Lindsey Laurain started her company ezpz after fastening a bowl to a plate with tape, in an effort to manage some of the madness of mealtime with three little boys. That simple idea blossomed into a successful business that even made a run for it on the television show, Shark Tank. ezpz struck a chord with parents fed up with messy mealtime. The company now offers bowls and mats—in two sizes and fun colors and designs—that promote self-feeding and developing fine motor skills. Every ezpz product is made of silicon, making it microwave, dishwasher, and oven safe. Laurain told us about taking her Me Time while running her business and raising her family and what she has learned about motherhood along the way.

Lindsey’s Me Time:

As a mom of three, I’ve always put a priority on taking care of myself as an individual separate from my family. Recently, I’ve been trying to meditate and do small little breaks throughout the day, even if it’s meditating for five minutes, or, taking a few minutes to go outside and do some deep breathing and be in nature for a minute.

I’ll sometimes get a hotel room close by and work there so I can be way more productive. Then if I finish enough work I can have a glass of wine at the end of the night. For example, I was recently in downtown Denver to meet with our lawyers, and instead of driving home and putting the kids to bed, I just stayed downtown so I could have a little me time where I was working but didn’t have to tackle bedtime. Just being away for the evening and not being in the morning chaos makes me so much more productive. I work from home a lot and can get a lot done at home, but when I see that laundry needs to be done or there are dishes in the sink, it just crushes my productivity.

Why is Me Time important to you?

Me Time creates an opportunity for me to take time for myself and make sure I’m healthy. If that isn’t happening, then I don’t think I can be fully productive in all of the other areas of my life. It’s a way to recharge, get away, and I think it’s critical that more people do it. I even tell my husband, and I’m very honest, if I don’t love me, then I can’t love you.

What is the best parenting advice you’ve ever received?

To teach our children empathy, compassion, and love. It actually came from Ram Das, spiritual teacher and author of the seminal book, Be Here Now. That’s his philosophy, and as I’ve gone through a spiritual journey, I’ve realized the importance of taking time for myself and not only the impact I have on others, but what is important in this world. I think Ram Das would say there’s not enough love and empathy and if our children don’t know that, we’re going to have a rough awakening as generations come up.

What are your mom must-haves?

An ezpz mat, just joking! I would say for me, this is such a cliché answer, but my must haves are really good coffee and music.

How do you find balance between owning a successful, growing company and being a wife and mom of three?

There are a lot of really good parts about running ezpz; we’re making a difference in people’s lives and there’s a lot of positivity, but there’s also a lot of negativity in terms of litigation and dealing with counterfeits and copies. I try to take what’s happening with ezpz and teach our children life lessons from it. Running a startup is all consuming and you bring work home, but our kids have gotten to see that you can do anything you put your mind to. They were babies when we taped a bowl to a piece of paper and started ezpz, and now they’re six and eight. I parent in a very honest way, so I try to tell our kids what we’re going through. Although my life as an entrepreneur is all encompassing, I hope it’s teaching our children life lessons that I couldn’t have taught not seeing the good, the bad, and the ugly of running a business.