School has been back in session for us for one week. We are slowly adjusting to our new routine. This year, I have a first grader and a preschooler. They are both involved in extracurricular activities. This means we have a fun and full schedule. To help us slow down and reconnect, I try to have a family movie night and a family game night each month. For both events, we pop popping corn and get special drinks. It is an easy way for us to spend quality time as a family. For about the last year, Read more [...]

I use to find buying gifts for toddlers to be a bit difficult. I worried that some toys would be age appropriate, but its skill levels were are off. The reverse was also true, the toy had the right skill level but wasn’t right for the child’s age.  There was also the added challenge of, what if the toy doesn’t hold their attention for long. I use to get so overwhelmed when shopping for little ones, but then I found HABA. HABA is a German toymaker. They are well known for their high-quality Read more [...]

Like most families, we are very busy. I am not real sure what changed, but since summer started, it feels like we have been on high speed. The girls are getting older, they are both in school now and both involved in extracurricular activities. I know our overwhelmed high speed schedule is just going to get worse the older they get…my mom told me so. With all the hustle and bustle, I don’t want to lose our treasured family dinner time. I also don’t want to compromise our nutritious meals Read more [...]

I love discovering new clothing boutiques. For me it’s like finding a treasure chest full of goodies. Today I want to share my latest discovery, Seam Collection girls’ clothing boutique. Seam Collection began with a mom’s desire to make clothing that was age appropriate for all the stages in a little girl’s development. Seam Collection will soon be offering playful baby styles. They currently have a line for little girls that enables them to dress themselves…helping build independence Read more [...]

Ashieda, LLC provides health and beauty products that are made from natural ingredients.  They do not use synthetic ingredients in any of their products. Ashieda’s product line includes a natural anti-aging, hydration and skin renewal beauty nectar, a natural clear skin cleansing sponge, a natural moisture hydrating crème and a natural facial mask. For my review, I received four of the Natural Facial Masks.  I asked my Mom to help me with this review since I was currently testing another Read more [...]

The weather has started to turn cold, windy and wet in Oregon…no, it’s not like that year round, we had a hot, dry and beautiful summer. It is time for me to store my capris, tank tops and sandals in the back of my closet. My sweaters, jeans and boots have now been moved to the front of my wardrobe. As I was rotating my clothing, I noticed that many of my “staples” are a bit drab and boring. I quickly saw that I needed to add some color, pattern and texture to my fall/winter apparel line-up. Read more [...]

After having two kids and loosing almost 60 pounds, my skin has seen better days. I was starting to feel a bit like the Saggy Baggy Elephant. I began searching for creams, lotions and potions that could help me improve the appearance and feeling of my skin. I found nothing. Then one day, I was watching an episode of Keeping Up with the Kardashians (guilty pleasure) and heard Kim talking about a product that helped pregnant moms with circulation. I believe she called it “Lucky Lizard.” I couldn’t Read more [...]

I have two little fashionistas. It doesn’t matter if they are simply playing in the yard, going grocery shopping, or it’s a school day; they love to get dressed up. Finding clothing that allows them to feel dressed up and fits my criteria can sometimes be a challenge. However that’s not the case with Persnickety clothing. Persnickety is a fairly new company. They offer boutique children’s apparel. In the beginning, they sold their merchandise at farmers markets and fairs. Then a life-changing Read more [...]

Childhood obesity is a growing problem so I am always looking for fun ways to get the kids up and active. Sometimes I'll make up games that require the kids to hop around the kitchen as they do math, sometimes we run in place to track our breaths, and now we also use Hoopersize.  Growing up, my sister and I would hula hoop for hours during the Summer.  Seriously.  We would time ourselves.  Little did either of us realize that we were exercising!  We would have so much fun while we would Read more [...]

I love loungewear. On those rare occasions when I get to treat myself to a day at home, I prefer to be in casual clothing rather than all dressed-up. The whole tone of my day changes and becomes comforting when I am able to put on clothing that has a relaxed feel and is made with easy-going fabrics.  Now that you know this about me, you can imagine how excited I was when I recently had the opportunity to try Rhonda Shear loungewear. For my review, I received Rhonda Shear Lazy Daze Lounge Pants Read more [...]