YUMMommy

Our Summer 2020 Garden

2020-07-06T20:00:00.024-04:00

This post contains affiliate links. I will make a commission for purchases made using some of the links below.

The kids and I had such a great time planting and harvesting our vegetable and fruit garden last summer. So we’re giving it another go this summer as well. My green thumb may be more of a black thumb when it comes to houseplants and flowers but grateful I seem to be able to keep fruits and vegetables alive. Here’s a look at what we’re growing this summer.

What We Planted

This year we did a mixture of new and old plants. Last year, I was the decision maker when it came to what we planted. This year I let the kids pick out some of the seeds. I have to say that I’m pleased with the selections they made. They picked vegetables that I wouldn’t have considered planting otherwise.

Rainbow Swiss Chard | This was Bud’s (JJ) pick. Swiss chard is a leafy green that I’ve only eaten a handful of times. The kids have never had it at all. This will be our time trying the rainbow variety period.

It’s going to be interesting seeing what they think of the taste. Our experience growing these from seed has been mostly positive. They sprouted pretty fast. So far we have mostly reds and light purples. We had one neon yellow but it died after I transplanted it to a bigger container.

I’m hoping these don’t bolt though because the temps have definitely intensified. We’ll keep them in a partially shaded area for the time being. Also, I planted a second wave this past weekend to see if we can get some more neon yellow ones.

Beets | I was surprised when Moo picked these out. She’s not a picky eater but I didn’t think she’d find beets appealing. Our plan is to pickle the majority of them. We want to use some to try our hands at making an all natural dye for a tie dye T-shirt craft.

These took 6 days to sprout. We’re growing the Detroit Dark Red variety. Their vibrant red stems are so beautiful and will be a welcomed burst of color to break up the sea of green in our garden.

Alaska Peas | Bud helped me pick these out. He’s not a fan of beans but I am. Plus, these have been very easy to grow. Definitely a great seed to plant if your have kids who love to watch things grow.

Our sprouted in 4 days and are getting longer everyday. We trellised them up some branches we found in the yard. We’re keeping these in an area that gets sun in the morning but gets shady by afternoon when the Carolina sun is blazing. We just planted a second wave of these and can’t wait until they sprout.

National Pickling Cucumbers | The kids and I chose these together. We’ve been wanting to make our own pickles for some time now. This is our first year growing cucumbers.

We’re hoping they won’t be too hard to fruit. They seem to be doing well so far. I’m also going to try to plant a second wave for our fall garden because I heard they produce more in the milder temps versus the blazing hot summer sun we have now.

Cantaloupe | My mom gifted us these seeds via a cantaloupe she purchased from the grocery store. I simply rinsed them off well and left them to try on the counter before we planted a few.

It took about a week for them sprout. Initially, we planted six and three actually sprouted. So we’re planting 12 more the end of the week and hopefully we’ll get six to ten of them to sprout.

Watermelon | We had so much fun growing our Crimson Reds last year. The squirrels gave us a run for our money with these last year and kept eating our seeds. Then when they sprouted we had to save them from other critters.

Fingers crossed we don’t have that issue this year. Our seedlings have been safe so far. I’m making sure to give these lots of sun and consistent watering.

Green Bell Peppers | This is another crop we tried growing last year. Unfortunately they didn’t survive the deer. I’m ready this year though. Looking forward to having some peppers for my pasta dishes and my homemade salsa.

Grand Mix Bell Peppers | Did you know bell peppers can be off-white and ombré colors? We didn’t. We’re keeping our fingers crossed that we get at least one bush of off-white bell peppers and one of ombré ones.

We planted fifteen seeds and had almost all of them sprout. Can’t wait to see what colors we end up with.

Beefsteak Tomatoes | These are pick we all agreed on. Bud doesn’t eat tomatoes but as we discovered last year, he loves to watch them grow. We stuck with cherry tomatoes last year but decided to move up to a bigger variety this year.

We planted twenty-five seeds thinking only half would come up. Y’all, all twenty-five of those seeds sprouted! So I’m splitting the seedlings with my aunt who’s also growing a summer garden.

Zucchini | The first time I tried zucchini was on a trip to New York. We stopped by this Italian restaurant and had it fried with breadcrumbs and Parmesan cheese. It was delish!

So now I’m growing my own. We only have three seedlings. Fingers crossed they all fruit and survive.

Green Apples | I’ve wanted an apple tree since I was a kid. I love apples. Like A LOT. Granny Smith aka green apples have always been my favorites.

So I took a seed from one and decided to see if it would sprout and it did. Y’all, I’m thrilled to be growing an apple tree. It’ll take a few years for it to mature but I can be patient.

Organic Pink Lady Apples | Motivated by my success with the Granny Smith seedling, I decided to try my hands getting an organic Pink Lady seed to grow. I planted about seven to ten of them. So far only one has sprouted but it’s thriving and doing very well.

Prayers up that we get more seedlings to pop up because I kind of promised this apple tree to my niece but I'd love to have at least one to keep for myself. Again we have a few years before this will be mature enough to fruit. Nevertheless it's going to still be lots of fun watching it grow.

Spaghetti Squash | This is yet another seed my mom contributed to our garden. She made spaghetti using a spaghetti squash one night and I decided to save the seeds to plant. We only planted six and had three sprout. Out of those three only two survived.

Unfortunately we couldn't plant more because I stored the remaining seeds too soon.They weren't completely dry like I thought they were and ended up getting mold on them. Needless to say I had to throw them away. I will be purchasing another spaghetti squash and harvesting the seeds from it to seed if we can get it to grow in our fall garden. I've heard that you have less issues with squash bugs and pests if you plant them when the temps are mild. We'll see.

Jack O'Latern Pumpkins | I've always wanted my own mini pumpkin patch and it looks like I'll have just that this year. We all decided on pumpkins because we love them a lot. They're just so cute. Anyways, we are looking forward to having lots of pumpkins to carve and decorate come October.

Our pumpkins were not that hard to sprout and seem to be thriving in their containers. I kept them in the shade for a while when they first came up but now I'm getting ready to move them to an area where they can get lots of sun. I'll keep these well watered as well so that they don't get dried out.

Lima Beans | The kids got these in a summer reading kit from the library. They have been beyond easy to grow. Bud's beans sprouted in less than 48 hours. Moo's took about three days to finally break through the surface. But they've been growing well since.

We did have a brief issue of some ants cutting the leaves but I think we've got that solved. I'm hoping we'll see some pods starting to form soon. We're probably going to plant more of these towards the end of the month because four vines just isn't going to yield enough beans for a proper harvest.

Overall, our 2020 summer garden is looking very promising. The hardest part by far is going to be waiting for everything to mature. I'm super excited though that despite not being in our own place, we've managed to expand our garden and plant more than we did last year. You can follow along with our garden process here on the blog or over on my Instagram stories. I'll also be posting video updates to my Facebook page and YouTube channel.

If you're interested in really immersing yourself into gardening and the homesteading lifestyle, consider buying the Gardening & Sustainable Living Bundle 2020 from Ultimate Bundles™. It has 6 courses, 21 eBooks, and 5 planners & printables.

If you're like me and love vegetable gardening the How To Start A Container Garden ebook, Raised Bed Mini Bundle eCourse, and the Think 'Inside' the Box: An Essential Guide to Edible Container Gardening eBook will definitely come in handy especially if you're a beginner gardener.

You'll also have multiple planners to help you plan out and keep track of your gardening progress once you get started. This bundle also includes resources on canning, pest control, and even worm composting. Live your best gardening life with bundle. Don't say I never tried to put y'all on to something good.

Do you garden? If so, what do you grow?

40 Books To Buy To Add Black Representation To Your Child's Bookshelves

2020-06-08T13:57:00.000-04:00

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In our household we take our Blackness seriously. We feel that it is something that we should celebrate not only during Black History Month but every day of the year. One of the best ways to do this with kids is through reading.

As a Black mom it is important for me to be proactive in surrounding my children with a vast collection of books that tell OUR stories through OUR own voices from all different walks of Blackness. Representation STILL matters. I want my kids to be surrounded by stories that tell our history as well as stories that celebrate our beauty, uniqueness, accomplishments, strengths, and resilience.

With the current state of race relations being in major upheaval, if you are non-Black it is also important for you to immerse yourself in our culture as well. One of the best ways to do so without appropriating Black culture is through reading Black own voices stories as well. Doing so will challenge and stretch the way you see Blackness and hopefully assist you in starting dialog with your children about racism, diversity, and equality.

That said, here are 40 Black stories written by Black authors that I'm challenging everyone to buy for their child's/family's bookshelves.

40 Black Books For Kids

Muhiima's Quest

McKenzie's New School Blues

Rice & Rocks

Jupiter Storm

Little Leaders: Bold Women in Black History

Chocolate Me

I'm A Pretty Little Black Girl

Hair Love

Before She Was Harriet

The Parker Inheritance

Ghost Boys

Sister

Look What Brown Can Do!

Civil Rights Then & Now

Juneteenth

Bad News for Outlaws: The Remarkable Life of Bass Reeves, Deputy U.S. Marshal

I Promise

Little Legends: Exceptional Men in Black History

Harlem Renaissance Party

Bronzeville Boys and Girls

Mufaro's Beautiful Daughters

Crown: An Ode to the Fresh Cut

Of Thee I Sing: A Letter to my Daughters

Hidden Figures

AntiRacist Baby

Curlilocks and the Big Bad Hairbrush

Freedom Soup

Bedtime Bonnet

The Oldest Student

Ways to Make Sunshine

Hello, Crochet Friends!

If you're interested in more Black books by Black authors, I've compiled this list of over 300 Black own voices books. Happy Reading!

5 Disney Movies On My Radar To Watch This Year

2020-03-12T14:52:00.000-04:00

New year, new selection of movie releases from Disney to enjoy. Yes, if you didn't already know, we are big fans of Disney movies including Marvel Studios. Last year Disney kind of knocked it out of the park with so many great releases like Endgame, Toy Story 4, and we finally got a follow up to Maleficent. This year, I have five movies that I've been amped to watch since I saw the trailers last year and am looking forward to seeing each of them.

5 Disney Movies I Want To See This Year

Onward (March 6, 2020)

What would you do if you could bring back someone you loved from the dead? For me personally, I'd jump at the chance to bring one of my grandmothers back even if it was only for 24 hours. My maternal grandmother passed away when I was a baby. I have picture of her holding me but that's it.

My paternal grandmother succumbed to her battle with breast cancer before myself or any of my siblings were even a thought in our parents' minds. My father loss his mother when he was my son's age and that loss has had a such a profound effect on him. I'd love the opportunity to see how much of who I am was inherited from those two women and to have the chance to have some in-depth conversations about life with them.

In Disney Pixar's newly released animated movie, Onward, elf brothers Ian and Barley Lightfoot find themselves gifted with a magical staff, a gem, and a spell from their late father. Of course things don't go as planned. They end up destroying the gem stone and conjuring on half of their dad.

So Barley and Ian go on an adventure to find another gem in less than 24 hours before their chance to reconnect with their dad is gone forever. I haven't a chance to make it to the theaters yet to see (because life) but I'm planning on taking the kids to watch this soon. I've already got my tissues ready because the overall plot of this movie seems like it's going to hit close to home and trigger some waterworks.

Mulan (March 27, 2020)

I've seen many mixed responses and reactions to this movie already due to the movie trailers and the fact that supposedly none of the original songs or Mushu will be making an appearance in this live action remake. I have to say that I am among those who are disappointed that there is no Mushu. He provided so much comedic relief to what would have been an otherwise very intense family movie.

Nevertheless, I am still interested in seeing the final product and supporting this movie with my POC dollars. My heart is happy for the Asian community and that this is yet another drop in the bucket to more Asian movies making it to mainstream media. Representation STILL matters folks. Mushu or no Mushu, songs or no songs, I hope that Mulan will be amazing and huge hit at the box office just like Black Panther was.

Listen Jet Li playing the emperor and Jason Scott Lee playing Khan is enough for me to part with my dollars. I don't think I've ever been disappointed by any of their works before.

Black Widow (May 1, 2020)

It wouldn't be a good year in terms of movie releases without a movie from Marvel Studios. And I know ScarJo has let her mouth (and bad judgement) get her caught up in some controversy in the not so distant past, but I'm hoping she can keep it together until AFTER the Black Widow release. My baby but not a baby sister and I have already planned out our Sisters' Date Night to go see this. The kids will be hanging with Grandma since this is one Marvel movie that I have deemed not kid appropriate.

They're bummed they have to sit this one out because they've seen all of the Avenger movies thus far. They'll live tho. I'm looking forward to this movie because out of all the Avengers, Black Widow is the one character whose backstory I know the least about. Although I'm still mourning the loss of IronMan and Stan Lee, I'm hoping we see a little nod or something to both of them in this movie.

More importantly, I hope this woman gives off all kinds of Girl Power vibes. Black Widow does not play. She kicks ass first and takes names later.

Soul (June 19, 2020)

This is the one Disney movie the kids are actual skeptical about seeing. They can't quite put a finger on why but we're still going to be seated in the front row when it comes out. I mean it's an animated movie with a Black main character, of course I'm supporting it with my Black dollars when it drops this summer.

Soul is a movie about a band teacher named Joe who finally gets the opportunity of his dreams to play at the best jazz club in NYC. But a wrong step lands him in a fantastical world called The Great Before. TGB is like the last stop for souls before they come topside to Earth in human form.

Joe meets 22 and tries to convince her that being a human is all kinds of wonderful but what actually happens is that he ends up learning a few things himself. Peter Docter, who directed Inside Out, also directed Soul. You this means we may want to be on the safe side and bring some tissue.

Also, I'm hyped about seeing this movie because Jamie Foxx will be voicing Joe. I love when Jamie Foxx lands musical roles because he's a very talented singer. Ballads like those from the remake of Anna are my favorite to hear him sing. So I'm keeping my fingers crossed that Disney let him do his thing in this movie and that he'll also be recording some original songs for the soundtrack.

Jungle Cruise (July 24, 2020)

I'm glad The Rock made the decision all these years ago to team up with Disney. I've never been one to watch wrestling but he was on my radar from having seen his posters plastered all over my cousins' walls and listening to them talk about matches and them trying to impersonate his famous eyebrow lift. In my mind, I always thought he'd make a great hunky movie star. Looks like the universe agreed.

Hitting theaters this July, Jungle Cruise looks like it is going to be a nonstop adventure that the entire family can enjoy. The kids are hyped about this one. My little guy is excited that "Maui" is back in a movie that he can watch.

I'm invested in seeing Jungle Cruise because it gives off female Indiana Jones meets The Mummy vibes. Also, I love Emily Blunt! We will definitely be enjoying this movie at one of the IMAX theaters so that we can get the full effect.

If you're a Disney fan, please let me know in the comments or via social media what movies you are excited about seeing this year.

100 Creative Journal Prompts For Middle Schoolers

2020-02-22T13:07:00.000-05:00

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I've always been a lover of the written word. My mom jokes that I was born with a book, a notebook, and an ink pen in my hand. Now as a homeschooling mom and having worked in the education field, I know that not all kids are born with a natural love for writing.

For some kids this is a skill that has to be cultivated and practiced over and over again. One of the ways, I've gotten my kids to at least NOT hate writing is through prompt journaling. I learned early on that part of their dislike for writing came from them not having a clue what to write about. So I look the guesswork out of it by giving them FUN and sometimes personal prompts to write about.

Today I'm sharing 100 of those prompts with you. It is my hope that these prompts will help your child either enjoy writing more or at least dislike it less than they currently do. And in the process they'll be honing their writing skills and on their way to becoming better and hopefully less reluctant writers.

100 Writing Prompts For Kids

1. My favorite thing in the whole world is . . .

2. If someone asked me to describe myself I would say . . .

3. Five things I like to do on the weekend are . . .

4. Look a window and describe what it looks like outside. What colors and shapes do you see?

5. One thing I want to do when I get older is . . .

6. Describe your favorite place in the world. Where is it? Why do you like it? What does it look like there?

7. When I grow up I want to be . . .

8. Someone that I admire a lot is . . .

9. Name one personal object that is very special to you. Describe what it looks like. Where did you get it and why is it special to you?

10. My favorite holiday is . . .

11. If I wrote a book it would be about . . .

12. Describe one thing that you are good at. How did you learnt it? Do like being good at it?

13. Name three things that make you sad. Why do they make you sad?

14. One thing or topic I would love to learn more about is . . .

15. Write a short story about a dog named Spike.

16. If I could be any animal for a day, I would be . . .

17. Have you ever done something that you wish hadn't? What was it? How did it make you feel?

18. What is your favorite television show? When do you watch it? Why do you like watching it?

19. If you could breathe underwater like Aquaman or fly through space like Captain Marvel, which would you pick? Why?

20. My last dream was about . . .

21. Describe your perfect day. What would you do? Where would you go? Who would you spend time with?

22. Two things that make me excited are . . .

23. If I was stranded on an island I would take . . .

24. If you could hang out with one famous person, who would it be? What would you do with them?

25. If I had $100, I would . . .

26. What would you do if you could travel to outer space?

27. Who is one person you trust? Why do you trust them?

28. What is the best book you've ever read? What was it about? What did you like about it?

29. Do you think homeschool should be banned from school? Why or why not?

30. Which animal do you think would make a better pet- a fish or a bird? Why?

31. Describe your dream vacation. Where would you go? What would you do there?

32. What are four foods that you dislike? Why do you dislike them? Do they taste awful or have an unpleasant smell?

33. In my free time I like to . . .

34. Set a timer for ten minutes and write about anything you want to.

35. If you go invited to a costume party what would you wear? Why would you choose that costume?

36. Do you like snow days? Why or why not?

37. Describe your favorite snack food. Is it homemade or do you buy it from a store? How does it taste?

38. What does family mean to you?

39. Three things I want people to know about me are . . .

40. If I could change one thing about my community it would be . . .

41. What is one thing about yourself that you are really proud of? Why does this make you proud?

42. Name three things that make you laugh. Why are they funny?

43. What is your favorite animal? What does it look like? Have you ever seen it in person?

44. If you could make one new law, what would it be? Why would you make it?

45. List four things that you own that are in your favorite color. What do they look like? Where did you get them from?

46. Write a poem about Spring.

47. Write your full name. See how many words you can make using just those letters.

48. I feel my most happiest when . . .

49. To me freedom means . . .

50. What makes a person a good friend?

51. What is your favorite meal to have for lunch and/or dinner? Do you know how to cook it? How often do you get to eat it?

52. Write about two things that happened to you today. How did they make you feel?

53. What is your biggest fear and why?

54. Write a letter to your future self.

55. If you could have one superpower what would it be?

56. What is your favorite hobby? How did you learn how to do it?

57. What are things that you are grateful for right now?

58. What do you love most about yourself and why?

59. Write a short story about a butterfly.

60. Do you think kids should be get paid for chores? Why or why not?

61. Something I wish adults understood about kids is . . .

62. If I could do anything next month, I would . . .

63. What is your dream pet and why?

64. Would you want to live in a world with no adults? Why or why not?

65. If I were principal for a day I would . . .

66. What is the best gift anyone has ever given you? Who gave it to you? Do you still have it?

67. My favorite thing about summer break is . . .

68. In five years, I think I will . . .

69. Why do you think the chicken crossed the road?

70. If you could learn one new skill this month, what would it be? Why?

71. What are two thing you wish you knew about the future?

72. If could invent anything, I would create . . .

73. What kind of animals would you own if you had a farm like Old MacDonald?

74. Make a bucket list.

75. Do you think kids should have cell phones? Why or why not?

76. What do you like about your neighborhood?

77. Write three original "Knock, Knock" jokes.

78. If I found a pot of gold at the end of a rainbow, I would . . .

79. Would you want to switch places with your parents or guardian for the day? What would you do?

80. How would you decorate your room if you had no restrictions and an unlimited amount of money?

81. Write a letter to your best friend.

82. My least favorite holiday is . . .

83. What is your favorite kind of music to do listen to?

84. If I could pick any celebrity to replace one of my teachers, I would choose . . .

85. Today, I feel . . .

86. If you had a treehouse, what would you keep in it?

87. Write a poem about the moon.

88. What would you do if a volcano erupted in your neighborhood?

89. I think kids should be able to vote because . . .

90. My least favorite thing to do is . . .

91. If I could choose anyone to put on a dollar bill or coin, I would choose . . .

92. The last time I cried was . . .

93. Do you think punishments really help people learn their lessons?

94. What is your favorite game to play? Why do you like to play it? Do you play it with anyone?

95. Would you ever run for president? Why or why not?

96. What is your favorite movie? What is it about?

97. What do you think you were like as a baby?

98. If I could ask my parents three questions, I would ask them . . .

99. I think social media is . . .

100. One thing I can do to make this world a better place is . . .

To make it easy to try out some of these prompts with your child, I created this free downloadable pdf. This way you can print out this list and have it handy at all times. You can also purchase my official 10 Min Writing workbook journals here and here or using the widget below or you can purchase printables from my Teachers Pay Teachers store.

YUMMommy Book Club

2020-02-16T23:41:00.000-05:00

This blog post contains affiliate links. I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you for purchases made through those links.

What do you do when you love talking about books almost as much as you love reading them? You start a book club of course. Having talked about books here on the blog and pretty much everywhere else, it seemed like the next logical step for me was to start a digital book club. Thus, the YUMMommy Book Club was born.

About The YUMMommy Book Club

My hope and goal is that this book club will be a space where we can bond, connect, and build a community through our shared loved and enjoyment of reading. In a nutshell, it'll be like doing one big group buddy read every month in which we all read the selected group book and then share our thoughts on it after we finish it.

Book lovers everywhere know the feeling that takes over when you're all the way in and can't wait to turn the page--or have to brace yourself before turning it. You just want to tell somebody! You want to share the experience! ... For me, the only thing more thrilling than being captivated by a brilliant book is being able to share it. -Oprah Winfrey

What the YUMMommy Book Club will NOT be is a place to pass judgement or spew bigotry. While we read a mixture of non-fiction and fiction books, some of those tackling hard topics and some not, I hope that everyone will be mature enough to keep it classy and save the drama for their mama.

First Book Club Read

With it still being February, I thought it would be a great idea to start with something befitting of Black History Month. Therefore, our first read will be Motherhood So White: A Memoir of Race, Gender, and Parenting in America by Nefertiti Austin.

Author: Nefertiti Austin

Genre: Non-fiction, African American, Memoirs
Publication Date: September 20, 2019
Publisher: Sourcebooks
Buy Here: Amazon | Target | Walmart

In America, Mother = White

That's what Nefertiti Austin, a single African American woman, discovered when she decided she wanted to adopt a Black baby boy out of the foster care system. Eager to finally join the motherhood ranks, Nefertiti was shocked when people started asking her why she wanted to adopt a "crack baby" or said that she would never be able to raise a Black son on her own. She realized that American society saw motherhood through a white lens and that there would be no easy understanding or acceptance of the kind of family she hoped to build.

Motherhood So White is the story of Nefertiti's fight to create the family she always knew she was meant to have and the story of motherhood that all American families need now. In this unflinching account of her parenting journey, Nefertiti examines the history of adoption in the African American community, faces off against the stereotypes of single, Black motherhood, and confronts the reality of raising children of color in racially charged, modern-day America.

Honest, vulnerable, and uplifting, Motherhood So White reveals what Nefertiti knew all along-- that the only requirement for a successful family is one raised with love.

I think this will be a powerful read that many of us will be able to identify with and relate to while for others it may cause you to challenge the way you view motherhood and Black moms. I hope you will join me in reading Motherhood So White. If you feel like this book selection isn't for you feel free to sit this one out and join us after March 20th for the next book club pick.

How To Be Apart of the YUMMommy Book Club

Join the YUMMommy Book Club on Facebook: This is where everything will be going down. Having an official group instead of just hosting the book club on the YUMMommy Facebook page will offer us more privacy. I want us to feel comfortable sharing our real thoughts on the books we read as well as sharing any personal connections that we felt. Often times being vulnerable in a very public place is hard for many us. So a private group gives us a more intimate setting to interact. You can find the book club here.

Read the Group Book by March 17th: We'll start sharing in-depth conversations that will hold spoilers after this date. So if you don't want anything spoiled for you, get 'er read!

Attend the Live Show: I've tentatively scheduled a liveshow/book chat for Friday, March 20th at 8 PM EST. Turn on some cartoons for the kids (or put them to bed), grab your snacks (and your book), and join us. No worries if you miss it. The replay will be up in the group for you to watch.

Invite a Friend: I really want our book club to be successful. And in order to do that we need members. So be sure to share this post on your social media so your friends can join us too! Friends don't let friends read good books alone, right?!

I'm really looking forward to reading and talking books with y'all this year! Seriously, I'm so giddy that I started a book club. See ya over in the YUMMommy Book Club group. 📚

Have you ever been a part of a book club?

Last Minute Valentine's Day Gift Ideas For Adults & Kids

2020-02-10T21:36:00.001-05:00

This post contains affiliate links. I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you for purchases made using any of the links below.

Happy Monday! Valentine's Day totally got the drop on me this year. Usually I have gifts already purchased and hidden by the end of January. Unfortunately it's looking like I'm going to be out here in these streets with the rest of the procrastinators and forgetters doing last minute shopping.

Thank goodness stores like Target and Walmart offer same day pickup and/or delivery. Anyways, if you're like me and will be last minute shopping, check out some of the gift ideas below. There's a mixture of traditional and non-traditional suggestions.

Adult Gift Ideas

Jewelry | We've been using jewelry as a way to show our for centuries now. It's hard to go wrong with earrings, a ring, or maybe a watch in your loved one's favorite color.

Books | Did you know more people visited the library last year than the movies? So it's safe to say that a book by your loved one's favorite author will be right up their alley. Also, another fun concept would be get a book that you can buddy read together. Reading always even more fun when you have someone to talk about all the juicy bits with as you read.

Treats | They say food is the way to a man's heart and I'm here to say that food is the way to EVERYONE's heart.

Beauty & Grooming | Listen I have never turned down gifts of lipstick, hair care products, or skincare stuff. I love it when my loved ones want to help me look and feel my best by investing in me via beauty product gifts.

For The Home | I wish other adults understood how much their peers appreciate simple gifts like a new set of coffee mugs, towel sets, candles, and other home goods.

Flowers | I know flowers seem like a cliché gift to give but studies have shown that having fresh flowers in a home reduces stress. So get the flowers.

Entrepreneurship | There's more than one way to support your loved one's business. Something as simple as a planner can go a long ways to helping them get organized by giving them a central place to jot down business meetings, lunch dates, and more.

Kids Gift Ideas

Toys & DIY | I don't know a kid alive who turns down the gift of toys after Christmas. My little guy loves getting toys for all the holidays. And Moo, my tween, is all about DIYs.

Treats | Remember food is the way to everyone's heart including kids!

Clothes | In case you didn't get the memo, kids love clothes too. Moo has hit the tween age and she's all about clothes and shoes.

Books | Don't let these kids fool you, they love reading too!

What is your favorite Valentine's Day gift?

Friday Five Recently | Week 8

2019-11-15T11:46:00.000-05:00

This post contains affiliate link, which means I may get a commission if you make a purchase using one of those links.

Happy Friday! We are another week closer to Christmas. Naturally, the kids can hardly contain their excitement. I'm not ashamed to say that they get their love of Christmas from me. I'm a holiday baby. So the love of Christmas is in my blood.

Anyways, they've been asking Alexa almost everyday how many days we have until Christmas. It's so cute to watch. Their joy and excitement is so infectious and just what I need right now.

Recently ...

Decorated | As per our family's tradition, we decorated our holiday tree for Christmas on November 1st. I know this may seem a bit too early for some but it's been the perfect tradition for us. This year I let the kids take over the decorating. Watch the video below to see how they did.

Also, I want to point out that we call our Christmas tree a holiday tree now because last Christmas I made the execute decision to leave our tree up year round. We simply switch out the decorations on it. So think cute bunny and egg ornaments for Easter and pumpkin ornaments for Fall. I definitely recommend doing a holiday tree if you don't need to use the space where you put your tree.

Exhausted | I made the mistake of slacking off on giving the kids (and myself) their daily Sambucol elderberry syrup. Now I'm paying the cost because both kids (and myself) are sick. And as usual, Moo got sick first and then it spread to her brother. Since I've been taking care of both of them around the clock, I have a little tickle in my throat too.

I hope that we all get to feeling better by the end of next week. A mama is exhausted. I'm tired of cleaning up vomit, replenishing ginger ale and Kleenex rations, and getting up all hours to dispense out medicine every 2-4 hours. Not to mention, we've still been homeschooling through all of this. Definitely learned my lesson about skipping the elderberry syrup.

Sad | The holidays are usually a happy time for me but this year I'm a little sad. Death was not kind to my family this year and so this year we'll be celebrating the holidays without some familiar and cherished faces for the first time. Our hearts are heavy folks. Keep us lifted in your thoughts and prayers this season.

Ready | We are officially ready for Day of Thanks aka Thanksgiving. Instead of getting an entire bird we opted to get two Butterball Ready to Roast Boneless Turkey Breast. These don't require any thawing and they're already seasoned. You just take it out of the freezer, unpackage it, and put in the oven/roaster.

Watched | Netflix has a hit on their hands with their new Christmas movie, Klaus. It started streaming today and of course I had to watch it. It's so good! The perfect animated movie about the spirit of Christmas and how Santa came to be that whole family will enjoy.

Have you started preparing for the holidays yet?

Our Traditional Style Family Christmas Tree

2019-11-05T20:06:00.000-05:00

This post contains affiliate links and I may make a commission (at no cost to you) if you make a purchase using my link.

Oh Christmas tree, oh Christmas tree, we've been all year to decorate you! So those clearly aren't the lyrics to "O Christmas Tree" but still the kids and I have been counting down the days until we could put up the Christmas ornaments again. And yes, we continued with our tradition of putting our tree up on November 1st! Keep scrolling for more Christmas tree goodness.

What We Did Differently

This year when it came to decorating the family tree, I tried to let the kids take over and have free reign of where all the ornaments went. (Click here to see last year's tree.) It's the tree that will be on display for visitors to see when they stop by and the tree we put gifts under. So instead of making it "perfect" or "flawless," I decided that it should be a reflection of our family. And I have to say the kids did a great job of doing just that.

Moo says we need to add more ornaments and get some tree garland to fill in some of the bare spots. So I'm sure there will be a second round of decorating for this tree in the next week or so. I'll keep y'all posted.

Another thing we did differently is that we left the actual tree up all year. Yep, you heard right, we didn't take down our tree after the holidays. Instead, we removed all of the ornaments with the exception of the lights. Our goal was make it into a year round holiday tree and not just a Christmas tree. So think hearts for Valentine's Day, flowers for Mother's Day, and pumpkins for Halloween. This is a cool way to keep some holiday cheer going throughout the year and I definitely recommend this if you don't need to take down your tree free up space.

This year we also ditched our old tree skirt. It was cheap and not very exciting to look at. Originally, I hadn't planned on ditching it but it came up missing when we pulled out all of the Christmas decorations. A blessing in disguise in my book.

And the last thing we want to do differently this year is have additional trees. No worries we're not going to go overboard. The kids each want their own personal trees for their rooms. I think this is a great idea and we've already started rearranging furniture and hunting for the right trees to fit their respective spaces. Fingers crossed we find them.

Why We Went With Artificial

Growing up my mom was the hostess with the mostest. She made sure we always had a real tree. She didn't switch to an artificial tree until after I had moved out. It was always my goal to continue my childhood tradition of having a live Christmas tree.

However, when I met my husband, I found out that not only was he NOT a fan of real trees, but that the smell made him sick. And now years later, we still have an artificial tree.

I'm keeping my fingers crossed that this year will be our last year without a live tree as I want to get a live one to go on the porch next year. We'll keep our artificial ones inside, but I'm determined that the kids will experience at least one holiday season with a live tree.

Also, from a money standpoint, having an artificial tree is more practical because we can use it year after year and save money on getting a live one.

What We Want To Do Different Next Year

I know Christmas 2019 hasn't gotten here yet but I'm already planning ahead to next year. The first thing we want to change up next year is our tree. We love our faithful one but have decided to get something that is fuller and prelit. Ideally, I'd love get one of those trees that spins as well but I'm not trying to break the bank.

We'll also be saying good-bye to our current tree topper. It's just a $3 star that I think my husband picked up from the dollar store because we couldn't find our one after our move. I wanted to replace it this year but I didn't catch any of the toppers I wanted during the after Christmas sales last year. So, I'm just going to save up and keep hunting.

We'll retire our current tree and topper to either my office or the kitchen. The kids also want to try adding some ribbon to the tree. Moo said we need to have a "fancy" tree next year. Guess I'll be brushing up my ribbon skills until then.

Lastly, I want to get some personalized ornaments and get the kids to make more handmade ornaments. Some of my favorite ornaments on our tree are the ones the kids made. It gives the tree character and makes it feel homey.

So who else has their Christmas tree up and decorated already? If not, let me know when you usually put your tree up below in the comments.

Happy Holidays!

Friday Five Recently | Week 7

2019-09-06T20:15:00.000-04:00

How is it back-to-school time already? We've been rocking and rolling with homeschool for about three weeks now and I'm still trying to figure out how Summer Break went by so quickly. Listen, I'm not the biggest fan of overly structured days, getting up in the morning, and having to cut back on my night owl hours. In the words of Drake, "I come alive in the nighttime." So needless to say it's been an adjustment around these parts. Anyways, I hope that the 2019-2020 school year has gotten off to a great start for your families. Here's a look at what we've been up to during my Summer hiatus from the blog.

Recently . . .

Gardened | Our gardening adventures have continued. I'm so happy the kids and I decided to start growing our own food again. We had a small veggie garden on our balcony when we lived in our old apartment. So it only made sense to give it another go now that we have a yard with even more space and we can actually plant into the ground.

I will say that it hasn't been all smooth sailing but it's been a great learning and bonding experience for us. We've enjoyed eating food we grew from seed and via our own hard work. We recently came back from a trip to my hometown and discovered that our watermelons have finally decided to grow! We were shocked and excited. Bambi and his mama had been eating up our watermelon vine and buds every time they bloomed. I had made up my mind that I was going to take up the vines and plant something else but I'm glad that I didn't.

Realized | While we're on the subject of gardening, I've had the realization/revelation that I've become really passionate about growing my own food. So much so that I want to give it a go doing it on a larger scale and throw some animals into the mix. Basically, I want to start a farm. I'm not shocked by this as I come from a line of sharecroppers and have family members who have/had farms.

I've written about how my mom has an excellent green thumbs and our house was always full of plants growing up. I've also talked about how I spend time helping my great uncle in his garden and the fun I had shelling peas and shucking corn on his screened-in porch with my siblings. I just wish I would have realized how passionate I would feel about farming and how right it would feel deep down in my bones before I went to college and studied fashion merchandising.

Now I'm looking into taking some agriculture classes. Better late than never for sure.

Started | Somewhere between late June and early July, I hopped back on the couponing bandwagon. Honestly, I'm wondering why I ever stopped to start with. I'm not out here clearing shelves, but my favorite total at checkout has become $FREE. I will say that couponing feels so much easier though this time around.

I'm sure that YouTube couponers and my couponing groups has a lot to do with that. It's easier to find sales and the guesswork is pretty much taken out of doing matchups. Not only has couponing been a great way to save money, but it's helped me to earn money as well using cashback apps like ibotta, Fetch Rewards, and ShopKick. I'll go in-depth on this in a later post.

Mourned | This summer has not been kind to my family as a whole. A little over a month ago my Aunt G passed away. While wasn't out of the blue because she had been sick and was in and out of the hospital which ended in her having to have her leg amputated, it's still an adjustment. The first two weeks after her funeral were the hardest for me. Memories of her kept popping into my head at will and I'd have rush off to the bathroom to cry in peace.

Aunt G is on the right in the hat.

One of my cousins passed away the same day after he heard about her passing. He was on his way back home to attend the funeral. I'm not going to go into all of the other people from our family who've passed away this Summer but it's just been a reminder that my aunts, uncles, great cousins, etc. are all older now. So I know death is to be expected in some cases, but it damn sure ain't welcomed!

Resonated | I stumbled across this post that talks about how we should Stop Accepting Apologies That Aren't Accompanied By Changed Behavior and it really resonated with me. I think a lot of us struggle with putting our foots down, cutting people off, and leaving harmful situations be it romantic, platonic, and/or professional relationships. We allow people to continue to mistreat us, disrespect us, and waste our time. We stay mad for a little while, they give us an apology and empty promises, and we bury our emotions and open our arms and hearts right back up to them time and time again.

I don't want to get too deep or sound too preachy, but accepting apologies without changed behavior is something that's heavily promoted in Black families. Maybe not as much in this generation but enough that we still need to work on it. I'm sure many of us have been told to accept so and so's apology for the millionth time because "we're family." I know I've heard this, both directed and not directed at me, more times than I care to recount.

It took me a long time to realize that a lot of people let others continue to hurt them out of fear. Fear of being alone, fear of not what's next, fear of losing something/someone familiar and not wanting to have to start over or move on. Reading this helped to me to come to terms with the fact that I want to break this cycle with my kids. Also, I want to be conscious of what I'm teaching them about forgiveness. I want them to know that it's okay to not forgive immediately.

Some wounds won't heal overnight or ever. Take your time. Also, I want them to know that forgiving someone doesn't mean you have to keep them around and give them the opportunity to screw you over again. I want my kids to know their worth and what they are worthy of. I want them to be ruthless about cultivating an environment that is safe and healthy mentally, emotionally, and physically.

Let's chat in the comments! Have your kids started school yet? If so, how's it been going?

3 Reasons Why Family Meals Are So Important

2019-07-14T18:30:00.000-04:00

I received this product for free from Moms Meet to use and post my honest opinions. Compensation for this post was provided and this page may contain affiliate links.

Summer is still in full swing. And if you're from the Carolinas, you know the heat down South is nothing to play with. One of the measures I've been taking to keep the house cool is taking a break a from turning on my stove. I may not be cooking as often these days, thanks to Wildscape, family dinners have been going strong still. Eating dinner as a family is the one thing, I refuse to give up. While there are tons of scientific and medical studies about how beneficial family dinners can be for children, I'm sharing 3 of my own personal reasons why family meals are so important for my family.

3 Reasons To Eat Dinner With Your Family

It's not what's on the table that matters, it's who's in the chairs.

So it definitely matters what's on my table because I have picky eaters, but it definitely matters that we all eat together. When I became a mom, I made a promise to myself (and my children) that we would always eat dinner as family no matter where we are. And I can say without doubt that I've done a great job of keeping this commitment. I can count on one hand the number of times my kids and I haven't been able to eat dinner together so far and I'm hoping to keep it that way.

While I always had dinner with my siblings growing up, it wasn't until I reached junior high that my mom's work schedule allowed her to consistently be home in time for dinner. Breaking bread as a complete family definitely mattered. It always felt incomplete those nights she wasn't there. And I know that it matters to my kids that I'm sitting with them at the dinner table every night.

Some of the most important conversations I've ever had occurred at my family's dinner table. -Bob Ehrlich

The first time Moo told me she hated public school was during family dinner. We had just finished saying grace and I had asked her to tell me about her day at school. I knew kindergarten had been rough, but she'd absolutely loved her first grade teacher and I thought she was adjusting well to second grade. That summer we moved and it was during family dinner again that I told her she could homeschool with her brother.

Family dinners have a way of putting us at ease and giving us the courage to be vulnerable. Shoot thinking back on my own life, I can count numerous times when I had serious and important conversations with my mom and siblings while sharing a meal together. There's just a comforting intimacy when it comes over us that comes with sharing food as a family.

This much I know. If you are what you eat, then I only wanna eat the good stuff. ~Ratatouille, the movie

Somewhere between going off to college and before having kids, my diet and eating habits were crappy at best. Having kids, especially kids with food allergies, forced me to really take a hard look at what I was not only putting in my body but on our dinner table overall. I quickly found out that all frozen and prepared meals weren't made equally and it wasn't long before I was cooking breakfast, lunch, and dinner from scratch 365.

Thankfully, frozen meals have come a long way and we now have brands like Wildscape who understand the importance of frozen meal options made with natural ingredients that I can actually identify and name. They have 6 different recipe options to suit different dietary needs.

Gochujang Cauliflower: Gluten-free, dairy-free, and vegetarian. Does contain soy and cashews. (P.S.-This one is my favorite! It's spicy but not overwhelming.)
Peri Peri Portobellos: Dairy-free and vegetarian. Contains coconut flakes
Seared Steak: Gluten-free, nut-free, and dairy-free. Does contain soy. (This is the kids' favorite.)
Togarashi Beef: Dairy-free and nut-free. Does contain soy. (I can't wait until my store gets this one.)
Cilantro Lime Chicken: Gluten-free, nut-free, soy-free, and dairy-free. (This is delicious by itself, but it's even better when poured over some tortilla chips.)
Chimichurri Chicken: Dairy-free. Contains almond butter. (Waiting for my store to get this one too.)

The best part of these meals, besides the natural beef and antibiotic-free chicken, is that each meal takes under 6 minutes to cook in the microwave. And Wildscape has layered each meal in a special way to make sure everything maintains its proper texture and you don't end up with chewy meat or mushy veggies. Did I mention how I love that the bowls are resealable as well as recyclable?

This is perfect since we've been doing a lot of eating outdoors and have been working on reducing our waste even more.

Wildscape Meals are available at Publix, Harris Teeter, H-E-B, and AmazonFresh. Click here to find a store near you so that you can pick some up for your next family dinner. Be sure to follow Wildscape on Facebook and Instagram to stay up to date on new product releases, sales, and more.

Do you do family dinners at your house?

Friday Five Recently | Week 6

2019-06-07T15:32:00.000-04:00

It's a rainy Friday in the Carolinas but I'm not complaining. This rain is greatly appreciated because we need it. Our yard has been looking like a dry cracked desert for weeks. We're supposed to get more rain throughout the weekend. So we'll be hanging out indoors for the most part. In the meanwhile though, let's catch up friends!

Recently . . .

Ended | Our 2018-19 homeschool year has finally ended. Hello Summer Break!!! These last 8 days of being able to sleep-in have been glorious y'all. Although, the first day I forgot to turn off my alarms and ended waking up early. This school year was a bit of a challenge.

I'm definitely going to sit down and write out my thoughts to share with you all. Homeschooling is something that I'm very passionate about but I realized it's one of the things that I don't really go much into detail about here on the blog. I want to change that.

Designed | Remember when I told y'all that I restarted bullet journaling? Well, I finally got around to designing the start of my June spread. It's nothing elaborate but I love the bright colors. I'm toying with the idea of giving each week of this month a different spread design. We'll see how it goes though.

Excited | Our vegetable garden is really taking off and we're so excited. So far we've harvested two pea pods. I know that doesn't seem like a lot but it is considering everything else we planted takes about 3 months to harvest minus the collard greens. We started everything from seed with the exception of our lone tomato plant.

When you start things from seeds versus buying seedlings or plants from the store, it can seem like it takes forever for things to really get on and popping. I am disappointed that our lettuce bolted though. I've done some more research though and I'm ready to try my hand at replanting it.

Watched | We saw The Secret Life Of Pets 2 and it was adorable. The overall theme for this movie was about learning to face and overcome our fears. I think it's worth a watch. The kids have already asked to see it again. I've also started watching the Charmed reboot now that the first season is available on Netflix. So far so good. I love that the Charmed Ones are POC/Black Latinas this time around.

Participated | Lashawn from Everyday Eyecandy started a #FifteenSecondsOfSummer project and I've had a blast participating in it. I missed two days this week because I started feeling under the weather but I'm hoping right back on the wagon. I love that once summer is over we'll have these little clips to look back on.

What have you been up to recently? Let's chat in the comments.

5 Reasons We're Excited To See The Secret Life Of Pets 2

2019-05-23T17:00:00.000-04:00

This giveaway is sponsored by Illumination Entertainment.

"Welcome to New York. It's been waiting for you." It's been three years since we've hit the streets of the Big Apple with our favorite pet pals. Now The Secret Life Of Pets 2 is adventuring into theaters on June 7th just in time to kickoff Summer Break! Here's a look at why the kids and I are beyond excited to catch up with Max and the gang.

5 Reasons To Get Excited About The Secret Life Of Pets 2

1- Big Changes | If you've seen the movie trailers for The Secret Life Of Pets 2 already, then you know some big changes have happened since the last time we got to hang out with Max and the other pets. The biggest changes by far (in my opinion at least) are that Katie, Max and Duke's owner, got married and had a kid, Liam! Talk about a plot twist.

Keep in mind that one thing we know about Max is that he doesn't respond well to changes, especially when it pertains to his pack/family. The main questions the kids having been asking is, "Do you think Max is going to like the baby?" I'm going to go out on a limb and say that he will, but we won't know for sure for sure until we see the movie.

2- The Gang's All Here | It's nice to know that while we'll be seeing how Max adjusts to being a big brother for second time, that we'll also get to see some familiar faces from the first movie. Yep, Chloe, Snowball, Mel, Duke, and Gidget are back. They'll have adventures of their own to tackle too.

3- New Faces | While it'll be great seeing familiar faces, there will also be some new faces joining the The Secret Life Of Pets family. Two of the new faces we'll meet are Daisy, a fearless Shih Tzu, and Rooster, a farm dog. I think Rooster is either a Border Collie or Australian Shepherd, but don't hold me to that. Anyways, we're eager to see if these new characters will be friends or foes.

4- Allstar Voice-Over Cast | When it comes the voice-over cast, I'm sure that I'm more excited than the kids are. I love it when some of my favorite actors are a part of projects that are family-friendly. The Secret Life Of Pets 2 is welcoming the talented and funny Tiffany Haddish as the voice of Daisy the Shih Tzu as well as Harrison Ford, my forever man crush, as the voice of Rooster. And of course, Kevin Hart, Patton Oswalt, Ellie Kemper, Lake Bell, and Jenny Slate are all back voicing their original characters.

5- Overall Theme/Messaging | At the end of the day, I'm most excited to see what themes and messaging this movie will touch upon. I know the first movie gave way to a lot of conversation starters for us. My kids really pick up on things in animated movies that honestly, I don't always expect them to. For example, in the first movie when Duke went back to his old home and the cat told him that his owner had died, my kids started asking questions about what would happen our stuff and them if I died. They also asked questions about why there are so many stray animals.

So I'm looking forward to seeing what themes and messages they will pick up on in this movie. I know for sure The Secret Life Of Pets 2 will touch on changes in family dynamics (again) as well as friendship (again). I suspect we'll see more of the pets having to confront their fears and overcome other obstacles. Either way, I definitely feel confident that we'll be having some good conservations after watching this.

I really hope that you and your family will have the opportunity to watch The Secret Life Of Pets 2 when it hits theaters on June 7th. Speaking of opportunities, I'm proud to announce that I've partnered with Illumination Entertainment to give a few families in the Charlotte, NC a chance to attend an advance screening of the movie on June 4th. Simply use the widget below to enter.

Check out the official The Secret Life Of Pets website for more movie info, video clips, and more!

Rosie's Easter Bash 2019

2019-04-22T11:30:00.000-04:00

Happy Belated Easter!! After almost two weeks of being on house arrest thanks to the insane amount of the pollen that has been suffocating the Carolinas, we finally made a break for it and journeyed outside. This past weekend, I loaded up the kids and we went into downtown Lancaster for the annual Rosie's Easter Bash community event.

This was our second year going. The weather was less than stellar because we had series of really crazy thunderstorms the day before and it was actually really cold the morning of the event. Nevertheless we still lived our best lives and had a great time at Rosie's Easter Bash 2019. Take a look at some of our adventures below.

What We Did At Rosie's Easter Bash 2019

Petting Zoo | We (Moo and I) were thrilled to see that the petting zoo was back again this year. JJ was still a little weary of the farm animals but at least he didn't run in the opposite direction like he did last year. He stood patiently off to the side while I snapped animal photos until my heart was content and Moo got in her bunny cuddles.

I fell in love with this one goat that I named Billie (pictured above). I'm not sure if it's a he or a she but it was so cute and friendly. Billie greeted everyone that passed by and enjoyed being in the spotlight. Also, like last year one of the alpacas was not thrilled or amused by us humans and tried its hardest to eat through the fence bars. Watch my vlog below because I got its attempted breakout on camera.

We did miss the sheep this year. They were replaced with Billie's crew but the baby/miniature goats were back again this year. And just like last year, Moo tried to talk me into talking the farmer into letting us take one home. LOL. The country is finally growing on my city girl and it has done wonders for bringing out her animal lover side.

Now if we could just get the country to work its magic on my little guy. So far the only animals he gets remotely excited about are birds and horses. Like he loves horses a lot.

Train Station | Unfortunately by the time we arrived at Rosie's Easter Bash, the egg hunt for JJ's age group was already over. This may have been a blessing in disguise as he is NOT a good egg hunter in crowds. He gets overwhelmed and freezes up. We learned this the hard way last year. However, there is one thing that he loves without fail no matter what the crowds look like and that's trains!

So we were both happy to see the "Train Station" roller coaster ride. The "conductor" was very nice and did a great job of interacting with the kids. As you'll see in the vlog, he hoped on and off the train with the kids several times throughout their ride around the tracks.

Egg Hunt | JJ missed his hunt but Moo was right on time for hers. This year the egg hunts were split into three different categories. The last group to go were the big kids and the adults. At first I didn't think any adults were going to join in. I seriously thought they'd leave all the egg collecting to the older kids and teens. I was so wrong. Watch the vlog to see some of the egg hunting action.

Balloon Animals | I don't think they had a balloon artist at Rosie's Easter Bash last year. If they did, we definitely missed it. Thankfully, we didn't miss it this year. While Moo went back to play with the real bunnies, her brother got an adorable balloon bunny bracelet made by the balloon artist.

Let me tell y'all, I was just as mesmerized as my little guy looks in picture above. I love watching balloon artists made their creations. I mean their hands move so fast while they're twisting and tugging those balloons this way and that way. This is definitely a skill that I wish I had the patience the master.

Face Painting | So one of the last thing that we (Moo) indulged in before leaving Rosie's Easter Bash was the face painting. To our delight our favorite face painters were back. I can never remember to grab their names but those two ladies are awesome. They work quickly to keep the line short but man do they do some amazing work in such a fast time period. Moo opted for a rainbow and JJ opted not to get his face painted. I wanted to get my face painted but adult acne is currently ruining my life right now. 😩

Do you see that orange AirHead peeking out? Also a special thanks to TapSnap for the complimentary Easter Bunny photo.

Easter Bunny Photo | Originally, I thought we had missed out on our chance of getting a photo with the Easter Bunny as well. Thankfully though we didn't. That was actually the very last thing that we did. Unfortunately, my little guy would not let our photo be great. Right as we got in position for our photo, he decided to put the big wad of AirHead that his sister gave him in his mouth. So he couldn't smile properly and he refused to look at the camera. 😑 At least we got a photo, I guess. Also, they handed out free stuffed bunnies again this year. Yay!

Other Activities At Rosie's Easter Bash 2019

So there were a few things that we bypassed this year. The first was the bouncy houses. If my memory serves me correct the bouncy houses that they had last year were bigger. My kids are not fans of being in small enclosed spaces. So they both nixed the bouncy houses.

Also, we passed on the Fire House experience this year. So the Fire House is a mobile unit that they fire department uses to teach kids about how to safely put out fires as well as how to safely escape their homes in case of a fire as well as what to do if you can't get out and have to hang tight until help arrives. They stage a real fire with smoke from a smoke machine and kids get to learn how to climb out of a window.

Since I've been doing this experience since I was a kid in school, Moo's done it 2 or 3 times already, and JJ has done it once, we decided to pass on doing it again. There were some food trucks available but we passed due to our food allergy issues.

There was also some kind of sand art craft but by the time we got done with all the other things the kids really wanted to do they were packing up the table to go. I don't remember if there was a craft last year. If so, we missed out on it then as well.

And as always, they had a great DJ and an amazing hostess. They played some of my jams while were there but the kids threatened to disown me if I started dancing or singing along. Y'all see how kids will try to suck away our fun but not their own?! No worries next year, I'm inviting Grandma for backup. She loves to get down in public, especially if they drop the Electric Slide.

Overall, we had an amazing time. It was nice to get out of the house. The kids are already asking what I think Rosie's Easter Bash 2020 will look like. Honestly, I'm just hoping that the weather is warmer and less wet. Also, I will be prepared to get in on the egg hunt action as they give away prizes if you find one of the special eggs with a ticket inside.

If you celebrate Easter, what are some of your Easter traditions?

Friday Five Recently | Week 5

2019-04-12T17:08:00.000-04:00

TGIF!! Y'all have no idea how happy I am that it's finally Friday. And it's no just any Friday either. Nope, today is the Friday before Spring Break. Which means starting this weekend, I get sleep-in for the next 11 days!! Won't He do it?!

So since it's Friday, that mean it's time for another catch up session. Also, this post does contain affiliate links. So if you click on the link and purchase something, I could potentially receive a commission.

Recently . . .

Watched | So I took a break from watching YouTube vlogs to watch The Umbrella Academy. It's a Netflix show based on the comic book series of the same name written by Gerard Way and illustrated by Gabriel Bá. It's about a group of adoptive siblings who were born with extraordinary abilities and then were groomed to be superheroes as kids. Anyways, things went left and they all ended up going their separate ways but a family tragedy brings them all back together only for them to discover that they have 8 days to save the world from an apocalypse. I definitely recommend giving this a watch and am looking forward to the second season already.

While we're talking about Netflix shows and second seasons, I started the second season of Chilling Adventures of Sabrina. It took awhile for me to get into the first season and I was pretty much just watching it because of Ross Lynch but it's grown on me a bit. There have already been so many surprises this season and I still have 4 episodes left. I would like to note that this is NOT a show you want to watch with kids or really anybody under the age of 17.

Also, if you're not familiar with the Sabrina the Teenage Witch series, then let me warn you that this show deals with witchcraft. If you don't like shows or anything that deals with the supernatural, then steer clear of this show.

Read | The folks over at Harlequin and Park Row Books were nice enough to send me an ARC of Beautiful Bad last month and I loved it!

Thrillers have always been my first love when it comes to books. When I was growing up the Young Adult genre didn't exist. There were children's books, middle grade books and then it seemed to skip straight to adult. Anyways, back to Beautiful Bad. This book is about a love story that goes bad. It's told mostly from Maddie's (the wife) point of view.

Here's the thing you should know about Maddie though. She's not the most reliable narrator/storyteller because she's suffering some mental health issues after a head injury. So as a reader, you have to kind of decide how much of Maddie's telling of things to believe. I will say that this book keeps you on the edge of your seat. Also, if you think you have the whole mystery of "The Killing" figured out, you don't.

This book has all kinds of twists at the end. Pick this up for sure if you love thrillers as well.

Re-started | The kids and I had a great workout routine going after the New Year. Then February aka my Depression Month hit and we (I) fell off the wagon. Well we hopped back on it and have been doing some workouts from the POPSUGAR Fitness page on Facebook. Listen those workouts DO NOT Play!

However, I know that results that will come from resuming our nightly workouts will be worth it. Plus, I really want to set a good example for the kids when it comes to taking care of their bodies through exercise.

Excited | Would you believe me if I told you that it snowed here last week? It's crazy, I know. The kids and I were super excited about it as it snowed everywhere around us this past winter. It only lasted a day but I was a little worried because we had just moved our seedlings outside to the garden.

Some didn't survive but that was okay because I just direct planted some seeds to replace them. And this week, the garden seems to be really taking off. I'm sure it's because of the all the rain and the melted snow and ice from last week. There's just something about rain water that makes crops grow faster. We're excited to continue to watch our garden grow and can't wait until we have our first harvest.

Loved | Moo loves snapping pictures with my phone. Last week she took the photo below and I love it! She took the time to adjust the brightness and focus. I think I might have a mini-photographer on my hands. I'm thinking about getting her a camera for a birthday.

Is your area still getting snow? Is your family on Spring Break?

Friday Five Recently | Week 4

2019-02-08T14:34:00.000-05:00

via GIPHY

Hello February! The month of my people aka Black History Month is officially here! I'm looking forward to continuing to celebrate my culture with my family.

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This month also marks my official start of working towards knocking out my goals for the year. I used the entire month of January to really focus on what I want to accomplish and come up with plans on how to get those finish lines. So I'll be sharing a few of my goals and resolutions for this year later on. For now let's catch up.

Recently . . .

Celebrated | Moo and I celebrated our birthdays right before the holidays. I totally forgot to document it here on the blog. However, I did vlog Moo's birthday which just so happened to fall on the same day as our town's annual Christmas Block Party. Watch the vlog below.

I'm pretty sure I vlogged a bit of my birthday, but my video editor stopped working. So, I haven't gotten around to editing the footage yet. I'll save that for a Throwback Thursday or Flashback Friday post. Also, we had a good time celebrating Christmas at my baby sister's.

She and my brother put together a very delicious spread. And we got the best Christmas presents which were my aunt coming from the hospital on Christmas Eve and my mom's doctors were finally able to get her condition under control. So she didn't have to be admitted to the hospital at all during the hospital and she was feeling much better since they had finally found medicines that worked. And I just want to say thank you to everyone who lifted her up in prayer!

Pissed | So since the whole Jussie Smollett incident folks on social media have been sharing their personal experiences and resharing other incidents from the new of other people's experiences with racial and homophobic attacks, both physical and verbal. Reading all of the stories has me even more pissed and more than a little hot under the collar that we even have to deal with these things STILL. I'm pissed because I'm tired of feeling unsafe as a Black person, as a person with brown skin.

I'm pissed because this "great" country is supposed to allow everyone the right to pursue life, liberty and happiness, but it seems that right is only applies to a select few. And folks want to take about how much this country has come a long way and how we should be content with that for now. Must be nice for those folks to feel safe enough to even think about feeling content with the way things are now.

For people of color and the LGBTQ+ community, we're not safe in our communities, in own homes, in our schools or churches. We're not safe walking down the street or coming out of a Subway restaurant. Living in a constant state of having to always be on guard and hyperaware is mfing exhausting af.

As a parent raising two Black children, I hate that enduring racism, homophobia, and police brutality (just to name a few) is still considered "the norm" for us. Non-black people love saying, "Well, look how far your race has come" or "Slavery was years ago." And I just laugh because if we seriously take a look, we'd see that my race hasn't come very far at all and that a lot of what we're still fighting against today is still a form of slavery and Jim Crow!!

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I'm over people trying to silence us because sweeping these issues under the rug doesn't get anything solved. And furthermore, why should we shut up, sit back, and just take it? We literally can't afford to sit in a corner and hope everything works itself out. We're losing our lives, our moms, our dads, our sons, our daughters, our husbands, our wives, our friends, etc.

Fail | I had such high hopes for NaNoWriMo 2018. I really wanted to reach the 50k word goal. The universe had other plans though. I'm not going to beat myself up about not hitting 50k in 30 days. I'm still working on my novel and making good progress.

I'm loving my current cast of characters and their story. I can't wait until this project is done and I can put it out into the world for consumption. Plus, I'll have another chance to hit 50k in this year's NaNoWriMo.

Survived | We survived the first half of the school year! Praises! Homeschooling two kids in different age groups and grades isn't for the weak. We're already counting down the days until Summer Break gets here. This year was definitely a lot more challenging than last year.

Also, I've realized that I need to do a better job of chronicling our homeschool journey. There are so many stereotypes about homeschooling and even more about Black homeschoolers. I want to be a voice and advocate for other parents, especially Black parents and parents of children with learning disabilities and special needs.

Restarted | Last year I tried to take up bullet journaling. It started off well, but I didn't stay consistent with it. I started looking at other people's bullet journals and getting a little frustrated with how beautiful their layouts looked compared to mine. Comparison is indeed the thief of joy. So I should have known better.

This time around, I'm staying in my lane, coming to terms with my artistic limits, and just enjoying the process. That said check out my bookshelf I drew to keep track of all the review copies of books I receive from publishers. I think it turned out pretty good.

Let's chat in the comments. Do you bullet journal? Or are you counting down to Summer Break like me?

Natural Hair Chronicles | Garnier Fructis Curl Treats Voxbox Review

2019-01-23T22:00:00.000-05:00

This post is sponsored by Influenster and Garnier Fructis. This post contains affiliate links and I may receive a commission from purchases made using these links. All opinions expressed are my own.

Happy New Year! I hope that 2019 got off to a great start for everyone. These past few weeks I’ve been planning and mapping out my goals and what I want to accomplish this year. One thing new thing I did this year was set self-care goals. Last year, I didn’t make self-care a priority like I should have and it showed.

This won’t be the case for 2019. I’ve already started tackling my main self-care goal which is to master the art of doing my curly hair. It’s been about 10 years since I made the decision to go and stay natural. But despite being 10 years deep in this natural hair journey, my biggest struggle remains styling my hair when it’s in its naturally curly state.

For years, I would just flat iron it, blow it out, twist it up, or braid it back. Frizz and lack of curl definition are two of the main reasons I’ve shied away from wearing my natural hair down often. The few times I have done so, things started good but by the end of the day my hair would be a frizzy and tangled mess.

And ain’t nothin’ cute about that! So over the summer, I tried about a Coconut Extract Nourishing Treat 1 Minute Hair Mask from Garnier Fructis. It was a divine y’all. My hair was so soft, maybe the softest it’s been in a long time. Plus detangling was a breeze.

So when I found out that Influenster was sending me the Garnier Fructis Curl Treats Voxbox, I was excited to see what products I would get. I was also curious to see if I would have another positive experience with Garnier.

Products I Received

There are 3 products in the Curl Treat line - Curl Smoothie for defining curls, Curl Jelly for shaping and holding curls, and Curl Butter for hydrating for curls. In my voxbox, I received the Curl Butter and the Curl Jelly.

The Curl Butter, infused with shea butter, is designed to keep hair drenched in moisture as well as reduce frizziness for up to 24 hours. This product is meant for normal to coarse hair with a spiral curl pattern. Keyword spiral. (If you have waves or thin hair, the Curl Smoothie is designed for you.)

I also received the Curl Jelly which is infused with coconut and is appropriate for usage on all hair types. It’s formulated to give hair lightweight moisture and a firm hold in addition to keeping hair frizz free for up to 24 hours.

All of the leave-in stylers in the Curl Treat line have biodegradable formulas and 98% naturally derived ingredients. They have zero parabens, silcones, sulfates, artificial colorants, or mineral oils.

My Suggestions & Thoughts

Right out of the box, one of the things I loved about both of these smelled amazing. The scent isn’t overpowering and the compliment each other. Please note that these products are designed to be used on wet hair, not dry. Therefore, I would suggest detangling your hair during your hair washing routine and sectioning it into quadrants.

This will help to make the process of applying the products faster but keep a spray bottle of water handy in case some of your sections air dry before you get them. Speaking of air drying. These products are designed to be used on hair that is going to be air dried. I did not and will not be experimenting with using a hair dryer in conjunction with these products. I don’t want to damage my hair or risk compromising the effectiveness of the products.

With my hair sectioned off, I then broke each quadrant into smaller sections adding a quarter size amount of the Curl Butter followed by a nickel size amount of Curl Jelly overtop. I made sure to smooth both products from my roots to my ends making sure all my strands were coated. For the most part, I used my fingers, but there were 1 or 2 sections of hair that I needed to comb the product through.

I wouldn’t suggest using a ton of the Curl Jelly on sections though. Less is definitely more with that. I learned this the hard way my first go round with this product and had lots of flaking once it dried. Since then, I’ve adjusted how much I use and have only experimented minimal flaking that isn’t really noticeable.

So the picture above is what my hair looks like once it dried for 24 hours. I absolutely love the results. My curl definition is on FLEEK! And there’s not a hint of frizz anywhere in sight. Seeing my curls look this great made a little emotional because I’ve never had natural curls this defined and frizz free as an adult.

To be honest, I didn’t think my hair was capable of producing these kinds of results because I’ve used curl-friendly products in the past and didn’t achieve anything even remotely similar to this. This mommy is shook! In a good way.

Something else I wasn’t expecting was how light my hair would feel. If you have thick, full hair then you know how heavy/weighted our hair can feel some times when you had product. That wasn’t an issue for me this time around. And the Curl Butter definitely had my hair feeling like silk.

Thank God these products help fight frizz because I couldn’t stop touching my hair. The kids couldn’t either. And speaking of kids, these products are safe to use on children. The slip from the Curl Butter was pretty good and I could easily rake it through with my fingers for the most part.

So overall, I really like these products and would recommend them to other curly girls who haven’t had much luck with other curl-friendly products. The Curl Treats line is under $7 making it one of the most affordable lines on the market specifically for curly hair.

I definitely think the Curl Jelly has the most room for improvement so that it won’t flake at all. But for right now, I think Garnier hit it out of the park with these leave-in stylers. I’ve already ordered more and I’m going to be trying out their Curl Nourish Shampoo, Conditioner, and Air Dry Butter Cream next. So expect a full review on those in the future.

What products do you used to treat your curls? Have you set any self-care goals for 2019? Let me know in the comments below.

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Giving The Gift of Love and Appreciation

2018-12-18T17:00:00.000-05:00

This post is sponsored by Artsy Olive. All opinions expressed are my own.

"Give me my flowers while I'm living. Show me that you love and appreciate me while I'm still alive." Growing up my mom preached (and still does) the importance of showing and consistently letting those closest to our hearts how we feel about them before their time runs out on Earth. Once our loved one depart permanently, you can't rewind time and say all of the loving things you wished said or do the loving things you wished would have done. Trust me, I learned this the hard way (again) when my surrogate grandmother passed a few weeks ago.

It had been a while since I'd talked to or seen her and surrogate grandfather. Last Christmas Break I put going to see because long story short, I thought I'd have time to see them this Christmas Break. I didn't.

Since my grandmother's death, my mom's words had really been resonating within my spirit. I've mentioned here that this year has been really tough on my family, especially my mom. She's been in and out of the hospital and then there Hurricane Florence. So, I knew that before 2018 closed out, I really wanted to give my mom a gift that would tell, show, and remind her not only how much I love and appreciate her, but how much her grandkids love and appreciate her as well. That's exactly why I decided on this personalized Amazing Mom print from Artsy Olive.

As a lover of words and writer, one of the main ways I like to show my love and appreciation for my loved ones is through words. I know we all grew up with the whole "sticks and stones may break bones" saying, but the truth about words is that what we say (and don't say) can really affect people. My mom like me is a lover of words as well and would appreciate this gift and she would get why I gave it to her.

It's a gift that will last for years to come. It's a gift that she can put on her table or hang on the wall and whenever she looks at it, she'll be reminded that she is loved and she is appreciated by me and the kids as well as what we love and appreciate about her. I don't get to see my mom everyday and there are times when play phone tag and miss each other's calls and/or texts. Knowing that we have given her her flowers so to speak for those days when we can't be there, gives me a bit of peace.

I can't say how grateful I am to have been been introduced to Artsy Olive. Finding out about this family-owned print company came right on time because I was really struggling with coming up with a gift that served a purpose, was cute, but yet could be personalized that I hadn't already given her.

And now that I've given her a print, I've been eying some of the other prints from Artsy Olive that I want to add to our home. I love the variety of print designs and print sizes that they offer. And customizing the prints is pretty much a breeze. No rocket science required. Also another big plus is that the prints come framed and you have a nice selection of different frame colors you pick from. This is perfect, especially if you have rooms with different wall colors and tones.

So whether you're looking to give a loved one a gift of love and appreciation or just want to add a little positivity to your own home, an Artsy Olive print is definitely worth considering. You can use the code blog15 to get 15% off your order. Also, you can enter this giveaway to be one of 5 winners to receive a FREE print from Artsy Olive.

How do you show love and appreciation to your loved ones?

20 Gift Ideas For Disney Lovers Of All Ages

2018-12-15T17:17:00.000-05:00

This post contains affiliate links. I may receive a commission for purchases made through links in this post.

When you wish upon a star, makes no difference who you are, anything your heart desires will come to you. 🎶🎤

There's no denying that Disney is one of the world's most loved brands. Ask any Disney lover to describe Disney in one word and I'm sure they'll say "magical." And whether we're celebrating the holidays, a birthday, or just because, you know the one thing we Disney lovers appreciate and want? More Disney! So I've put together this list of 20 items that will make great gifts for the Disney lovers in your life.

20 Gifts Perfect For Disney Lovers

1. Pictopia: Disney Edition | Who doesn't love Pictopia?! This game is sure to give your family hours of play time. Definitely pick it up.

2. Disney Tie | Guys are show their Disney side with this understated, but still cute Disney tie. Honestly, I'm hoping to find a bowtie version of this tie as well. Can you imagine the adorable father and son pictures you could take, moms?

3. Minnie Mouse LEGO DUPLO Block Set | If your kids love building and love LEGO, this Minnie Mouse building blocks set will be the perfect gift for them. Plus, the added bonus is that blocks help kids to build up their motor skills. So this gift is a win-win for parents and kids.

4. Family Feud: Disney Edition | Who knew that Family Feud came in a Disney edition? I didn't. Board games are such a great way to bond with family (and friends too).

5. Let's Go To Disney Shirt | Whether you're visiting a Disney Park or taking a Disney Cruise for the first time or millionth time, this shirt is a must-have. I've snagged it and can't wait to wear it on the drive to Disney World for our first visit.

6. Pua Pillow Pet | Pillow Pets are one of the greatest things invented. They're pillows, toys, and "security blankets" all in one. And the Disney themed Pillow Pets the most adorable. The lovely folks at Pillow Pet sent the kids this Pua one as an early Christmas present and they were beyond thrilled. From Target to road trips, Pua goes EVERYWHERE with us now. He's an official member of our crew and that he's celebrating his first Christmas with us.

7. Mickey Mouse Dad Cap | Dad caps seem to have made a comeback this year. Although down here in the South, they never really went out of style. Anyways, you can show off your Disney love and keep the sun out of your eyes with Mickey Mouse cap.

8. Disney Stamp Set | If there's one thing kids really love, it's arts and crafts. My kids in particular really love stamp sets. Also, stamp sets aren't just for kids either. I got Moo a Disney stamp set for Easter and have used it to decorate the outside of birthday card envelopes sent to family and to decorate a spread in my bullet journal.

9. Princess Tiana Water Bottle | If you're a parent then you know kids detest drinking water . . . unless you put in a water bottle or sippy cup with their favorite character on the outside. Moo and I are partial to this Princess Tiana water bottle. And I mean considering Tiana is a chef and restaurant owner, this food and drink related Disney merch is totally true to her character.

10. Princess Bedtime Stories | Do you have a princess who loves to read? Then Moo and I recommend getting her the Princess Bedtime Stories book. It's collection of stories from some of the most beloved Disney Princesses and the perfect way to get a glimpse of that what the princesses have been up to after their movies ended.

11. Disney Princess Beauty Set | Moo got one of these beauty sets the year before last and we actually just finished using up the last bottle of nail polish over the summer.

12. Black Panther RC Stealth Hunter | My little guy has been asking for one of these and I think I'm finally going to give in and get it for him. It's remote controlled. So besides keeping him entertained, it'll help with his motor skills. I keep telling y'all that the best for kids to learn is through play.

13. Maui T-shirt | "What can I say except you're welcome!" Moani is still a crowd favorite around here. "You're Welcome" still gets bumped through the speakers on full volume, especially the Jordan Fisher version. This is a men's shirt but I'm so getting one for myself.

14. Mickey Mouse Earrings | Aren't these cute?! Just the right amount of flash.

15. Snow White Purse | I absolutely LOVE this purse. The pops of red just does it for me. This would be perfect to take on a Disney trip to hold a few essentials like your wallet, sunscreen, portable phone charger, etc. If you have babies or toddlers, you can could even squeeze in a few diapers and a slim pack of wipes into this purse.

16. Fix It Felix Mini Arcade Game | What kid isn't into video games? My kids have been asking if Fix It Felix was a real game since Wreck-It Ralph came out. Of course, I shared my experience with playing it but they've been wanting to try it out for themselves. This is the perfect way for them to enjoy a game from my childhood.

17. Black Panther Backpack Set | Love this backpack set. It comes with a matching lunchbox. For us this would be perfect for my little guy when we go on road trips. He can pack toys and a blanket in the backpack and snacks in the lunchbox.

18. Minnie Mouse Phone Case | Show your Disney side with this super adorable phone case!

19. Beauty & the Beast Snow Globe | Y'all already know my love for Beauty and the Beast runs deep. This snow globe is at the top of my Disney trinkets wish list. If you're looking for some Disney merch to collect that won't take up a lot of space and looks beautiful, snow globes are the way to go. You can set them virtually on any flat surface to add some extra decor.

20. Disney Villainous Board Game | My son loves villains! Sos this game would be perfect for us. We get our Disney fix and he gets to walk on the dark side for a bit.

There you have it folks! I hope really hope this gift guide helps you out if you're wondering what to get for the Disney lover in your life. Be sure to share this with your friends!

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My Ultimate Birthday Wish List

2018-11-28T12:14:00.000-05:00

This post contains commission links. I may receive a commission for purchases made through links in this post.

🎤 Yo shawty it's almost my birthday. So, I'm gone party cuz it's almost my birthday!! 🎉 Okay, corny rap bars aside, y'all I'm so excited that birthday is pretty much right around the corner. This year has been trying, heartbreakingly sad, and draining to say the least. I know some you noticed my absence here on the blog as well as my lack of posting on social media.

And at the end of the day, I'm incredibly grateful to still have my life, my health, my strength, and my family. And honestly those are the main things I'll be celebrating on birthday in addition to having made it 33 years on God's green Earth. If this year has taught me nothing else, it's that life is precious and we need to cherish every second of it.

All that said, I'd be lying if I said, I wasn't looking forward to seeing what presents will be coming my way. According to my horoscope in next month's issue of Essence Magazine friends want to spoil me and that "Lena Horne might show up looking fabulous and bearing gifts." I don't know who this Lena Horne lookalike is, but if my friends want to spoil me, who am I to say no.

Instead, I'll just help these friends (and family *cough, cough*) out by sharing my ultimate birthday wish list. And if you have any friends who love being in the kitchen, Disney, Harry Potter, or looking stylish, then hopefully my wish list can serve as gift guide and give you some gifting inspiration.

20 Gifts I Want For My Birthday

1. Calvin Klein Wallet | I'm past due for a new wallet. My current one has rips in two of the inner pockets/compartments. I avoid putting cash or anything in those compartment for fear it getting lost. Also the fastener on it is starting to not fasten. So it's time for a new one and this CK wallet caught my eye. And it's in my power color!

2. Pedestal Bowl | I've been eying this bowl for some time now. My dream color scheme for my home is white, copper, grey, and navy blue with wood accent furniture. This bowl would look great on either the coffee table of dining room table.

3. Juicy Couture Socialite Watch | I miss wearing a watch. Whenever someone asks me if I have the time, I always look to my naked wrist before realizing I can just use my phone. And while my phone is convenient, I'd definitely like to get back in the habit of using a watch to tell time.

4. iPhone XS Max | This present actual came early. I was surprised with a rose gold iPhone XS Max last week and I'm loving it! I can't wait to play around more with the camera. I actually shot our Southern Christmas Show vlog with it.

5. Slipper Socks | I've wanted some cute slipper socks for a few years now. Hopefully, this will be the year that I get them.

6. Sam Edelman Caprice Knee-High Boot | I've had my eye on these boots for over two years. And now that my current pair of boots is about to be laid out to pasture, I'm hoping these will be my next pair. I hear that they're super comfy and the quality can't be beat.

7. Book Lover Enamel Pin | Listen, are you surprised that there's something book related on this wish list? Nope, me either. Anyone who knows me, knows that I'm book lover. Now I can rock my book lover status proudly.

8. Marble Rolling Pin | You know, I used to have a nice rolling pin to roll out cookie and pie dough, but then my kids got a hold of it. And let's just say my poor rolling pin did not survive. I only paid $2 for it from the Target Dollar Spot. So I wasn't expecting it to last forever. However, I'm hoping that this one will or at least close to forever since it's marble and a lot more sturdy than my last one.

9. Becoming | Everyone and their mama has been raving about Michelle Obama's new book. Honestly, I'm kicking myself for having not pre-ordered this one. I can't wait to read it for myself though and report back to y'all with my full thoughts.

10. Kate Spade Glitter Studs | I love Kate Spade, God rest her soul. I used to own one of her change purses and my siblings and I have gotten my mom a few Kate Spade pieces over the years. It's about time that I add another Kate Spade piece to my collection and these glittery earrings just spoke to me.

11. Harry Potter Wand | My love for J.K. Rowling and Harry Potter knows no bounds. In fact, I'm currently rereading the Harry Potter series with JJ.

12. Glitter Moccasin Slippers | How cute are these slippers?!! This mommy is overdue for a new pair of slippers and these are perfect. Besides the being super sparkly, I love that inside is lined with faux fur to keep my feet nice and toasty.

13. Coconut Body Scrub | I'm all about exfoliating. Usually I make my own body but every now and then I like to try store bought scrubs. And this one is made for dry skin which I definitely suffer from.

14. Martha Stewart Tea Kettle | Again, I'm obsessed with copper. Also, I've wanted a stovetop tea kettle for some time now. I had one years ago, but I think it got broken in a move or something and I never replaced it.

15. Espresso Mugs | These cure double wall glass mugs have been everywhere. I think they're adorable and as a coffee and tea drinker, they will definitely get lots of use.

16. KitchenAid Stand Mixer | Just think about all the things I can mix up and make with this baby! I've been wanting to get into bread making, especially since I've stumbled across some gluten-free bread recipes. If I got this stand mixer, I would be one happy baker!

17. Oral-B Pro 7500 | We're making the switch from manual toothbrushes to electric ones. They can give a bit of a deeper clean. Also, in the past I've found that the brush heads on electric toothbrushes are slightly smaller than ones of manual toothbrushes which allows them to fit better in the back corners of our mouths. Back teeth need love too!

18. Minnie Mouse iPhone Case | A new phone requires a new case. And since y'all know I'm about that Disney life, this Minnie Mouse iPhone case is too cute to pass up. I'm hoping to find cases that are Beauty & the Beast as well as Princess Tiana themed in the future. Gotta have options folks.

19. She Believed She Could Graphic Tee | This is my motto for all 2019. I'm working harder of kicking my self-doubt to the curb and believing in myself more. We limit ourselves way more than other people ever will because of self-doubt. This shirt will be my reminder that I can do whatever I put my mind (and effort) into doing.

20. Beauty & the Beast Snow Globe | I can't remember the last time I got a snow globe, but I need this one in my life. Beauty & the Beast is one of my all-time favorite Disney stories and movies. I can related to Belle on so many levels. This snow globe would look great on my bookshelf.

Well, that's it guys. To all my fellow Sagittariuses, HAPPY BIRTHDAY/SAG SEASON!! Let me know down in the comments what is or was on your birthday wish list this year.

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Gourmet Chicken Penne with Fontinella Béchamel Sauce

2018-11-26T19:55:00.001-05:00

This post is sponsored by Stella® Cheeses but the content and opinions expressed here are my own.

The most wonderful time of the year aka Christmas is upon us. The holiday season is one of my most favorite times of the year. And not just because of the presents and my birthday either.

My love for Christmas stems from fond memories of family bonding while cooking holiday dishes in the kitchen with my mom and siblings. My mom always went into full-on entertainment mode, hosting two dinner parties - one for her girlfriends and sisters and then another for the rest of our extended family. So it's only natural that I inherited her love of entertaining.

Of course, my favorite part of playing hostess is putting a gourmet spin on old classics or coming up with completely unique recipes of my own like my Gourmet Chicken Penne with Fontinella Béchamel Sauce. This dish is so delicious and is guaranteed to be a hit at your holiday gatherings. Keep reading to get the recipe!

How To Make Chicken Penne w/ Fontinella Béchamel Sauce

One of the things I loved about creating this recipe was the simplicity of it. I know béchamel sauce can be a bit scary for some folks, but honestly, it's just a fancy word for white sauce and is super easy to make. Adding Stella® Cheeses' Fontinella really adds a gourmet element that kicks this dish up several notches. Seriously, don't you won't regret using this cheese in your sauce.

Ingredients

Chicken Penne

3 chicken breast, diced
2 cups of penne pasta
1large onion, diced
8 strips of bacon, diced
1 tbsp garlic, chopped
2 tbsp vegetable/olive oil
1 tbsp butter
Black pepper, optional
Salt, optional
Seasoning salt, optional

Fontinella Béchamel Sauce

1/2 cup of Stella Cheeses' Fontinella Cheese
1 cup milk/soy milk
2 tbsp flour
2 tbsp butter
Black pepper to taste
Salt to taste
Splash of chicken stock

Directions

In a large pot, bring salted water to a boil. Once your water is boiling add your pasta and cook until completely done or according to the directions on the box. Also, you can add a drizzle of oil into the water to help prevent your pasta from sticking together.

While your penne pasta is cooking, in a large skillet over medium heat add in butter and oil. Once your butter has melted, add in your onions. Let your onion cook down for about two minutes and then add in your bacon and cook until done. Add in garlic and cook for another 60 seconds. Then remove the bacon and onion mixture from the skillet.

Next, in the same skillet add in your diced chicken breast. You can season your chicken breast however you like. I kept it simple and seasoned mine with seasoning salt and pepper. As the chicken cooks, it will pick up some of the flavors from the onion, bacon, and garlic that was previously cooked in there.

Remove your penne pasta from its pot once done. In that same pot melt down your 2 tablespoons of butter for your sauce on medium heat. Once the butter is melted, turn down the heat to low and stir in your flour for about two minutes. Do not let your flour burn or get stuck to the bottom of your pot.

Once your flour and butter are well mixed, start pouring in your milk a little bit at a time, making sure to whisk continuously. When you have all of your milk mixed in, add in your salt and pepper in accordance to your taste preferences. Then add in a splash of chicken stock. Whisk again and start to add in your Fontinella cheese saving a few tablespoons to garnish at the end.

Continue to whisk until all of your cheese is melted. This should take less than two minutes.

Now that your béchamel sauce is done, remove from it from the heat. Then mix in the chicken, pasta, and half of your bacon, onion and garlic mixture.

Once that is mixed well and coated evenly with sauce, you can top it with the rest of the bacon, onion, garlic mixture as well as sprinkle on the remainder of your Fontinella cheese.

Serve and be prepared for your guests to ask for seconds. Maybe even thirds if there's no shame in their game.

I really hope that you enjoy this recipe! Even more so, I hope that recipe encourages each of you to get into the kitchen and start experimenting. Making gourmet dishes doesn't have to be hard. It just takes quality ingredients like Stella® Cheeses, a little holiday spirit, and lots of love.

Want to find more of delicious gourmet recipes to share with your family and friends this holiday season? Check Stella® Cheeses' official website here. You also follow them on Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, and Twitter.

What is your favorite dish to make during the holidays?

Family Night In The City

2018-11-19T20:06:00.000-05:00

Happy Monday! This weekend the kids and I joined my mom, baby sister, and niece for a family night in the city. After an emotionally draining couple of days, this was just what we all needed. Here's a recap of what we did.

2018 Southern Christmas Show

We continued our family tradition of attending the Southern Christmas Show in Charlotte. It's something we started last year and hope to keep this tradition going for years to come. Unfortunately, my brother couldn't join us this year. We definitely missed him and look forward to having him accompany us next year.

One thing that was very noticeable to all of us this year was how much smaller the crowd was. We went on the same day and around the same time that we went last year. There was definitely a lot fewer parents with their children in tow. In my personal opinion, this was due to the kidnapping attempts that happened at last year's show.

Sex trafficking has increasingly become a big issue in Charlotte over the last couple of years. And these criminals are getting bolder it seems with coming to events and trying to kidnap kids and teens right in front of parents and onlookers. Thankfully this year's show was kidnapping incident-free. There also seemed to not be as many vendors this year either.

One thing that was new (for us) this year was the train village display. Y'all already know, my little guy was head over heels excited when he saw it. Trains are his life. Plus they had a Thomas the Tank Engine on one of the tracks. That just sealed the deal for him and he could have probably spent the rest of night in that one area watching the train go around the track for forever.

He had his own personal Thomas the Tank Engine Track Master train in tow. Check out our vlog below to see and hear his excitement as well get a look at the train village. Now he wasn't the only one who fell in love with the train village. My mom did too! She's a Thomas and train lover as well.

It was no surprise that she chatted up the display owners. They told her all about their train museum in Spencer, NC and how they do Day Out With Thomas every year. So we've added a trip to the museum and the Thomas event to our calendars for next year. Can't wait to see her and JJ bonding more over their love of trains (and Thomas).

My favorite part of the Southern Christmas Show was looking at all of the Christmas trees and ornaments. I found a tree that was decked out in Coca-Cola ornaments and fell in love. Now I want to put a Coke themed tree in my office next year. You have to admit their brand colors are perfect Christmas colors.

There were also some football/sports ornaments that caught my eye as well. My older sister would have loved the Carolina Panthers tree.

And I debated picking up this cute New England Patriots train driven by Rudolph.

Also, where are folks getting these spinning trees? All of the trees spun and now I need 2 of them by next Christmas. I mean whoever invented the spinning Christmas tree was a genius. We decorate our entire tree but the ornaments in the back hardly get any spotlight/admiration because most of us put our trees in corners or with one side falling a wall. With a spinning tree, you get to admire all sides equally.

Enough about spinning trees, my sister started the tradition of gifting JJ these magnetic wooden trains from Sniders Stocks. We were happy to see him there again this year. Last year she got him an engine and the initial of his first name. This year I picked up the initial for his middle name and she got him the initial for our last name. Next year we're getting him a caboose and then the letters to spell out his entire first name. The trains all under $5 with tax.

We sampled more wine from Duplin Winery's booth. I can highly recommend their Carolina Red, Sangria White (available for cheaper at Walmart), and Jolly Juice Sweetzer Mix. Then we hit up the booth of our favorite holiday treat shop, Southern Supreme Fruitcake & More. I recommend trying their fruitcake and Chocolate Creamy Pecan Pralines.

Build-A-Bear

For a few months now, I had been telling JJ that we were going to get him his first bear from Build-A-Bear. We were supposed to go for his birthday but didn't make it. Then we missed the day that Build-A-Bear was letting pay their age. But then last week, I opened up my email and Build-A-Bear had sent him a coupon for a free bear under x-amount of dollars or I could apply that dollar amount as a discount to a more expensive bear.

So we couldn't get his first choice which was the Thomas and Friends bear. I had set aside a certain amount of cash for this trip and I stuck to my guns of not going over that amount. No worries, he ended up with the bear we were go originally going to get on his birthday, Birthday Treat Bear. Birthday Treat Bear has since been renamed Jingles.

We'll be doing a quick vlog later on this week about Jingles and how he got his name. We're also planning on going back to pick up Thomas Bear so that Jingles can have some company. As far as the experience itself, I think my little was so excited but super nervous at the same time.

He's a not a fan of interacting with strangers (or people in general outside of our immediate family circle). So, as you'll see in the video, he kept looking back to check and see if I was still nearby. Also, the stuffing machine was a little louder than he expected it to be. We've come a long way with his sensitivity to certain sounds. Overall, he loved the experience and left the store with the biggest smile.

Jingles was his whole talk the entire ride back home. And the sales associate that helped us was very nice and patient. Hopefully, she'll be there when we go back.

Barnes & Noble

Of course, we couldn't pass up the opportunity to go to the bookstore. I wanted to get the Barnes & Noble exclusive edition of Kingdom of Ash by Sarah J Maas, but ALL their copies had damaged covers. Like what the crap B&N?!!

I had heard and saw videos from two other booktubers about how their B&Ns had damaged book covers for this book, but for some reason, I thought it was just the shipment to their stores since they're in Texas, but looks like Carolina B&N stores got jacked up copies as well. Not cool at all.

Also, I was disappointed in the selection of Christmas specific picture books that featured Black characters and were written by Black authors. It seems like the only holiday books I could find with Black characters and by Black authors were books about Kawanza like that's the only holiday WE celebrate. Anyways, I'm saving this soapbox discussion for another day.

Overall we had a blast. Everyone pretty much went to sleep as soon as our heads hit our pillows when we got back home.

Well, I'm off to hunt down some last minute ingredients for my turkey brine, spice rub, and glaze. Don't forget to move those turkeys over to the frig so you don't have a still frozen turkey come Thursday.

What did your family do this weekend? Let's chat in the comments!

Friday Five Recently | Week 3

2018-11-02T21:59:00.000-04:00

Happy Friday and hello November! Am I the only one kind of happy 2018 is coming to a close? This year has been rocky at best for me and my family. I'm looking forward and hoping 2019 will be a better year all around.

via GIPHY

Anyways, since it's been a while since I've blogged, a catchup session is in order. I've missed y'all dearly. Hopefully, you've missed my face (and words) around these parts as well.

Recently . . .

Annoyed | Listen, y'all already know that I haven't had the best of luck with neighbors in the past. Seriously, sometimes it feels like I won the lottery when it comes to crappy neighbors. Anyways, for a few weeks now one of my neighbors has been helping themselves to my trash service. They've been waiting until we roll our trash can to the road for pickup and then they sneak across and fill our bin up to the max.

via GIPHY

And if our trash bin is already full, these people will just dump their trash bags in our driveway! It takes some nerve to just throw your trash bags in somebody's driveway y'all. Well, I've had it! We contacted our trash service provider, and the said we could put a lock on our trash can. We're going to take it one further and just wait until the trash truck comes down the street and then wheel the trash can to the road and wheel back after they empty it since the said neighbor never leaves their trash unless our bin at the road.

Also, I'm setting up some cameras. If I get video of the thieves, I'm sending it to the police and prosecuting to the fullest extent of the law that I can. I'm beyond frustrated and tired of having to pick up trash out of my yard because we have lots of little critters that like to rip open trash bags left where they can reach it. Plus, with the holidays coming up, I'm not trying to have my yard looking like a landfill.

When did people stop having respect for other people's property? When did being a good/decent neighbor go out of style? I'm getting a fence and call gate installed next ye. If they're bold enough to trespass and dump their trash in my yard, I don't trust that they won't then decide to help themselves to something else.

Decorated | "It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas . . ." I know some people absolutely detest all of the early Christmas stuff happening before Thanksgiving, but not my family. For us putting up Christmas tree on November 1st holds a special meaning. Also, with Moo and I both being holidays babies, it goes without saying that Christmas reigns supreme around here.

The kids did a great job of decorating the tree. This is the last year this tree will be in the living room. We'll be retiring it the kitchen next Christmas and I'm going to score a new, more realistic looking prelit tree after an after Christmas sale. We want decorations that are more glam/fancier for the living room tree next year.

One thing I am going to invest in right away is a new tree skirt for this tree. The current one has always been too simple and my plan was always to sew my own. However, I never got around to it and now I'm sewing machine-less. So I'm just going to buy one. I'm also on the hunt for a Christmas wreath.

Made | My crochet hooks have been busy y'all. My aunt requested that I make her some dishcloths. A family friend saw her request on Facebook and asked if I would make her some as well. Then, I finally got around to putting the finishing touches on a checkerboard blanket only to have to frog it almost back to start because of some dropped stitches.

Thankfully, it hasn't taken me long to finish it up again. Currently, I'm finishing JJ's train blanket. Unfortunately, since it has his real name on it, I'm not able to share the completed the project here on the blog. However, I'm also working some Christmas throws. Those I will be able to share here.

Joined | It's November, which means NaNoWriMo is here. I'm joining millions of other writers on the journey to writing 50,000 words in 30 days.

This year I'm feeling really good about my manuscript. I've pretty much got the entire story planned out. Plotting out my stories beforehand is a completely new process for me. I'm usually more a pantser when it comes to my fiction writing. Also, this year I want to try to make to an in-person write-in and connect with other NaNoWriMoers beyond the computer.

Worried | A while ago I mentioned that my mom had been in and out of the hospital. We thought she was getting better but then she had a few more hospital stays since then. Last month my brother and I took turns going home to be with her.

It's been a scary ride for us. I can't even begin to imagine how she feels. I'm hopeful though that the doctors will figure out what's going on and get her on the right treatment plan. In the meanwhile, I hate that I feel so helpless because I can't do anything to heal her or take away her pain.

If you're a praying person, please lift her up in your prayers. With the holidays coming up we'd love it if she wouldn't have to be in the hospital instead of celebrating with us. If you're not a praying person, then could you just speak some positive affirmations or put out some positive vibes for us into the universe.

Well, that's it. We're pretty much all caught up. I hope y'all have a great weekend. My plans include crocheting, binge-watching Christmas movies on the Hallmark channels (they have 3), and doing some Christmas shopping.

Do you decorate early for the holidays?

Linking up with: Momfessional | TBB | High Five Friday

How To Protect Your Family's Immune Systems During Cold & Flu Season

2018-09-23T20:30:00.000-04:00

I received this product for free from Moms Meet to use and post my honest opinions. Compensation for this post was provided and this post may contain affiliate links.

It's officially my favorite season of the year- Autumn! Unfortunately with the start of my favorite season also comes the start of my least favorite time of the year- cold and flu season. In the past, cold and flu season has always been brutal for us. Remember that one year we ended up in the hospital because JJ caught the flu twice and it turned into pneumonia? This year we're protecting our immune systems and getting them in tiptop shape with the help of our new secret weapon- Sambucol Black Elderberry Gummies- and a few simple but effective steps.

5 Easy Ways To Keep Your Family's Immune Systems Safe

Take Sambucol Black Elderberry Gummies | For the last six weeks, the kids and I have been taking Sambucol Black Elderberry Gummies daily. We will continue to do so year round. Why? Well, it's long been known and proven that black elderberries are rich in flavonols, anthocyanins, and Vitamin C. Both of these antioxidants and Vitamin C help boost and protect our overall immune system against cold and flu germs.

Back in the day, my Native American ancestors used black elderberries to treat a variety of ailments like infections, open wounds, and more. I've heard my mom and aunts mention elderberries on more than one occasion, but mommy brain.

Anyways, better late than never. I'm looking forward to there being fewer colds and hopefully, zero flu happening in this house this year. The best part is that the kids really love the gummies. There's nothing worse than battling with kids to get them to take medicine or vitamins.

The Sambucol Black Elderberry Gummies are soy, nut, egg, dairy, and gluten-free. This is a huge plus for us because we have food allergies. Also, they don't use artificial coloring, flavorings, or preservatives. The gummies do have a tangy sweet taste, but no worries because each gummy only has 1 gram of sugar.

Our Sambucol kit also included Sambucol Black Elderberry Syrup For Kids and the Sambucol Black Elderberry Syrup original formula (for adults and kids), which is great to mix into smoothies and yogurt just in case you have to get creative to get your kid to take his/her medicine. And just in case we do come down with a quick cold, we have some Sambucol Black Elderberry Pastilles and Sambucol Black Elderberry Cold & Flu Quick Dissolve Tablets.

Invest In Good Quality Facial Tissue | I've been a fan of coughing or sneezing into my bare hands or even the crook of my elbow. My mom always raised us to keep a packet or stash of facial tissue handy for these purposes instead. That way you don't end up with a hand or elbow full of germs that you will inevitably transfer to someone or something else accidentally.

Now, let me just say that all facial tissue is not created equally. Some tissues are so thin that everything just bleeds through the back and ends up on your hands anyway. Avoid those brands like the plague. So you want to make sure that you invest in a facial tissue that is sturdy, soft, and thick. Trust me it'll be worth the extra 50 - 70 cents in the long run.

Wash Hands Frequently | I strive to wash my hands a minimum of 3 times a day not including washing after I visit the bathroom. Why? Because washing hands frequently is a great habit to have. You would be amazed at how many germs linger on common household items like remotes, stove knobs, and table tops.

Don't even get me started on how many millions more germs are on public door handles, buggies/shopping carts, and desks in a schoolhouse. Yes, hand sanitizer can help, but after 2-3 layers, it becomes ineffective and you need to wash those old layers off your hand in order for the fresh layer to work again. Frequent hand washing is something I find that is harder for adults than kids because kids are generally always down for anything that involves water.

And if you're worried about drying your hands out, invest in a hand soap that also has a moisturizer as well as some quality hand lotion to apply after you've dried your hands. Also, wash with warm water and not hot. That will also help with dryness.

Leave Outdoor Shoes At The Door | Have you ever sat down and thought about all of the places your shoes travel during the day? Now have you thought about all of the germs your shoes are picking up from the places you're going? When JJ was a baby, it felt like we lived in the pediatrician's office. I felt like I was failing all over again because the same had happened with Moo.

Then one day his pediatrician asked if we wore our outdoor shoes inside the house. I said yes and she suggested that we try ditching our sneakers and boots at the front door. So, I cleaned the carpet and steam mopped all of the laminate. Every day, I made sure we didn't go beyond the foyer with our outdoor shoes one.

It was annoying at first because we had a small foyer and we'd all be huddled there trying to remove our shoes without knocking each other over. However, within three months, I saw a big difference in how often my son was getting sick. Since he spent a great deal of time playing on the floor, he had been picking all of the nasty germs we tracked through with our sneakers and boots.

Ditch The Outside Clothes ASAP | This is similar to leaving the outdoor shoes at the door. So whenever we go the park, play outside, or hit up a place with lots of germs or do an activity where we work up a sweat and get dirty, we can't sit on any fabric surfaces before we've showered and changed out of our dirty clothes.

For example, the kids love horseback riding. They actually got to go riding this weekend. The sun was blazing and it wasn't long before we were all a sweaty mess. When we got home, I spread out a blanket on the floor for Moo while she waited for me to help her brother bathe and get into a clean set of clothes.

Our shoes and hands aren't the only things that can hang onto germs. Clothes do the same. And when we sit down on fabric furniture like our couches or beds in clothes that are dirty, dusty, and sweaty. We transfer those germs to those items.

I don't know about y'all, but I don't have time to shampoo couches and wash bed covers every day. Our covers and couches would be threadbare in no time. For me, it just makes sense to shower and change clothes before sitting on these pieces of furniture.

Well, I hope that you find these tips helpful and that they help you and your family to stay healthy and a lot less germy this cold and flu season. And if you're interested in trying out any of the Sambucol products mentioned above, you can find them at Target, Walmart, CVS, Walgreens, Rite Aid, Amazon, and the Sambucolusa.com.

How do you fight cold and flu germs during the cooler months? Let's chat in the comments!

Friday Five Recently | Week 2

2018-08-10T13:33:00.000-04:00

Hello August! How is it time for school to start back already? We still have another week before we start back with our virtual homeschool. However, I was scrolling through my Facebook feed the other day and saw that some of my friends' kids started back last week and earlier this week.

Since I'm still recovering from July (more on that below), I'm so thankful that I have another seven days to rest up. Here's to hoping I finish getting everything organized next week. Anyways, since I've been on a hiatus let's play catch up!

Also, in the spirit of full disclosure, there are some affiliate links below and I may receive a commission for purchases made through some of those links.

Recently . . .

Celebrated | Last month we celebrated my niece's birthday! I think that I really nailed it with her gifts. I had a little input from the kids too. We got her two 9x12 Melissa & Doug sketch pads, an ALEX Toys Artist Studio Portable Art Set, and the cutest gold squirrel necklace from Spinningdaisy.

So after opening her presents, we went to see Ant-Man and the Wasp. I had heard mixed reviews on whether or not this movie was kid-friendly. In the end, it turned out to be as kid-friendly as the Avengers movies are. We really loved it. Also, I loved the dynamics of the family and how they stayed away from the stereotype that divorced couples can't co-parent peacefully, especially when one parent has remarried.

After the movie, we went to Cookout! It's one of our favorite restaurants and I had been craving one of there bbq plates. So glad my niece requested to eat there for her birthday dinner. If you've never tried Cookout, you're missing out on some delicious eats. Overall, it was a great weekend and I enjoyed spending time with my family.

Finished | I finally managed to finish Season 2 of Riverdale. Since I loved the first one so much, it never dawned on me that the second one would lose some momentum. Needless to say, I couldn't get into the second season and I decided to wait until it was uploaded to Netflix in full before attempting to watch the rest.

Thankfully, it did pick up and I got sucked in. However, the amount of underage sex that was going down this season was a bit of a turn-off. I'm all for realistic representation and I know teens do have sex. However, I think Riverdale went overboard from realistic representation and entered into territory where it became glorified instead.

I hope they cut back a lot on the teen sex for next season or at least balance it out to where they can show teens some of the consequences of having underage sex.

Cried | My mom got admitted into the ICU last month. I cried after I got off the phone with my brother. He and my aunt had been calling and texting me all that afternoon, but my ringer was turned off. I didn't see their missed calls and messages until 7 PM that night.

I remember being so scared and rushing around the house packing up clothes and stuff for me and the kids. Thankfully, her condition had improved by the time we got there and she only had to stay in the hospital for a few days.

This was just as scary as Moo's snake incident from June. Maybe a little bit more because for the first time it really hit me that my mom is getting older and what that means. It made me that I'm getting older as well. And while we both still has a lot of life left in us, I do need to be realistic and accept that none of us can live forever. We can only cherish and make the most of each day and each moment.

Decided | Speaking of cherishing time, we decided to plan our next family trip. We're going to Atlanta for Spring Break! It seems like a long time away, but with this year being almost over, Spring Break will be here before we know it. So far the kids really want to check out the World of Coke.

Let me know what other family-friendly attractions are in Atlanta in the comments below. Also, be sure to share your favorite restaurants as well.

Started | This month, I started saving up for two new cameras. I was all set to purchase one of the cameras in June, but adulting happen and I had to make choices on where my coins should go. Anyways, I'm looking to get a Canon PowerShot SX730 for vlogging and for taking less formal pictures.

For sponsored work, I'd love to have a Canon EOS Rebel T6 DSLR. If you have either of these cameras let me know if like it or not in the comments.

Have you started planning for Spring Break yet?

Linking up with: Momfessional | TBB | High Five Friday

Friday Five Recently | Week 1

2018-06-29T03:20:00.000-04:00

Happy Friday! Who's ready for the weekend? Or does every day feel like the weekend since it's Summer Break? 🤔

I'm still trying to figure this one out. Anyways, I feel like this week was long, but not in a bad way. With the first month of Summer Break coming to a close, I'm not complaining about time passing by slowly. There is NO rush to start back up with school just yet.

Here's a little peek at what we've been up to since my last Recently post. I'm thinking about making these weekly. We'll see what happens tho. And because I'm all about full disclosure, there are some affiliate links below and I may receive a commission for purchases made through some of those links.

Recently . . .

Read | I've been a reading machine these last few weeks. This week I finished reading A Court of Starlight and Frost by Sarah J Maas. It had all the holiday vibes and a just a hint of family drama. If you haven't heard of Sarah J Maas' YA fantasy series ACOTAR (A Court of Thorns and Roses), I suggest reading it. Chances are if you have pre-teens or teens, they've already read it or are currently reading it.

Also, I recently finished up The Color Project by Sierra Abrams. This is YA contemporary/romance that will give you ALL. THE. FEELS! The romance and how the young lovebirds in this book are what I think most of us as parents want for our children. I think there is a messaging in here that's not common in YA when it comes to teen/young relationships. In fact, I'm pretty sure I've only ever seen it in the Twilight series.

And that messaging is waiting to have sex. I feel like there are tons of YA books with teens being overly sexually active, but what about books for teens who are waiting/value waiting? That representation needs to be there more in the YA genre so that those teens can see more aspects of themselves in the characters that they are reading. Also, how stunning is that book cover?!!

And of course, earlier this month I finished Chasing Grace by Sanya Richards-Ross. It is a Christian non-fiction book in which four-time Olympic gold medalist Sanya talks about what running track taught her about life and her relationship with God. It was a great read and honestly, this is a book that even non-Christians would enjoy as well.

I'm currently reading Dread Nation by the lovely Justina Ireland! This is a historical thriller that takes place during the Civil War. It tackles the issues of racism, slavery and more. Did I mention there are zombies in here?! See what other books I have planned to read here. Let me know if anyone is down for a buddy read.

Admired | Moo is writing a book! I don't know if I mentioned that here already or not. Either way, I'm so proud of her. She's been working on it for a few weeks now. She stayed up way past midnight Monday writing her little heart out.

Her little fingers were flying across the keyboard. I kept peeking around the corner from where I was washing dishes in the kitchen to stare at her in action. It was one of those surreal moments that I can't quite put into words. I really admire how dedicated she is to this.

And to think it all started with her coming to me and declaring, "I want to be a writer like you, Mommy! I want to write a book too." My heart melts over and over again every time I think about that day. Isn't it every parent's dream to inspire/motivate their child in a positive way?

JJ has also joined our writing crew and is working on his first comic book/graphic novel inspired by Atomic Puppet from Netflix and Super Mario the video game. I'm currently working on a historical fiction project I've been calling Project Black Scot in addition to finishing up a contemporary romance novel. We're putting in that work y'all!

Watched | Netflix is pretty much all I watch besides Fixer Upper and a handful of cooking shows on cable. I recently binge-watched season 2 of Dear White People and LOVED IT! I'm so glad Netflix jumped on this and picked up this series that is based on/inspired by its movie namesake. With the current state of our country, I highly recommend giving this a watch if you haven't already.

I'm currently making way through season 2 of Luke Cage. I'm so glad folks acted like they had sense because a lot of non-Blacks were tripping and letting their racist flags fly on Twitter when Marvel and Netflix announced season 1. It was a mess, but Black Twitter quickly got the haters all the way together.

We NEED to see more Black superheroes in shows and movies with predominantly Black casts. Remember folks representation matters!! I wish folks got this so we wouldn't have to deal with the outpour of racism and foolish that comes when these types of projects are introduced and announced.

Spotted | We recently took a break from our yard because we spotted our first snake--a copperhead. It was a little one, but that snake was slithering after my baby (Moo). So, of course, I had to help it on it's way to snake heaven.

This mama bear doesn't play about her kids. I kind of knew we'd have a snake run-in at some point because we're in the country. I'm talking backwoods. Plus, the Carolinas is known for its share of copperheads and other venomous snakes depending on where you live.

It's time to teach my city kids a thing or two about country living. I want them to be able to enjoy the outdoors safely because I have no plans to stay cooped up inside the rest of Summer Break.

Searched | I need a new car! So this past Wednesday, the kids and I were supposed to go to Great Wolf Lodge for a media event. We were all pumped and ready. The kids were beyond excited because they've been asking to go to GWL forever and a day.

Unfortunately, we woke up to some car trouble on Wednesday and I had to cancel. Talk about a nightmare. We all cried because we were all frustrated. So, I started searching for cars and I think that I've found one that may be perfect for us. It's an SUV, but it's not huge. It has loads of trunk space.

I wish the gas mileage was better though. I'm going to look around a bit more to be 100% sure. I can't wait to have my own wheels again!

4th of July is coming up next week! Please be safe and mindful of your neighbors if you're going to celebrate by popping fireworks! Also, don't forget to check out my latest giveaway.

What's been the highlight of your summer so far?

Linking up with: Momfessional | TBB | High Five Friday