Fun Friday – What Made It On My Radar This Week!!

Posted on 27 February, 2015 by admin

We made it to the Weekend!! That is reason enough to celebrate with all the craziness going around. Every Weekend, I entice myself with plans of pulling the covers up around my neck, sleeping in, drinking coffee in bed and reading a good book. And, then I am startled awake by two, entirely too awake, wide eyed and bushy tailed little girls. Every now and then dh takes pity on me and I wake up to the smells of breakfast wafting through the house and my little monsters happily eating. This is always a treat. Even though I often miss the days of peace and quiet, I know all too well that these times won’t last forever.

For Today’s Fun Friday Post, I am opening up the blinds and letting you in on what made it on my radar this week.

1. Monday was a Holiday and Tuesday was a Snow Day, or in Georgia a Potential Threat of Ice Day. What do you do with your kids on Snow Days? It’s just enough to drive this Mommy crazy. Being stuck in the house all day with children who want you to entertain them, can really leave you grasping at straws. Here are some ideas I found around the web to maintain your sanity, while still scoring major Mommy points. I am putting these on my list for next year(because hopefully we are done with this, and Spring is on it’s way.). The Indoor Picnic – Game Marathons – Cookie Baking and Decorating Contest – Beauty Parlor – Hair and Mani-Pedis. Just to scratch the surface. I am working on a more detailed post just on that.

2. The Return of the Mack aka Frank Underwood and my favorite Netflix Series House of Cards. In case you have been living under a rock for the last two seasons. Find out more about Francis and Claire here. It came out this morning, and once this post gets published, I will be in a self induced House of Cards Coma for the next 13 episodes.

3. My girls are particularly excited about the Release of the Annie DVD. I mean over the moon. There was a lot of hand holding, screaming and straight up joy, when they found out that we could actually pre-order the movie now. I must admit that I have kind of overdosed on the sound track, because they play it every day. But, since I don’t intend to have to stomp out an uprising in my own home. I guess Mommy will tow the line.

4. Looking for some Inspiration and Positive Vibes – Check out my (3) Favorite Instagram Feeds for this week:

A: TheIconicGirls

B: ABowlFullofLemons

C: Proverbs31Ministries

5. What I am currently looking forward to – The iPhone 6 Plus or the 6 (Eligible for my Upgrade on 3/1/15) – I haven’t quite decided yet, and yes I know I am way too excited about that…

5. My favorite quote for the week:

Photo Source: Pinterest

Enjoy The Weekend!!

Happy Birthday Elmo!!

Posted on 3 February, 2015 by admin

Photo Source:

I don’t know about you but Elmo has been a BIG part of all three of my children’s lives, from my 18 year old all the way down to the 4 year old. So, I was a little excited to hear that it was his birthday. Go figure!! Can you believe that Elmo has been around since the 80’s?

When I told my little ones they seemed to share in my excitement. So just for fun here are some fun Elmo Craft Projects that I found.

Elmo’s Cut & Paste Activity – found here at the FunwithMamaBlog.

Elmo Coloring Page – found here at Coloring-Book.Info.

Sesame Street Clay Pots ** – found here at ButtonsBobbinsandOtherBits. (This one is my favorite.)

I picked the Cut and Paste Activity to do with my four year old. She is at that age where she loves any excuse to use scissors. These others are definitely going on my Toddler Craft To Do List.

Fun Friday – All About V-Day!!

Posted on 30 January, 2015 by admin

Wow, did this week fly by for anyone else but me? Today’s Fun Friday is ALL about Valentine’s Day!!

Do you miss those days when it was just the two of you? But, that just isn’t the case anymore, now that you have little people running around, who seem to be sapping your romantic flow. But, you want your guy to know that he is still #1 in your book. No matter how tired you may be.

Most men are simple. And, most men don’t really give a hoot about Valentine’s Day. Even still, you care, so make sure he knows that you do too. Keep in Mind, that this year Valentine’s Day falls on a Saturday (what a treat). So, you have the whole day to make your love feel special.

Here are a few Quick & Hopefully Not Too Dirty Ideas:

Start with Breakfast — In Bed or Out (your choice)

It doesn’t have to be anything GRAND, you know your guy. Add a Sweet Card, a Love Note, or even an IOU (for later fun). Running low on time in the morning, consider prepping your guys breakfast the night before.

Babysitter or Not –

Can you get a baby sitter to stay with the kids so you can have some alone time? What works better for your family? Are you going to hit the movies with your honey during the day, or are you going to make it an official date night and don the heels and flirty dress?? Whatever you do, make sure the plan is put in place long before that weekend. Remember reservations are nearly impossible to get around this time of year.

Of course, if a Baby Sitter is not an option for you, then you have to either plan V-Day around the kiddies, or include them. When my oldest daughter was much younger, we both dressed up one year and had dinner with my hubby. It was super sweet and we all enjoyed sitting at the table together for dinner. She enjoyed being included and making a Valentine for her Daddy.

Here are some fun ideas for sharing V-day with your little ones, that I found around the web.

12 Ways to Celebrate Valentine’s Day with Your Kids

4 Sweet Ways To Celebrate Valentine’s Day with Your Kids

To Dine –

If you are lucky, maybe you are one the of the couples who manage to get time alone, reserve your table far enough in advance, and are dressed to impressed for a Night On the Town. Leave everything else on the back shelf for the night. You have pulled off a major coup!! Make tonight only about YOUR LOVE. No talk of work, daycare, or diapers. Relax and Enjoy Each Other.

Every Day is Special with the One You Love, but Valentine’s day should be even SWEETER.

V-Day Stories –

And, if you got all the way through this post, Good For You!!

So as promised, here is your Free Valentine’s Day Pencil Tag (PDF File) with instructions. Click to Download and Enjoy!!

How to Capture Memories with a Yearly Family Photo Book?

Posted on 26 January, 2015 by admin

Four years ago, I decided to start putting together a Yearly Family Photo Book. The years were going by way too fast, and I wanted to document it . The thing about digital photography in my opinion, is that the memories get stuck either on your SD Card, Your Phone or Your Camera. And, then the ones that get uploaded only seem to make it as far as Facebook.(Well at least in my case.)

The first two years, I struggled through a year’s worth of pictures, trying to decide which ones were worthy of a spot in our Photo Book. The process was tedious, and frankly more than annoying. So last year, I decided to try to stream line my process. Hopefully, it will save you some aggravation should you decide to do this for your family.

1. Cataloging – At the end of every month, I download all the pictures that are on my various devices. Then, I take my time and go through them and weed out the duds. Then I save them on my Desktop to a specific folder named for that month. As I save them, I try to give them names that would inspire captions for the book.

2. Uploading – After I have completed that, I upload them to Shutterfly and then make sure they go into the My Projects Folder, so that I can come back to it the following month.

3. The Finished Project – At the end of the year, or realistically at the beginning of the following year. I give my Saved Project the once over. For the most part, you should not have much to do at this time. But, most likely you will want to add some pics of the Holiday Season to complete your project.

Photo Credit: Colorado Senior Life

Note: I use Shutterfly for pretty much everything photo related, but there are several options out there. I love Shutterfly specifically, because several times during the year they offer a coupon for a free photo book, and in that case you will most likely only have to pay for shipping. Unless you are like me and you have so many pics that you go over the allotted page requirement. But, even still its worth it!!

Do you have pictures that you lost or wished that you had printed?

Tips for getting back on track after Winter Break….

Posted on 5 January, 2015 by admin

Are you struggling with getting things back on track after the Break? Here are some quick and easy steps to get your Over The Hump!!

As much as I love Christmas, I for one am elated that Christmas Break is over. So much so, that I got up this morning and got my little one ready for school. Got dressed and drove all the way to school, only to realize… today was a Teacher Work Day and not the kid’s first day back at school. Thankfully, I caught on before I dropped her off. So, I laughed it off, but to be honest, when I got back in I sat on the sofa for a good 30 minutes talking myself out of wanting to lay on my back, kick my feet up and have a full blown temper tantrum. Ugh!! As you can see, I am still struggling with things not going as I PLAN. After deciding that no real purpose would be served by that, I moved on with my day. *It was like having your Mind and your Mouth set on that last piece of chocolate you have stashed in the refrigerator and when you reach in to get it… you realize that someone got to it first. (Even after you hid it soo expertly.) This Mommy really was looking forward to some peace and quiet. I just knew that today was going to be that day. So, I regrouped, and rescheduled.

Getting Back On Track After Christmas Break - stage-presents.com

Start your day out with purpose. For me that means reading my Devotion and prayer. For you, that may be meditation and clearing your head.
Regroup and Evaluate. Where were you before your vacation? Where do you want to pick up? Are you just jumping back in or have your priorities changed?
Create a Rolling To Do List. Over the next 30 days, what are your Goals and Objectives? Separate the Business from the Personal. I am a list maker. So you best believe, I have two separate lists going at all times. I never realized the beauty of a Rolling To Do List, until I had to plan the days of others, as well as my own. Check out this article CBS published on how they keep you organized and productive. As much as I hate to say it, whatever you don’t get done today, will get done tomorrow (unless your have a deadline in place).
Create a Weekly List. Prioritize. Decide What is of the Utmost Importance and start crossing off each item as you go.
Lastly, Work Your Plan and Breathe. What will be… will be.

Go Confidently in the Direction of Your Dreams. Live the Life you have imagined – Henry Thoreau

Our Delayed 2014 Christmas Home Tour — Welcome In…

Posted on 27 December, 2014 by admin

This Year’s Christmas Tour was delayed, obviously. But, things got so busy leading up to Christmas that there honestly wasn’t enough time to post. This years Tour will be more pictures than words. Welcome to our Little Piece of Heaven — Enjoy!!

Decorating brings me much joy, but decorating for the holidays brings me enjoyment on another level. This time of year is still wrapped in magic for me, even now. Watching the excitement on my children’s faces as the whole house comes together, and knowing that we are creating life long memories leaves me totally blissful!! I believe that my love for decorating and this time of year, was passed on to me by my amazing mother and I only hope that it is something my kids will do with joy, for their own families years from now. Our whole family, hubby included gets wrapped up in the excitement, of the Christmas Elf, Santa, and the real reason for the season. I hope that you all had an amazing Holiday and wish you Only the Best for the Year to Come.

— Sheree

This thing called… an Advent Calendar

Posted on 4 December, 2014 by admin

Hubby and I have been contemplating purchasing an Advent Calendar for the past couple of years, but neither of us were sure exactly what purpose it served. And, the last thing we wanted to do was to add anything to Christmas that would require us to exert any more effort than we already do during the Holiday Season. So year after year, we have passed.

This year (2014) however, they seemed to be all over the DIY circuit, which of course sparked my interest again. And, some of the ones that I was coming across seemed like they would be something that I could tackle and actually be pleased with the outcome.

So I was off to do my research, little did I know that this would be much more involved than I thought. Literally, every one seemed to have their own way of doing it. Some folks gave a gift for each day, similar to Hanukkah Some folks did it for the entire month of December. Some people did it for the 12 days of Christmas. Others made sure that it corresponded with the Advent Season.

After learning about how other’s did it. I decided, which I am sure is of no surprise to you, to do it MY WAY!! I decided that we would do it for 12 days and I really didn’t think it was important when we started it, as long as we got in 12 days prior to Christmas Eve.(we started today) I decided that for the first 9 days, we would discuss the Fruits of the Spirit, in a way that a 10 year old and a 4 year old could both comprehend. And, then for the remaining days, we would discuss 3 character traits, that we thought were vital to being good people. We choose Empathy, Forgiveness, and Honor.

After being woo’d by all the great DIY Advent Calendars, I took the easy way out and created a printable version. Maybe, I will do something more complex next year.

Do you think this is something you would like to do with your little ones? Join us on our journey, here’s a free printable for you. Right Click – Save – Print and Enjoy!! (Just right click and save and you are good to go!!)

Enjoy the “Most Wonderful Time of the Year”

Thanksgiving After Thanksgiving

Posted on 28 November, 2014 by admin

We all know the best part of Thanksgiving, next to the joy of seeing friends and family and really tasty fattening food, is the left overs. So what happens, when you aren’t the one cooking/hosting, and you’re heading home that afternoon? When you have Thanksgiving away from home, chances are you are going to head home empty handed.

So this year, I decided to pull together a pseudo Thanksgiving meal. What the heck does that mean? It means that I was going to cook a meal that takes far less time, but that could resemble a Thanksgiving Meal to the untrained eye and maybe even untrained pallet.

Of course, I made this decision far too close to crunch time(Tuesday night), so that meant that I had just a short time to determine what exactly that meant. So I decided to put together a small menu that I thought I could pull off with ease, and we would have a great meal when we returned home.

My Original Thoughts – Turkey Breasts from HoneyBaked Ham, Green Bean Casserole, Baked Mac and Cheese, Some Jazzed Up Stuffing, Pepperidge Farm Chocolate Cake.. Yum

The Actual Menu – (I just couldn’t talk myself into getting in that HoneyBaked Ham line the day before Thanksgiving.)

Italian Chicken Breasts, Green Bean Casserole, Baked Mac and Cheese, Some Jazzed Up Stuffing, and Pound Cake.. Still Yum.

I know you are probably shaking your head, and thinking , you have to Meal Plan, even when you aren’t Meal Planning. But, such is the life of Mommy.

What does your family eat after they get home, when you aren’t hosting for the holidays?

How to Beat the B-O-R-E-D bug over the Holiday Break?

Posted on 22 November, 2014 by admin

Holiday Breaks take on a different meaning when you are a Stay at Home Mom. When I was working full time, I treasured the days of being at home with the kids. I would get 2-3 days off at the most and those days were so jam packed with activity, it seemed like they were over before they even started.

Fast Forward to this year, when the Board of Education saw fit to make Thanksgiving Break a week long, sending this Mommy into Panic Mode. A Week off in the Cold, with little to no chance of Outdoor Activities means I have to find a way to keep these girl’s entertained to combat the B-O-R-E-D bug.

For the Free Printable Click BORED.

So my mind switches into List Mode….

What can we do?

Board Games
Arts & Crafts
Bowling
Learning Disguised as Fun
Read-a- Thon & Library Trips
$3 Movie Theater Trip
Holiday Decorations
Scrapbooking
Making Christmas Lists
Mini-Golf
Baking

I am feeling pretty proud of myself, until I realize that my entire list could probably fit into a 4-5 hour time Span, which sends me into an even bigger panic.

So it’s back to the drawing board, also known as Pinterest.

Here are some of the links that I found….

The Chirping Moms on

Only 9 Days Left Until Halloween…

Posted on 22 October, 2014 by admin

Are you Ready? It’s true, there are really only 9 days left!!

Let’s Run Through Our Quick Check List.

If your kids are going Trick or Treating, I hope that you already have their costumes, in hand. You couldn’t pay me, to be in Party City(or any other costume store), this time of year. Honestly, it’s like Black Friday for the Goblins. EEK!! Have you thought the whole Costume through? I can’t tell you how many years, Halloween morning came and I realized I still needed coordinating shoes, stockings, undershirts, blah blah, blah. I mean, let’s face it, no princess was ever fierce in NIKE’s. Also, make sure to factor in the cold, the rain, and potential runny noses(cold/flu season). NO matter how warm the day starts out, it always seem to be brisk on Halloween night, even in Georgia.
You’ve Completed your Outdoor Fall Decor and Decided whether or not you want it to be Inviting or Scare the Little Ones Away.
You’ve got Candy, or if you are “that Mom”, raisins and fruit cups. With Food Allergies becoming more and more rampant, consider that when purchasing your treats. Trust me, No Mommy wants to end their Halloween on the other end of an Epi-Pen.
Which brings me to my next point, it may seem EXTRA, but check your child’s candy. Unfortunately, we live in times, where we have no choice but to be VIGILANT!!
Finally, plan ahead. Go over Safety Rules and Have Fun!! Take lots of pictures, make lots of memories and Enjoy your Little Ones, believe it a lot these moments can be fleeting.

If you are still considering planning a Halloween Party of Fall Festival Check Out our Custom Invitations over on our Etsy Page!

Stage Presents

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Category Archives: Family Life

Happy Birthday Elmo!!

Tips for getting back on track after Winter Break….

Are you struggling with getting things back on track after the Break? Here are some quick and easy steps to get your Over The Hump!!

Go Confidently in the Direction of Your Dreams. Live the Life you have imagined – Henry Thoreau

Thanksgiving After Thanksgiving

Only 9 Days Left Until Halloween…

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Here are a few Quick & Hopefully Not Too Dirty Ideas:

Start with Breakfast — In Bed or Out (your choice)

Babysitter or Not –

To Dine –

V-Day Stories –

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Are you struggling with getting things back on track after the Break? Here are some quick and easy steps to get your Over The Hump!!

Go Confidently in the Direction of Your Dreams. Live the Life you have imagined – Henry Thoreau

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