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My Crunchy Product Experiments: Which Work And Which Don’t? Part 2

Welcome to Part 2 of the Crunchy Product Experiments discussion! If you haven’t read Part 1, be sure to click through and read All My Crunchy Product Experiments: Which Work and Which Don’t? Part 1 If you are interested in living life more green and trying to improve your ecological footprint, these products could help you in your quest! Even if you usually choose disposable and traditional,

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All My Crunchy Product Experiments: Which Work and Which Don’t? Part 1

How has your year been so far? Did you accomplish all of the goals and resolutions you planned way back in 2017? Now that we’ve made it through January, I’ve been thinking about New Year’s Resolutions, from each year in my past. This year my goals were more along the lines of self-care, but in the past I’ve created a lot of Resolutions about being

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De-stress the Holidays (Reflecting and Planning for Next Year)

It’s late afternoon on December 29th and my current situation is pretty enviable, I admit it. I’m sitting on my couch in front of our still-lit Christmas tree. (I refuse to take it down until January 2nd, at the earliest. I’m leaning toward January 6th this year) Sunlight filters through the windows and a seasonal blend of essential oils is wafting from my diffuser. A

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10 Thanksgiving Crafts for Kids Under $5!

My nephew just turned five this year so he’s still completely in love with the holidays and making crafts. I wanted to create a fun craft table for him and am sharing my favorite Thanksgiving crafts for kids with you. I included crafts for various skill levels and ages – something for every age! Even better, they should all cost you $5 or less! Don’t waste money

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A Week of Instant Pot Breakfast Recipes: Start Your Day Off Right!

Yes, I use my instant pot for breakfasts, lunches and dinner. In fact, if my kids ask for a snack after school I break out the Instant Pot for some cookies and milk. Just kidding, but really, there is basically no end to the meals you can create in this workhorse appliance and breakfast is no exception. During the busiest morning rush, you can still

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Frugal Decorating: Seasonal Mantel Update with Thrifted Finds

Are you looking for a simple way to update your home for the autumn season? If you’re like me, you have a limited budget for redecorating, but you’d really love to give your living room a beautiful makeover. What’s the solution? A mantel vignette is the perfect way to make a big impact on your home’s design with a small investment of creativity and cash. Keep

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Black Bean Avocado Brownies: A Healthy Lunchbox Treat!

It’s officially fall: the leaves are turning and the kids have been back in school for several weeks now. That means I’ve resumed possibly my least favorite parenting task ever: packing lunches. (This post was sponsored by S&W Beans and all opinions expressed in my post are my own.) I like to think I pack pretty tasty lunches for my kids, but they have different

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The 411 About Food Dyes (and Why We Avoid Them)

So what exactly do you know about synthetic food dyes? For years I have been aware that food dyes were unhealthy and I knew that they tended to provoke wild behavior in particularly susceptible kids. For that reason, I tried generally to avoid them. But I realized recently that I’ve really only cut out the glaringly-obvious examples of food dye (like strictly prohibiting Kool-aid and

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How to Meal Plan Like a Boss

The question “What’s for dinner?” is really a fairly benign and innocent query, especially when coming from the child you’ve fed since they day they were born. However, after a long day of working, or homeschooling, or blogging, or simply non-stop parenting, it can bring on feelings of frustration, dread and denial. When I hear that question, I feel my shoulders start to tense and a rising

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Challenge: Building Your Fall Wardrobe on a Budget!

Are you ready for Fall? Now that the kids are in school, maybe you have time to take a breath, and think about getting ready for the cooler seasons. Here in my southern state, we sometimes have warm weather for another month at least and it would be unusual for me to pull out a jacket before October. However, this year I am trying to

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15 Back-to-School Mistakes That Cost Me Money

Now that summer is winding down, back-to-school savings are everywhere. But when you’re making your back-to-school budget, realize that sometimes what looks like a bargain really isn’t. As you pore over store flyers and online deals, it can be overwhelming. And then, just when you think you’re done shopping, the teacher sends home a list of more supplies to buy! How to avoid back-to-school mistakes

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5 Things You Should Always Buy at Walmart!

Here it goes: I have what may be either a shameful confession or an impressive boast. Once upon a time, I worked at Walmart. Truthfully, it wasn’t the worst job I’ve had, and I found it mostly tolerable. I went in, I worked very hard and I enjoyed talking to the customers. I always found it interesting to see what people filled their carts with and I

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A Hot Mess-Mom’s August Survival Guide

Anyone else out there feel like your summer has been a HOT MESS? Have your activities revolved around camps, travel, extended family, childcare or perhaps just a ton of time at home with the little ones? Honestly, sometimes downtime at home can be just what you need, but on the other hand there is always the chance things can get a little stressful with just you

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Weight Gain, Mental Health, & the Unexpected Silver Lining

Ok, this is the post I have been planning to write for awhile, and yet it’s a post I have been frankly dreading from the beginning. But it’s always been my goal to be authentic as a blogger. I want to share my experiences as they might help someone else who happens to be in the same situation. And I know this is a situation

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Start Your Spring Cleaning with a Declutter Month!

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