Adventures of a Midlife Mommy

#MasterLockProtects Give Back All Year Long

1/25/2015

DISCLAIMER: This is a sponsored post, written by me, on behalf of Master Lock. All opinions and experiences are my own.

As a child, we look up to our parents to keep us safe, to keep us happy, fed, to protect us from harm, they are our heroes. Growing up, my Dad was all of these things for me, a hero, a protector and a person in my life I could depend on, but who does a hero turn to, when they need help?

About seven years ago, I got the call that no child wants to get; it was about my Dad. He was sick. He was very sick. At a routine Doctor appointment, he was told he needed to have emergency heart valve replacement surgery. They did the tests, ultrasounds and immediately scheduled the surgery for a few days away. We barely had time to worry, barely.

When we arrived at the hospital, the morning of surgery, my Mom and I were left in the waiting room to sit and ponder the outcome. This was a very delicate surgery that could have easily ended up being a tragedy. Several hours passed, several very quiet hours.

The surgery went as well as we could have hoped for, but there was a little more blood loss than they expected and he had to have a transfusion. Thanks to the kindness of strangers who had donated to the American Red Cross, my Dad is still here with us, to keep fighting another day, to see his grand-kids grow up, to go play golf with his buddies, to love my Mom and keep her safe.

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1000 Voices Speak for Compassion #1000Speak

1/19/2015

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About a week ago, I responded to a call for writers, who would like to join a group, of 1000 bloggers, who would all post about the same topic, on the same day. The topic: Compassion.

When I signed up, I didn't really have any idea what I was gonna write about, I still kinda don't, but I knew I had to be a part of this "movement". I knew there would be something I could gain, by being a part of this amazing group of writers and maybe, someone could gain something from me, as well.

After I joined, I got nervous. I'm not typically known for being one of those serious bloggers who writes serious, meaningful blog posts on a daily basis. The blogger who always has something of great importance to write about. Would anyone even want to read what I have to say? Was I about to embarrass myself in front of a lot of really great bloggers?!

I'm more of a fun, lighthearted blogger. I write about food and fun stuff to do with your kids. There was that one time I wrote about my "experience", back in April of '13, for SAAM, but I'm not typically that kind of blogger. I wondered if I even had anything to add to the conversation. I worried, I procrastinated, I decided I would just bow out, saying I had too many other things to do, too many other "pressing issues" to take care of. ... Then I told myself to shut up and get to work. I am a good writer. I can string a sentence together with the best of them and I have had plenty of opportunities to learn about compassion along the way. My voice is valid. My voice is worth hearing. My voice is strong.

The point of this ramble is to show that compassion begins at home. It starts in your mind, it starts in your heart, it starts with being kind to yourself. You can't give, what you don't have. I could sit here all day and beat myself up with worry and doubt or I can choose to be kind to myself and give myself a break. I deserve it. I'm a pretty cool gal, if I do say so myself and I have had a lot of experiences that might benefit another person, if I only choose to share them.

Nine times out of ten, we would NEVER talk down to another human being, the way we do to ourselves. You would never walk up to a stranger and say, "You suck, you probably should just give up now, it's not gonna end well for you." Instead, you would say, "You can totally do this, stop bugging out and just do it, you won't know until you try!"

After a few deep breaths and a little pep talk, I decided I would complete this "assignment". I would write about compassion and what it means to me. I will share my experiences with choosing compassion, when you really want to give up. Maybe people will read it, maybe they won't. Maybe it will suck, maybe it won't. Either way, who cares. For me, this is all about the journey and learning as much as I possibly can, while I'm here. It's not easy to examine all the little things that make us who we are and how we are, but I truly feel it is a necessary step, in making "self compassion" a second nature kind of emotion.

Lucky for me, "the journey" isn't due until Feb 20th, so I still have time to figure out exactly what I want to write about and there's still time for you to join us. Here's a little more info on the #1000Voices initiative, you can check out this post and to join us, you can click here.

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Show Your #DisneySide With a FREE Family Car Decal

1/6/2015

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Do you know all the words to "Supercalifragilisticexpialidicious"? Do you get all giggly when you see a grown man in a mouse costume? Do you say, "Hakuna Matata" on a regular basis? If you answered "yes" to any of these questions, then you, my friend, have a #DisneySide.

For a limited time, you can show your #DisneySide with a custom designed (by you) Disney themed car decal, it even ships free. You can choose from several different options, related to clothes, hair, accessories, etc. and if you enter your email, you can unlock many more options. Click the picture above to get started. For reference, here's mine...

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Jake and the Never land Pirates Activity Sheets & GAmes

1/5/2015

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In honor of the January 6th release of "Jake and the Never Land Pirates: Battle for the Book", I am sharing these fun activities and games that will take you on a magical ride with Jake and his friends.

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Rise and Shine Individual Breakfast Quiches

1/5/2015

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Having (what seems like) an entire Army of kids to feed, can make meal planning a bit difficult, not to mention, pricey. I am always on the lookout for yummy, budget friendly recipes to Guinea pig on the family and this one definitely did not disappoint. I found this easy recipe (and a crap ton of other yummy stuff), over at "Living Well, Spending Less" and couldn't wait to try it out for myself.

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Why I Won't Be Making a New Year's Resolution This Year

1/2/2015

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I keep seeing my friends on Facebook posting their New Year's resolutions, all the things they are going to do different this year... lose weight, get in shape, spend time with my kids, be a better person, be a better spouse, blah, blah, blah. While that is all fine and good, in the back of my head, I hear "that little voice" saying, "Really, you said the same thing last year and we both see how that ended."

We all know how this thing goes, you make the resolution and you do really good at it... for all of three weeks, four or five if you really try, but it always ends the same way, every stinking time. You fail, you get mad at yourself, you give up. It's human nature, it happens to all of us, you are not the exception to the rule, you are the rule. So much so, that even the big advertising companies play to this "fault". Have you noticed all the ads, recently, for gym memberships, Nutrisystem ads, ads to help you whiten your teeth, ads for "healthy" food products, it's all around us, the desire to "be better" and I am all for it. Be better, look better, eat better, but why only think about this when the calendar says to?

The calendar is nothing more than a record keeping tool. A way to keep track of days that have come and gone, a way to keep up with Doctor's appointments, soccer games, kids' work schedules, a way to remember your friend's birthday, a few pieces of decorative paper, bound together, in a book. Nothing more, nothing less.

A calendar should not dictate when you decide to eat "right", or when you start spending more time with your kids, when you decide to put more effort into your relationships or your job. Do those things every day, regardless of the date on a calendar.

See, we have the unique opportunity, as humans, to wake up every single day and know this is a brand new start, a new chance to right wrongs, a new chance to eat "right", a new chance to make the very best of what opportunities come your way. Every day can be a new start, you don't have to wait 'til the calendar tells you to "try harder, eat better, love more", you can do it right now and if you mess it up today, no worries, shake that ish off and try it again tomorrow.

That's why I will not be making a "New Year's" resolution, I will be making a daily resolution. Some days, my resolution may be something as simple as "put on something besides sweats today" and I'm OK with that. You don't have to be the perfect Mom/Spouse every day. Just be the best you, you can be and never stop trying and if you can honestly say that, nothing else matters, it will all fall into place. Make every day a new year and just enjoy being here.

Happy New Year!

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#FREE #Printable #SesameStreet ABC Flash Cards #FreebieFriday

1/2/2015

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I made these fun, Sesame Street A-B-C flash cards a while ago and Micah has really enjoyed them. All you need to do is, print, cut and laminate them. I made them big enough to see well, but you can resize them if you want. You can also make several copies, so you can spell simple words with them, it can even be a game, leave one letter out, ask your little one to fill in the blanks.
To print: Simply click on each picture, it will pull up a printable file.