Purposefully Living

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  • POOL PARTY PHOTO
    DIY,  Preschool

    Pool Party Themed 1st Birthday

    June 25, 2026 /No Comments

    My new baby is fond of water. Yes, he's surprisingly, compared to my other two kids, a water fanatic. He loves everything water, including bath time, the pool, and, surprisingly, also the beach. He even eats the sand. So it was so easy to plan a Pool Party-themed 1st birthday party for my 1-year-old.

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    Donae

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  • 40th birthday party
    DIY

    Chic 40th Birthday Party Ideas

    October 20, 2023 /No Comments

    My 40th birthday party was finally here! When I was asked what I wanted to do to celebrate such an important milestone, I wondered whether I wanted to have a party or go on a cruise. I opted to plan a small-budget party and have a cruise later on since I decided not to splurge much on this party. That, however, didn’t stop me from putting my thinking cap on and throwing my ideas together to come up with a low-budget chic 40th birthday party that I would love. Now I also had the option to have it done at a venue or planned by my event planner aunt, but…

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    Donae

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    How To Plan a 40th Birthday Party

    July 3, 2022 /No Comments

    I am at it again! This time it’s not for a kids’ birthday party but rather for an adult birthday party. I get to once again put my creative thinking cap on and plan another momentous occasion in my family. This time it’s hubby’s turn. Hubby just turned 40! Can you believe it? It was not so long ago that I planned a 30th birthday party and now I am back at it again for the 40th. I wanted to plan a surprise birthday party for him at home with some of his closest friends and family. I wanted to incorporate a theme that was unique to him from his…

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    Donae

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    January 14, 2022
  • How to self-promote your book
    DIY

    How To Self-Promote Your New Book

    January 21, 2022 /No Comments

    I just self-published my first book. Do you know what I did? I just thought that you sit back, relax and let the book sales start coming in. Boy was I wrong! It took me a while to understand that there is more to just self-publishing a book. You also have to market the book to the correct individuals, in order to get your books in the right hands. That takes some time to do. However, it’s needed in order to see your book progress and reach its potential audience. Here are a few tips that you can use to self-promote your new book and get your book to the…

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    Donae

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    October 28, 2021
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    How To Self-Publish A Book

    January 14, 2022 /No Comments

    I just self-published my first book! I am not a “guru” as yet, since this is my first book. However, I had to write this blog post to encourage you as moms, wives, daughters, and sisters, to not hide your need to write your story or something that you want to share with the world. Writing I agree may look intimidating at first, but to be honest with you, it’s the fear that keeps most of us hidden behind our gifts and talents. I am here to encourage you to write and truly express yourself; if that is your talent. Have you always wanted to write your own book? Let…

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    Donae

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    January 1, 2022
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    DIY

    How To Make Your Own Custom Family T-shirts

    January 1, 2022 /No Comments

    Here’s another DIY project I did to make my own custom family t-shirts that I was able to get done without spending a lot of money. My family is heading to Disney World! We are so excited as it’s the kid’s first time going to Disney. I fondly remember my first time at Disney when I was about their age. It was so much fun seeing and experiencing everything. Now they get to have fun as well, just like I did. So of course, I envisioned us all wearing Mickey Mouse T-shirts with our names on them. I first went to see where I could get them done for a…

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    Donae

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    Mario-Themed Birthday Party On A Budget

    October 28, 2021
  • mario-themed-birthday-party-on-a-budget
    DIY

    Mario-Themed Birthday Party On A Budget

    October 28, 2021 /No Comments

    Wow, another 5 years have passed and my youngest son is at it again with his desired birthday party theme. I always like to give them an option when it comes to choosing the theme for their birthday party to make it unique and also special to them. This year was no different and my youngest son requested a ‘good old time’ favorite of mine Mario. Who would have thought that my kids would also love Mario as much as I did growing up? It was as much fun for me planning it as it was for them. So I took on the challenge, scoped around Pinterest for ideas, and…

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    Donae

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    DIY

    How To Make Sensory Bins For Kids

    July 23, 2021 /No Comments

    Have you ever heard of sensory bins? If you haven’t, then let me introduce you to a super, cool, and amazing activity that you can do with your kids which is not only for fun but also for engagement and developmental play. Sensory bins are created with stimulatory objects that may include items such as sand, dirt, water beads, etc. Sensory bins are very good for: It is definitely a winner for screen-free access! To read more about this, visit my blog post on: Have you also found any ideas for sensory bins that you could share? Please feel free to add to my list, or ask your questions or…

    Read More
    Donae

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    How To Make A LEGO Table From IKEA LACK Center Table

    January 21, 2021
    Plan a kids birthday

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    July 16, 2021
  • Plan a kids birthday
    DIY

    How To Plan A Kids’ Birthday Party On A Budget

    July 16, 2021 /No Comments

    If you are like me, I am always planning a birthday party for my sons as the years go by. I like to create memories but let’s confess it. Birthday parties can get pretty expensive really quickly if you are not careful, especially when planning a kids’ birthday party on a budget. Both my kids had a 1st birthday party at an event space. My eldest had his birthday at The Florida Aquarium, while my youngest had his birthday at the Glazer Children’s Museum. They were hefty-priced birthday parties that I splurged on for their first birthday, but don’t think I want to repeat that every single year. So, here…

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    Donae

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    January 21, 2021
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    DIY

    How To Make A LEGO Table From IKEA LACK Center Table

    January 21, 2021 /No Comments

    As promised, I wanted to give you the instructions on how to make the LEGO table I did for my kid’s toy room makeover (Decluttering and Organizing a Toy Room or Space) and the items that I used to create it. My kids 4 and 5 are already LEGO fans. They love creating and building with LEGOS. I love that it helps them with creativity and as such, I really try to expand their interest in this toy. My eldest son already wants to be an engineer, which is quite surprising because he already knows what he wants to do. He is always trying to figure out how things work,…

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    Donae

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AUTHOR & BLOGGER

I am Donae! A wife and mom of three kids, ALL boys! I would love to share with you my experience with living purposefully. Let my life Inspire, Encourage and Motivate you on your journey of living a purposeful life.

How do you know whether or not you’re actually exp How do you know whether or not you’re actually experiencing self-betrayal?

You’ll know you’re experiencing self-betrayal when you have either knowingly or unknowingly stopped listening to yourself when it comes to your core values and belief system.

Deep down, you know the things that are, in fact, a no for you and the things you’re not willing to compromise on, regardless of the situation.

Then something happens, and without even realizing it, you allow compromise to creep in and take away the very beliefs you once held about certain areas of your life.

For example, let’s say you strongly believe in always speaking the truth, regardless of how others may feel.

You find yourself in a situation where someone says something that needs to be corrected, such as your boss.

However, because of your fear of authority, you choose not to speak up, even though deep down, you know that something is wrong.

If you then decide to withhold the truth, knowing that doing so goes against your core value and belief in always speaking the truth, you have just fallen into self-betrayal.

I share many more examples in my blog post:

WHEN YOU’RE IN SELF-BETRAYAL

Click the blog link in my bio. 👆🏾

#Self-care #self-betrayal #knowingyourself #peoplepleasing #selfconfidence
Fear doesn’t have to get the best of you unless yo Fear doesn’t have to get the best of you unless you allow it to take rule and reign in your life.

Fear will always be present in this world because of how broken it is.

However, even though it’s here, it doesn’t mean you have to walk the same path as the world.

Going against that path of fear is how the greats achieve greatness.

They are just as aware of fear as anyone else, and they are not immune to it.

The difference is that they don’t entertain it. They have mastered the ability to overcome it, no matter what obstacles they face.

If you’re currently crippled by fear, then this next blog post is for you:

FIGHTING BACK THE FEARS YOU FACE

Click the blog link in my bio. 👆🏾

#fear #overcomingfear #faith #faithoverfear #overcomer
Life can get complicated when you’re always trying Life can get complicated when you’re always trying to rush through it. Life was never meant to be rushed through in an attempt to get the most out of it. Rather, it was created for you to slow down and enjoy all that it has to offer.

If you ever find yourself speeding through life without taking the time to rest, it may mean that you’re plugged into the world’s system of living rather than living at your own pace.

The world’s system tries to make us conform to a life of constant busyness. If you don’t get off that wheel, you’ll never truly experience a balanced life.

Read my blog post for more insights on slowing down, titled:

KNOWING WHEN TO SLOW DOWN

Click the blog link in my bio. 👆🏾

#slowdown #selfcare #enjoylife #balancedlife #fullyliving
If this is an area of struggle for you, I hope thi If this is an area of struggle for you, I hope this blog post will help shift your perspective on the challenges you may have been experiencing when it comes to creating healthy boundaries.

For most of us, we tend to want others to respect our space and change their behavior to accommodate the struggles we experience in our relationships with them.

But what if that isn’t always the case? What if it’s not within our power to change another person, but we can change how we relate to them instead?

At the end of the day, you can only be responsible for yourself and what you choose to allow in your life.

In this blog post, I’ll share practical tools to help you establish healthy boundaries and create an environment that supports your peace and well-being.

Read my blog post:

HOW TO CREATE HEALTHY BOUNDARIES

This information will help shift your perspective on what it means to establish and maintain healthy boundaries.

Click the blog link in my bio. 👆🏾

#healthyboundaries #guardyourheart #selfcare #peace
Many of us have been praying for breakthroughs in Many of us have been praying for breakthroughs in different areas of our lives, whether financially, relationally, spiritually, or in so many other areas.

We want the breakthrough, but instead of seeing it from a different perspective, we often do more spiritual things in an attempt to move God in our direction.

But what if I told you that breakthrough can also come through rest?

I can hear the sigh! Many of us really don’t know how to rest. We have learned the art of overproducing, overachieving, and overfunctioning in so many areas of our lives.

But what if we removed all those high-achieving goals and simply practiced the art of rest? Perhaps the breakthroughs would become far more visible than they would be otherwise.

How do I know? Read my blog post:

LEARNING TO BE AT REST

For more insightful revelations on the power of rest and why it is necessary in a world that idolizes over-functioning, click the blog link in my bio. 👆🏾

#rest #restisselfcare #purposedrivenlife #selfcare #restisdivine
Faith is a continuous walk of trusting God, even w Faith is a continuous walk of trusting God, even when the mountains are high and the valleys are low.

For some of us, however, we don’t want to admit that we are struggling in some areas more than others.

Yes, we might trust God to protect our lives from danger, but we still want to maintain control over other areas of our lives.

However, faith works when we are fully submitted and surrendered to His will and His way for our lives.

What does that look like?

We cling to God like helpless children on a journey that we know will be challenging, and we don’t let go.

That’s what living fully in faith looks like.

If you’re struggling to believe God in your faith walk with Him, then read my next blog post:

WHEN LIFE CHALLENGES YOUR FAITH

Click the blog link in my bio. 👆🏾

#faith #faithwalk #trustinggod #faithoverfear #walkingbyfaith
You’ll never be at peace with a life that was deci You’ll never be at peace with a life that was decided for you. You were made to be exactly who you were created to be.

If you are struggling with the life you’ve built, then I can promise you that you aren’t living the life you were created for.

Sometimes, unknowingly, we allow society, family, or friends to decide for us what life is best.

Most times, however, they are projecting their own fears and insecurities onto you.

You love the arts, but they told you a job as a nurse is far more stable. So, you gave up on your own goals and dreams to pursue that stability.

How do you feel now?

You feel like you’re living a false life.

It’s because you were made to be exactly who you were created to be. And when you move away from your identity, you will always feel like you’re struggling and coming up short.

If that’s you, then read my next blog post:

LIVING LIFE IN FREEDOM

Just this awareness can change your life forever.

Click the blog link in my bio. 👆🏾

#freedom #livingfree #becoming #beingmyself #beingtruetomyself
We like to say the term, “I’m broken hearted” espe We like to say the term, “I’m broken hearted” especially when we’ve survived something tragic, hurtful or painful. But did you know that it’s not only figuratively and that your heart does take on a spiritual nature as well?

Our heart is actually the conduit for our emotions. Whatever we expose ourselves to can and does affect our heart. 

This is why it is so important to protect this part of who you are and to be very guarded on what you do allow whether for good or bad. 

I wrote a blog post on this topic called: 

BEING INTENTIONAL ABOUT GUARDING YOUR HEART 

This is a crucial step in living a more lighter, freer and balanced life. 

Click on the blog link in my bio. 👆🏾

#guardyourheart #selfcare #hearthealth #healing #selfcaretips
Life is a journey of ups and downs, winding roads Life is a journey of ups and downs, winding roads and sometimes turbulent storms. Some of it we can’t prevent but for others it’s up to our choosing what we allow to stay connected to us. 

We are aware of certain decisions that we do have to make. However, for some reason we may be in denial about them. 

That job or relationship you know isn’t serving you anymore but you still choose to be there. 

If at some point you also realize that you’re still stuck on your journey ahead, it might be an indication that you have to unload somethings that just can’t go with you anymore. 

What is that for you? 

Read my next blog post: 

LEARNING TO LET GO OF WHAT DOESN’T SERVE YOU 

Sometimes the best thing that you can do for yourself is to remove the things that no longer serve you, so that you can run unhindered in the life that’s designed for you. 

Click on the blog link in my bio. 👆🏾

#lettinggo #letgo #lovingwhoyouare #selfcare #movingforward
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