How Xfinity Can Support Your Home During the Pandemic

Remember back in March when many of us thought we'd be back to our normal routines before we knew it? Well we are a solid eight months into this global pandemic and many of us are still facing new challenges and changes.

As a mom and small business owner, I feel like I'm spinning the plates even more these days. My youngest is at home doing virtual learning for school, while my college sophomore is fortunate enough to be living on campus and attending a hybrid semester of classes. Besides supporting them and running my household, I work part-time with a local non-profit and also run a small home-based business. That's a LOT of stuff going on and I know I'm not alone in this!

Last week, I had the opportunity to sit down with some of my favorite local influencers and some wonderful folks from Xfinity to talk about how they are helping small businesses and families during this pandemic. While this post is sponsored by Xfinity, all opinions are my very own, so please read on to see how Xfinity may be able to help you and your family during this pandemic.

3 Easy Steps Towards a Chemical Free Home

There's a lot of talk these days about GMOs and food labeling. But have you stopped recently to take a look at the products you are using in your home and on your body? We've been on a better health and wellness journey for the past couple of years, and let me tell you, some of those things are down right scary. Yet they are all perfectly "legal" and approved by the FDA.  I'm not one to get overly political here on the blog, but I want to share the three easy steps we found to kick more chemicals out of our home, and replace them with better, safer and more natural alternatives.

The Way You Watch Sports Is About to Change

I live with a major sports fan . . .contrary to what you may think, it is NOT my husband. . .it's my teenager! Growing up, my dad watched a lot of ball games, and my younger brother was into watching a lot of sports on TV, but none of it prepared me for this kid that watches everything from the Indy 500 to the PGA Tour.  He's even considering a Sports Management major in college, and is toying with Broadcasting.

So when I asked him if he wanted to join me at a media event sponsored by Comcast introducing their new programming for the Big Games in Rio, he jumped at the chance. The fact that it also included a night at the Phillies Game, was just icing on the cake.

I've mentioned before that we are long-time Comcast customers and fans. For our family, there's never really been a reason to consider switching. Comcast fills all of our television and internet needs plus more.I recently went to a demo of their X1 Platform and their improved Xfinity Home program, and to say I was impressed is an understatement. I came home and promptly told John we needed to upgrade.

4 Ways to Stay Organized With Xfinity

Wow, Xfinity has a lot more to offer families than I knew! A big thanks to them for partnering with me to bring you this post. #XfinityMoms

I am always looking for better ways to organize my life. In our busy lives, I think we are always searching for ideas and inspiration to make things easier; ways to cut the clutter and streamline the processes in our day-to-day lives. Well after a recent visit to my local Xfinity store, I found 4 ways that I could use Xfinity to help streamline and organize my life.

Yes, I said Xfinity Store. Comcast and Xfinity invited me, along with some other local bloggers to take a tour of their new facility in Willow Grove, PA, as well as learn about their current services. It was an information-packed day for sure, as well as a lot of fun. The people in the store were friendly and knowledgeable and they endlessly answered our questions regarding upgrading our current systems, how their services works, and how we can manage media for our kids.

What I learned while I was there, is that there are 4 big ways that I can use Xfinity to help streamline and organize my life. We all want to make things easier, right, so let's start here with our homes and family entertainment.

Meal Planning - 2016 Week 12

Welcome to my weekly meal planning post. Each week I share my intentions for feeding my family for the upcoming week. I take time each Sunday night to get organized and plan out a menu of mostly "real food" items, in an attempt for all of us to eat healthier. In the end, when we follow the plan, we do eat healthier and we save money too. I hope you take away some ideas and inspiration for your own weekly meal plan.

Despite a cruel attempt by Mother Nature to give winter one more hurrah, Spring is here and with it a crazy, busy schedule. We don't encourage our kids to over-schedule themselves, they each play one sport in any given season. They don't take lessons or belong to groups or clubs (my high school freshman is in Youth and Government). But somehow, it still seems an incredible feat of logistical manipulation to fit in practices, games, homework, dinners and downtime for two boys.

Joy - The Movie, The Company, The Woman

Joy. I had a total love affair with this simple word last year. In fact, it was my One Little Word for 2015, and I found inspiration everywhere I looked. I found a fabulous Essential Oil Blend named Joy, I discovered Joy marquee lights at Target . . .everywhere I looked, there was Joy.

Before 2015 ended, I discovered a different kind of Joy. It was a movie. After a bit, I learned that not only was it a movie, but it was a real-live person. After more time (I'm a slow learner), I discovered that Joy the Movie, was a real person that developed the Miracle Mop. Well hello there small world.

Simplify Your Life - How To Audit Your Closet

If you're on Instagram or Pinterest, you've probably seen a lot of information about Capsule Wardrobes. In a nutshell, a capsule wardrobe is a minimalist wardrobe approach to a season. The typical capsule consists of about 30-40 pieces that you mix and match throughout the season. While that is very appealing to me, I am all about the options and I purposely buy pieces that are season-spanning to get the most wear and options out of them.

A great alternative to the capsule, is simply auditing your wardrobe. Don't let the word "audit" scare you. All we're going to do is sort through every single piece you own and make some decisions. It's a big job, but the end results are worth it. I audit my own wardrobe each season and the more often you do it, the easier it gets. Whenever we cut unnecessary things from our life, we free up space. Space to breathe, space to move, space to be. The same thing happens with your wardrobe. Getting rid of the things that make you feel bad, will help you to feel good - and that's a very good thing.

Drink Up - Getting Enough Water is Good For You

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It's that time of the year when we all start to think about ways we can improve ourselves and our lives. Some of us choose One Little Word to guide us, some of us make resolutions and some of us fight the trend and maintain our own status quo. Regardless of your personal choice, there's no doubt that beginning in January, many people start trying to be healthier. One of the ways we can be healthier, is to increase our water intake.

There are a lot of health benefits to drinking water. Water makes up about 60% of your body weight, and is an important factor to your body's health. According to the Mayo Clinic, men should consume about 13 cups of water per day, and women should aim for 9 cups of water a day. You're safe with following the popular 8 8-ounce glasses of water a day "rule".

3 Ways to Save Money This Holiday Season

I don't know about you, but I feel like my wallet opens the day after Thanksgiving and doesn't close until after New Year's. There's no doubt about it, this can be a very expensive time of the year.Besides the gifts, I find myself spending money on things like decorations, party food and clothes. It all adds up for sure.

My philosophy is to save where I can and spend when I have to. But with a little creativity, it's easier to save  on the "extras" of the season. Here are a few of my favorite ideas for saving money this holiday season:

Get Outside and Play - Our Thoughts on Wubble X and Glo Wubble

I'm sure you've heard how good it is for our kids' mental and physical health to get some physical activity every day. In our increasingly tech-based world, it seems that simple outdoor play is going by the wayside, in favor of building forts and waging battles on a small (or large) screens instead of at the local park.

While my kids are both very tech-savvy, they also enjoy being outside. Until it starts getting dark earlier, I have to drag them in at night to take showers and get ready for bed and school the next day. They shoot hoops, play catch together, hold soccer matches or mini football skirmishes in our backyard. Not to mention countless bike and scooter rides.

5 Ways to Get Organized for the Holidays Right Now

I like to take each holiday as it comes. What that means for me is that there isn't any Christmas, until Thanksgiving is over. Now, if I happen to see the perfect gift form someone in August, I buy it. But our Christmas tree and lights don't go up until the turkey is put away.

With that said, today kicked-off the beginning of the holiday season for me. That means I need to get myself organized so that everything that needs to happen before December 25th, happens. If Christmas isn't your holiday, these tips work for Hanukkah, Kwanzaa and the Winter Solstice too.

Holiday Season Travel Tips

The holiday season - no matter what particular holidays you celebrate - is all about friends and family. We are fortunate to have so many of our friends and family close by, but many people spend a good deal of time traveling to see those they love.

Whether you travel the open road, take to the skies or ride the rails, to make your travel as enjoyable as possible, it's important to keep a few key tips in mind:

Thanksgiving Craft Ideas and Inspiration

Thanksgiving is less than two weeks away. I must confess, it's my favorite holiday. There is just something about this time between the hustle of back-to-school and Halloween and the bustle of Christmas, that I love. I keep all my favorite Fall decorations up through the month of November, with pumpkins and gourds on my front porch. I don't decorate for Christmas until after Thanksgiving.

Using Essential Oils Aromatically

By now, you've probably realized how devoted I am to my essential oils for supporting my family's health and wellness. Essential oils contain vital plant compounds. Many of these compounds have been studied for their positive effects.

Milk Jug Monsters

I admit that I have a love affair with crafting supplies. I find it hard to resist a new roll of washi tape, a cute ink stamp or pages of beautiful paper.  But it is also very satisfying to be able to craft something from my stash.

I was recently challenged to come up with some fun (and inexpensive) decor for our school book fair. The theme is monsters, and one of the ideas from Scholastic was for Milk Jug Monsters. With two growing boys in the house, we are never short of empty milk jugs, so I set a couple aside.

Make Fun Halloween Treats with Healthier Kids' Snacks

 
It's that time of year again. Time to start thinking about kids' snacks for upcoming Halloween parties. Halloween and candy seem to go hand-in-hand, and I admit to fishing out all my kids' Reese's Peanut Butter Cups. But these days, schools and organizations are looking for healthier and allergy-friendly alternatives to traditional Halloween candy, and truth be told I am too.

5 Trader Joe's Pumpkin Products to Put in Your Cart Right Now

Are you a Trader Joe's Shopper? I am spoiled and have not one, but two Trader Joe's close-by my home, and it's where I do a good bit of my shopping for my weekly meal plans. I can always count on them for innovative, hard-to-find, great-tasting food. You still have to read labels, but I love the variety of foods with no added sugar or preservatives. It really helps with my goals to eat healthier.

Because they keep a lower inventory to help keep prices lower, Trader Joe's stocks Seasonal Items, and right now it's all about that Pumpkin. Every aisle has pumpkin on it in some form.

5 Ways To Make Life Easier Every Day

Life is hard. I am a firm believer that there is absolutely no reason to make it any more difficult than it needs to be. In this post for the Working Mom Hustle series, I'm going to share my top 5 strategies for making my own life easier. All the plans and processes and strategies in the world won't help you, if you aren't using them. The true key to efficiency is finding what works for YOU.

Wrapping Up Summer - Favorite End of Summer Style

Welcome back to another weekly fashion post. In this post, I share what I'm wearing right now along with some helpful ideas and inspiration for shopping your own closet and looking at your clothing in a new and stylish light. This week, I'm sharing a little end of summer style post. Even though there are probably about 8 more weeks of warm weather, in my mind we are wrapping up summer.

Summer vacation is ending, school is starting, and that means an onslaught of fall clothes in the stores an in your mailbox. A cool crisp morning has me wanting to reach for boots, even though it will be 85 degrees by noon. I find this season tough to deal with. White jeans? How much longer? Flip flops into October?

On a recent family trip to Adventure Aquarium in Camden, NJ, I wore a simple eyelet t-shirt, over a basic tank with my favorite Ann Taylor Skinny Jeans. A pair of comfortable walking shoes finished my outfit.

Shirt - Ann Taylor (this season)

Tank - Chico's - a staple in their line

Jeans - Ann Taylor Modern Skinny Ankle Jeans

Shoes - Vionic

Bracelets - Alex and Ani and Tiffany

Necklace - Tiffany

5 Reasons I'm Keeping My Blog on Blogger

I have been toying with moving this blog to WordPress for years. Each year, I think about it. I tell myself, everyone is doing it, I probably should too.

Wait a minute . . .if my most compelling reason to move is because everyone else is - that's no reason at all. I have never been a crowd follower, and don't plan to start now.  So after thinking long and hard, I've decided to satay right where I am, with a pretty new look (you may have noticed) all thanks to the hugely talented, smart and funny Elle at Pink Flame Designs.