Moms work HARD. And I think sometimes we deserve a little something in return (other than love from our children, of course!) :) I have rounded up some of the best free trials and free subscriptions I can find and listed them below. I will update this list as often as possible with great deals, so be sure to check back every so often! Free Online Photography Classes If you have a nice camera and dont' know how to use it, then this is the class for you. Equivalent classes in my area cost between $45-75 per session, so FREE sounds just about perfect to me. :) The class is offered by Keep Reading
Things a Mother Never Forgets…
Today I felt compelled to write about something special. It's a little bit of encouragement for all the tired, weary moms out there in the trenches who need a little boost on a tough day. This is called Things a Mother Never Forgets. Save these pictures, share them on your Facebook wall, use them however you'd like to jog your memory about what motherhood is really all about - our precious little ones. Thinking of all the reasons I love these little ones is about the ONLY way I get through my toughest mom days. I hope this encourages other moms as well. A Mother Never Forgets....Her Keep Reading
How to Teach Your Preschooler Letters & Sounds the Easy Way
My husband and I have a running inside joke. We always joke that we're making our kids better people by employing lazy parenting. :) We aren't truly lazy, we just called ourselves lazy any time we choose to take the easy route out of a parenting situation instead of struggling to work against our kids. We much prefer to work WITH them than struggle against them. This post contains the story of how I struggled and struggled to make my preschoolers sit down and learn their letters before Kindergarten and how it became a complete breeze once I found the most perfect video about learning Keep Reading
Protecting Our Children: School Bus Safety
Today as I was driving home from preschool pickup, I sat at a red light waiting to turn left while a lady driving an SUV passed me going in the opposite direction. She had just gone through a 4-way red light intersection and guess what? As she passed by me, she was looking down at the cell phone she held in her left hand as she drove with her right. I don't know this lady at all, but she was middle-aged, overweight, and certainly didn't look like she had cat-like reflexes. My guess is if I threw a ball at her WHILE she was looking, she probably couldn't catch it. So who the heck does she Keep Reading
7 Children’s Books About Vegetables & Good Eating Habits
If you have been reading the blog lately, you know that I am knee deep in a vegetable war in our home. I have had an overwhelming response to my first post about getting my kids to eat their vegetables. Many readers have asked me if I can recommend any books about healthy eating habits or eating veggies in particular other than the one I recommended in that post (Good Enough to Eat by Lizzy Rockwell). As a matter of fact, I do! We do a lot of healthy eating reading around here! Here are a few more recommendations as well as some awesome reader suggestions. Hopefully you'll be able Keep Reading
#1 Trick for Getting Kids to Eat & Enjoy Vegetables
Find out the best way to get kids to eat veggies! As a continuation of my post How to Get Your Kids to Eat Their Veggies, I'd like to share my #1 tip that has helped me get my kids to try (and LIKE!) many new vegetables. After many years of trial and error, I found one foolproof way to get my kids to try and eventually like new vegetables. It's so simple, yet it really works! Here it is: >> CREATE A FAMILY SLOGAN REGARDING VEGGIES << In addition to telling kids we aren’t allowed to say a food is yucky, I told them that, in our family, we follow the general Keep Reading
How to Get Your Kids to Eat Vegetables – Tips & Tricks That Work!
I have something earth shattering to share with you today. Ready for it? MY KIDS DON'T LIKE TO EAT VEGETABLES What?! Your kids don't either?! I'm glad we found each other. :) Joking aside, I feel like I'm fighting a constant nutrition battle around here. With all the non-nutritious treats and "food" my kids have access to at school and are exposed to by the media, I feel like I spend an unreasonable amount of time making sure they have good eating habits. Ever since my oldest was born 7 years ago (my other kids are 4 and 2), I feel like I've developed quite an arsenal of tricks to Keep Reading
How to Shop Responsibly & Save Money at the Same Time
By night, you can usually find me blogging. It’s the only time where I can fully focus on blogging tasks. But by day, you can find me doing many other things that matter to me. Mostly it is taking care of my 3 little ones, but about 10-15 hours per week you can also find me serving as president of a local non-profit that sends food home with underprivileged children. I honestly don’t have a lot of free time for anything other than taking care of my children and running our household, but blogging is an outlet for me and I LOVE giving back. Helping others figure out how to do the same, Keep Reading
3 Things You Can Do to Make Your Kids Feel Loved
This is the first post in my 3 things series, a series of posts full of heartfelt encouragement for moms and dads. My kids always surprise me by the things they include in their love notes to me. They always know when to give me a special note...and it usually stops me in my tracks and makes me re-evaluate the way I rush around focused on "mom tasks" like planning activities. 3 Ways to Show Your Kids You Love Them They notice the little things. I’m sure your kids are just like mine...here are three things my 7-year-old said she loves most about me in a love note this week: I love Keep Reading
Why I’m Getting Rid of Almost ALL My Kids’ Toys Before Christmas
The toy situation in our home is getting out of control. Four months ago, I started slowly getting rid of my kids' toys. By Christmas, they will all be gone. And my kids are cool with it. Let me explain A few years ago, they played in the playroom all the time. Back then I only had a toddler and a baby. I had to keep them contained in a small play area because I needed to keep an eye on the baby (to make sure she didn't put any small items in her mouth), and I needed my toddler to stay nearby so she didn't do anything dangerous out of my eyesight. We spent a lot of time Keep Reading
{{FREE}} Family Photography Classes with Craftsy!
Today I stumbled across something I couldn't wait to share. It's something every mom I know will be super excited about. Free Online Photography Class It's a free course on taking professional quality photographs! It's through a website called Craftsy. Apparently, I've been living under a rock for years and didn't realize Craftsy was a thing. Now I'm ALL ABOUT IT. I just signed up and I'm planning on taking the free photography course either over Thanksgiving break or Christmas when my husband is off work and I have a few free consecutive hours on my hands. I seriously was just about Keep Reading
3 Things Every Mom Misses After She Has Two or More Kids
Let's face it. Becoming a mom means you have to give up a little bit of freedom. I wouldn't trade my little boogers for the world, but sometimes I wish these pieces of the old me back. Three silly little things I miss now that I have three kids: 1) Going to the mall....just to shop....for the sake of shopping. Is it too much to ask to be able to go to the mall for a leisurely afternoon of shopping and fun? Maybe I'd meet up with best friend, and we could have a leisurely lunch. Maybe we'd buy too many candles at Bath & Body Works, try on too many shoes at Belk, and waste time in Keep Reading
Dear Mom of a Preschooler, a Toddler, and a Baby
Lately I've been reading a lot of blog posts that have been written in a Dear John kind of style. They're usually part of a blogging challenge where the blogger is challenging herself to write a note to another mom or her former self, giving advice or encouragement. One, in particular, written by The Humbled Homemaker entitled "Dear Mom of a Toddler and a Baby" struck a chord with me. I felt like I could have written that post, and I feel compelled to add my spin to the same story, although from a little different perspective. I have three kids all born within the span of 4.5 years. My Keep Reading
Outfit Ideas for a Fall Family Photo Shoot
My family of 5 is about to have our first family photo shoot in nearly 2 years next month, and I'm a little unsure what we will actually wear. I used to think it was silly to see families with coordinating outfits in a portrait. But now that I have three kids, I see the beauty of it. There's something nice about having a nice family portrait to hang on the wall where everyone looks put together. Totally opposite from everyday life! LOL Fall Family Photo Shoot Ideas I'm not trying to break the bank with this photo shoot, so I'd like to use some clothing we already have and perhaps buy a Keep Reading
How Do You Cope When Your Husband Travels a Lot?
I usually tend to write fun and informative posts on my blog, you know, like sharing crafty printables or writing about household budgeting goal of mine. But today, I want to talk about adventures with a traveling spouse. My husband has been traveling a lot and I barely have time to take care of myself and three kids with school, preschool, homework, swim lessons, Bible study, church, fitness, etc that I don't have time for the "extras" in life like blogging. I'm one of those people who always has a daily planner within arm's reach. I like to plan out my weeks in advance. Sometimes I Keep Reading
