October in Review!

We hope everyone had a fun time last night! While we are working off our candy coma, here are our favorite posts from November:

Favorite Recipe

Pumpkin Pie Sandwich Cookies

Favorite Tip for Tuesday

Freezer Cooking Staples

Favorite Organizing Post

Picture Toy Storage Labels

Favorite Activity Post

Weekly Clean & Lean Workout

Favorite "Get to Know Us" Post

Our Hilarious Photo Shoot 

August in Review

August has been a fun month! Lots of great tips and good recipes.


Here's a look at a few of our favorite posts from August:

A simple tip for perfect mashed potatoes. Creamy mp's are easier than you think!

When it comes to having mom friends, it can be hard to meet other moms when you move to a new place. Our mom friend, Lissette, introduced herself. Part 2 of this post is coming soon :)

Erin Condren Week was so colorful and organized! Jess and I love practical things that make our lives easier. Keeping up with life is fun and functional with the EC products we love: the Oh!What a Week and Life Planners.

Jess shared a few recipes that double as "life savers". Don't want to throw out bananas that are too ripe? Hate buying applesauce that has high fructose corn syrup, or the expensive stuff that is without HFC? Are you searching for great gluten free products and a recipe you can make at home? Check out these posts from this month:

One way to use over-ripe bananas is this yummy recipe!

Flavor applesauce the real food way {and save money while you're at it}.

Jess' favorite gluten free products and a yummy gluten free recipe to make snack time extra yummy.

Hi, my name is “Mommy”, “Babe”, “Sette”, “Squirt”, “Sis”…

This is Lissette and I last fall. She is an amazing person and I am beyond blessed to call her a friend. I've asked her to share her experience with starting up a MOMS Club. Adult interaction and mommy friends are sanity savers- big time! So, without further ado, here's Sette!

…also known as, Lissette, stay-at-home-mom, wife, friend, daughter, sister.  Some of the many names and hats I wear in my life, and I answer to all of the names above for the various titles given.  I am a 29 year old woman who holds a degree in Psychology and Sociology with a background in Social Work.  I also have a degree in butt-wiping, puke cleaning, baby bathing, cooking, “boo-boo” kissing, and hugs and kisses distributor.  I feel I am currently more defined by the latter.

                I try to be active in the community, but sometimes feel I overwhelm myself with what I want to do and what can actually be done.  I have two children who are 2 years old and almost 7 months old.  Both boys.  They keep me busy enough throughout the day I cannot remember what I was about to do, let alone what I need to do that day or week.  Funny how children make things a bit more interesting at all times.  I currently volunteer with March of Dimes in organizing their annual March for Babies event in our local area and fundraise for our family team as well.  In addition to this, I founded a MOMS Club chapter in our town and it is growing quickly. 

Growing up I always thought I would have a job where I go into an office, or the like, and work my whole life at something I only half enjoyed.  Never in my imagination did I think I would be able to stay home with my children at such a young age for myself and them.  Thanks to my husband, I have been a SAHM since my oldest son was born, and although it has challenges I would not want it any different.  I have not ever worked in an office while raising children, but I feel this “job” as their mother is the most difficult one I have held.  The most difficult, for me, is trying to stay connected to adults and other mothers like myself as being an at-home mother can be isolating.  There is only so much conversation you can have with a toddler.  When we moved to our town my oldest son was only 4 months old.  I had lived here before when attending college, but let’s face it, living somewhere as an undergrad is completely different than living in that same place as a mother!  Completely.  Different.  I did not know a soul and it’s a town where the main focus is on the college and not much in the community.  I searched and searched for a “mom group” where I could get connected and make some new friends.  I found a MOPS group which was already formed, but they were not meeting until September and it was May.  I had to wait out the entire summer to make any friends.  It sucked.  So, September came and I attended the meeting.  Only to find this group met twice a month and they were thinking of going to only once a month.  I don’t know about you, but how are you supposed to get to know people you only see once a month!?!  A month later, the group disbanded.  I came up short in the “friends making” department.

In the previous city we lived in I heard about MOMS Club at my son’s pediatrician’s office.  I thought it would be so neat to join and get to know other SAHM’s, but did not get a chance to as we moved shortly after this.  After the MOPS group was over I was at a loss.  We’re looking at about November after we had moved in May.  After I waited the whole summer to finally meet some other moms!  Coincidentally, I ran into an old college friend while grocery shopping who introduced me to a group of women who met once a week for a Bible study.  I was kind of desperate, so I joined.  All the while, in the back of my head I could not get over how much our community needed a “mom group”.  It desperately needed a group where the women had one thing in common, being a mom.  To me, it did not matter about anything else, such as, religion, politics, etc.  I needed mommy bonding.  Apparently, I was not the only one.  I talked to some other women I had met and pitched the idea to see if there was any interest in such a group before I got in over my head.  It seemed every mother I talked to was ecstatic about it, and my energy soon followed with the same excitement.  After several months of deliberating, I decided to go for it.  In March 2012, I registered our local chapter with the International organization MOMS Club.  On March 27, 2012, we officially became MOMS Club of Stillwater, OK and we had 1 member, myself.  Starting from scratch with so many ideas and having no idea what to do with them.  My oldest son was 14 months old.  Two days later, I found out I was pregnant.  Crap. 

Stay tuned for more from Lissette when "Part 2" hits the blog soon!

5 Tips for a Great Girl's Getaway

I love taking "girl's trips". They rejuvenate me. I have a couple of friends who I like to plan special trips with every so often. More than just a night out, we get away.

Spending time with my family is wonderful- I love them. But getting away, even for just a night, and spending time with my girls is so fun!

Jess, Lauren and I are getting away TOMORROW! As a little pre-girl's-weekend celebration, I thought I would share a few tips with you to make any girl's getaway as enjoyable as possible! You want to de-stress and unwind- here's 5 tips to help you plan.

1. Pick a place that works for what you want. Every destination has a certain expectation associated with it. Before I had kids I wanted to meet my friends someplace with great shopping and a party night life. Now that I have kids, my idea of a getaway is slow-paced, relaxing, and with cheap happy hour options. :-) Whatever your group's expectation, make sure you select a destination that will be a good fit.

2. Pin it! Pinterest is a great tool to get everyone on the same page. You can create a board that everyone who is coming on the trip can pin to. On our last adventure, Jess, Lauren and I went to Kansas City, in preparation we pinned up a storm! Stores to shop, places to eat, clothes to wear, attractions that we didn't want to miss. It was so fun to see all of the things we could do that by the time we got there we were so excited- not just to see each other, but to go to the places we had pinned!

3. Find the good food! But find it before you go. Take time to figure out what restaurants will be close to where you are staying and playing. Pinterest, Yelp, and the city's chamber website can usually point you in the right direction when looking for local food that meets your taste bud's standards. Make sure you are taking into consideration how you will get around- if you are walking everywhere find places to eat nearby.

4. Plan one main event. Maybe you are looking forward to a spa day, shopping at a particular store, crafting, or a nice 5 course meal. Whatever it is, plan your "main event". By planning this one thing you can ensure that you are getting the most out of your getaway. Your friends might want to join you, but maybe they don't. It's ok to split up, especially if you have a large group. Maybe you have a spa day while your friends hit up the nearby mall- no big deal! Everyone should feel like they are getting the most out of their weekend. Plan it ahead of time so that no one's "main event" gets overlooked.

5. Don't over plan.  The whole idea of a getaway is that you get away. From stress, from responsibility (sort of), from schedules.  Another great thing about having a "girl's trip pin board" is that you don't have to have a schedule. For our trip to Kansas City, every morning we consulted our board and came up with a game plan for our day. Perfect use of a pin! This year we are getting together at the lake and the only "plans" we have are to be crafty (at least one craft each) and drink sangria. You can imagine what our pin board looks ;)

Bottom line: a getaway with the girls should be a good time. By putting in a little planning before you go, you can relax and enjoy the trip even more!

Where is your favorite place to getaway? We'd love to hear about it!

Friday Favorite: My BFF Jess

So, I know you guys know a little about Jess. But did you know she is about to have a birthday?!

Yes, that's right, my BFF is having a birthday this weekend and I wanted to share with you all a few of the reasons why I am so glad she was born.

A list of 10 things I love about Jess:

1. She laughs at A LOT of the same things I do. There aren't many people who laugh- and I mean really laugh- at randomness, so to find someone who appreciates the same things as I do is wonderful. Our 3rd BFF, Lauren, completes our trio. We are all each others lobsters.

51. She introduced me to Tom's. #lifechanger

10. She is one of the most driven people I know. Her ambition is inspiring. Many of the healthy things I have shared with you all here are inspired by her. Many of the "mom" things I share are inspired by her. She is an inspiring person. No lie.

67. She surprised me after Little Miss was born by coming to visit. I'm not sure how she and Lauren pulled it off, but no one has ever done anything that special for me!

42a. Her nick name in college was "Miss Health Promotion". If there was a crown given out for our degree she would have won it. She is passionate about health, y'all. But she's not someone who makes you feel unhealthy, it's awesome, she can share healthy messages and it makes you think you can do that too.  {aaaaand that's why we have a blog}

42b. I probably would have had bad grades in college if she hadn't made inspired Lauren and I to study. She also found me my internship... so I probably owe her some of the credit for my degree. Thanks for that Jess!

23. She loves S'mores. She even pins S'more recipes to share with me. How sweet is that?

73. We make a long distance friendship work. That's talent, people.

138. She can quote Friends as well as I can. This is a big reason why we are friends. For example, she pinned this and it made me laugh out loud:

30. She has been my friend through thick and thin, ups and downs, and through it all we have grown, matured, started families, and I have learned the meaning of friendship. I'm so grateful to call her a friend. A best friend. 

 H A P P Y     B I R T H D A Y     J E S S!