Category: Tip Jar

A Cinco Drinko – Coconut Mango Margaritas

Good morning everyone! Happy Cinco de Mayo! The quarantine is definitely making Cinco de Mayo plans look a little different for everyone this year!

Since we will be home and not out at a restaurant, we decided to share a twist on a regular mango margarita that you can make at home. My husband is OBSESSED with Bai Flavored water. They are SO SO good and there are so many different flavors! We’ve always said how tasty they would be in all different types of mixed drinks and cocktails – you could really get creative!

We decided we wanted to doctor up a coconut mango inspired margarita in honor of Cinco de Mayo. This is a slushie margarita and can be adjusted in many different ways to fit your taste palette.

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Thursday Thoughts: Dear Quarantine Time

Over the past several weeks particularly, I have found myself thinking what life is going to be like after we come out from our homes and gradually start returning to “normal” life (and I use that lightly). There are so many things we took for granted and having that “freedom” taken from us has really made me appreciate the little things more. During this time, I’ve also discovered to not be so hard on myself, which I explain down below. I’m sure so many of us can relate to this, and hope this can help you get through the “final” stretch.

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What We’re Cookin’ Wednesday – Feeding Kids

I am always interested in seeing what other people are serving their kids for lunches and dinners. I try my best to feed my kiddos healthy meals as much as possible, but I also want them to EAT too. Luckily, my kids do crave fruits and veggies A LOT – so that is not the issue. Today I am sharing some lunches, dinners and snacks we have around here. By no means am I an absolute health nut. We do the best we can around here so I am sharing realistic meals that the kids really enjoy!

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TAKE TWO: Spring Garden Tour: Pruning and Maintenance

My plan was to share some pruning and maintenance tips from my garden last Thursday, but we woke up to 3 inches of snow…terrible!

This weekend I was out cleaning some of my gardens and decided to share some tips, pics and videos with you on how I maintain and prune in the spring. I live in Zone 6a where we have cold and snowy winters. Step 1, it’s important to know your zone – this will help you determine what plants will survive in your climate.

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Tip Jar Tuesday: Easter Basket Ideas

One of the things I look forward to all year is putting together my kid’s Easter baskets! Just like Christmas, it is so fun to watch pure joy and happiness happen right in front of us.

This year though, circumstances are a bit different. I was lucky enough to HAVE to run in to Target to pick up baby wipes that I could not place for order pickup and quickly went through the toy/Easter section to grab some of the staple items I am always putting in their baskets.

I figured I would share some of the items I put in my kid’s baskets this year! It is nothing earth shattering given the fact I couldn’t browse through the store for things – which is one of my favorite things to do every spring!

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Look For Less – Spring Home Decor

Spring is here! Yay, I love the colors of spring decor. So refreshing and bright, that alone just puts me in the best mood! I LOVE seeing how other people decorate their houses every season and figured I would share some things spring things I place around our house!

I know I’ve mentioned this in other posts, I like to decorate around my staple decor pieces – adding seasonal touches here and there. As my decoration inventory grows year after year, I’m sure it may be a different story, but for now, this is how I decorate our house.

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What We’re Cookin’ Wednesday – Two Weeks of Dinner

I don’t know about you, but lunches and dinners have just been different around here lately. First off, the convenience of heading out to the grocery store whenever and wherever you want is no longer – therefore you are forced to map out your meals or “work with” what you have.

Second, is it me, or are the kids eating/snacking more than normal?! I think I have been more aware as I am “rationing” them given the circumstances – another factor, adding another adult to our lunch crew, that can chew up some of the goods too!

Anyway, I figured I would share a look into our dinners for the past two weeks to give you some ideas and/or provide some help during these not so normal times. If you are able to have groceries delivered or can do curbside pick up- I am hoping this can give you a sense of what you will need to have on hand (at least a broad overview!).

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Toddler Boy Room Reveal

This post has been a long time coming. We finally got my son’s bedroom “pretty much” completed. I say that because I am still searching for the perfect nightstand and table lamp. I do like exploring garage sales and flea market sales for those items, but given the uncertainty of the virus – I’m not sure how much garage-saling I will be doing this year. Nevertheless, I wanted to show you how his “industrial style airplane” room came together!

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Tip Jar Tuesday: For the “New” Stay at Home Parent…Activity Ideas

Welp, this quarantine has been something else! My husband and I were just chatting recently at how crazy it is that most people are now working at home and having to juggle that and their children.

Since not a whole lot has changed around here on my end (besides trying to keep the kids quiet during my husband’s conference calls upstairs) I figured I would share some activities/toys we have been playing to keep busy while we are forced in the house during this time.

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What I Cooked Wednesday – Switching Up Breakfast/Brunch

The past two weekends we had some brunch/breakfast get togethers. We finally got together with my best friend and her family to exchange Christmas gifts (that took wayyy to long) and we celebrated my sister-in-laws birthday at my parents.

Breakfast and brunch dates just seem to work well with everyone during this stage in life. The kids are in a better mood, we are up and coming back from church at that time, the kids are able to nap right after the festivities and on a Sunday – a dinner get together would be tough.

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What I Cooked Wednesday – Mexican Stuffed Peppers

I’m a big fan of traditional stuffed peppers (ground beef, rice, onions, tomato soup, salt and peppers) – which are so bland in my husband’s opinion! I bought a big bag of bell peppers from Costco last week and I thought – stuffed peppers on the brain for dinner.

Problem is, they couldn’t be plain old boring stuffed peppers…I had to spice these up a bit for my husband to even give it a chance! Mexican Stuffed Peppers for the win!!

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A Look At….My Favorite “Healthy” Breakfast

Breakfast is honestly my favorite meal of the day. I do not discriminate and honestly love ALL breakfast foods. While I can get caught up with sugary, carb heavy breakfast foods during the week – I like to toss this heart healthy breakfast into the mix. So many people are hit or miss when it comes to loving oatmeal, but if you doctor it up correctly, it’s GOOD (swear)! This breakfast is super easy and the flavors are just so YUM!

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Tip Jar: Infant Sleep Schedule

First off, I am NOT a baby sleep trainer professional. This is strictly based on a whole bunch of research I personally did as I was preparing to become a stay at home mom after the birth of our son two and a half years ago.

I was so so excited, but also a little nervous about becoming a stay at home Mom. For me, it was a huge transition leaving my marketing career. I truly loved the vibe of working downtown. While I valued my career, I always knew I wanted to be a stay at home Mom. I always wanted to be around/play with our kids, manage a household and have our own set routine.

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Tip Jar: Home Cleaning Schedule

My, my, my…what a crazy end of the year it was. I am so happy to start “fresh” in this new year! Routines have been out of wack for the the last quarter of 2019 and I am ready to roll up my sleeves and get things back in order around the house!

My main goals around the house this year: maintain a clean kitchen EVERY DAY, keep up with the house in terms of de-cluttering and reorganization and stick to my cleaning checklist. At the beginning of last year – I pulled together multiple cleaning checklists and used them to put together a thorough home maintenance schedule that worked!

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Toddler Travel Activity Bin

Thanksgiving and the holidays are fast approaching and so is all the TRAVEL associated with this time of the year. We happen to be driving 5+ hours to our holiday destination and while the drive is somewhat manageable, there will be a need to keep the two bigger kiddos occupied during our trip. I’m already foreshadowing our daughter asking “are we there yet” 5 minutes into our drive for hours on end…

This year the kids are big enough where they might not be sleeping as much during the drive, so I decided to pack a “travel activities bin” for them both to look forward to! They have already been asking if they can start playing with some of the toys and I keep hyping up the trip, telling them they have to wait – which is key! These items have to be new and something they are looking forward to!

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