I am looking for four new contributors to add to our team in anticipation of the relaunch of our site next month. I am interested in expanding our audience and would love to add some fresh voices to our site. Some of the topics that we are interested in covering are Food, DIY/Home Decor, Fashion/Lifestyle, Craft/Sewing, & Parenting.
I will pay $50 per post and am looking for an individual who could contribute once monthly a unique post for our site. Upon publishing your post on our site, you could publish the content on your own site, we just ask that you wait three months to republish it!
If you are interested in writing for my new team, please fill out this survey and I will be in touch with you. Please note, the application will be closed on Friday! Thank you so much for considering this!
I hope you enjoyed this special after-Christmas edition of the Notebook! A collection of gathered links to DIY crafts, food projects, and a few ideas to help you ring in the new year. Nothing brings me more joy then to highlight other fabulous bloggers. Follow me on Pinterest for daily inspiration!
Welcome to our Apron Full of Giveaways! I hope everyone is having a great week this week! As we do each week, here is our round-up of giveaways for our readers. We hope that this is beneficial to you and your family! Please let us know if you guys win anything- I love to hear the success stories!
Below are the contest links-if you are hosting a contest please link it up below. Sorry, we are not giving away the aprons just showcasing them! Please put your site name and then what type of contest you are hosting. For example, “MomAdvice (Kid’s Movies).”
I can’t believe that December is already here and we are dreaming up great New Year’s projects for you!
Of course, I am featuring glittered projects and upcycle projects that could be enjoyed any time of the year.
The best part is that you can find many of the materials for these projects at your local thrift store for a fraction of the price compared to other retail stores.
Let’s find some thrifty ways to ring in the New Year!
I am always looking for festive additions to add to my wardrobe and these glittered flats couldn’t be easier to create and, according to We Are Not Martha, making these is less messy than you think.
For this craft, head to Goodwill to pick up a basic flat and then create a glittered layer with a little Modge Podge and glitter.
Sometimes the simplest of things bring us the most joy and this craft from diy studio is a joyful & frugal one.
My children would adore these Confetti Surprise Jars for a fun family NYE tradition.
Pick up a jar at Goodwill and spray paint the lid a dazzling shade of gold or silver, fill it with confetti, and add a special surprise inside for the recipient.
For your surprise choices, check out the jewelry section or locate small toys or game pieces that you can add as their surprise.
Don’t be afraid to spray paint those treasures in the same shade of gold or silver for the holiday.
Each year, I find myself coming to the topic of simplifying the holidays. Don’t we just all wish this time of year was a little easier? Despite my best efforts to simplify, it can feel impossible in the midst of the kid’s holiday programs, get togethers, shopping, wrapping, sending of cards, gift-giving, & holiday baking.
I don’t want to brag, but this year we really did achieve that simple holiday we have been longing for and I am partnering with Ritz to share how you can avoid the parade of endless holiday to-do’s and instead embrace a simpler holiday.
Simplify the Giving of Holiday Cards
I love, love, love having pictures that I am in and having someone else take them for me, but we lost track of time and weren’t able to book our usual family session. Instead of not sending cards, I set my camera up on a tripod and we took our family shot by setting the timer on our camera and having me jump into the family picture. By getting everything set up in advance before my family came outside, we were able to get our picture in a mere five minutes. Before everyone had their coats off, I had our photos edited and cards in the mail. The best part is that we have moved our family session to the Spring, a time of year we decided was much less chaotic, and will really enjoy it all a little bit more.
I will admit that I was also was more laid back about how we did our cards this year and enlisted one of my favorite helpers to assist me in this year’s mailing. Not only was she excellent at adding our stamps and sealing the envelopes, but she also kept me on track because she was waiting for me to get those addresses on so she could do her part with them. It gave us time to chat while we were doing them and ended up being fun instead of a holiday chore this year.
Simplify the Holiday Baking
This year we decided to skip the big baking day and make easy treats instead. Although I usually love holiday baking, this year I focused more on creating knitted gifts than my typical holiday treat box. Fortunately, we found a fun holiday treat that we could make that didn’t require a bit of baking, but was just as delicious. On the Ritz Holiday Parade site, we found an easy recipe for Mint Thins to create together that tasted just like one of our favorite cookie treats, but were made with Ritz Crackers, chocolate, and crushed candy canes.
It just goes to show that making holiday treats doesn’t have to be an elaborate baking day. My kids loved helping to crush (and eat!) the candy canes for our cookies and we enjoyed eating these while watching, “A Christmas Story,” this year. Yet another simple and easy tradition is born!
Simplify the Gift Giving
I often talk about our commitment to do the Four Gift Rule, but this year we took it a step further and asked the kids if they would like to skip the presents and just take a family adventure together. We gave them lots of options for places we could take a mini-vacation to and they chose a trip to Grand Rapids, Michigan for our holiday getaway. We are so excited to take in all of the museums, holiday lights, ice skating, and see the sites of the city.
If your kids are struggling to come up with gifts this year or your home is overrun with just too much stuff, consider creating your very own, “Choose Your Own Adventure,” vacation in lieu of gifts. Not only did I have a lot less to buy this year, but I also get to spend four days with my family making incredible memories that I hope they will remember forever.
Start planning and dreaming ahead for next year though because those vacation rentals do go quickly!
Focus On the Fun
Ritz wants to bring back the fun for the holidays and this year they have created a fun interactive Ritz Parade where you can visit the site and build your very own float. You can add up to twelve items on your float from toys, characters, celebrations, and banners. The pieces can be scaled to your desired size and placed anywhere on your float. Once it is complete, you can share your holiday float with others. It’s a fun little interactive tool that you can use to keep the kids busy while you are putting those last minute touches on those holiday festivities. Since we adopted a cat this year, we loved making a float of her for our holiday parade. I am sure this illustrates just how special she has become to all of us!
In addition, the Ritz parade allows consumers to unlock deals to help decrease the stress of gift buying! You can check out all the deals here!
Looking for a quick holiday treat to share that doesn’t require any baking? You must try these delicious Mint Thin “Cookies.” You won’t believe how good or easy these are to make (and eat!)
Dip crackers in chocolate mixture, turning to completely coat each cracker. Carefully scrape off excess chocolate.
Place crackers in single layer on waxed paper-covered baking sheets; sprinkle with crushed candy.
Refrigerate thirty minutes or until chocolate is firm.
3.2.2158
This post is sponsored by Ritz Crackers. I’ve received compensation for my time and effort in creating this post. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
Aren’t these snowman-in-a-jar playdough kits absolutely adorable? So easy to make and put together, they’d make a great stocking stuffer to be played with all winter long.
I’m in love with these awesome diy star wire ornaments that look way more complicated than they really are. I can see these used so many ways: as ornaments, hanging from a chandelier, as gift toppers…the list goes on!
If you’re looking for a special, heirloom-worthy gift for a little girl check out this sweet diy dollhouse tutorial. This is the type of gift that will be passed down through the generations.
I hope you enjoyed this collection of gathered links to DIY crafts, food projects, and thrifty ways to spruce up your home. Nothing brings me more joy then to highlight other fabulous bloggers. Follow me on Pinterest for daily inspiration!
Just in case you may have gotten the idea that handmade gifts were only possible for the “big” gifts on our list, I wanted to share with you that it’s possible to make some fun, easy, and even last-minute diy stocking stuffers. You know, to go along with all those gold coins and such. So I’ve gathered some stocking-sized Mom Advice projects that have garnered lots of smiles over the years as well as some projects from other lovely blogs and websites to give you diy stocking ideas in four categories to cover all your age group needs:
Stocking stuffers for girls
Stocking stuffers for guys
Stocking stuffers for kids
Stocking stuffers for everyone
Some can be completed in minutes (literally), some need a bit more planning (but just a bit), and all really are easy and can save you money, always a plus during the holidays, right?
Welcome to our Apron Full of Giveaways! I hope everyone is having a great week this week! As we do each week, here is our round-up of giveaways for our readers. We hope that this is beneficial to you and your family! Please let us know if you guys win anything- I love to hear the success stories!
Below are the contest links-if you are hosting a contest please link it up below. Sorry, we are not giving away the aprons just showcasing them! Please put your site name and then what type of contest you are hosting. For example, “MomAdvice (Kid’s Movies).”
I love sharing ideas for cute hostess gifts and today’s gift idea is a free pattern for a wine hat and scarf that you can use to adorn bottles of wine or champagne for your favorite hostess over the holiday season.
Walmart challenged me to create a New Year’s Eve craft and I immediately thought of a fun way to decorate a bottle of bubbly or wine for the holidays. I love this project so much because these are so fun to create and can be decorated in any combination of yarn colors and you can even experiment with stitches and hat toppers.
You may recall that I made knitted sweater coffee cozies for our teacher & bus driver gifts this year? I used the Red Heart Super Savers yarn and I still had some left despite wrapping all my holiday gifts in the yarn, knitting hair bows for gifts (coming soon!) and even making my yarn ball ornaments. I can’t believe how many projects you can create with just $2.47 of yarn!
I wanted to create a festive gift I could share with others when I attend our holiday gatherings this year. What is more festive than tiny hats and scarves for your wine bottles?
Modifications Were Made to The Featured Pattern. Please Read Carefully!
I tried a few different needle sizes since the pattern said you could use a few different sizes, I recommend going with the largest size (US 8) recommended because it created the fullest scarf (the red one in the back was done on US 8 needles). There were also some interesting stitches in the pattern for the scarf and I tried it three different ways (recommended, my own way, and then a simple stockinette). I loved just simply doing a simple stockinette (knit one row, purl one row- repeating) with the US 8 needles. The scarf will curl in a bit, but I think it added more texture to the top of the bottle. You can, of course, experiment with what you think looks best though.
These tiny hats are knitted on double-pointed needles. If you haven’t tried using double-pointed needles before, this is a perfect project to try them on. You can find a few tips from me over here on needle recommendations and getting started! Don’t be scared, it is easier than you think!
I know I keep talking about my pom-pom makers, but they seriously have made me so happy this year. I bought them when we made pom-pom bouquets for our grandma (you can read my tutorial on how to use them there) and then I completed a pom-pom marathon when I made my DIY Pom Pom Trees. I used the smallest Clover Pom-Pom maker for these tiny hats.
While you are buying it, you might as well as buy the larger size because you will be just as addicted to me as pom-pom making!
I hope you all have the best holiday season and that a few of the projects I have shared on MomAdvice have helped with your gift-giving this year! Cheers to you, friends!
Grab the Pattern HERE on Ravelry (FREE!). Don’t forget to friend me while you are there! I love new knitting buddies! Oh, and here are 54 MORE Handmade Gift Ideas to get you thinking about crafting this holiday season!
I am so excited to be getting our first book club selection off the ground and have chosen, “The Paris Architect,” by Charles Belfoure as this month’s selection.
You know when you read a book and you can’t stop talking about it? That book was this book for me this month. The story is set in 1942 in Paris and tells the story of a gifted architect named Lucien Bernard. In a time of true economic strife and rations in the city, Lucien is commissioned to design secret hiding places in homes to hide wealthy Jews to prevent them from being taken by the Nazis. Although, Lucien is no way supportive of assisting the Jews, he is very hungry for money and if he can design these spaces, he is also given other jobs that can help him continue leading a rather comfortable life.
The problem is… by assisting the Jewish people he is risking his own life. The other problem is… what if he actually starts to care?
This book will be graphic in nature. There is violence, language, and sexuality. This will not be an easy topic. This is a book you will want to talk about. This will be a book you will remember.
Charles Belfoure is a debut novelist and is an architect by profession, which is why this book is so beautiful in detail and thought. He runs his own blog called The Wicked Architect. I know you will want to become a fan after you read this one!
Charles has graciously offered two of our readers the chance to win his book. He has also offered to answer your questions, which I could not be more excited about!
To enter to win a copy of, “The Paris Architect,” please enter via the Rafflecopter widget below!
Our book club discussion for this novel will take place on January 28th. I will try to collect your questions for the author before that though via our Facebook group! Sign up for our newsletter to stay informed and connect with me on GoodReads too!
