Mom Hacks, Tips & Tricks

Shark week. Aunt flow. Code Red. That time of the month. Whatever you call it---it’s your menstrual cycle. After learning about the menstrual cycle in my high school health class, I lived most of my adult life only vaguely aware of how hormones work, when to expect my cycle, and how to recognize PMS. It’s not something I ever researched or truly cared about in my teens and early 20s, but when my husband and I decided to try to conceive our first child, I really started to be more cognizant of my cycle and ovulation. It was at this point that I really started to learn about and understand just how much my cycle impacts my day-to-day life...

A few years ago my husband’s family decided to forgo the adult gift card exchange, the Secret Santa and the white elephant and instead decided to do a homemade gift exchange. (Don’t worry the younger kids/great grandchildren still got their regular gifts.) There were a few rules: Each family unit made a gift for the other family units. Grandparents, Aunts/Uncles, Cousins, Siblings and Parents all included. The cost was to stay between $2-$3 per item. The results were fun, entertaining and delicious!  The majority of the items were consumables. I liked this, as it was something that could be used and enjoyed, and not take up too much space in your house. Most gifts were packaged in mason jars, or...

A nursing cart was something I had never heard of 5.5 years ago when I had my first baby. But this time around, I discovered Karrie Locher and her infamous nursing cart and I knew I needed one, especially since I was going to be recovering from a c-section. This time around, I wanted to try and make as much of my life as easy as possible. What is a nursing cart? It’s essentially a one-stop organizational system for anything you need in arms reach throughout the day or night. I decided to designate our very well-loved IKEA cart as my nursing cart! I chose this cart because it was on wheels and it was so convenient to bring it from the...

Each year, almost immediately after Halloween, our calendars become full with holiday commitments, leaving hardly any time to stop and breathe until after the New Year. Around this same time of year, thanks to social media, we fall into the comparison trap and evolve into a wannabe Pinterest perfect Christmas super mom. You know her, and you may even become her when the end of November rolls around. She wants to make meaningful holiday memories with her family in all the ways---baking cookies, crafting ornaments, taking Santa pictures, and hosting holiday parties, all while trying to budget and shop for the perfect gifts for loved ones and juggle her normal non-holiday related responsibilities. AND don’t forget to MOVE. THE. DANG. ELF. We tend...

Maybe you've seen the posable elves? One that can effortlessly climb the refrigerator door? And you wonder, just how those elves got blessed with magic while your elf has sitting magic. I'm here to tell you Elf Surgery is simple and easy! My little sister is an elf surgeon and performed surgery on our first elf. Last year I may or may not have found some on clearance to add to our outrageous elf collection but I needed them to be just as much fun as our original! So I put in a call to the Elf Surgeon and she walked me through, step by step--it was very Grey's Anatomy! And now we have 3 posable, magnetic elves to...