It isn’t all bad though. My oldest is actually spending the summer at the beach (no, I’m not jealous AT ALL.) He will be literally living on the boardwalk (well, not ON the boardwalk) and working only a day or two each week. Sure he’s also ‘stuck’ with his grandparents, but they also spoil him rotten, so he gets no sympathy from me.

While that means one less child at home, in only 10 days into our summer I’m finding that having one less child at home has thrown off the family balance. We’re all still adjusting. Transitions are just not our thing. (they get that from me)

While I have some stuff planned for the summertime, and two of the kids are in ‘school’ for 4 or 5 weeks half days, we have a LOT of free time. We have a long list of things to do that won’t cost much this summer, and I have lots of plans, but I’m quickly learning my plans need to be even more flexible than usual.  The kids come first, that doesn’t change. The dishes can wait, the work may pile up, but they are growing way too fast for me NOT to take advantage of this time. I may have given them a gentle smoosh on their heads tonight and told them all to stop growing up.

My plan is to institue a bit of a schedule and keep a calendar with the day’s activity on it so that I can keep the questions about “What are we going to do today?,” at bay. But I have a few tricks up my sleeve to help make everything easier.

Quiet Time

I’m back to instituting a regular quiet time in the house for an hour each afternoon, so we can all spend a little time apart. Everyone has to go to their rooms and chill. Books, drawing, and music are allowed, but screens are forbidden. I need this as much as they do since I find I’m often either fully immersed in on thing or another at all times, and I need some time off to just ‘be’.

Summer Calendar

To stop the inevitable, “When are we doing that?” questions I get peppered with I’ve posted a summer long calendar in addition to our dry erase calendar. This way the kids can look at it when they have questions about when or what we’re doing.

(Mostly) Strict Bedtime

While some parents move bedtimes way back in the summertime my kids have a regular bedtime of 8:30pm on most nights. Occasionally at a friend’s house or for fireworks we’ll stay up late, but they do better with a regular bedtime since they still get up at 6 or 7 each morning. I guard sleep and our adult downtime in the evening with my life. I do better with some time ‘off’, and I parent better with that time to myself.

Try It Foods

I was inspired by Disney’s TryIt menu options and meals on our recent trip to DisneyWorld, so starting this week we’re trying some new foods each week. This is to help expand our options, and reinforce the idea that we try new things at mealtimes. The kids will also get involved by having one day a week where they help in the kitchen, an idea we’ve done previously with success. It will allow them some creative freedom and yes, I’ll have to try their creations too. Even the inevitable ketchup/fruit mashups my 7 year old is sure to produce.

Suggestion Box

Totally borrowing this idea from my friend Niri (at Mommy Niri) I’m creating a suggestion box where the kids can add in their own ideas to add to the summer calendar.

Make the Most of Time

One of the things that will make the summertime more special is taking advantage of time when one kid is off doing something to be with the other kids. While it would be much easier to just let them play on their own, I plan to take advantage of that time to do something special. For instance when Aidan has a birthday party, the girls and I are planning a girls’ day. I’m especially looking forward to spending a lot of time with Audrey since the other two will be off each morning for 4 weeks at a half day program.

So, hopefully with my plans in place, a list of activities, and some limits on working I’ll stay sane this summer. Then again, since I just wrote that I’m sure to have some curveballs thrown at my plans. Only time will tell if my planning helps.

How are you surviving summer? 

Kelly

Learn to meal plan and save $1,000s each year with my repeating meal plan which includes free printables like a year-long menu plan, grocery list and more on the Centsible Printables page.

June 17th Menu Plan

Monday: Taco night! The kids love this one and it’s so simple, and clean up is quick too.

Tuesday: Strip steaks with homemade french fries, a side salad, and fruit.

Wednesday: Homemade pizzas. The kids will make mini pizzas with whatever toppings they choose.

Thursday: Leftovers.

Friday: Movie night with appetizers on the living room floor.

Saturday: Clean out the fridge.

Sunday: Brinner. I’m thinking pancakes and bacon. Always bacon.

June 10th Recap

Monday: Taco night!

Easy to make, easy to clean up, and always a winner.

Tuesday: Dad’s night. Whatever Dad cooks up since I’ll be in NYC, and arriving home just past dinnertime.

Dad took care of the kids, and after a long day in NYC I crashed around 8pm!

Wednesday: Sandwiches and fruit salad. We have an evening class and then we’re headed to see Man of Steel, so dinnertime will be quick an easy to cleanup.

Mixed up my days here, as Man of Steel was on Thursday, but we had sandwiches anyway.

Thursday: Chicken legs, kale chips (these are totally addictive!), and fruit salad.

Another quick night since our movie started at 7. We ate a little of this and that with me making sure everyone had some veggies.

Friday: Pizza night! Homemade pizzas, salad, and popcorn.

Way too ambitious after a long week, so I made burgers instead.

Saturday: Clean out the fridge night.

Since the Dad in our house wasn’t home for Father’s Day we let him be in charge, and he picked takeout pizza for dinner. 

Sunday: Hot dog and burgers on the grill.

Instead I made tacos again!

What’s on your menu this week?

Kelly

Our Superman and WonderWoman at the Man of Steel premiere

Please note there are some ‘spolierish’ moments in this review. While I tried not to be explicit with details, some things are spelled out.

Quick Review: 

Man of Steel is a serious take on the Superman legacy, exploring the difficulty Superman faces fitting into the world. Make no mistake though, this is a serious summer blockbuster with all the action and thrills you’d expect from a big production. The serious tone and action are only part of the draw, with near perfect casting, and a depth of detail that will leave fans wanting more.

Or in the words of my 9 year old, “It. Was. AWESOME.”

Should You Take the Kids?

Yes, if they are 10 or older OR you know they can handle the quieter moments of a movie, and won’t be scared by action. Our 7 and 9 year olds loved the movie, and while I noticed they got fidgety once or twice it held their attention. Parents should know there is a LOT of destruction (it is Superman after all) and several curse words and ‘dick’ jokes. If language is a concern, you can either choose to discuss it beforehand, or see if they notice and talk about it then. In the context of the film they were well-placed, but in my opinion not necessary. All three of the kids we took (11, 9, 7) loved the film, and said it’s a must-see.

Man of Steel Review

Man of Steel is the relaunch of the Superman movie franchise. This is a new take, much like Batman, that is darker and more serious in tone. This works well for Superman, as it’s a side we haven’t seen explored on the big screen. Director Zack Snyder (and producer Christopher Nolan, Batman director and writer) explores the nature of Clark Kent/Superman’s relationships to others and his journey to figure out who he is in a world that is not his home.

We see many of the familiar characters introduced including Lana Lang and visual nods given to Lex Luthor and Bruce Wayne. This sets up the universe in which our hero dwells, and allows fans to speculate about future films. The beauty of this was we know those characters are present, but the focus of the film was on Clark Kent or Superman. There was no wasted screen time on side stories that weren’t necessary at this point in our story.

Despite being two and half hours long the film kept us engaged and entertained as it took us through Kal-El’s (aka Superman’s) birth, to Clark Kent’s childhood experiences, and into present day. We see the struggles Clark Kent goes through to become Superman.

The visual effects are stunning and while many are on an unbelievably large scale (whole cities) I didn’t stop to think about the ‘movie’ since I was so engaged in what was happening on screen.

The casting is nearly perfect with a quiet, understated Kevin Costner as Pa Kent; a savvy and smart take on Lois Lane from Amy Adams (I’m thankful too that they didn’t dye her hair-she looks more real); and a serious, quiet strength from Henry Cavill as Superman. Russell Crowe plays dad to our Superman to perfection as Jor-El. Russell Crowe is not relegated to the backstory though, so look for him to steal every scene he’s in throughout the film.

Superhero fans and geeks alike will delight in seeing the gravity and action that the film brings to the screen. This is not the campy Superman of your youth-he is grown-up, and has real life struggles beyond hiding his identity behind some glasses (as if that would fool any of us in real life).

Many reviews are saying that this film is too dark, not campy enough, not fun enough-but the reason I enjoyed the film so much was that it made room for subtle acting-a craft which is often forgotten in big budget blockbusters. While there was room for a bit more humor, the gravitas of the film is in my eyes necessary when the subject is an alien super man battling seriously evil forces bent on the literal destruction of the Earth.

The moments were the movie really soared were not during the enormous battles, but in the quiet moments, in the struggles of our characters, and in the heart of our Man of Steel.

Kelly

If you’re reading this via email or a feedreader the video may not show up, so click through to view the video.

This week’s topic is grocery budgets. We all have to buy groceries, but budgets vary greatly depending on a number of factors. Some things that may affect your grocery budget:

• where you live
• if you purchase processed or convenience foods
• if you buy organic
• dietary restrictions or allergies
• amount of animal products you consume
• whether you use coupons or not
• where you shop
• if you buy in bulk

I share my take on grocery spending in the video below. Watch it, and let me know what you think in the comments or make your own vlog response.

How do you slash grocery spending or do you think your grocery spending is reasonable?

Kelly

I appreciate everyone who took the time to respond, and would love for this to foster some discussion in the comments about what you want to see on the Centsible Life.

How Often/Where Do You Come From?

Many of you read via feedreader, email, and occasionally click over and binge read. A few of you visit everyday (thank you!).

I love seeing that readers get their blog on in a variety of ways-my goal as a blogger is to make sure that I give you the opportunity to read my content where you want it.

How Often Do You Visit?

Where Do You Come From?

An important note about Google Reader: Google is closing Google Reader in the Fall, so consider switching now so your feeds don’t disappear. There are lots of other options, and I will be sharing a post shortly about how to switch (for those that are interested).

Other options are BlogLovin’, NetVibes, Feedly, and subscribing via email. You can also do it the old-fashioned way and visit the site.

Favorite Posts

The overwhelming majority of you prefer Money, Family and Lifestyle posts. Secondary topics that everyone likes are Kids, Travel, and Entertainment, though DIY/Crafts and Meal Plans/Recipes are close behind.

This is good stuff, since the focus of the blog is on those main topics, and the secondary topics are ones I cover less often but fairly frequently.

Least Favorite Posts

Many of you skipped this question, and each of the categories has 1 or 2 people who don’t prefer these types of posts. 3 people said their least favorite are sponsored posts–more on that in the next question.

Since many of you also like these categories (and I like writing about them) they will stick around. If you don’t like them, hopefully you’ll stick around, but just keep scrolling or clicking when you see them.

About Those Sponsored Posts

My take from your feedback-let’s make sponsored posts easy to identify and cut back to one sponsored post a week.

To make them easy to identify I include the word {Sponsored} in the title of each sponsored post, and with new FTC regulations I include a disclosure at the top of sponsored posts as well. This should make them easy to identify for those of you who want to skip them.

Here’s an example of how sponsored posts are disclosed:

As a small business sponsored posts are what allow me to work on the website not only covering the cost of running and maintaining a website (which isn’t cheap), but also allow me to pay myself a modest salary which allows me to keep working on the website.

I asked you what you really think of sponsored posts, and I’ve included some responses below.

• I usually skip them.
• Don’t love or hate them.
• Sometimes it seems like every day is a sponsored post.
• Hate ‘em, but understand.
• I don’t mind them, but I feel like you have too many (sponsored posts).
• As long as there is a story or personal opinion, I’m ok with sponsored stuff. I have tried out many new things based on the recommendations of bloggers.

Sponsored posts did sometimes occur more than once a week due to deadlines by sponsors, but overall they do not make up the majority of my content. The website has 1,320 posts with 138 sponsored posts. That’s a ratio of a little more than 1 in 10.

Early on I think I was more commercial in my ‘sponsored’ voice, but I’ve tried to be more of a storyteller/informational in sponsored posts versus ‘selling’ something.

Where Do You Follow?

Most of you follow me on twitter-not a surprise, but interesting for sure. No one that responded follows me on YouTube, which isn’t too surprising either since I don’t often post video content (more on that later).

People use social networks for a variety of reasons, so I think it’s expected that many people won’t follow my musings on other networks. However, those that do follow me elsewhere get other musings and content, so if you’re looking for more from me-look to social networks where I’m active.

What’s Next?

I asked what readers would like to see next, and the majority responded that they’d like forums, with videos being second.

I think I may try out twitter or Facebook chats as well, since my audience on social networks don’t always visit the site (sad but true!).

Forums will take some time to install and get up and running, so for now I’m focusing on a creating a Google+ Community for readers. This will be a place we can do everything like we would in forums, but it’s ready now!  Additionally I may offer Google hangouts on a variety of topics in the coming months that will only be available to community members.

I will also be sharing a video once a week to foster conversation. You can leave comments, create your own video responses, and I hope they give you some food for thought.

Overall I have to say THANK YOU to each and every one of you for reading. I know you have a lot of choices when it comes to your time, and I’m honored that you’d spend it with me.

 Tell me what you think in the comments. I’d love to hear what you think of the responses. 

Kelly