Design Your Own Free Father’s Day Card

If you missed the  FREE Father’s Day card offer from Treat earlier this week, I have good news for you… They extended it through the end of the month! So you’ve got a couple more days to take advantage of this amazing freebie from one of my all-time fave card creation sites.

Free Father's Day Card from Treat [Read more...]

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How to Create a Gratitude Journal with a Free Memory Jar Printable

Free Memory Jar Printable… For the new year, I haven’t quite finished writing down, planning for, and deciding on all of my goals. {I’m close though.} But, there are a family goals that I did decide on – I want to build some better routines, so that I’m not so stressed with work and homemaking tasks, and can really live “in the moment” with Abby more often. I want to make sure we celebrate the little things more often. I want to make sure I really and truly show and tell my family how much I love and appreciate them – I want them to feel valued. And, I want to practice gratitude in my life daily. I already tend towards being one of those optimistic, Pollyanna-ish types who always find the silver lining on their glass that’s half full. But I know that I have so much to be grateful for, and want to ensure that I focus my energy and thoughts on that in 2013, versus getting down about any of my challenges.

Gratitude Jar Printable

Free Memory Jar Printable Download from Paper Coterie

This is such a genius idea – Instead of trying to keep up with a daily journal, scrapbook, or other record-keeping, why not simplify it all, and break it down to a super-doable way of capturing those great moments in your life? Yep, Paper Coterie, my absolute hands-down favorite paper products company, is giving you a free Memory Jar Printable to use this year. How awesome is that, right? They make it so easy to keep your memories alive by recording them for the future. Keep reading to learn how it works…

Journaling gratitude printables

Start your own Gratitude Journal in 2013

Here’s how it works – Print out the prompts, the jar label, and the bookplate. Put all of those prompts into your Gratitude Jar, and then simply pull one out each week, tape to your journal page, {use a cool vintage Paper Tape for some fun style} and then write a little page once a week, using that prompt to guide you. Super easy, and super meaningful.

Paper Coterie

Paper Coterie is a circle of friends who are passionate about documenting the beauty of life well lived. Whether it’s in a photo book, guest book, journal, or one of their custom personalized books, they’ll help you capture the memories you want to save and share. Want to document your growing child? Don’t worry. They’ve got that covered. Choose from one of their awesome personalized growth charts, wall décor posters, baby books, or shower guest books. Want to join Paper Coterie as an affiliate? They rock, and you’ll love learning about the newest products too.

 

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Got a New Kindle? Get Tips for Mastering the Kindle Fire

Mastering the Kindle Fire… I bought my Kindle Fire as my Christmas present for myself, a few weeks ago. But – as excited as I was to finally buy one – and get a sweet deal on it too! – I haven’t sat down to really figure out how to use it. Life has been over-the-top crazy lately. One of my goals for next week is to fully learn to use that, as well as learn how to get the most out of my new Windows phone. I buy these gadgets to help me get organized and save time – but I’ve had no time to use them. *Sigh* Being a work at home mom has a lot of perks – but it’s a BUSY job!

Mastering Kindle Fire [Read more...]

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How to Get Free Kleenex Care Kits to Share Some Kindness this Season

Learn how easy it is to get some totally free Kleenex Care Kits, so that you can share the softness – and some kindness – this holiday season… Since we’re smack dab in the middle of what’s expected to be a pretty nasty cold & flu season, it’s the perfect time to stock up on supplies like cold medicine and Kleenex. Because moms don’t have time to get sick, right?

Moms don't have time to get sick [Read more...]

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Wedding Paper Divas: 10 Free Save the Date Cards

At this time of year, we’re usually thinking of sleigh bells. But if you’re one of those lucky ladies who are also thinking about wedding bells – I’ve got a really fabulous little goodie for you today – Enjoy ten (10) free save the date cards or save the date postcards using the code SAVEYOURDATE at checkout. How awesome is that?

[Read more...]

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Make your Season Brighter Without Making your Wallet Lighter!

“It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas….” – Yep ladies, it’s that time of year – the holidays are here! I’m about as festive and holly jolly as you can get, so I get SUPER excited as we pass Halloween, and head into my favorite season. We actually just put up our Christmas lights on the outside of the house, the fences, and in the trees this afternoon, before it starts snowing here. Then, after we’ve all been stuffed with too much turkey, we head out across the street, and mom flips the switch to turn on all of the lights! Love it. If you’re in the holiday spirit too, I’ve got some sweeeet deals just for you.

Love Tiny Prints Card [Read more...]

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Teaching My Toddler How to Give Back

‘Tis the season for giving back… We all know that it’s the little acts of kindess that count the most, right? Paying for the coffee order in line behind you, holding the door for a mom who’s arms are overloaded with packages, or just offering a compliment on the great service to an overwhelmed retail clerk. Here’s a random good deed I saw earlier today on Facebook, that I just love…

Random act of kindness after hurricane SandyI’m not sure who to give credit to for this photo – It was one that I came across on Facebook, with no credit given. But it’s just such an awesome example of doing something nice for others, with no expectations in return. Totally makes me smile. And it’s exactly the way I try to live my life – to do my best not to focus on what I don’t have, appreciate what I do have, and share as much as I can.

Teaching Toddlers to Give BackThis is my favorite face in the whole entire world – my little girl, Abby. Like most women, becoming a mother totally changed my life. And not just because I suddenly knew more about poop than I ever imagined, know the lyrics to every nursery rhyme song in existence, and have learned that yes, it IS possible for a human being to survive on only a few hours sleep for months at a time. No, she also made me want to be a better person. I want to be as amazing as she thinks I am. I want to work hard, so that I’m able to give her a great life full of awesome experiences. And I want to set a good example for her, and help her grow up to be a kind, compassionate, caring person who gives back to the world around her. Lofty goals, yes. But it’s what I work towards every day.

How to give back during cold and flu season - Free Kleenex care packsSince this is also cold and flu season, I want to share a very simple, totally free, but incredibly sweet way that you can give back to others – By joining the Softness Worth Sharing initiative. Here’s how it works:

Upon purchasing a Kleenex Brand Care Pack, you may redeem the code on the package at this site in order to send a care pack to someone special: http://www.kleenex.com/softness/.

So, after stocking up on Kleenex tissues for your family {or your kiddo’s school, if you donate supplies like we do} – you simply enter those promo codes online, and you can send this super helpful little care kit to someone in need of a smile. It comes with everything you see – a small box of Kleenex tissues, the adorably decorated travel pouch of tissues, a bottle of hand sanitizer, a little tin of Balsam soothing nose & lip balm, a free song download code, and a sweet note with coupons, that reads “Someone who cares about you has sent you this gift from Kleenex Brand, the softest tissue.” Wouldn’t that just make someone’s day?

Fall cold and flu seasonDuring the fall season, as the weather changes quickly to much colder days and nights – there are a LOT of times you’ll need Kleenex. We brought a mini pack with us last night while trick or treating, since Abby and I both tend to get runny noses when it’s cold out. {That’s her, walking her crab along with us last night to the neighbors house, lol.} And there are a lot of other things we love to do during the fall – from visiting the U-Pick farms to get the last of the local fall produce, to playing in the leaves at the park. So having tissue in our diaper day-bag is a must. Plus, with cold and flu season here, hand sanitizer is pretty important too! That means that these little Kleenex care packs are such a great gift to send – to your best friend, the kids’ favorite teachers, a neighbor – or that coworker who always seems to catch every office bug! We got an extra couple Care Kits, and I let the kids – Abby, and my nephews – help me choose who to give them to. The boys both wanted to bring one to their teachers, so that they won’t get sick, and if they do they’ll get well quicker. {They don’t like substitute teachers, lol.} Both teachers sent home notes in their backpacks, thanking us for such a thoughtful gesture! Love it, and it’s a nice lesson for the boys too.

To learn more, check them out on the Kleenex facebook page, or follow hashtag #KleenexCares on Twitter!

{Disclaimer: I wrote this review while participating in an ambassador program by Mom Central Consulting on behalf of the Kleenex brand and received product samples and a promotional item to thank me for taking the time to participate.}

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