Another chance to send a smile...

View my previous post on how to send a smile by clicking here.  Cardstore.com is at it again by offering a free card plus free shipping to the first 29,000 people.  I've already got mine :), so get yours by using the coupon code: CCC2029.

What is Flyware?

My first customer this morning asked, "My daughter is in a boarding school and she has been getting into trouble. How can your product help?" My job is a surprise to many, so I thought I would share with you.  I get to provide parents, mostly of teenagers, with a way to protect their children that is sort of "outside the box." I sell a product called Flyware. Flyware is a smart phone monitoring system which allows parents to monitor their children's texts, call logs, emails and more. As a parent to young children, I do not have a need for this product at this time; however, as a sister to a brother that chose the wrong path, this product would have definitely been welcomed in my home growing up.  Although controversial to some, there is a definite need for the product by many.  Although Flyware comes with many different opinions,  I feel that it is a wonderful option for parents to have on hand.  As I look at my small children, I know that as a parent my job is to protect them. Our goal with Flyware is to assist the parents in protecting their children. I know when I was younger, my parents did this very same thing by picking up the land line to see who I was talking to or at least picking up to let me know it was time to get off the phone.  If you have experienced this or have actually done this, then you will understand this product and see it is no different than that.  Since technology has become so advanced so has the need for more advanced "spying." Washington Post columnist Tracey Grant stated,  "Why is spying on your kids a bad thing?... In the words of onetime liberal Ronald Reagan: Trust but verify." And, this is what we feel Flyware allows you to do. You can protect your children while monitoring their activities. One Flyware mom said, "In response to my teens always saying that I don't trust them, I let them know that it wasn't that I don't  trust them but I don't trust the world in which we live in."

Please share your thoughts and discussions with me...I would love to hear

Now that you're 3...

Since I did not want to leave anyone out of my "Making it Happen" events, I decided that Davis needed to participate.  And since he's now 3 years old, I have started to make him responsible for a few things.  I first bought a sticker chart at the Dollar Tree and for each day he does what is asked of him, he gets a sticker.  10 stickers = a movie rental (currently his favorite thing).  Davis gets stickers for taking naps and for doing his chore.  His chore is currently putting his dirty laundry into his laundry basket and taking it to the laundry room.  When I first explained this to him, he went missing for 5 minutes. After 5 minutes, he came out of his room and was heading straight for the laundry room with his laundry basket full of clothes.  The only problem, all of the clothes were clean!!!  He still got a sticker for the effort though :)  He is so proud of himself each time he gets to put stickers on his chart,  and he is helping me out in the process. Davis is helping me Make it Happen :)

Make it happen...

As you read in my previous post, I was going to try and get a handle on things and Make it Happen! You may ask, Make What Happen? I'm wanting to get a more organized handle on the house, kids, and husband, so that I make it easier for myself to try and do it all- as so many of us do!  My first objective was to organize and clean my kid's playroom.  Per the advice of my mom, Valerie, I went to Flylady.net.  Flylady's baby steps will give you step by step tips to start you on a cleaning schedule.  I plan to follow some of these tips (shoes, hair, and make-up I just can't/want to always do!) But I wanted to tackle something a bit larger to make a big impact for myself, so I skipped ahead (she does not advise this) to the decluttering section of her website.  I did what she stated and brought a box, a trash bag, and a dusting cloth to the playroom.  I left with a full box to give away, a very full trash bag to throw away, and a large pile to recycle.  Flylady says not to burn out and do all in one day what takes days, weeks, or months to accumulate; however, my personality likes to finish what I start.  Here are the before and after pictures- I'm excited about my progress.  Although Flylady.net may not meet your exact needs or desires, I do feel that it will inspire you to create your own baby steps to follow and definitely has some great advice that we can take away and apply to our own lives. So, if you have something that you have been wanting to do whether it's paying bills, making a call to someone special, or cleaning your messy playroom, dive in and Make it Happen!!!  

The Before

This was all stuff to go through

The same corner after I went through and organized

The after :)

Send a smile...

Update:  There is a new coupon code available  CCC2020.  This can be used for a free greeting card plus free shipping.  This is available for the first 10,000 customers only so hurry :) ! 

To me, there is almost nothing better than receiving a card in the mail.  It ALWAYS brightens my day!!!  I used to be very good at sending cards out to my friends and family for their birthdays, anniversaries, or just for absolutely nothing at all.  Since having kids I have kinda slacked on this quite a bit; however, sending cards out was on my goal list for the year.  Since January, I have created 6 cards online from different sites and the best thing is they were all FREE!  When I receive a free card code, I simply check my calendar to see whose special day is next in line.  From there, I make the original picture card and once I receive the card, I put it in my calendar as a reminder to send out. 

Today at Cardstore.com, you can receive two free greeting cards plus free shipping by entering the code MCSFC0212. 

Please know this code is for a limited time only!

This is a great way to start your card collection and send a smile to someone you love :)

My Valentine's Date!!!

Before kids...just the two of us

I spent the early evening into the early morning of Valentine's night cuddling with a sweet guy who has my heart!  This little guy is NOT my husband.  He is just a bit over 2 feet tall, with just enough hair to cover his sweet head, with beautiful big brown eyes and a cry that melts my heart.  This little guy is my 4 1/2 month old son, Asher. I have said and continue to say: what a blessing it is to have a little boy love his momma so much that he can only sleep if I'm right beside him with my arms wrapped around him and his hand clenched to my shirt so tight as if he's telling me that I'm the most important person in his world :) Asher is a mommy's boy!  At night he will not sleep unless I'm right beside him.  And although I view this as a blessing, I've had almost 5 months of not "real sleep", absolutely no "me" time, and definitely no time for my hubby (keep in mind, this is HIS baby as well!) Being a mommy is a sacrifice. A sacrifice that I would not trade for the world. However, other things on my priority list are tending not to happen.   I repeat, I spent Valentine's night cuddling with Asher and not my husband lol!  So, as I woke up this morning from cuddling with Asher, I woke up feeling like I was a good mother but at the same time,  I also woke up feeling like I may not have been being a good wife.  Where is the balance in all of this?  My next few posts will feature how I am going to attempt to make some changes so that I can be a GREAT wife, Great mother, and everything else in between :)  I'm going to MAKE IT HAPPEN!

After Kids...definitely more blessed, but the bed is definitely more full :)

Will you o'fish'ally be my Valentine?

Click here to view the Pinterest version

Well, I just LOVE Pinterest and so many things on it. However, I do not always have the time and money to do some of the projects, so I like to find a Happy Compromise. While Browsing Pinterest one day, I saw these adorable homemade Valentine's day cards and thought there has to be a cheaper and easier way to achieve the same cuteness. I noticed the same day that  SeeHere was offering 25 free 4X8 cards. So, I combined the two ideas and created my own version of this card. It only took a Pinterest idea, less than $5, and less than 5 minutes... Happy Valentine's Day!!! 

My Version

Here are also a few more of my favorite Pinterest Valentine's Day ideas:

Source: tipjunkie.com via Mandy on Pinterest

Source: skiptomylou.org via Mandy on Pinterest

*For a Valentine's day freebie also visit Redbox facebook page and click on the "Valentine's day" tab to score a free rental :)