dishing up creative goodness
After figuring out what you want to plant in the garden with your kids, consider what to look out for. Including the bugs in the garden.
I’ve shared some great bugs to look out for in your garden over at Someday I’ll Learn. Find out what you want to keep… and what you don’t!
Learn how to grow carrots with kids and see how easy gardening with kids is! All it takes is some patience, sun, water, and love.
One of my kids favorite veggies is carrots. So figuring out how to grow carrots with kids was one of my top priorities when we started gardening.
Lucky for me, growing carrots is one of the easiest things to do. Not too many pests to worry about – unless you have four-legged critters like bunnies, squirrels, and deer – and take anywhere from 60-75 days to grow.
Plus, the kids LOVE watching the tops grow taller and I like how green and pretty it makes the garden bed look. [Read more…]
This is a sponsored post. I am a Kmart blogger, though all opinions are 100% my own.
Does your living room always look like the playroom spit up all over it? Step on legos whenever you turn the corner? No? Just me?
Living in a “lived in” home was always something that just came naturally to me but lately I’ve wanted to pull things together and actually create a presentable space to entertain when friends come over. And? I kinda want a living room that looks like adults live here too.
Sure the couch is a great place for the laundry to go while it’s waiting to get folded (so is my bed) but I want to walk into the door without staring at it and watching it taunt me. [Read more…]
This post brought to you by PERK. All opinions are 100% mine.
Once you have kids, the state of the interior of your car pretty much implodes. From toys to crackers (smushed for added texture) to clothes and diapers, our cars become mobile homes filled with everything we need to care for our kids. So how do we keep a clean car with kids? It’s simple.
But you have to be willing to follow these steps and make sure you have a system in place to keep the mess at bay. If you’re like me… this may fall to the wayside with the craziness of life. But that’s ok, simply do a deep clean, start back at step one and get back in it!
The first thing we have to do is deep clean the car. Grab a laundry basket and a trash can. Put all of the toys, clothes, etc in the laundry basket to bring into the home and sort and throw out all of the waste in the trash can. Then run a vacuum over everything and wipe the surfaces down. Now you’re ready for maintenance!
With our city in an ever constant drought, we’ve taken quite a few steps over the years to reduce the amount of water we use in our home. But with the addition of two children in our lives, it’s been hard to stick with the conservation efforts we’ve made.
So when we heard about the rain barrel rebate program through the City of San Diego we knew we needed to investigate further. And we were so glad we did.
Then we found out that Dixieline was running a sale on 60 gallon rain barrels for $90. So our $75 rebate and $90 sale price meant that we were paying $15 out of pocket for each barrel. Now that rocks! We picked up two for our home and are considering going back to get two more (limit of 4). [Read more…]
I participated in an Ambassador Program on behalf of Mom Central Consulting for Brother P-touch. I received a product samples to facilitate my review and promotional item as a thank you for participating.
I’m a crazy person when it comes to holiday decorations. I love being able ot fill the house with fun reminders of the holidays coming up and enjoy making and purchasing holiday decor. The one thing I don’t like? Organizing holiday decorations.
So when I received my Brother P-touch PT-H100 label maker a few months ago I knew the one project I needed to tackle after the holidays was to organize my holiday decor. And that includes big and little holidays.
Because when I head out to the garage to grab the next holiday’s bin, I don’t want to see Christmas in the Valentine’s & Easter box. Because next Christmas I’ll be wondering where the tree skirt went. [Read more…]
I participated in an Ambassador Program on behalf of Mom Central Consulting for Brother P-touch. I received a product samples to facilitate my review and promotional item as a thank you for participating.
About two weeks before Christmas I start to panic. Wondering if I’ve purchased for everyone on my list, if I’ve picked the right things. And if the things I purchased for both of my kids were “fair” in that the number of presents opened seem to be the same. So I decided this year that I’d figure out out. And I’ve come up with a solution on how to organize your Christmas presents.
I followed a few simple steps, made sure to stick with my plan, and successfully kept track of all of my purchases. I surprised myself and my husband with my organization.
Lucky for my I also just received a Brother P-Touch label maker and worked on organizing my office. So using the label maker to help organize my purchases for Christmas just made sense. Below are a few tips on how you, too, can help organize your holiday purchases. [Read more…]
A few weeks ago I shared on instagram a little glimpse on how naptime is spent for me. I’m usually either baking up something tasty, creating crafts, working on projects around the house or catching up on work. My office is a disaster just about every day of the year but that’s ok. Because I can do what I love and am in my element!
When my best blogging friend, Mariah of Formula Mom, got to the end of her pregnancy I knew I wanted to do something special for her. So instead of actually making and sending her something, I made her a DIY Burlap Christmas Wreath Tutorial for her blog instead. [Read more…]
I participated in an Ambassador Program on behalf of Mom Central Consulting for Brother P-touch. I received a product sample to facilitate my review and promotional item as a thank you for participating.
The holidays are upon us! And for me that means busy season. Not only are we crafting up a storm this time of the year but I’m also working a lot as well. So that means organization is key.
Since my craft room and office are the same workspace (shared with the kids playroom) I really need to stay on top of the organizing so that nothing goes missing. Because it has before.
My secret weapon for tackling my craft room organization is the Brother P-touch PT-H100 label maker. With it’s ease of use, multiple options, and quick printing, I can have everything I need to get my craft on right in front of me and easily identifiable. [Read more…]
While I am far from retirement I have started planning for it from an early age. The one thing my dad always talked about as soon as I was old enough to get a job was to start saving early so I would have enough put away when I was ready to retire. Yes, at age 16 I was already well aware of retirement planning.
And I did what I’m sure other teens did not do. I listened to my dad. And at the age of 17, when I was eligible per my company’s regulations, I opened up a 401K. At first I simply put in a certain percentage, not quite sure what matching was and how it would benefit me.
Then my dad taught me the benefit of being aware of how company matching could do for my savings and I increased the percentage I was putting away each week. Lucky for me my husband also felt the same way about early retirement planning and had already started his 401K as well.
But I’m sure many aren’t lucky enough to have a dad like mine who pushed me to save at such an early age. So I’ve come across some great tips while researching ways to continue my retirement planning now that I’m a work-at-home mom.
1. Set up an automatic retirement savings plan –
Whether you contribute to a 401K through your work or set up a savings account on your own, start putting away a percentage of each paycheck starting now. The sooner you start saving – and investing – the sooner you’ll be able to retire.
2. Take advantage of employer contributions –
As I mentioned before, the company I worked with would match our 401K contributions up to a certain percentage. If your company offers this then you should definitely be taking advantage of this. Who can say no to free money? Usually there is a cap on what they’ll match to so make sure you know all of your company’s guidelines and regulations.
3. Leave your money where it is –
While it may be tempting to cash out on your 401K for that new car or a down payment on a house, you aren’t doing yourself any favors! Consider sitting down with a financial planner to plan out how to save for large purchases or investments without touching your savings. You’ll be thankful in the long run.
4. Sit down with a professional –
Still lost with all of this talk of savings? Consider sitting down with a professional and going over your finances. From there you can determine just how much you can be putting aside for retirement and how long you’ll continue to do so. There are so many great resources and apps out there for us to use. Take advantage of the knowledge at your fingertips!
With our financial planning laid out and a plan for retirement always in the works I feel a lot better about our future. I definitely don’t want to be working past 65 if I don’t have to. And if my husband and I are still lucky to have our health by then we want to be able to use that time to enjoy ourselves.
Planning to retire a little sooner than I am? Consider reading this article on 7 Tips for People Planning to Retire in 2013 to find out if you’re ready to retire sooner!
Disclaimer: Information for this post is sourced from Genworth Financial in partnership with the SheHeard Influencer Network. All opinions are my own.
She enjoys sharing her family life in San Diego and features everything from delectable recipes to sharing DIY tips around the home and garden, what she's crafting and more.
