The beauty and the burden of having a daughter

Thank you Dove Hair for sponsoring this post. Click here to download and share your own personalized Dove Hair Love Your Curls e-Book! I can be honest with you guys, right? When I found out Sawyer was a girl, I was so so so very thrilled! But I was also really really scared about having a daughter. … ... [Read more...]

5 Awesome Ways to Bring the Beach to Your Backyard + Giveaway

This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Bestway. All opinions are 100% mine. We probably won’t make it to the beach this summer and I gotta tell you – I’m super sad about that! I love the beach so much. In fact, there’s a part of me that feels like I was meant to live near a beach. The … ... [Read more...]

From dull to deck-tacular | our deck makeover

This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Char-Broil. All opinions are 100% mine. I have big plans for our backyard this summer. Oh yes. Big, big plans. I know I say this about different rooms of our house a lot. But I would really like to enjoy our outdoor space much more than we have in … ... [Read more...]

The truth about those (dreaded!) sponsored blog posts

Today I’m going to discuss a hot topic in the blog world – sponsored posts. Last month I conducted a reader survey. The last time I asked for my readers’ thoughts and opinions was in 2011. So I thought it was time I figured out who is reading my blog. I also wanted to find out why you are reading … ... [Read more...]

The Little Spoons

Slish, slosh. Slish, slosh. The dish water splashes back and forth in the sink as I hurriedly place dirty bowls and plates and silverware in the dishwasher. After a few days of ignoring the growing pile, it was the strange stench that finally convinced me to do them. Dear God. How long has this been … ... [Read more...]

Easy Sloppy Joe Bowls

This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Manwich. All opinions are 100% mine. Mondays can be a bit bumpy for families, am I right? It’s tough getting back into the weekly routine after a slower-paced weekend. I’ll be honest – one of the things I really dislike is coming up with ideas for … ... [Read more...]

Smile – Spring is on the Way!

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #OpticSmiles #CollectiveBias I have shared with you before my hatred of winter. So I guess it’s no surprise I have a countdown to spring then, right? Do you wanna know how many more days we have … ... [Read more...]

Money Talks | Busting Myths about Health Insurance

I will be starting a monthly feature called Money Talks where I will write about a topic surrounding finances. I still receive a lot of questions about how we paid off $20,500 in debt. I’d like to continue to write about debt and ways to save money. There are so many things I want to cover. But time … ... [Read more...]

The Hunt for Love (when you never really lost it)

It is hard to believe that my husband and I have been together for thirteen years and married for eight of those years. It honestly doesn’t seem like that long ago we were in our twenties, newly engaged and just beginning to dream about what our life would look like together. At the time of our … ... [Read more...]