This blog is moving.............

Yes, you saw that correctly!  I am in the process of moving this blog over to http://www.anotherdayinamomsworld.com/.  I am excited about this stage in my life and believe that it will allow me to reach more people.  Positive thoughts and lots of prayers are in my future and please be patient while I'm working on this transition.

The Holidays are Approaching and a Kindle Fire

It is that time of year again............

Time to start thinking about the holidays..........or if you're like me, you've been thinking about them since they ended last year.

I'm not as far along with my shopping as I would like to be, but I am also trying to plan my upcoming trip to Orlando and figuring out what we're doing while we're there.  (Disney, Universal, SeaWorld, the new Legoland, so many choices, so little time).  Also, my children are growing.  The older one doesn't really want toys anymore, my daughter is fairly easy to shop for clothing and accessory wise, but doesn't really want toys, and my youngest son has all of the toys from the older ones and doesn't need anymore.  However, he's not really ready for all of the expensive tech toys that my older two want.

I was just looking into a Kindle (for myself, I won't fib about that!) and saw the Kindle Fire can be pre-ordered.  I was intrigued to see what this new toy was all about???  I am truly amazed at what I found out!  Apps, email, books, movies, music, this seems to have it all!  I had originally been thinking about an ipod touch for my oldest but I'm thinking that the Kindle Fire may be the way to go.  I just wish it was coming out before my trip so I could take it on the road and well, roadtest it.  I know I would like it, hint, hint!!

Now what to get for everyone else on my list????????????

The Beginning of Fall, the Beginning of Colds

Oh, what a couple of weeks it has been......................

We got my youngest through the worst of his breathing issues and have been keeping our fingers crossed that it won't happen again.  Then this week he came home from school on Monday with a temperature.  So, I had company on Tuesday.  Not that I minded the snuggle time and the fact that I ended up sleeping most of the day! 

That is one thing that my husband cannot understand.  How can I just sleep the entire day??  I guess when my body decides that it needs rest, it need it.  I'm just starting to listen to my body more and more and ignoring what the type A me thinks I should be doing.  Like now, I should be cleaning my bathroom, but instead I'm resting on the couch writing this post.  My body doesn't really like to move too early in the morning, which is definitely hard with getting three kids out the door (well, five, with my two extras that come over). 

My list of things to do today, besides the bathroom, are laundry, dishes, general pickup of things not in there place and hopefully a little more baking, so I can warm up my house a little bit.  My long term list for this weekend is to finalize our trip to Orlando (all of the little details like transportation, who's meeting us there and is there a washer/dryer in my unit??), working on a realistic budget, so I can start setting more money aside, and paying bills.  Oh, and I'm sure my kids want their allowance from the past 8 weeks!  I really need to work on a schedule for myself as well. 

I think I'll get some worksheets going this weekend, in between playing with my crew and getting some yard work done.  It's supposed to be a beautiful weekend here, so I'm going to enjoy every minute of it!

If you have any ideas of what I can do on any of the above plans, please let me know.  Or share anything that you're trying to implement into your life.

Book Review of Unsinkable

I was asked to review the book Unsinkable by Abby Sunderland and Lynn Vincent.  This is a book about Abby sailing solo around the world.  It was able to give be a really good idea of what he went through all of those months at sea. 

At the beginning of the book, there are 3 icons which will help you as you continue reading.  They are to let you know who the dialogue is by.  This is confusing at first but as you get into the book, it does get easier. 

I was amazed at the strength this 16 year old girl had and that she had enough courage to even want to sail around the world.  The book is filled with all of her experiences and downfalls.  There is a section of pictures in the middle of the book of her journey.  My favorite picture is the one of her younger brother, who was born just 12 hours after she arrived home from her trip.

This is definitely a must read for anyone who enjoys reading about people's triumphs in life.

 I was given this book by booksneeze.com.  All of the opinions are mine and I was not influenced in any way.

Stampin' Up! website

I just found this great website for Stampin' Up! products and ideas!  Go to http://www.gettincrafty.com/ and see what Cristena has!  She offers different classes and you can order products online.  As she puts it, you can order from your home 24/7 in your jammies! :)  What a wonderful thing.................

She has a button so you can sign up for emails or rss feeds.  You can also email her. 

I can't wait to explore more of her site!

When Your Child Is Sick..................

It has been a long couple of days, at least I think that's how long it's been. It seems much, much longer to me. Sunday morning, my youngest told me he was having trouble breathing. I listened to him and he sounded a little congested and I just thought he had a cold. After all, it is the start of fall here in the Northeast!  He played off and on throughout the day, but for the most part was quiet. Such a change from my usual moving at all times child!

Sunday night when he fell asleep, his breathing was way off. He was breathing so fast and being the mom I am, I had to make the agonizing decision to either wait it out, till we could get to the doctor or take him to the ER. I decided on the wait approach, because he was out cold. I was next to him in bed all night and I didn't sleep much.

Monday we went to the doctor and even though his breathing seemed a whole lot better to me, he was still breathing too fast.  He is now on 3 medications and had to have a chest x-ray.  He is out of school for most of the week, at least until we see the doctor again on Thursday afternoon. 

This means a rearrangement of our my schedule this week. All of the time I planned on being at school, means I have to be home.  He needs to be kept quiet all week (how do you do that with a 7 year old boy???) and I need to continue to try to get everything I need to get done, done and take care of the rest of my family.  Did I mention that I haven't really slept in 2 nights? 

Somehow I will have to try to squeeze in some take care of me time, so I don't have a flare or run myself down. I'll get back to you on that....................

Fall Fun!

The weather has started to turn cooler here in the Northeast and that means that there are so many things to do. Football has started for the kids, so us parents show up at the field with drinks, snacks, chairs and blankets (Yes, I do NOT like the cold!).  Soccer and lacrosse are also popular with some families.

Hiking, apple picking, fall fairs and festivals, pumpkin patches are other ideas, to name a few.  We went apple picking last week and made some applesauce yesterday and apple slab pie a few days ago.  LOTS of fun for the kids and lots of cleanup for mom, but SO worth it!

We have a hike planned in a couple of weeks and I know that we'll be going to the pumpkin patch.

While all of this is going on, this busy mom will be starting to do her fall cleaning, fall baking and get into gear for the holidays.  My holiday shopping is probably a third of the way done and I'm feeling a little behind at the moment.  I have a few items that I need to start making to give as gifts, because I always think it's a brilliant idea to do some homemade gifts.  Where is my brain????  I forget about the life we all lead sometimes! 

I will definitely be taking some time out to spend with my family and friends!

Price Chopper Deals for the week of 9/11

I think this is a slightly slow week at Price Chopper, but here is what I see for good deals:

Can Crazy Coupon  Buy 3 pepsi brand 12 packs get 1 Lipton Brisk ice tea 12 pack free

Can Crazy Coupon  Keebler Fudge Shoppe Cookies, Keebler Chips Deluxe and Famous Amos brand cookies 4 for $8

Pop Secret popcorn is Buy 1 at $3.19  get 1 free

Grande Tortilla Chips Buy 1 at $2.99 get 1 free

Spend $25 on certain General Mills products and get 20 cents off per gallon of gas


Remember, for every $50 you spend at Price Chopper, you get 10 cents off per gallon of gas (up to 20 gallons). Gift cards count towards gas rewards, with the exception of Price Chopper gift cards.  Alcohol and certain other exclusions apply.

CVS Deals for the week of 9/11

Here are the best deals that I see for CVS this week:

Mars, Wrigleys or Hersheys assorted fun size 5 for $10
Hershey Drops 2 for $5  coupon in 9/11 inserts
Irish Spring or Softsoap body wash $2.99 get $2 in EB final price $0.99
St Joseph Aspirin $2 get $1 EB use coupon in 9/11 inserts = free aspirin
RepHresh Brilliant tampons $6.79 get $6.79 in EB = Free Tampons
Huggies Jumbo pack $8.99 get $1 in EB use coupon from the 9/11 insert
Aussie or Herbal Essence $2.99 get $1 in EB

Spend $25 on certain Bounty, Charmin, Puffs and Duracell products and get $10 back in EB

Time for Exercise!!

With all of the struggles of parenting, relationships and household duties, sometimes our priorites get a little mixed up!  We often forget about ourselves and put many people first.  I know that I do that all of the time!  I feel like my family and friends should get all of my energy and don't realize that by doing that, I'm neglecting myself.  We need to prioritize and make sure that we give our bodies what it needs.

One way of doing this is by exercising.  I know, that word is not a good one.  Here's the good news -- playing with your kids outside counts!  As does walking them to the bus stop.  And all of those errands you run (you know, the ones where you are trying to find as many good deals as you can, to stretch the budget.....) park a little further from the store to get a few extra steps in.

Take 10 minutes to stretch in the morning, another 10 later in the day for walking and another 10 in the evening doing yoga or pilates.  Or throw some weight training in a 10 minute slot.  The possibilities are endless and you should never get bored. 

Try to find somewhere where you can go swimming with the family.  We try to take the kids to the Y and after swimming we hang out in the gym shooting hoops.  Get your kids or significant other to join you and get some quality time together.

You're Worth It!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

We Survived the First Day of School

Yesterday I sent my oldest off to middle school for the first time, while my younger two went back to elementary school.  So now, I'm going to try and balance myself between the two schools.  But that is for another day!

My oldest woke up crying yesterday and didn't want to eat anything before he left. He was all packed up and ready so the morning went fairly well (except for the fact that we have to get up so early). I got him on the bus and told him I'd see him at the end of the day.

My younger two woke up after my oldest left and I went through the same routine with them except there were no tears this time.  This was pretty much routine for them since they were going back to the same school.  Drove them to the bus stop. 

Then I went to school to help a teacher organize all of the school supplies that came in. Ran a few errands after that and then it was time to do the pickups at the bus stop. I'm beginning to feel like I'm going to be living there......................

The middle school/high school bus was about 10 minutes late. No biggie!  Came home and went through all of the papers with my son, heard about his day (with excitement in his voice) and heard about what supplies he needed.

Back up to the bus stop.........

Elementary bus was 25 minutes late. Oh well!!  Life goes on.  Came home with the other two plus my two extras and heard about their day, went through the mountain of paperwork and found out what else they needed to take to school.

And out of the mouth of my youngest was the best thing of all "My teacher is so pretty, mommy!!"

I can't wait to see what else we all learn together this year.

Hurrican Irene and a lot to be thankful for.....................

It was a change from what normally happens at my house when a hurrican is threatening to hit the U.S.  Usually it threatens Florida, where my mom and sister live. I usually call down there to make sure they're ready for it and they check in after it has hit and gone by. This time, it was threatening the East Coast and my mom and sister called me to make sure we were ready and had everything we needed to "hunker down". 

We did survive the storm with minimal damage, although some towns around us were not as fortunate.  Rivers flooded, roads washed out, houses flooded and cars were swept away by the water.  The number of people lost by this storm is not yet known, as I'm sure the number will rise for a few more days. That is definitely the worst part of any tragedy. You can survive with the loss of your house or things but the loss of life is a hard thing to overcome.

It makes you even more aware that you should be grateful for everyone in your life, even if you aren't on the best of terms with some people, you should still be grateful for them. You never know when these people might step up and help you out unexpectantly. You should be grateful for the little ones in your house, even if they wake you up multiple times overnight. Your husband's annoying habits should make you smile (after all they did at one time or you wouldn't have married him).

Don't let things be a major part of what you love. People should be the most loved in your life and everyone should learn to live with less of everything else.

A long time and one busy summer!

It has been so long since I have sat down to actually write a post and I've missed it so much!  I can't wait until school starts and I can get a regular routine going. 

We went out to my grandma's to visit and we surprised her.  She wasn't expected us and was really happy when we showed up.  It was a nice 3 days of visiting!

Right now we're trying to get all of our school supplies together and we're still waiting for my oldest sons schedule.  A whole lot of waiting................

My youngest stepdaughter just started college and today is her second day of classes.  She went to pick up her textbooks today and spent $341.  Not sure what to expect when these 3 younger ones get to college!  Hoping that everything will be electronic by then and we won't have to pay anything???

Planning on a great weekend since it's my birthday weekend and I'm hoping to order a dishwasher for my house.  I cleaned out some drawers and cabinets today so we will actually have room for it.  I can't wait till I don't have to do quite so many dishes by hand.  Now I just have to get my husband on board!  Any ideas there???

Vocalpoint Info

If you are not a Vocalpoint member, now may be the time to  join!  You get a lot of good samples, freebies and coupons.  This upcoming Tuesday you will receive a way to help your teen learn how to spend smart!  A definite must for all parents!  I can't wait to see exactly what it is and how it works......

Here is the link you will need to join and access the info:

http://link.vocalpoint.com/u.d?LYGhctg34NSrAL8Iylz0=281&s=1CE12770-8192-4A66-B981-1C2F67BA2EEB

Good luck with this adventure and have fun!  Life is always an adventure and everyone learns something new every day!

Summer Time Adventures

This summer has definitely been full of adventure!  Not so much like last summer, when I decided I needed excitement and broke my foot.  Much, much different this year.

We were able to go to Massachussetts for a week with the kids and hung out by the pool and mini golf course most of the time.  However, we did squeeze in a trip to Six Flags New England.  This was made possible because we have season passes to Six Flags Great Escape, which is close to our house.  Financially, the day didn't go as planned......When we arrived at the park, we showed our season parking pass for our park, only to find out that they no longer accepted it from other parks.  What??!!!!???  $20 later, we parked the car for the day!  I decided against packing lunches, since it would take a long time to walk back to the car during the day and since it was so hot, I knew that would just make hungry kids crankier.  Well, I was expecting high food prices but not what I found!  A meal with 4 chicken tenders and a couple of handfuls of fries cost about $15, maybe a little more. I think I'm still in shock over that.....Needless to say, we split the meal between all of us.

The rest of the day went well, the kids enjoyed the rides they went on and we left early enough to enjoy a dinner back in Lee at Arizona Pizza.  Very yummy and we all ate a nice, big dinner for around $30 (I even had a coupon that I used)!

We went to the Great Escape this past weekend and the kids enjoyed the rides, I was able to use my season parking pass and we enjoyed a little snack.  The prices were a little better, but they still seem to be really outrageous!  How are we as families supposed to go out and do things and help the economy, when prices are skyrocketing????  You can only stretch your finances so much........

With many more things on my to do list this summer, some of them I will use coupons for , some I will use passes that we got for half price and others we will have received for free (like our Enchanted Forest/Water Safari tickets I won from MaltaMama  :)  ).  The things that don't fit into those categories, I guess I will have to rethink and see if it's something we really need or want to do.  My 3 seem happy hanging out around the house and finding things to amuse themselves.  Mainly annoying one another but there are some good moments too.

All in a summer's day...........................

Summer Fun For Families

There are so many things that you can do as a family during the summer and you don't even have to spend a lot of money!  The main thing is to spend time together, have a good time and make sure you are all having a chance to do something that each of you enjoys.

Many stores have activities for children to do and they are FREE
      AC Moore, Home Depot, Lowes, Michaels to name a few

Museums and zoos have days where you can in for free.  Who wouldn't love to see art pieces or animals???

National and State parks are also free or cheap day trips.  Lots of room to play, walk and picnic!

Just about every neighborhood has a playground nearby.  It may not be in walking distance, but if it is, what a great way to get some extra exercise.  Just remember, bring snacks and lots to drink!

Libraries are a great resource.  Not only do they have air conditioning for those hot summer day escapes, they have many books, dvd's, magazines and newspapers - ALL for FREE!  And, if your library is like mine, they have a fabulous reading program for the kids (mine even has one for us BIG KIDS!).  Prizes for books read and different entertainment for the kiddos. What a way to browse for books  --  can we say peace and quiet, with no interruptions???

How about a day of fun and games right in your own backyard?

Or a day of playing chef or baker right in your kitchen?  (perfect for those rainy days)

Or scientist?  teacher? 

The possibilities are endless!

If you have any ideas that I haven't mentioned, please share.  We all need a little inspiration on occasion!

What a BUSY Day!

Today started out as a nice lazy day, because I slept in until 7:30.  Then I ate a leisurely breakfast after feeding the kids, but I ran out of time for a cup of coffee.  Then I hit the floor running for a lot of things that were hurry up and wait!

The first trip was to the vet with our cat.  Just a checkup visit, but when we got there, they were backed up because they had 3 emergencies come in.  So, there I waited with 3 kids.  What fun!  The visit went quick when we got in, so that was nice and there were no problems.

Next, we dropped the cat off at home, picked up a 4th child and went off to the library.  I signed everyone up for the reading programs for their age level and then they picked out their books for the next few days.  Easy as pie!  (hmmm, pie, might have to make one)

Then McDonalds for lunch, because we were already out.  Went through the drive thru and brought it home to eat.  And I got the leftovers that my kids didn't eat.  (Not so good for my stomach, but oh well)!

AC Moore was next since they had a craft afternoon.  We did our shopping first and then stood in line to make the patriotic shirts.  While they were drying we stood in line to get the temporary tatoos.  Did I mention the lines????  It's a popular place during these craft afternoons!  There were at least 50 kids there with their parents.  But, we managed and then we came home and the craziness is still going strong. 

Since we haven't really been home today, I have NO CLUE what we're eating for dinner, so that's next in my plan.  I'm sure since my freezer is well stocked, I should be able to find something quick and easy!  I'll get to that in my next couple of posts later this week.

I'll also be posting my savings for the year on coupons and my goals for the rest of the year!

Our Vacation Part Four - Leaving Family and Friends and Returning Home

We're back from another weekend away, while I try to finish our last vacation's post!  I'm going to have to start typing these up ahead of time, so all I have to do is hit post!

It was bittersweeet when we left Savannah.  We had a wonderful time and lots of fun, but saying goodbye is always hard.  What made it easier was knowing that we would be seeing them when they came up here in July AND that knowing we could Skype any time we had a moment or two.

We got up about 5:30 am to finish loading the van and to give out hugs and then we started out.

My husband drove the beginning of the drive, which was nice, because he was able to see how long it took to get through South Carolina and North Carolina. I had driven most of that on the way down while he slept, so he didn't realize how long they were.  He also got the Virginia part on the way back and his comment was "Does this state ever end???"  Mine was "Eventually!!" as I drifted back off to sleep...............

It took us 17 1/2 hours to get home and when we arrived, we had tired kids, tired parents and one very happy kitty, who wanted to play all night.  What an adventure and YES, I would do it all again.

Our Vacation Part Three - The Beach and Shopping

Here is the long waited for part three of our trip dpwn south! 

The beaches down there are fabulous and the water and scenery is beautiful!  The best part is that you can watch dolphins as they're going by!  I could sit on the sand, reading a book, catching some rays and watching the dolphins all day.  The kids and my husband, well, maybe not so much.......

Here is what we did at Tybee Island Beach and Hilton Head Beach:

The kids and my husband went in the water and played, swam and searched for sand dollars.  They also built sand castles complete with moats.  I sat and watched, handed out snacks, caught some rays and did a little reading.  Also, I was the picture taker. 

We found a dead jellyfish that had washed up onto the sand so we had a little science lesson (don't you love it when you can have a teachable moment  :)  ). 

When we were in Hilton Head and done at the beach, we went to the outlets.  My daughter had to go into Justice (of course) and we also went into Old Navy.  My daughter bought quite a few things from Justice, but they were all reasonably priced.  A lot were on clearance or on sale and the store was running a 40% off everything special.  Works for me!  Old Navy had a few things that I purchased for myself and a few baby items for my sister's new little one in September.

All in all, it was a beautiful, fun filled, tiring, family and friends, hanging out kind of day!  What a bonus!

Motts for Tots free product from Vocalpoint

This is an awesome deal if you have little ones in the house (or even not so little ones!).  Vocalpoint is sending out free Motts for Tots juice.  All you need to do is be a member of Vocalpoint and that's an easy thing to do!  Just sign up and you will get lots of free products and coupons throughout the year.  They ask for your opinions on products along with other feedback and you can talk to other moms out there.  It's a fabulous program.  (Can you tell I love this......?)

Here is the link for this offer:

www.vocalpoint.com/mottsfortots

Sorry for my Absence

I have to apologize for my absence the last few days and for not continuing my series on my vacation.  I haven't been feeling very well and have spent the majority of the last 3 days in bed.  My computer wasn't on except to pay bills yesterday and that was a MAJOR chore (as always!). 

I am planning to continue the posts by this Friday, I just need to take a couple of days to catch up on all of the stuff in the house.  :)  I would so much rather be posting!  I can't even begin to think of all of the stuff I've been missing on the posts I normally read...........the things I could've received for only a little money or for free.  But that's what my stockpile is for!! 

Besides, that's what happens when you're a mom living with RA and fibromyalgia.  Things don't always go as planned and I'm sure there's a reason why this happened.................Haven't figured it out yet, but I'm sure it will become clear when I need to know!

Have a great day!

Vacation Part Two - The Ceremonies

After our long day of travel, I had been ready for a break, but 2 days of ceremonies was not exactly what I had in mind!  No, the ceremonies weren't all day affairs, but when you add in the time it takes to get everyone ready and there early and then the ceremony itself, well, let's just say, it took time.

The first ceremony was the awards and scholarship ceremony and took about 3 hours.  They went through a list of awards and scholarships that the students received and called those students to the stage one at a time.  Lots of speeches on what the award or scholarship entailed and what the student had to accomplish, in order to be chosen.  And my children sat through this, without misbehaving at all!  Who would've thought?

The graduation itself was the next night.  Lots of excitement and a LOT more people were in attendance.  There was a chance of rain and we were outside on bleachers around the football field.  This took a little less time than the night before, but was still two and a half hours.  There were lots of speakers, including one of the alumni and then each student crossed the stage to receive the diploma holder.  Not even the actual diploma!  They wouldn't receive that until after they went into the school and made sure they didn't owe any books, money, etc...... 

I couldn't believe that my youngest stepchild was actually old enough to be graduating!  It was definitely an emotional moment and one that I will remember forever.  I am so grateful that we were able to attend!  My children were so happy to be included and yes, they did behave the night of the graduation as well.  Everyone was so proud of them, including their sisi!

Stay tuned for the next part of my vacation series, in the days to come.........................

Our Vacation to Savannah Part One - The Drive

Now, I might be slightly crazy at times, but I thought that I might have really lost it when I decided we would drive down to Savannah (again!).  We did this drive 7 years ago when the kids were much younger and my thought now was "well, they are older.....". Oh boy, the way my brain thinks!

We left at 3:00 a.m.. The van was loaded the night before with everything except for the cooler and the family.  That was the easy part.  Next was the driving.  My husband started and my thought was that the kids would fall back asleep for a while. No, that's not what happened.  The excitement started and never ended for the entire trip.  By 5 my daughter wanted to start her schoolwork, even though it was still dark outside.  I managed to hold her off until 6.  My oldest son wanted to sleep but his younger brother kept waking him up because he couldn't seem to stop talking. 

We were pointing out a lot of the landmarks and making sure we let the kids know what state we were in.  And there were a lot of them!  We managed to go through New York, New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina and Georgia.  I was the lucky one to drive through Maryland, part of Virginia, South Carolina and Georgia. 

Snacks were a definite on this trip along with lots of drinks.  Lunch was eaten at a rest stop at a picnic table and consisted of sandwiches, fruit, pudding and more drinks.  Dinner was at Arby's and everything was from the dollar menu. 

The only other glitch we had was that when we went to turn on the A/C in the warmer states, we discovered that it wasn't working.  Uh-Oh, definite issue when the temps are up in the 90's and 100's! 

Our arrival at our destination was at 8:00 p.m.. A wonderful 17 hours of driving and spending time with my crew and we all survived!  It wasn't as bad as I thought and yes, I would do it all again, eventually........

Stay tuned for the next part of this series............................

Vacation Time

You won't see much from me in the next week. I'll be enjoying myself down in Savannah, Georgia with family and friends!  Lots of fun in the sun!  Now back to packing.....................

Weekends with RA and fibromyalgia

Having RA and fibromyalgia means I have to plan my weekends a little differently than some people.  My kids all do sports and scouts and any other activity that interests them.  Although, I do try to limit them to a couple of things per season.  By the time you've gone to a couple of games on Saturday and then maybe get to the library and then if something special is going on, your day is gone.  For Sunday, if it's a scout meeting day, the afternoon has vanished from you and the morning is usually spent playing catch up for anything that really needs to be done. 

So planning has become key to my weekends.  Unfortunately my planning skills could use some work!  I'm not always sure what we're having for dinner and I'm always behind on the dishes and the laundry.  The one thing that I am always sure of is that I love spending time with my family and friends!  Everything can wait until I can get to it.  It usually means that I spend half of the week playing catch up but that's ok, since everyone is in school or at work.  I'm slowly learning that I need to have my family pitch in more when it comes to doing the chores, even though it makes me feel guilty.  I feel like that's my job and their job is either to go to work or school and do their best at that.  But, I'm working on it!

Everything in my life seems to be a work in progress.  I have a feeling that my life is always going to be that way and that's fine.  I'm going to eventually learn to adjust my attitude to whatever works at this time in my life is how I'm going to do things. 

How about you???????????????

Baking Day

Today has been a HUGE baking day!  I am no where near finished, but am taking a break.  So far I have made 4 batches of banana bread and 4 batches of pumpkin bread.  Some are for the staff appreciation breakfast at our school on Friday and the rest are for here.  I am hoping that some will make it into the freezer for our trip next week.

Next I will be making a batch of cream cheese chocolate chip cookies for the luncheon at school tomorrow.  I would also like to share some of these with a few friends, so even though one batch makes a lot of cookies, I may end up doing a double batch. 

I also want to do some muffins for the breakfast and some brownies and cookies for here.  Maybe some chocolate pudding pies as well................   Can you tell I'm hungry????  That's making me think of Apple Slab Pie and since I have some apples, I may have to whip up one to stick in the freezer for when we get back from vacation.  Head on over to Life As Mom at http://www.lifeasmom.com/ and you'll find Jessica's recipe for the pie.  Believe me when I say it's awesome!  I can eat a whole one all by myself!!!  But that's for another day................

Back to the baking.  Let me know what you enjoy to bake!

A New Day, A New Beginning

Ever have one of those days when you think "why can't everything go as planned?"  Well, that was my day yesterday and I'm chalking it up to a learning experience!

That being said, I was able to accomplish so much more today, because I wasn't wallowing in anything.  If something didn't go as planned today, it was "okay, next.....".  Yesterday made me realize that life is life and there isn't anything that can change it.  Not saying that it won't happen many, many more times in my future, but I'll be trying.

It's been a busy day planning and starting to pack for my trip next week.  It's going to be a long 16 plus hours drive to Savannah with my husband and the kids.  It will be sooo worth it when we arrive!  Just seeing everyone, having fun, celebrating a graduation and hanging out.  Who could ask for more?  Exactly what life should be about!

Since I have RA and fibromyalgia, I am trying to do a little packing each day, so I don't get too overwhelmed at the last minute and stress myself out.  I know something will still happen and I will get stressed, but I am trying.  I have a stack of juice boxes and a bag of some snacks ready to go.  I am planning on getting sheets and air mattresses together later tonight.  Tomorrow I will start some baking and get the swim suits and towels together.  Then some of the toiletry items.  See, I have a plan! 

I have the big Arthritis Walk this weekend on Sunday, so that will take most of a day away from me and I am so okay with it!  A day to hang out with friends, meet new people and raise awareness for a good cause! Lets get our walking shoes and go!

A Rainy, Busy Monday

Today's weather seems to match my mood!  After a super busy weekend, filled with soccer and softball games, shopping and a trip to Howe Caverns, all I really wanted to do today was relax.  However, that word should never be anywhere near a mom's lips.  :)  

I took my oldest to the dentist this morning to have his last baby tooth pulled out.  Since he has braces on (for the second time) they wanted this tooth out sooner than later.  I decided that they should give him the medicine that would make him sleepy and not remember anything.  He's terrible when it comes to stuff like this.  Afterwards was such a comical sight!  He kept asking the same questions over and over again, said he was seeing 2 of everything and doesn't even remember calling home to tell his dad that he was okay and just waiting to come out of la la land, before he came home.  I was laughing hysterically!  I think that the best part was when we were on our way home and he asked what something was.  Since I couldn't see where he was pointing, I was getting confused.  Then I realized that he was talking about the road!  He couldn't remember the most basic stuff and then he said that his brains weren't working!   :) 

That was the bright part of my day.  The kids had a special persons' luncheon today, so I thought I'd be nice and send my husband, since I get to eat with the kids whenever I want to.  And someone had to be with the one that was still kind of in la la land.  The lunch was over at 1:10 and they had to leave to school to get home, so I could take the younger 2 to the dentist for a cleaning at 2:00.  At 1:40 my husband still wasn't home with the kids, so I called and he STILL hadn't left school!  He said our youngest wasn't down yet and he just sent our daughter to find him.  Now it was the youngests' lunch that ended at 1:10, so he had him, but I guess he didn't bring his stuff with him.  But why my husband thought it was a good thing to wait a half hour before sending someone to find him, is the question?????   So, now I'm home and my husband had to drive the kids to the dentist, since he couldn't come home first.  Maybe he'll start to realize what a mom's life is like???  ok, so maybe not so much.........................

At least now, I can laugh about it, that is until the kids come home crying because I wasn't there!   :(

Many more things to do this afternoon, so I guess I'll get a move on listing some things on etsy, check some emails, do some baking, get a loaf of bread together, laundry, make sure I remember to pick up the co-op food order, and think of something to make for dinner.  Or I could take the stress free route and curl up and finish my book!

Customer Service

I love it when I have a question for a company and I receive great customer service when I call!  I had ordered a tractor lawn mower for my husband last week and I knew that it had reached stage 1 in the delivery process.  I have been waiting for a phone call to see when they would be delivering it, but hadn't heard yet.  I called the customer service number that I received in my order confirmation email from Home Depot and reached a very nice customer service rep.  He looked at the tracking info and actually called the delivery company to find out what was going on, all while he kept me on hold.  He kept checking back with me, to let me know that he was waiting for info and asking if I minded holding a little bit longer.  When he received the info, he relayed it to me, along with a company name and phone number of where the tractor is right now.  I guess they are assembling it and making sure everything is okay, before calling to set up a delivery time.  It was so nice to have such a wonderful customer service representative, who seemed very polite and caring and who also seems to love his job!

What a wonderful start to my day!!!

Beginning of a new week

Yesterday was Mother's Day and I hope all you moms out there enjoyed your day.  Mine started with the kids fighting over who was going to make me what for breakfast, followed by the delivery of 1 piece of french toast with nothing on it and 3 strawberries.  At least some of the breakfast dishes were done.  Fast forward to dinner --  I didn't mind making it because we were just finishing up some things in the fridge so they wouldn't go to waste.  Well, nobody even considered doing the dinner dishes for me!  Oh well, some therapy in soapy water is a good thing.   :)

I have been on a roll cleaning today and have been alternating between keeping busy and resting.  I finished an entire book yesterday and I even though I have some spare time this afternoon and would like to read, I'm asking myself if I'm being too selfish???  OK, I'm not even going to give THAT another thought!

This week is going to be busy with softball and soccer, PTA meeting, going shopping to get some jewelry making things for the raffle basket our team needs to donate for the pasta dinner the league has, clean up day for the front of our school, a doctor's appointment and probably a million other things.  Oh, and did I mention that in 2 weeks, we'll be leaving to drive down to Georgia for a graduation??  I need to start prepping for that trip as well.  I have that list started and just have to find the best way for me to do this.  I'm planning on keeping up with this around the house as best I can, keep my shopping trips short and sweet, and plan on baking up a storm, so we have goodies for our trip!  I want to use up some of our stockpile so it will be easier to rotate and know what I have so I can start stocking up on the summertime needs and wants. (smores anyone??)

Speaking of shopping, I am planning on trying to tweak my diet a little.  I need to make sure that I am eating the foods that are the best for my body and keep the processed and junk foods to a minimum.  How am I supposed to give up chocolate????  This is going to be a very long process, but I'm sure in the long run, it will make me feel a whole lot better.  If anyone has any ideas or ways to help me figure all of this out, please let me know.

Happy Mother's Day Weekend!

To all my fellow moms out there, Happy Mother's Day!  It's going to be a fairly busy day here today, but things should be slightly calmer tomorrow.  We have the sports thing going on today ---- pictures, practice, game, and then sign ups for football for my youngest.  Then there is the campover for cub scouts tonight, which I am NOT going to!!  :)

Tomorrow I'm sure I will receive breakfast in bed and then will go into the kitchen to find a lot of dishes that need to be done.........  Oh well, that is okay.  I enjoy every part of being a mom.  To have your child come in to your room in the morning and give you a big hug and kiss, or to watch them when they finally figure something out that they've been struggling with.  Even when they are acting up, you know that it's because they are just learning what they need to know as they continue to grow and that you are responsible for teaching them all of these things.  Sometimes that responsibility can be overwhelming and sometimes us parents are really tired or busy and we kind of lose it, but then we can teach our kids about making mistakes.  It's wonderful how everything works out and that no matter what the love is always there and that love goes both ways.

Everyone enjoy your weekend and enjoy your family and friends.  That's what really matters in life!!

What was I thinking?????????????

I wasn't feeling the best for most of the month of April, so I have been getting really behind on MANY things.  I had to go through a month of receipts yesterday and balance the checkbook. What a task!  Then I had to pay bills for this upcoming month.  After ALL of that, I went through my receipts for groceries and household items, to track how much I spent during the month of April.  What a shock I had!  I spent WAY TOO MUCH MONEY!  Almost 4 times what I normally would like to.  I'm not sure what happened, but obviously since I wasn't feeling well and had been using up a lot of my stockpile over the winter months, I overspent.  I definitely need to watch what I am doing over the next few months, so I can get back on track. 

I have decided that I need to get my body back in shape, so that I am feeling better long term, instead of all of these ups and downs lately.  I'm just not sure what I am doing wrong, so I'm not quite certain how I can fix this.  I am trying to rest as much as I can and keep my stress levels down, but that's really difficult with kids.  I have also been having difficulty sleeping again.  (maybe from some of these money issues????)

Another decision I have made is that I need to get some extra income into this house.  I have opened an etsy shop, so I can sell some of the crafts that I have made.  Making crafts has a soothing effect on me and my body, so I have decided that that is a good thing.  You can check out my shop at www.etsy.com/shop/jenfitz42

Feel free to share this website with anyone you feel would like any of my creations.

Later this week, I plan on doing a post on the Arthritis Walk up here in Albany on May 22nd.  I'm planning on walking again this year and have a team set up, along with a donation page.

Now off to see what else I can do with this day..............................

Warm Weather is Here!!

Ok, I'm sure some of you have had nice weather for awhile now, but here in the northeast, it has finally started to arrive.  I have been looking forward to the nicer weather, so I can be outside more with the kids.  It is so difficult when you have RA and fibromyalgia to go out in the cold (or at least for me).  I also find that I am more tired and I don't want to move when the weather is yucky and it is dark and dreary most of the day.  Now that it is staying lighter longer, I seem to have a little more energy, and I am definitely enjoying that.  Now if I could just convince everyone in my house that I would love to spend that energy on playing instead of housework................ Guess I'll have to work on that.

I have many plans for the next few days and hopefully I can get some things crossed off my list.  I need to rake out my flower garden and replace the mulch. I neeed to clean out the inside of my car, especially where my daughter's crayons melted into the carpet right next to the heat vent.  I need to clean the windowsills, now that I can have the windows open.  Anything else that I can find, so that I can be outside.

This is the time of year that I enjoy soooo much!  Time to be outside, for picnics and cookouts, spending time with family and friends, and hanging out having fun!  What more could a person ask for???????????

Stress in Life

Everyone has stress nowadays, but it's how you handle it that's important.  We had a birthday party weekend, my daughter turned 9, and I thought I had everything under control.  However, my body thought differently.  Even though I had my list, I didn't take enough breaks and relax, so by Sunday night, I was in tears.  I slept while the kids were in school on Monday and then was up half of Monday night, from the pain.  You see, with RA and fibromyalgia, you need to be careful with just about everything and what will work for one person, will not work for someone else.  It's basically a guessing game and that game can also change at a moments notice. 

For me, food and stress seem to be big factors.  I try not to eat too much meat and stay away from a lot of sweets (yes, that's a stressor right there!) and eat lots of fruits, veggies and beans.  As for the stress, well, I do what I can.  Some days, it's easy and other days, well, lets just say "life happens".  The kids are screaming at one another, homework is piling up, housework is piling up, no one likes what I prepared for dinner and don't even get me started about bill paying and making sure THAT can happen! 

My goals when "life happens" is to now curl up with a good book or work on a cross stitch or another craft project.  I try not to think of what needs to be  done or the what ifs, if they're not done and just concentrate on myself.  Does part of myself feel guilty for this?  Yes, but if I don't take care of myself, who will take care of my family?  It all comes down to me being healthy and doing what needs to be done. 

Now, if I could only figure out how to be in multiple places at one time during all of the sports and other activities the kids are involved in................ life would be "perfect"!

The Worries in Life

My daughter seems to have what is called separation anxiety.  She has had this for awhile, but recently it has been so bad, I have been taking her to a counselor.  It was working fairly well, but with all of the medical procedures and doctor appointments I have been having, it is getting worse again.  She had a pretty bad anxiety attack a couple of weeks ago and it even scared me!  The worst part of all of this is knowing that while I can help her a little bit with this, she actually needs to do most of the work herself.  And at being 8 (9 on this coming Sunday), she gets confused at some of the techniques she is supposed to use.  I can't say that I blame her, I have a difficult time with my own anxieties.  I can also say that telling her that everyone has worries isn't much help either.

We already had her think up a bunch of what if thoughts, which seems to be her biggest thing, and we put them in a zip lock bag on the top shelf of her closet.  This way those thoughts are locked away and they can't escape.  She has her affirmations, or good thoughts, written on paper and these she has put in her  happy box.  Her happy box also contains things that, well, make her happy.  A smooth blue stone, pictures of her grandma and her cat and a couple other items.  She needs to work on her slow, deep breathing, as this is supposed to help calm her down and she also needs to work on recognizing when she is going to start having an anxiety attack.  I can barely tell when I'm starting to have one! 

As a mom, this whole situation breaks my heart and makes me feel like I've done something wrong in my parenting.  I have tried to be the best mom that I am able to, but did I miss something along the way??  I almost can't help but wonder what is going to happen when she gets into middle and high school.  Will all of this get worse or will we have her coping skills managed by then?  Is this going to happen with my boys?  My oldest is very quiet and keeps many things to himself, so maybe he has had these thoughts and has just kept them away from me.  My youngest is very vocal about many things, so I'm sure I would know if he started all of this, but can a mom ever be sure?

I think I will be continuing to talk to my children and try to find out as much as I can about their day and their lives, so I can keep trying to steer them in the right direction, in this place called life. 

The Day After......................

It's the Monday after daylight savings time and what a day it's been!  My oldest decided he thought he was going to be sick minutes before he was to get on the bus, so being the mom that I am, I let him stay home.  Come to find out, he has a health fair this week and had to have a presentation prepared to speak in front of other students.  Could this be the issue behind the tummy trouble???  He also needed a poster for this presentation, that he never told me about, so being the "mom" that I am, he is working on it now, with the bucket next to him (just in case it really is tummy trouble). 

My daughter has been going through anxiety issues, so I had to try to keep her calm all morning, which was no easy task.  One of these days, I would like a very easy morning (waking up to something other than "mommy, so and so is doing _____________!", maybe some breakfast in bed (or at least breakfast), and no chaos when I'm trying to make sure I've signed everything homework wise for the kids.  Ok, now thatI'm done dreaming, back to reality!

My game plan for the week is to try to get some baking done, since I have a few things in my fridge that are going to be expiring soon.  I also would like to get started on my spring cleaning.  Before I do that, however, I would like to go through a lot of the stuff in the house and pull out things that we are not using anymore and either giving them to friends, selling them on craigslist or donating them to people who are less fortunate than us.  I am trying to teach my children that not everyone has as much as we do, and that they should consider that we are very lucky.  I am also trying to teach them that as long as we have each other, a roof over our heads and food on the table, we should feel very blessed.  It's an ongoing lesson, even with myself at times! 

Of course, we will have the usual things that need to be done this week as well, but I feel very refreshed, because we really didn't have any plans this weekend.  We did run a couple of errands Saturday night and then went to dinner at Denny's.  It was nice to not have to cook and especially nice to not have to clean up everything after!  Not a bad deal, either, since we had a 20% off our entire purchase coupon and I had a $25 gift card.  Our total before tip was only 78 cents!  My kind of deal.  I'll have to try to do that more often. 

I also have to start planning my shopping trips for this week.  A couple of stores have some good deals and some are so-so.  If I get to them all, great, if not, I'm sure we can survive with what we have.  It's time to clean out the coupon binder again as well.  Have to make sure I use the coupons that will expire at the end of the month, if I find a great deal to pair them with.  Nothing is worse than finding a coupon a couple of days after the expiration date and knowing you could have used it and gotten a good deal on it.

Book Review

I am reviewing a book that I received from http://www.booksneeze.com/.  They sent me a complimentary copy of Seek Me With All Your Heart by Beth Wiseman.  I would like to remind everyone that the review I am posting is one with my own opinions, with no input from the website that I received the book from.

This book was an easy read with wonderful characters and a wonderful setting.  I loved that it incorporated true Pennsylvania Dutch language (there is a glossary in the front of the book) which the Amish use.  Being part Pennsylvania Dutch, it was nice to learn some of this language myself. 

This story is about two families who moved from their original Amish communities, because of complications in their lives.  The new community they moved into is much smaller than their old ones and they have to learn how to grow food on their new land.  They also have to move into houses that weren't as nice as their old ones.  These new ones required a lot of renovations and those renovations didn't even require electricity. 

They learned how make new friends and find their way with new ways of thinking.  Their families combined together during worship and in times of need and together they learned how to renew their faith in their community.

This was a great book with a lot of information regarding how the Amish live.  You don't have to know a lot about Amish people to enjoy this book.  This book will give you the guidelines you need to understand that people of different faiths can still be friends and help one another.  Definitely on my recommend list.

It's been a long hard month

This past month has brought some difficult things my way and yet here I am still plugging along!

Two of my kids had the stomach bug and then two of them had really bad colds.  My youngest was actually coughing so bad that it sounded like he was barking like a sea lion!  He LOVED that description...

As for myself, I have been battling with being nauseas and just not feeling well.  I had bloodwork done last week, an endoscopy this morning and have a colonoscopy scheduled in a couple of weeks. 

My way of dealing with all of this has been to spend time with my kids, start baking again and reading some books, to get lost into someone elses world.  I think these things are actually working!  It's amazing how the small stuff works better than the larger things.

One of the big time savers for me was the fact that I had a lot of food stocked up in my freezer and pantry, so I joined in with Jessica over at http://www.lifeasmom.com/ and did a major challenge.  My goal was to use up a lot of what we had and do as little shopping as possible.  I think I succeeded for the most part.  This past week I did go to the store and stock up on quite a bit of meat, since they had some really good sales and markdowns.  When I brought the meat home, I split it up into smaller quantities and marinated some chicken breasts and leg quarters and made up some hamburg patties.  These are now all in the freezer and will make my dinner prep a little easier in the upcoming weeks.

It doesn't always have to take a lot of time to get some meals made in advance and if you break it down into smaller quantities every couple of weeks, you'll save yourself a ton of time in the long run! (think of all of those sports games, after school activities and all the extra things you do during the week and on the weekends) 

Right now, my motto is LIVE LIFE TO THE FULLEST!!!

Review of the book Unto The Hills A Daily Devotional by Billy Graham

I was sent a copy of the book Unto The Hills A Daily Devotional by Billy Graham fromBooksneeze.  This book was one of the best daily devotionals I have seen.  Each devotional is a page long and the pages are broken up into monthly segments.  It is a very good book to read either all at once or to break in to the individual days.  Because I wanted to get the review done, I had to read it all at once, but I look forward to going through the book again and again, day by day.

The message of the book is all positive and can really lift your spirits for the day. Each passage gets you thinking about how you can make sure you are living your life the way you should and how you can keep God in all of your decisions. Each person will get something different out of this book, depending on where you are in your life and what struggles you may be having at the time. And as you continue reading it year after year, the way you look at the passages will continue to change after time. It is definitely a book that will be enjoyed for years to come. This book can also be used as a family reading passage and can be used as a teaching tool for every member of the family.

Savings on food and health and beauty items for 2010

Since we have a snow day today and expecting about 15 inches of snow, I thought it would be a perfect time to post my numbers for 2010.  Then after I finish writing this, I will have to get some work done and get the kids outside to play in this wonderful snow! I'll freeze but it will be sooooo worth it to see them happy and throwing snowballs at each other. Who knows, maybe I'll join in and throw some at them!

Anyway, back to last year.  My numbers include food, pet stuff, health and beauty products and household cleaners and products.  After sales and coupons, I spent $7433.53, which averages out to $619.46 a month.  My savings, with the sales and coupons, totaled $3218.35.  Not too bad, but I would like to see the spending number go down this year and the savings number, especially the coupon part, go way up.  We were still under the national average for how much we spent on groceries last year, but I know we can do way better.  I know part of the issue is the fact that I am the only person in my household that is not a picky eater.  I will eat just about anything.  The rest of my crew however, will not eat a lot of different veggies, fruits, beans of any kind and not too many casserole dishes.  This really makes it hard to eat on a strict budget.  I can't buy things in season, produce wise, all of the time and I can't plan pasta or rice and beans for meals a couple times of the week.  I know these things would significantly decrease our food bill and I'm going to continue working on these things with my family.

I guess you can say that that is another one of my goals for the upcoming year.

How much did you save on coupons and savings last year??

Stress in a mom's life

I have made a startling discovery! Stress is not a good thing for a mom with rheumatoid arthritis and fibromyalgia to have. The bad news of figuring this out is that I really don't have a way to never have any stress in my life. I mean, hey, I'm a MOM!

I'm sure all of us struggle with stress on a daily basis. Between the kids, husband, work, bills, finances, holidays, birthdays, etc, etc.....what are we suppposed to do????  I find that if I'm getting too stressed, it actually makes me even more stressed out, when I realize that I have stress.  Last week I had a revelation along with my stress.  It is actually wiping me out a whole lot more that it used to.  I decided that I really need to find a way to deal with the stress and try to keep it in check at all times (well, most of the time).

My plan is this:

1. Take time everyday to exercise. I think this will be important in many, many ways.

2. Take time everyday to do something that I enjoy. If I crawl into my bed at night with a good book after the kids are in bed, that will definitely work for me. And I might get the huge stacks of books, that need to be read, out of my bedroom.

3. Spend extra time playing with my kids and snuggling with my husband. Nothing cures stress like the closeness of family.

4. Spend time working on my breathing techniques and try to start meditating. I've heard that this works really well....................

5. I'm also not going to worry about whether or not I'm getting everything done that needs to be done, because it will be there tomorrow.  I will also try to learn to say "no" on occassion, so that I don't get totally overwhelmed, when I'm trying to juggle a million things at a time.

Hopefully, I will succeed at a few of these and learn to manage my stress once in a while. Rheumatoid arthritis and fibromyalgia are tricky diseases to actually manage, but with a little tweaking here and there, it is possible.

A New Year

It is the start of a new year.  If you thought that I might be upset with how my 2010 went, you would be very wrong!  I learned a lot about myself and my family in that time when everything seemed to be going "wrong".  I decided that I could use those experiences and try to turn them into a positive thing!  I learned that it wouldn't hurt my husband, if he helped out with the housework, when I was unable to do it.  I also learned that if I couldn't do the housework and no one else did it, then it wasn't going anywhere.  I learned that I CAN take some time for myself and actually enjoy it!  It makes me a better person and I feel much calmer for doing so.  All of these things have made some of my decisions for the upcoming year much easier.

For 2011, my outlook will be on the positive side, no matter what comes my way (although, I'm hoping it won't be along the lines of a concussion, broken foot and surgery).  I will be trying to at least walk every day, and get some yoga and strength training in a few days a week.  I will be making sure that I read and work on my cross stitches regularly, since that always relaxes me and makes me happy.  I am going to try to cook healthier foods and make things from scratch more often.  I will be trying to eat out less and make sure that we always have quick foods to eat on those busy sports nights.  I will be working on organizing the house and making sure that everything has a place and a purpose.  If I can't make something work, then I will make sure that I donate it, so someone else can make use of it. 

I know that a lot of these things won't be accomplished overnight, but I know with some determination and hard work, I will succeed at my goals!  Hopefully, I won't wear myself out too much, by trying to do everything at once.  Another goal I have this year is to learn to pace myself and learn the cues that my body is sending me.  If I learn to listen to my body, I think I will be more successful all around!

My family is very important to me, so I will be planning on spending quite a bit of time with them and implementing some new ideas in our house.  I would like to have family game nights, family movie nights and outdoor activity days.  I will be looking for some hiking trails that we can conquer and MANY activities that our community may be holding that are FREE!!  :)  Our budget is another thing that I would like to conquer this year and working on paying down our debts.  My children are going to be helping me with this activity.  I think this will be a perfect year to get them started on how to be financially fit. 

This blog is another one of my goals and working on getting it off and running.  Any ideas that anyone may  have, please let me know.  I will be working on a game plan of what days we will discuss what topic and I will be making sure that I link this up to other wonderful blogs out there!

I hope that  everyone is enjoying this NEW YEAR!

If you are looking to clean out your pantry, freezer, stockpile, before things expire, check out http://www.lifeasmom.com/ or http://www.goodcheapeats.com/ and follow as FishMama (Jessica) helps us accomplish this.  She has some basic guidelines and will be offering lots of support.