Summer is here and the kids are looking for things to do. COSI Columbus has a lot to offer families for a day of fun. There are amazing exhibits and  2 wonderful movies to be seen on the extreme screen. We had the opportunity to see The Flight of the Butterflies movie recently and it is a must see. The story is just amazing and very heart warming. The other option is the Titans of the Ice Age:3D, and it’s very interesting to learn about wooly mammoths and what the planet was like during this time.

The newest exhibit is The Explosive Exhibition : Mythbusters. It will be at COSI until September 2, 2013. There are great stations in this exhibit and the kids will have a lot of fun trying to bust them! They also have a live show that is super fun for the kids too! Other attractions are the gift shop at the end of the exhibit and an opportunity to have your picture take by the green screen and purchase the fun results.

I am very excited for this opportunity to give away a family four pack of tickets for admission to COSI Columbus and 4 passes to see a movie on their extreme screen. For more information on visiting COSI Columbus visit here.

**Giveaway Details**

What am I giving away?

1 – Family Four Pack of tickets to visit COSI Columbus and see a movie on their extreme screen.

Here’s how you can enter:

Leave a comment below and tell me why you would like to win tickets for your family. Also be sure to leave your name and email so that I can contact you if you are chosen as the winner.

If you do not already subscribe to my blog, you can do so here. And if you do, THANK YOU!

Who is eligible for this giveaway?

Central Ohio readers/or anyone planning to visit Columbus Ohio this summer.

When does this giveaway end?

Wednesday, June 26, 2013 at 8 pm EST

The winner will be chosen via the random number generator at random.org. The winner will be notified via email and will need to respond to me within 24 hours or a new winner will be chosen.

Thank you for reading and as always, GOOD LUCK!

Disclosure: This post is sponsored by COSI Columbus. View my disclosure policy here.

Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey presents DRAGONS is produced by Feld Entertainment, is performing eight shows at the Schottenstein Center from May 8-12, 2013. Ringling Bros. and Healthy Worthington Resource & Food Pantry are hoping to fill the pantry shelves with non-perishable food items for local people in need by hosting the DRAGONS Drive for Hunger on Sat., Apr. 27th from 10 am to noon. This is in conjunction with the Worthington Farmers Market, located in the Shops at Worthington Place, 7227 N High St in Worthington.

The first 300 people who bring 10 cans of food will receive a free ticket voucher to the Wed., May 8 or Thurs., May 9 performance. There will be a limit of four ticket vouchers per family; a limit of 300 vouchers will be given.

*I have been given the chance to award one lucky reader of my blog a family 4 pack of ticket vouchers that you can use to redeem for tickets to this fun circus event. Details are below to sign up for this opportunity.

Tickets for Ringling Bros. presents DRAGONS are available for purchase at the Schottenstein box office, at all Ticketmaster locations, select Kroger stores, online or by calling 1-800-745-3000. Ticket prices are $12-$80.

**Giveaway Details**

What am I giving away?

1 – Family Four Pack of ticket vouchers to one lucky winner/reader of my blog to see Ringling Bros. and Barnum Bailey presents DRAGONS at the Schottenstein Center in Columbus, OH.

Here’s how you can enter:

Leave a comment below and tell me what your favorite circus memory is or if this would be your first circus. Also be sure to leave your name and email so that I can contact you if you are chosen as the winner.

If you do not already subscribe to my blog, you can do so here. And if you do, THANK YOU!

Who is eligible for this giveaway?

Central Ohio readers/or anyone willing to drive to Columbus Ohio for the show.

When does this giveaway end?

Friday, April 26, 2013 at 8 pm EST

The winner will be chosen via the random number generator at random.org. The winner will be notified via email and will need to respond to me within 24 hours or a new winner will be chosen.

Thank you for reading and as always, GOOD LUCK!

Disclosure: This post was sponsored by Irvin PR. View my disclosure policy here.

Once I get the kiddos off to school by 9 am I am ready to start my day. Sometimes I start out by doing my house work first so it’s done and out of the way. I get a shower and feel ready to dig into my Pampered Chef to-do list or work on a blog post. Currently I work from home doing those jobs, but that is about to change. I have decided to return to subbing in our local school districts. More on this and other changes soon.

The day seems to fly by because the first kiddo arrives back home from school at 2:45. And then my freshman around 2:55 and fourth grader at 3:45. I try to get most of my house list and work list done before they get home. The reason is because once they arrive home it gets very busy. We have homework and chores to complete and then dinner to make. After dinner on most night we have activities and meetings to attend for the kiddos.

We are all home in time to do showers and maybe catch a movie or play a game. Spending some time together as a family each day is very important to us. Dinner time is a must and this gives us a chance to connect with the kids about their day. Bedtime is by 10 pm for the kids, if not earlier. After the kids head to bed I try to stay awake long enough to have some time with my hubs. But that doesn’t always happen because sometimes I fall asleep on the couch. Bad habit to start!

So there’s a little peak into a day in my life. It doesn’t always go as planned. That’s okay. Sometimes those wrinkles in our day can be exactly what we needed.

~Amy

I will say that I will include my three beautiful children in this lovely chore. Life gets very busy and I can usually keep up with the washing and drying of the laundry. However, the sorting and putting away are the parts that I tend to put off or get busy and don’t get around too.

Hopefully tomorrow will bring something way more exciting to write about than laundry.

Until then, happy sorting!

~Amy

I figure that if I have laundry in the washer and dryer and the dishwasher is running, I am essentially getting three things done at once. And if I am on a phone call, work or personal, I can also take the dogs out, make lunch for my hubby or sweep the kitchen floor and feel good that I’m working on things and moving forward in my day.

If you feel that your to-do list is long and your time available is short. You might want to take a look at your list and see what things can actually be done or going on at the same time. For example, while the dish washer is running, you can fold the clothes that just finished in the dryer and then move the clothes from the washer to the dryer and start a new load.

I try to get my blog work and Pampered Chef  office hours in during the day while the kids are at school. This makes it easier for me to juggle their schedules in the evening and dinner and so on. Plus, I feel more balanced by doing this. Balance is the key to a peaceful mind.

Everyone needs to find what works best for them. Being organized is very important to me. Organization just keeps my mind clear and focused on what all I need to accomplish each day. While I have been writing this post, I also have loaded the dishwasher, folded clothes and put another load in the dryer. I was laughing because it hit me while writing that I had not started the dishwasher and jumped up to go do that. Now this may not be your idea of fun but it keeps me on track.

I juggle a lot with the kids and their schedules, house duties, my Pampered Chef business and my blog. My hubby, who is always in start up mode, works from home right now and I help him with things he might need. This crazy start up life brings all kinds of curve balls into my trying-to-be-organized-and-peaceful life. More writing will come about this soon!

No, life doesn’t always work out as planned and each day comes with its own obstacles. I try to start each day with a positive mind and hope that this day will be positive and productive. And if I can help someone along the way, I count that as a good day.

P.S. I also pray for good health to allow me to enjoy this crazy ride that I call Life.

~Amy

Thanks to all of you that came out on January 19th and supported the Columbus YWCA Diaper Drive! As an extension of that awesome event, I have been given the opportunity to give away a family 4 pack of tickets to the opening night performance of Disney On Ice presents Treasure Trove.

Disney On Ice presents Treasure Trove is an affordable family opportunity to see Mickey Mouse, Minnie Mouse, Donald and Goofy as they embark on a treasure hunt for some of the most popular Disney films ever. With eight movies and more than 50 Disney characters featured, Feld Entertainment’s Disney On Ice presents Treasure Trove has a story for every generation.

Tickets for Treasure Trove are available for purchase at the Nationwide Arena box office, at all Ticketmaster locations, select Kroger stores, online or by calling 1-800-745-3000.

**Giveaway Details**

What am I giving away?

1 – Family Four Pack of tickets to one lucky winner/reader of my blog to see Disney on Ice presents Treasure Trove at the Nationwide Arena in Columbus, OH. Performance date will be Wednesday, February 20th at 7 pm.

Here’s how you can enter:

Leave a comment below and tell me what your favorite Disney movie is and why. Also be sure to leave your name and email so that I can contact you if you are chosen as the winner.

If you do not already subscribe to my blog, you can do so here. And if you do, THANK YOU!

Who is eligible for this giveaway?

Central Ohio readers/or anyone willing to drive to Columbus Ohio for the show.

When does this giveaway end?

Friday, January 25, 2013 at 1 pm EST

The winner will be chosen via the random number generator at random.org. The winner will be notified via email and will need to respond to me within 24 hours or a new winner will be chosen.

Thank you for reading and as always, GOOD LUCK!

Disclosure: This post was sponsored by Irvin PR. View my disclosure policy here.

Now, I don’t disagree that I have a lot of things to say but I’m not convinced yet that anyone cares to read about it. This is the crossroad of writing for you or writing for others. By writing for myself, it could mean that my mind is more clear and it would be kind of like therapy to share feelings and stories about life. And I suppose that writing for others to read could possibly help someone else out there that might be going through the same experiences that you are. I do like the idea that I could help other women or moms.

What I am not good about is putting myself out there. I don’t typically get caught up in worrying what others feel or say about me. I try not to let other people have that control over me. But, I can’t help but let little things sneak into my mind that say, If you write how you really feel about this subject it might come across as hurtful or mean or etc.

I guess this could be curbed by being better at writing itself or just really not giving a rip about what others feel or think about what I am writing. See, there is what I mean. As I wrote that, I thought about how someone else would read that. If you know me well, you know that I am a brutal truth kinda gal. Not to be hurtful, but very honest. My husband of course gets this side the most, and luckily he gets a chuckle from it.

So I am going to try and put myself out there more. To write with true feelings and emotions and hope that others can take away something that might help them to not feel alone in their situation, to feel supported or just get a laugh. I hope that you will stay engaged with me and let’s just see where this adventure might take me.

~Amy

A few weeks ago, she came home and told me that they were talking about birthdays in school. She had mentioned that her birthday is in July so she doesn’t get to bring a snack in or celebrate at school with friends. One of the teachers suggest that she could celebrate her half birthday and that planted the seed.

Now, mind you she does get a very nice party and gifts and celebrates with friends on her actual birthday. But she is a little girl and I totally understand that this is a big deal. I love birthdays and have had so much fun celebrating the kids’ birthdays each year. We plan months in advance about how they would like to celebrate, who is coming, etc. Life is an adventure and I believe that each year that you are blessed with a birthday should be celebrated.

So she and I talked about it and today I will be baking 30 individual brownies to take in to her class this afternoon. They are fudge brownies with chocolate icing and chocolate sprinkles and a pink M&M in the middle for color. I am more than happy to make this special moment happen for her. These are the little things that we can do as parents to gift our children with precious memories to last their lifetime.

I’m off to the kitchen to bake. Would love for you to share some of your similar and fun stories below. Thank you.

Happy Baking!

Amy

The kids are back to school. As a work- from- home/stay- at- home Mom (not sure what title I’m supposed to give), my home “work” and my work “work” go hand in hand. First thing, I always try my best to make sure each of the 3 kiddos have what they need and are ready to get their week started. This day starts around 6 am for me so by the time I get my youngest to the bus or school and return home at 9 am to start my day, I either feel tired or energized. Depends on the Monday, I guess.

Today I feel energized. I have a lot on my list to accomplish today and if I can get all of it completed I will feel great. It’s amazing how the start of a Monday can sometimes have an affect on the rest of your week. I think about this and realize that we do have some control over this. If we try to stay positive and roll through the waves of change that come our way. We might be able to put a positive spin on the rest of the week.

I am in the process of laundry with clothes in both washer and dryer. Dinner dishes were not done last night because we ended up eating later than our normal time and I’m fighting a cold and chose to rest instead of staying up late to clean the kitchen. So part of the dishes are in the dishwasher and the rest are in process for me to hand wash. Yes, as I am writing this post I am also thinking about the dryer has stopped and clothes need folded and the dishes are waiting for me to finish.

I was washing dishes and was thinking about Monday being such a busy day for me and trying to start it off on the right foot, and decided to stop and run over and write this post real quick. And I’m glad that I did. So that maybe somewhere, someone will see that they are not alone in the sometime dreaded state of Monday.

Hope it’s a great week for you all!

Amy

I try to do a meal plan before I do a big grocery store visit. This allows me to look at our calendar and see what activities are going on that week. Then I know what nights I can plan a dinner that takes more time or plan something that can be put together more quickly. For example, on a night that all of the kids have activities I know we will be gone most of the evening and will need to do a quick dinner before we all head out. So I plan a meal like tacos because it’s quick to make and serve. I always try to thaw the meat out in the morning so it’s ready to go that evening. I usually buy our meats in bulk and separate them for freezing.

So when you are cooking at least 5 nights a week and some on the weekend too, you are naturally left with leftovers. Now I know that some people just have a genuine issue with eating re-heated food. Our oldest is sort of developing this a bit. I sometimes like certain recipes and dishes the second go around better because all of the flavors seem to intensify after they have set.

If I make a large batch of chili or homemade spaghetti sauce, I will usually leave a little bit out for leftovers. The rest I will store in a freezer safe container to help with a quick dinner another time. My husband and I currently work from home so leftovers make for an easy lunch for us too. But for the most part the leftovers are stored in the fridge and one night during the week we will have “leftover night” and pull all of the containers out onto the island and have a buffet for dinner. This not only clears out the fridge and empties my containers but it most importantly uses up that food and doesn’t waste.

Not wasting the leftover food saves money and is a really good thing to teach the kids I believe. By having a leftover night that stretches your groceries out a bit too if you are trying to do so. Sometimes I think the kids think it’s fun to get to decide which leftovers they would like to have on buffet night. The key is to get to your favorite first! First come, first serve.

Are you a leftover family? I would love to hear your tips and ideas on how you use your leftovers and why or why not this is a hit with your family.

Thanks! Look forward to your comments.

Amy