Mommin' It Up!

October 21, 2013

The Pressure’s On: Birthmaspalooza 2013

cake-stand-1 — This? Will not be happening in my house! (Click for image credit)

Oh, look, October’s almost over! And I haven’t even had time to start stressing about Halloween yet. Mostly because the kids were good about deciding what they wanted to be this year, and Sophie and Jonah are wearing costumes we already had. WHEEE!

But don’t worry, I’m totally already stressing about the 38-day period that includes Sophie’s, Bobby’s, and Jonah’s birthdays and Christmas – and this year – bonus event!!! Our favorite babysitter whom we love like a little sister is getting married December 15th and Sophie is a flower girl.

That’s just WAY to much packed into five weeks! But, like every year, it is ON like Donkey Kong.

Sophie, like her mother before her (shot myself in the foot there) is SO EXCITED about her birthday, it’s been all she could talk about for two or three weeks already. And of course, the shower for the bride is being held that day (her birthday falls on a Saturday) and I was already planning on having her friends party that day AND our family party that evening, but I can’t handle ALL that in one day, so I’m moving the friends party off-site. Yep, I’m forking out huge cashola to have the party where Sophie takes gymnastics. It relieve me somewhat but it’s honestly more than we can typically afford. And I feel guilty about it. I told her it was special for this year only since we have so many things on one day – and if we don’t do it all on her birthday? There’s NO TIME to do it at any other point. Thanksgiving, other birthdays, etc just take over! It’s now or never. We have to get it out of the way so we can move on to the next event!

The money hemorrhage has started early! Birthday presents aren’t a *huge* expense as we keep it reasonable with our four gifts system – but since we have two more family birthdays before Christmas, it all adds up. Quickly.

I was hoping this year poor Jonah would get a REAL birthday party for once, but with the wedding being the weekend of his birthday, I imagine it will just get lumped in with our family Christmas celebration again. Which is a bummer because I am hoping this year he will really “get” and understand what’s going on. But since he won’t remember…and we have SO much going on…it might just be our little family celebrating him on his actual birthday and then present-palooza for him at our family Christmas (my nephew Alan, born December 27th, seems unscarred by this happening so hopefully it will do no long-term harm to Jonah!)

But anyhoo. I’m tired and stressed about it already! Which I hate, because I LOVE celebrating my kids, my husband, and my Savior. Christmas really is my favorite time of year. But it all gets so crazy so early on for us that it’s hard for me to relax about it.

Maybe it’s just a personal problem.

Anyone else have a crazy birthdaymaspalooza holiday time like we do? What’s your solution?

October 18, 2013

What I Wore: Fun Fall Fashion

This week, I had the chance to be whisked to far-away Cincinnati for a meeting with a new group I’m thrilled to have joined, the Pampers Baby Board. I’ll tell you a little bit more about my trip next week, but first things first: what did I wear!??!? Since I rarely have the occasion to really dress up at home, I had a great time putting some outfits together. Happily, I just had a birthday, so I had some great things available to wear, and my friends at Lands’ End stepped into offer me a few more. Here’s how I put some outfits together with things I already owned as well as some fabulous new fall Lands’ End items.

Here I am at home getting ready to head to Cincy. I had on something new – this gorgeous Lands’ End corduroy tunic and scarf, with something old – jeans and Lands’ End leather boots I already owned. I absolutely love the look and feel of the tunic. It has a really cute keyhole neck and the color and fit are really flattering.

The first night out we had a fancy dinner to attend, and I love the chance to dress up! I decided to add something to the pink dress and shoes I wore to Mom 2.0 to make it appropriate for fall. This polka dot supima cardigan was just what I needed! It’s so soft and comfy, but looks dressy, too. Plus I can wear it with jeans, cords, or anything else in addition to this dress! I wore with with some Lands’ End pearls I’ve had for a couple of years and I love the way it all came together!

I absolutely looooove Lands’ End cords, so I wanted to get a pair to dress up for this trip in a style I hadn’t tried before. I got these fit 1 corduroy ankle pants and I of course LOVE them. They are so comfy and warm, and they look really sharp. They paired perfectly with yet another Supima cardigan. This time I went for leopard so I could wear it with these fab leopard Lands’ End flats I already owned. (I couldn’t get them in the picture, I didn’t have anyone to be my photographer!) I finished the outfit up with a patent Lands’ End belt I’ve had for awhile, too. I really felt great in this outfit!

Finally, it was time to go home. I was ready to go home comfy but still stylin’ of course! I wore all Lands’ End items I already had or had gotten for my birthday, including this fabulous print scarf, jeans, and tee. (These are my favorite tees and I have a bazillion of them!) The cardigan is from last year and I wish I had gotten it in more colors because I wear the HECK out of it!

I had so much fun putting outfits together for the trip! Thanks, Lands’ End for allowing me to pick out a few new things to mix with the old!

What’s your favorite thing I wore? Do you get the chance to dress up often?

October 18, 2013October 21, 2013

It’s National School Lunch Week!

lunchday — This post is sponsored by the School Nutrition Association, but was written by me alone.

When my Sophie started kindergarten, she was slightly obsessed with lunch. I guess it was the novelty of chowing down with a group of her peers, or perhaps the excitement of the free time to socialize. Even though she’s not a huge eater, it is still definitely her favorite part of the school day. She came home those first couple of weeks excited to tell me who was a “packer” and who was a “buyer”, how much lunch cost, what you did with your lunch money when you got to school, and which teacher had been on lunch duty that day. And of course, she also filled me in on the menu.

As parents, we are of course all concerned that our kids have healthy lunch options available to them at school. When Jonah starts preschool in January at our local public school, he will be eating breakfast there because he will be in morning preschool, but if he were in the afternoon class he’d be eating lunch – and either way, since he has food allergies, I’m obviously going to have questions and concerns to go over with the school nutrition staff when he starts school. It’s important to have a dialogue between parents and school staff when it comes to the food our kids are being served there. That’s why the School Nutrition Association and Kiwi Magazine are once again partnering on National Take Your Parents to Lunch Day during National School Lunch Week this year.

Mom & daughter enjoying Take Your Parents to Lunch Day at Sayler Park Elementary in Cincinnati

Take Your Parents to Lunch Day is a day where parents can not only eat lunch with their kids at school, but a chance for them to learn about what goes into making their kids’ school lunch healthy, and it’s a great chance for them to talk to their kids about healthy eating habits at every meal. It’s also the perfect time for parents to ask questions and learn from their kids’ school lunch providers and take time to learn about the government standards for school lunches (which underwent big changes in 2012).

Yesterday, Cincinnati public schools participated in National Take Your Parents to Lunch Day in every single one of their elementary schools. Parents from all over the district got the chance to spend some time with their kids and with the people who work to give them a healthy lunch each school day. But it wasn’t just about the food – these families also got the chance to talk to each other and to school officials about what goes into a healthy school lunch and why it’s important to make healthy choices in every meal of the day, and snacks, too!

Roberts Academy Elementary in Cincinnati

More parents checking out lunch at Roberts Academy Elementary

Even if your child’s school isn’t hosting a Take Your Parents to Lunch Day, it’s still important for you to be informed about what’s going into their lunches and why. Do you have questions? There’s an awesome Lunch Day Toolkit you can download at MyHealthySchool.com. It’s packed full of information on what the requirements are for a healthy school meal, and has great conversation starters to facilitate dialogue between you and your school’s food service provider. And since your food service provider isn’t the only one you need to talk to about healthy eating, there are conversation starters for you and your kiddos, too.

Sayler Park Elementary 1 — A fun family lunch at Salyer Park Elementary

If you want your school to host a Take Your Parents to Lunch Day next year, check out these great tips for getting your school involved!

Did your kids school participate in Take Your Parents to Lunch Day? What are your biggest concerns about the lunches they are served at school, and have you talked to school officials about them? I’d love to hear your experiences in the comment.