)

• fresh mozzerella or burrata

• pesto (and some mayo) + balsamic glaze (the ones from trader joes!)

• slices of tomato

• prosciutto

• optional: basil leaves (bonus if they are from your garden)

Directions:

• make a sandwich from the ingredients

Along with Substack, this is my summer addiction. It’s even better when you bring it outside to eat it! And also, even better when you wear overalls while eating it which brings me to my product recommendation: the cutest 90s mom overalls on Amazon!

DENIM SHORTS OVERALLS

The brand is ANRABESS (to be honest, a lot of this brand is very cutie) and I get a lot of compliments on this one. It’s on sale, I believe, for just $38.99 and very worth it - considering I’ll probably be wearing this weekly during the summertime. Going blackberry picking? Overalls. Going to the beach in your swimsuit? Overalls. Going to the movies at 9pm on a Thursday night while your parents have the baby monitor? Overalls.

And yes, that last one is the activity I am recommending! Yesterday, we were playing a game of pool when my sister-in-law asked if we wanted to watch a movie. I thought at first she meant at home but no she meant going to the movie THEATER for a showtime at 9:20pm.

And initially I wanted to say no, we can just go to bed early and watch our usual show and that will be that.

But the movie, Disclosure Day, sounded enticing and also how often do we get to sneak away to the movies when we’re back at home vs. in an airbnb with 3 sets of grandparents and our babies were already asleep… so I said yes let’s do it!

Without knowing very much about the movie, except that Steven Spielberg directed it and there may be aliens involved, we went into it blind and oh my goodness, it was SO GOOD. It kept you on the edge of the seat for the whole entire time and was such a fun ride with some of the best acting I’ve seen in a long time (Emily Blunt was incredible).

So, my activity recommendation is that you go to an AMC MOVIE THEATER (instead of streaming something in bed although yes that’s so tempting) and also that you watch a movie without doing much research about it! There’s something soo nineties about not looking up rotten tomatoes or IMDB or even the trailer and just watching a movie with that buttery popcorn you can only get out and experience the movie.

Also, I was reminded that there was once a time where if you wanted to see what movie times were at your local theater or what people thought of a movie you had to get a newspaper clipping and cut it out (or at least that’s what we did). And I think there’s something so cute and nostalgic about that - you know?

Okay, have an amazing weekend!! Let me know what movie you’re going to watch in the comments lol, I want to go back to the theater like ASAP haha.

xoxo

Andi

Hi y’all! I am challenging myself to writing consistently every Friday and sharing with you my favorite 90s mom finds.. and I posted a note about this and the feedback I got was so kind! I love that a lot of us are in the same boat of wanting to be creative and write more about our motherhood journey and cheering each other on. It’s just the best. But anyways, let’s get into my favorite finds of the week!

Let me start with the activity, because it is what kick-started this wonderful week.

We went blackberry picking at a U-Pick Farm 40 minutes away! It was the cutest thing, I put my daughter in overalls and I grabbed the basket I thrifted and showed you guys last week and we went into the fields to pick juicy and fresh blackberries!

I highly recommend looking into U-Pick blackberry farms near you. Such a cute mom activity, we went with 3 other moms and their kids too and they also had a train to ride and a playground.

Next, the recipe that was inspired by the blackberry picking and also a happy accident..

So I made a coffee cake for our trash truck drivers (every wednesday, we throw a mini trash truck party for our drivers and neighbors see this post about it for more haha)

And it was the driest coffee cake ever. I forgot to add one whole cup of oil and also the salt. And I served it to them only to realize my mistake after. But anyways, the next day was the summer mom’s bible study that I was hosting and I had a 75% of a dry, dry coffee cake and didn’t know what to do. So naturally, I asked Chat GPT and Substack: hey, what do I do if I forgot the oil in my already baked coffee cake? And GPT responded with: make a trifle! It then gave me the ingredients and directions and I got to work.

YOU GUYS, WHAT I MADE WAS INCREDIBLE!! Here was the process, I’m doing it like Chat GPT instructed me haha:

1. Cubed the coffee cake in little 1 inch cubes

2. Put that into a casserole dish

3. Made vanilla pudding (I had a box of instant pudding in my pantry) in my stand mixer

4. Crushed the blackberries (that we picked, so cutie) with some sugar and syrup and let them sit for 10 minutes so that they would get even juicier

5. Added a layer of vanilla pudding on top, added the blackberries on top, did another layer of cubed coffee cake

6. Borrowed heavy cream from my neighbor and turned it into whipping cream and added that on top

And everyone LOVED it, it was truly a hit and felt so intentional and I was so proud of taking something that was a fail and turning it into something delicious and I would happily make this trifle again.

Also, I had no idea what a trifle was but the other day I was re-reading Harry Potter (I am on Chamber of Secrets) and they mentioned eating a trifle.. so I was sold.

Anyways, try a trifle - you can’t mess it up. And even if you do, no worries lol!

Okay lastly, product of the week is a WALL PHONE (holder) .. my friend came up with this idea and I am obsessed. We are bringing back the landline vibes with this, my friend. This wall phone holder on Amazon is basically just a place to put your phone away on the wall, like the good old days when our phones were connected to the wall and not with us everywhere we go in our pockets.

I am especially excited about this (and I got two) so that both me and my husband will be on the same page about putting our phones up and away.. and I think doing this now will help our children understand the family culture and see that we are all limiting time on our screens.

So here is the link for this, go get yourself a cute wall phone holder ! It is only $10 - so worth it!

Thanks sooo much for tuning into my articles, I am having so much fun writing them and being a part of this cute momstack community. What is one thing bringing you joy this week? Or something you’re proud of? Would love to hear!!

xoxo

Andi

I started my journal entry in a negative way:

I wrote: “another week of not working towards my dreams”

EW! But before I get too hard on being hard on myself, I think this is a very natural human thing for us to do.

We just walk around feeling like we are not doing enough, or that we didn’t achieve what we wanted to, so on and so forth.

But stick with me, I kept writing in my journal and the next sentence was:

wait, what if I am using the wrong measuring stick though? because when I do look back at my week - so much was accomplished that was really actually beautiful (slow, but beautiful).

On Memorial Day Monday, we went to a pool party and had delicious wagyu burgers grilled by our church friends. We had watermelon, splashed in the pool and it was honestly so nice.

On Tuesday, I packed my daughter up for a spontaneous trip to farm country an hour away. I picked up native plants, we got chorizo tacos and she got to see goats and I also thrifted her a pair of $15 adorable cowboy boots. Talk about a win!

Over the week, I met with friends, neighbors, and continued to build out our backyard to make it more entertaining friendly.

None of these things were very “hustle” of me, and the big dreams I had in my twenties honestly do feel a little tucked away at this time.

But what if my measuring stick needs to adapt and evolve with me, instead of staying stuck in that 2018 “girl-boss” energy that is taking away from my present as a mom who just wants to be present.

But to be honest, I do think that “achieve your dreams” mentality has run deep, and has taken away from me being okay with “being a present mom”. And I think it requires some hard work and resistance. Here are some practical things I am doing:

1. Daily gratitude habits

   I already shared about this in my last article but doing things screenshotting your screenshots, or one second a year helps you visually see - what is in front of you (not what “dreams you left behind etc.”

2. 5-4-3-2-1 grounding

   If you find yourself getting swept up in the spiral of feeling like you’re behind, practice the 5-4-3-2-1 to actually SEE the moment you are in. If you’re unfamiliar:

   1. Say out loud 5 things you can see now, and look at them, focusing briefly on each one
   2. Say out loud 4 things you can touch now, and touch them, focusing briefly on each one
   3. Say out loud 3 things you can hear. Your breath can count for this too. You can close eyes if desired
   4. Say out loud 2 things you can smell now. If there aren’t two, you can imagine smelling something good
   5. Say out loud 1 thing you can taste now. Taste what’s in your mouth, and if there isn’t a real taste, imagine tasting something delicious. (source: mychyp)

3. Writing

   Writing on Substack or again in my personal journal has been so therapeutic for me! I think that was how I realized this concept, just by writing it out. I am also trying to pick up my Five Minute Journal (did you know they have one just for moms?) again to recognize the good in the right here and right now.

But yes, this is all to say - maybe it’s time to re-examine the measuring stick you’re using. It’s okay to outgrow dreams.

Dreams, like us, do change.

At one point, I didn’t know if I wanted to have kids - now I dream of having three!

Two months ago, I’ve never planted anything in my life. Today, I have a pollinator garden and an obsession with gardening.

I might not be working towards my ‘female-owned empire” but I am building meaningful and wonderful connections with my neighbors, baking strawberry cakes and looking my daughter in the eyes.

I don’t know about you but I might be trading in my measuring stick or putting it away in the drawer for a while.

With love,

Andi