Being Grateful for Everyday Things

Life gets busy. Crazy busy. There's always something to clean, fix, make or do. Day after day. Week after week. It never seems like there's enough hours in a day to get it all done, let alone enough time to just sit and be. In all the rush of life, it's easy to forget to take a moment to be grateful for the simple, everyday things. I'm not talking the big things, like being grateful for family and friends or what you'd say as you go around the table at Thanksgiving. I'm talking about the small things that are so easily taken for granted. The little things that can be easily overlooked when they really need to get the recognition they deserve.

I've realized this and am working at taking the time to think about the positive things in the day, even on the worst day when the kids are screaming, milk is spilled all over, paint is dumped, the house is a mess and the to-do list is crammed full, can actually make the day better. No matter how bad it's going. It's kind of like a personal meditation, a chance to realize that even at the worst moment, there are wonderful things going on to make it all worth it. Just thinking about a few good parts in the day helps me to reset, fix my attitude and get back in the fray. I'll admit, it doesn't always work, but on the whole, it's helping me to think more positively. It's also helping to get rid of some of the stress I have to deal with all the time. Being a mom isn't easy, so there's plenty of that going around. Anything I can do to get rid of even a tiny bit of it is worth it, especially when it's this simple to do.

Nothing I've been grateful for lately is anything outstanding by itself. 

When I look back at a few days though, I see all the good things in my life. The  good starts to overshadow the bad so that I start seeing more good, without even trying. I'm finding myself not even having to purposely stop and think about it. The good things pop into my head now on their own. When life is particularly hard (like when M2 painted the counter, wall, two chairs and bathroom the other week, making a giant mess I had to clean up while B screamed because he wanted attention right then) I have to work harder at it.

I'm not perfect, I'll never be. I'm never going to be a cheery Mrs. Mary Sunshine type, seeing rainbows and kittens everywhere. When life is nuts, I'm not going to be sitting there humming, saying, "Oh, it's ok! Everything is wonderful!" That's just not me. Early mornings and I are never going to be friends, either, no matter how pretty that sunrise is or how grateful I am for it. However, I am determined to have a better outlook overall though and to recognize what good things are in my life. Seeing only bad just makes life harder.

Being able to see good even during the bad is going to help me be a better mother and teach my kids to see life in a more positive way.

Have you ever noticed how kids see the magic in everything? Every day is an adventure. Every hour is a chance for something good. Laughter comes easy. Life holds promise. I don't want them to lose that and to focus on the bad. I want them to see life as they do now, beautiful and wondrous. Kids learn by example, so I need to be that example.

During your crazy days, feeding the kids breakfast, cleaning up the messes, breaking up the latest argument and trying to diffuse the millionth tantrum, look for the good. When life is going great, the house is clean, you got out to do errands, the kids are listening, look for the good. You'll be amazed how easy it starts to be. You'll start to see how great your life really is and how much you never realized is special about each day. The little good things will become more important than the bad. You'll start to see that magic that your kids do again.

If I really get my act together, I'll make a nifty journal and write down a few good things about each day. Realistically, I'd probably not even get through a full week and it'd sit to collect dust, taking up valuable real estate on some surface. Mental notes are going to have to be good enough.

What good things have been going on lately? 

Seeing M2 and B having a dance party. M2 creating a neat picture in all the paint mess and her being very proud of it. Listening to music during breakfast. Watching M2 go crazy watching Harry Potter, screaming, "Potter fly! Potter fly!" B grabbing his sister's brush and running off with it, just to see if she notices. Finishing a new coloring project. The snow coating the trees in our yard. The moon lighting up the entire street, casting a glow so bright it looks like early morning. Snuggling deep in the warm bed sheets. Finding a discount grocery store in our area that'll help cut the food bill. Renting movies from the library. Finding two books that have been on hold for months, that I really wanted to read, available at the library -- both on the same day. Reading a new author that I like. Having a pizza with A and watching a movie once the kids have gone to bed. Listening to a new, catchy song. Eating sweet, juicy strawberries even in winter.

Like I said, all little things. Things that may seem silly to others but help me feel calmer, happier and thankful for my crazy, busy life.

Please vote for me by clicking the brown Top Mommy Blogs banner below, then the ORANGE button on the following page to cast the vote. Thanks!!

How to Remove Lice without Harsh Chemicals

When I hear the word “lice,” my head immediately starts feeling itchy. Then my face followed by my arms. Never mind that lice stay in your hair, I still end up itching all over. (I’m itching right now just writing this.) Having little kids, the fear of lice is a real one. There’s the dread that one day an automated call is going to come from the school to say that there’s been a lice outbreak. Who wants to deal with creepy, crawly, icky bugs and their tiny eggs in everyone’s hair!? Then there’s the hassle of having to get those gross things out!

The old methods involve cutting all the hair off and nasty chemical shampoo washes -- Likely a few of them to get rid of all the little buggers. No little kid wants to sit still for those washes and I sure as heck don’t want to cut all my hair off! Not to mention putting those harsh chemicals all over the child’s little head. What if it gets in their eyes? Then there’s the having to wash everything that’s been worn or slept on for days before the outbreak. Laundry is annoying enough as it is, let alone having to do even more.

I would much rather be able to use a chemical-free, natural way to look for and remove lice if we have to deal with them -- like the tool I recently received for review. The V-Comb has an LED light so you can easily look for lice while combing through the hair. If your child does have the little monsters crawling around their hair, the V-Comb lets you remove them by vacuuming while combing with the stainless-steel teeth. They get caught in a special capture filter so they can’t come crawling back out. It gets the eggs out, too. Since there are no chemicals, the chance of allergic reaction is eliminated.

Once you’re done, the V-Comb is easily cleaned and used on the next person, or stored so it’s ready to be plugged in the next time it’s needed. Like a humidifier, thermometer or medicine, it’s a good tool to have on hand so you’re not scrambling when it’s needed. Amazon carries it, so it’s easy to order, along with replacement filters once you use the four that are included in the package. Check out the video below to see it in action.

With the V-Comb, if we get hit with lice I’ll end up doing lots of laundry, but at least I’ll be prepared with a tool I already have that doesn’t involve harsh chemicals or a huge mess!

Please remember to vote for me by clicking the brown Top Mommy Blogs button below, then the big ORANGE button on the next page to cast the vote. Thank you!! :)

This post is sponsored by V-Comb and contains affiliate links.

Meal Planning: March 1-14, 2016

I'm working ahead this time and have the meal plan set up for March 1 through 14 already. Keep in mind, meal planning isn't set in stone. If you happen to have leftovers that need to be used, there's a really great sale or you come across something that's about to go bad/expire, cook it up. The big goals of meal planning are to save money, which includes reducing waste and avoiding eating out.

Here's what I'll be cooking at our house:


March 1
Egg noodles topped with gravy along with roasted carrots

March 2
Slow-cooker beef roast with roasted potatoes and mixed veggies

March 3
Pork chops with rice, applesauce and corn

March 4
Orange chicken with fried rice and mandarin orange slices

March 5
Pork roast with mashed potatoes and green beans

March 6
Salmon with green salad

March 7
Spaghetti

March 8
Roasted carrots, potatoes, sweet potatoes with quinoa

March 9
Herb chicken thighs with mixed veggies

March 10
Marinated chicken with rice and green beans

March 11
Homemade cheese pizza

March 12
Grandma's baked macaroni and cheese

March 13
Gnochi with cream sauce and mushrooms

March 14
Green salad with Italian bread

Please remember to vote for me by clicking the brown Top Mommy Blogs button below, then the big ORANGE button on the next page to cast the vote. Thank you!! :)

Life Balance, Simplified

Sex and the City has been playing on my Kindle often lately. It's 25 minutes of pure entertainment and voyeurism into the lives of four New York City women -- so not at all like my own life, yet I keep finding parallels that get me thinking. Which led to an epiphany in my quest for life balance this year.

Even if we live out in the country and no where near the city (let alone single or having crazy sex in said city), we somehow relate to Carrie, Miranda, Charlotte and Samantha. Why? Because we're all like those four women at heart. There's our creative, stylish side, our ladylike, well-mannered side, our sexy, daring side and our professional, career-minded side. Those women are us. And like those women, we're all searching for something in our lives. Some of us are at that point of seeking out the awesome career. The perfect relationship for us. The child we want badly. The job we love and kick butt at. The fun night that is all about us.

Where we are in our lives changes the search and ourselves. We go from the career and marriage to having kids that become our worlds. Our search becomes one for balance between being mom and wife and our jobs (whether it be in an office, working from home or working in the home). We struggle to find ourselves in the ultimate search of who we are in that messy unbalanced life. Our lives are crazy and messy, always changing. Whenever balance is almost in our grasp, something else shows up as easily as Big in his sleek town car to change our lives again. We're in constant struggle to find the perfect balance between life and ourselves. Yet, life is never as neat and orderly as Charlotte's well-appointed apartment.

So what's that mean for us? Are we going to always been searching for that balance, chasing our tails, just to never find it? I don't think so. It means that we need to find balance in the moment of our lives we're experiencing now. Sometimes, we'll need to focus on our creative side, other times our careers or relationships.

At the center is ourselves, though. We need to be sure we don't get shoved to the side or lose who we are or we'll always be out of balance in our lives because ourselves will hanging on desperately to the merry-go-round rather than operating the controls.

And when life throws us a man in a town car just as our current life is going great? We need to be flexibly agile to keep our metaphorical high-heeled Louboutin's from sticking into the sidewalk grate and tripping us up. All we can do is stay up on those heels, find the balance that's best in moment of our lives, and keep walking. A glass of wine every now and then doesn't hurt, either.

Please vote for me on Top Mommy Blogs by clicking the brown banner below then the big, ORANGE button on the next page to cast the vote. Thanks!!

This post contains affiliate links.

3 Fun Pudding Treats Kids Can Make

If someone tells you they're making pudding, what do you think of? Probably a bowl of plain chocolate or vanilla pudding. Sounds so exciting - not. That was C's reaction to me talking about pudding. Bored and lack luster. I decided to get creative the other day with chocolate pudding when I discovered C cracked the bottom of our new gallon of milk. What was I going to do with milk that was about to go bad? Either dump it or make something. I don't like to waste food, especially when money is tight, so I decided I was going make one large box and two small boxes of cook-and-serve chocolate pudding. But what to do with it so that it wasn't boring?

A run through the grocery store gave me a few ideas of what to prepare that C and J really enjoyed. Each recipe is super easy, tasty and turn regular pudding into something dressed up and fun. None cost very much to make, either, so they fit into your grocery budget. Since they're so simple, kids can help make them (the younger ones will need you to help them with the stove parts). They'll love creating a yummy treat. Nothing I made lasted very long, it was eaten up before I knew it!

Chocolate Pudding Cookie Cake

by The Stay-at-Home Life

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 5 minutes

6077351

Ingredients (1 8x8 cake)

• 2 large boxes of cook-and-serve chocolate pudding
• 1 package of chocolate sandwich cookies
• 3 cups of milk (I used 1% but the box suggested at least 2% for a thicker set)
• 1 can of Reddi Whip or Cool Whip to garnish

Instructions

Prepare pudding as directed on the box

Have your 8x8 pan ready and start by putting a single layer across the bottom with your cookies

Pour until they're covered and repeat until you have three layers of cookies

Add in the last of the pudding to completely hide the cookies

Refrigerate for 4 hours

When serving cut into squares around approximately where you remember each stack of cookies to be. A butter knife or spatula is enough to cut the cookies will be soft

Garnish with some Reddi Whip or Cool Whip and enjoy!

Peanut Butter Chocolate Pie

by The Stay-at-Home Life

Prep Time: 10min

Cook Time: 5 min

6077352

Ingredients (1 pie)

• 1 ready-made graham cracker crust
• 1 small box of cook-and-serve chocolate pudding
• 2 cups of milk (I used 1% but the box suggested at least 2% for a thicker set)
• 1 jar smooth peanut butter
• 1 can of Reddi Whip or Cool Whip to garnish

Instructions

Prepare pudding as directed on the box

While waiting for it to bowl, between stirs get the crust ready

Once it's out of the package, get a rubber spatula and spread a quarter-inch layer of peanut butter over the bottom and sides of your crust

When pudding is thick and boiling it's ready to pour into your crust

Go slowly so it doesn't melt away all the peanut butter

Fill to the top and refrigerate for 4 hours

Top with Reddi Whip or Cool Whip when serving and enjoy!

Hot Cocoa Pudding Mugs

by The Stay-at-Home Life

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 5 minutes

6077353

Ingredients (4-6 mugs)

• 1 small box of cook and serve chocolate pudding
• 2 cups of milk (I used 1% but the box suggested at least 2% for a thicker set)
• 1 bag of marshmallows
• 4-6 mugs (depends on your serving size)

Instructions

Prepare pudding as directed on the box

Put a kid-sized handful of marshmallows into the bottom of each mug

Pour hot pudding over the marshmallows

Refrigerate for 4 hours

When you come back to check them it will look like a mug of cocoa with melting marshmallows on top

Perfect surprise treat on a cold day. Happy pudding making!

Please vote for me by clicking the brown Top Mommy Blogs banner below, then the ORANGE button on the following page to cast the vote. Thanks!!

About the Author
Laurie is a stay-at-home mom to two little girls -- a baby and a 5-year-old -- and is stepmom to a 5-year-old daughter. Living in New England, she has a big Australian Sheepdog along with the kids and her husband. She enjoys music, decorating cakes and Doctor Who.

My Word of the Year

I've seen this everywhere lately: People picking a word of the year. It's kind of like setting goals, though this would be the overarching goal and theme for the entire year. What is it that sums up all the goals, where you want to be at the end of the year and what the year is going to be all about?

We were talking about this in my wonderful stay-at-home moms' group recently. It got me to thinking what my word of the year should be. It didn't take me long. With all I'm working toward, the answer was clear. Transformation.

I want to transform myself and my life in many ways this year. As you read, you'll probably notice something that I did while writing it -- everything fits together and really does form a bigger picture. That lets me know I really did choose the right word!

Transforming my body
It's no secret that I'm working on losing weight this year. My goal is to lose at least 52 pounds this year. I'm simply not comfortable with my weight and am determined to change it for the better. I've been setting two-week goals for myself to help me get that weight off.

Transforming my health
This goes hand in hand with transforming my body. Losing the weight helps with my health. Eating healthier foods, drinking more water, incorporating more movement and exercise into my life, and focusing on my health all goes along with that. I'm dividing body and health transformation into two because it's just that important and that big of a change. You can also lose weight, yet still be unhealthy, or even just gain it all back because it wasn't a total life style change. Neither of those are something I want! I'm going for the whole package.

Transforming my inner self
I am the type of person who worries and stresses to much. I strive for perfection in everything. Even simple things, like which milk to get at the store. I want to be sure it's the right choice, the best thing I can do. As you can imagine, this leads to more inner turmoil than is good for a person. I'm working on letting go of all this. Inner peace is going to be found this year. Expect to see more about this, from what I go through to how I plan to change it, at some point. I haven't quite gotten all my thoughts together yet, when I do I'll share.

Transforming my blog
You may have already noticed a few changes around here. New banner, new tabs, some changes to the layout and follow buttons, small things like that. There are so many things I've been meaning to do that I haven't gotten around to. Slowly, I'm ticking them off the list one by one.

I've also got big plans for what I want to write, how often I post and improving content to give you what you want to read. I want to bring a balance of types of posts to the blog to give you the whole stay-at-home-mom life overview.

Behind-the-scenes things to bring in more much-needed income are also in the works. I'm even thinking about writing a book. The blog is my job and how I make my income so that's always a part of the bigger picture.

Transforming my life balance
Going hand-in-hand with transforming the blog is finding life balance. I often feel that I'm putting too much time into the blog when I should be doing more with the kids or keeping up with the house. Or, that I'm spending too much time with the kids but not enough with A or on my own. It's all about balance and I need to transform my life to find that balance between all the roles I play. (More on balance is coming up soon.)

Transforming my daily life
To transform my life balance, I need to transform my daily life as well to get everything aligned. I want to get on a cleaning schedule, have more activities with the kids, stick to meal planning, not be as attached to social media and electronics, clearing out household items I don't need and organizing so the days run smoother, and other things along those lines.

Transforming my finances
So much has changed in our lives financially over the past year. Using my usual budget, I want to get all the finances in even better order. New ways to save, not spending as much on material goods, focusing on what matters in life and the experiences vs the "stuff."


Please vote for me by clicking the brown banner below. When the next page comes up, click the big ORANGE button. Without the second click, the vote isn't counted. Staying high in the ranks helps me to get sponsored posts and make my income. I so appreciate your help!

Meal Planning for Feb. 16 - 29, 2016

Things have been crazy around here the past few weeks so I've been glad that I've at least had meals planned out! More is coming soon about all the craziness so keep an eye out. A post on how to meal plan is also in the works. I'd love to hear how you're meal planning has been going in the comments below. In the meantime, where's what we're eating the rest of the month:

2/16  Herb pork chops with green beans and batard bread

2/17 Spaghetti with meat sauce and green salad

2/18  Frozen pre-made Chinese for the parents and chicken nuggets, corn and baked potatoes for the kids

2/19 Whole roasting chicken with garlic mashed potatoes and mixed veggies

2/20 Chicken corn chowder

2/21 Tacos

2/22 Lemon salmon with rice and broccoli

2/23 Homemade pizza

2/24 Stuffed peppers

2/25 Leftovers

2/26 Salad

2/27 Beef roast with baked potatoes and carrots

2/28 Chicken tortellini with green salad

2/29 BBQ chicken thighs with parsley buttered potatoes and roast pumpkin


Please vote for me by clicking the brown Top Mommy Blogs banner below, then the ORANGE button on the following page to cast the vote. Thanks!!

The Truth About Breastfeeding, Part 2: Reflux and Life Changes

Breastfeeding a newborn can be challenging, annoying, frustrating, exhausting but oh so rewarding. The many many middle of the night feedings that your significant other can't help with can drive you crazy. The sore cracked nipples doesn't help or the third time you leaked your nursing tank that morning.

Guest poster Laurie is back with the second part of this series. If you missed the first installment, The Journey Begins, you can read it here.

After I was home and getting settled in with a new baby added to the mix breastfeeding for me came easy. Granted I was always tired from the middle of the night feedings my husband couldn't help with but it was rewarding. It also meant no bottles to clean or formula to mix and less to worry about remembering to pack in the diaper bag.


At the time I was planning to return to work when H was just shy of 8-weeks old, so once my breast pump arrived it was time to stockpile. I was lucky and received a pump through my insurance at no cost. It was exhausting to nurse on demand all day long then pump right before I went to bed and as soon as I woke up. H initially slept through the night for about a month but those days are long gone.

While prepping a stash to return to work we introduced a bottle. I loved the Playtex Ventaire ones with J so decided to use them again with H. She took it easily and would go back to nursing no issue. Due to my fear of her preferring the bottle to breast we only did it a couple times a week. One day my sister-in-law watched H for a few hours and had no issue taking a bottle.

When H was at that nearly 8-week-old mark of me returning to work something happened. I had it all arranged my husband, C, was going to drop off J and H with his sister before he went to work since I went in so early. Got up really early pumped, nursed H got her back to sleep and headed off to work. I arrived only to be told, "Oh, you were laid off back in July with all the other contracted employees." Gee, thanks for telling me this months ago! I lost composure and started crying it was too much between leaving H for the first long time. Turns out it was the agency I was employed through who never bothered to notify me -- never working with them again.

Later that month, we discovered H had reflux. It was horrible hearing her cry from the pain. When it started I had no clue what was going on. Just after her 2-month appointment H began cluster feeding for 2 days straight driving me crazy. She had always spit up but I thought she was one of those "happy spitters" but now the amount was increasing. I was wondering if it was my fault like if my supply tanked and never realized it. H went to the doctor to find out what was going on. Since the spit up was causing her pain she was prescribed Zantac and a week later a dose of Prevacid was added due to continued pain. I felt horrible for her but at least my supply was still there and could continue my breastfeeding journey. Sometimes babies with reflux can't be breastfed and have to go on special broken-down formulas.

After that was taken care of a new hurdle to try to overcome was about to hit us. I wasn't working now so we stopped regularly giving H a bottle and only nursed. It created the Baby Monster giving mama no break.

Part 3: Separation Anxiety and Adding Solids (Coming Feb. 22)

Please vote for me by clicking the brown Top Mommy Blogs banner below, then the ORANGE button on the following page to cast the vote. Thanks!!

About the Author
Laurie is a stay-at-home mom to two little girls -- a baby and a 5-year-old -- and is stepmom to a 5-year-old daughter. Living in New England, she has a big Australian Sheepdog along with the kids and her husband. She enjoys music, decorating cakes and Doctor Who.

This post contains affiliate links.

Flooring Selection Made Simple

Going to the flooring store and trying to picture what in the world the various choices are going to look like in your home, with your furniture, curtains, lighting and paint, can be daunting. Even bringing home a sample doesn't always cut it as it only covers a small part of your floor so what may look perfect in one spot may not look as great once it's covering the entire floor. Flooring America has come up with a solution to this with the app My Floor Style. The app works for Apple or Android tablets and is easily downloaded in iTunes or the Google Play Store -- for free.

The app allows you to reimagine your room. Take a picture of your room and try out different flooring options (testing everything out can be addicting). You're able to see whether tile, wood or carpet look best in your rooms. Once you've decided, test out what colors make the flooring perfect for your family. Pick your favorites, save the photos, and compare to see what you like best. You can even share the photos you create with the new flooring with your family and friends to  get their opinions, too. The app also cuts down on all the hours you'd otherwise spend going through tons of choices at the store that might not fit once you bring them home.

While you're testing out the app, check out Flooring America's newly available Downs H20 vinyl plank flooring. It's a luxury flooring built to be water and pet proof. The premium-performance planks look just like hardwood to add some style and class to your space. Downs H20 comes in a bunch of styles and colors to fit your kitchen, laundry room, entry way, bathrooms or even living room and bedrooms. Really, it can go anywhere you want the look of hardwood without all the hassle.

Even if you're not getting new flooring for awhile, it's a fun app to play with to design your dream home. Then, once you are ready to replace your old carpet, hardwood or vinyl, you'll already have a good idea of what you like and what looks good in the space.

The app is crazy simple to use. Once you have it downloaded to your device, open it up and follow these directions:

Take a photo of the room
My Floor Style lets you take a photo of your room or select an existing photo on your tablet.

Outline and remove your floor
Remove the flooring from your photo by dropping pins to outline the edges.

Add a floor style to your room
Select a flooring category then choose from a wide range of swatches to easily drop the floor into your photo. You can then adjust depth, orientation and more with a simple tap.

Save and share your project
When you're finished, view before and after photos to compare, save your project to reference later, or even share your photo via email, text or social media to see what friends and family think.

Once you've found your top choices for your rooms, stop by a Flooring America in your area (they're all over the country) to ask any questions, make your final selection and purchase your new flooring.

Please vote for me by clicking the brown Top Mommy Blogs banner below, then the ORANGE button on the next page to cast the vote. Thanks!!

Photos copyright and courtesy of Flooring America, who also sponsored this post.