6.30.2013

Flower Girl Recap

We have had so much going on this summer- at this point I don't put the suitcases away, I just unpack, wash, and repack for the next adventure! We just returned from my hometown where the girls were flower girls in the wedding of two AMAZING people who are lifelong family friends. It is a rare occasion where you see such a pure relationship where you are completely confident that the two people getting married are completely made for each other! I am so blessed that my girls were able to witness a wedding that was so much fun and at the same time so honoring to The Lord. There was no inappropriate raunchy "wedding talk", no inappropriate dancing or drinking- it was just a really fun wedding celebrating two darling people! Ellie has been in 2 weddings and we are so blessed that both of them have been such awesome examples of pure celebration! I truly believe that one of the greatest honors is being asked to be involved in someone's wedding- my girls will forever remember this weekend and I am so blessed that they got to be The Flower Girls! Here are some pics- please forgive the photography- the iPhone stinks in dark places!

{This is Kelsey- the Bride- when she was a junior bridesmaid in my wedding 9 years ago- this makes me feel OLD! She was so darling and now she is such a lovely woman!}

{I mean, seriously...next stop Toddlers and Tiaras- I cannot believe we need this much gear for 3 days! This is the life of 4 high maintenance girls in our family!}

{The Girls with Kelsey at the Bridesmaid Brunch}

{Me and the Flower Girls at the Bridesmaid Brunch}

{Nails with the big girls!}



{This is Grace- I was her first babysitter when she was an infant- again, feeling old :) however, my girls are in love with her and she is the most darling girl on the outside and inside! I would love her to spend as much time with my girls as possible!}

{L.O.V.E}

{This is our only family pic we took- before the rehearsal/dinner the girls were so pumped about their pink cowgirl boots!}

{Wedding Day Hair}

{This is the first time Izzy has ever had a "hair tool" used on her hair!}

{Ready to Roll! Izzy saw this picture and said "ooh, my lipgloss looks fabulous" Oh SHEESH! This is her "flower girl face" she kept making this face!}

{Love this- bridal party praying over Kelsey- and my girls in the mix!}


{M.O.F.G. (mom of the flower girls!) They did a great job- I don't have any ceremony pics yet- I will let the bride/groom/family reveal those first- but they did great! }

{The reception was so much fun- Ellie's godparents were in town- love them!}

{Two of our favs!}

{Ellie with pops- aka my dad!}

{This girl made it to the very end!}

{Silly!}


There you go! Let's just say all three girls were in bed by 7pm tonight- so is their mama! We are whipped but blessed! 


6.17.2013

GIVEAWAY: PLAY AND LEARN WITH WALLACE (Priddy Books)

Some of my favorite books are Priddy Books- they are educational, fun and "priddy"! I am sure you have all seen them (their logo is so familiar!)



Priddy Books reached out to me and asked if I would check out their new App for iPad (available as of TODAY for iPhone)- I was so excited because I love their products. I downloaded the App and the girls LOVED it- it is just like them: fun, educational and "priddy" :) I, of course, thought it would be so much fun to do a giveaway so you all could have it too!  You can download it HERE now!!!  
They have generously offered:
Introduce your children to the wonderful world of Wallace!
Two (2) winners receive:
·         $10 iTunes gift card to upgrade the app
·         3 Wallace storybooks for your bookshelf


Here is some more info on the App:

Play and Learn with Wallace is an exciting new series of preschool apps guided by the best practices of early learning experts and teachers. It combines educational games and stimulating interactive play in one dynamic environment to engage preschoolers through first graders in a multitude of ways.

They will learn reading skills, counting skills, problem solving, fine motor skills, hand-eye coordination, and earn rewards that they can feel great about. The apps can be played by subject, or ‘super shuffled’ to create endless combinations. New games are regularly added within the app to further expand your child’s early learning experience (additional purchase required).

Introduce your children to the wonderful world of Wallace, and help them take their first steps up the early learning ladder.

Play and Learn with Wallace comes from Priddy Books, the best-selling publisher of over 100 million children’s books worldwide.

{Here are screenshots of the App}






{I love that they have a "How is my child doing? page!}

Make sure to enter to win! Even if you don't win- you need to get the App, you can download it for free and demo all of the games! Then if you win, you can upgrade with the gift card! It really is an awesome educational App for all ages!

THIS GIVEAWAY HAS ENDED!!!

6.14.2013

Babysitting Guidelines

With summertime here, we have a new batch of babysitters available- during the school year it is tough to get sitters during the day with school and activities in the evenings. However, summertime is great because they want to earn money and we need some breaks! I jotted this list down because it seems like I am always running out the door when the babysitters arrive, so I can just have this in the kitchen and I won't forget anything. I also think I might email it to them before hand- just to make sure we are on the same page! Thought it might come in handy for you as well. Obviously every family is different and this is what is important to us! 

Babysitting Guidelines for Our Family:

Expectations:
We are so blessed to have you here with our children. It is a really big deal for us to entrust you with our greatest blessings and our home. Thank you for being trustworthy. Honesty and Integrity (doing the right thing even when no one is looking) are extremely important to us, please feel free to let us know if you have any concerns with the girls or the house. Because this is a “job”- we do have a few expectations and in an effort to set you up for success, here are a few guidelines. 

Guidelines for our children and you:
this is what we expect from our children, if they choose to act differently, they receive a consequence. (Please check with me on the consequence.) 
  • They must be respectful and obedient to you 
  • They must be respectful to each other
  • They are not to use “potty talk” or foul language at any time (I ask the same of you)
  • They need to have A BLAST!!! play, sing, dance, giggle- this is a fun evening for them as well- they love having you here!
  • TV and electronics should be kept to a minimum (no matter how much they beg!)
  • In this home, we are Christians and serve Jesus Christ- if you have opinions that contradict what we believe in this home- please keep them to yourself. 
  • We would appreciate the house to be in the same or better condition than when we leave 
  • Please do not answer the door unless otherwise instructed by us. 
  • Please do not let the girls go outside of the house unless previously discussed 
  • Please do not drive with the children in a car
  • Please do not invite anyone else in our home while we are away (including neighborhood children)
  • Keep your cell phone near you so that I can get in touch with you- but other than me or your mother, please stay off of the phone while the children are awake. 
  • Please call me if you need anything at all or if you feel uncomfortable about anything at all
  • The girls do give me a FULL report of every detail that happens :) so if there is something I should know- I would appreciate knowing from you- that way I will get the whole story! 

Again, thank you for blessing our family. 
Contact: XXX-XXXX



6.09.2013

PARTY!!!!!!!

This is going to be a delightful week- this is the first week where "summer" kicks in! We start the fun camps, the weather is warming up to be "swimmable" AND...I am having a Girls Night Out Party tomorrow evening! My cousin Amy just moved to KC and I want her to meet all of these fun girls and I am excited to bring a little home shopping to the party. I recently went to a "Norwex" party- honestly, I am not a huge fan of the in home product selling products- I feel like there is a weird pressure to buy as opposed to going to a store and walking out if I feel like it. HOWEVER, I do love it when my friends have fun parties and I always try to go to support them and have a good excuse for a night away (I guess if I think about it- it is cheaper than a babysitter and dinner- and you get something fun in the end!) SO, I was so pumped on these Norwex products (after my friend Maggie had a party) that I decided to have the Rep come to my "welcome party" for Amy. I am a sucker for products (as you know) and I love anything that makes cleaning easy AND gets chemicals out of my house (chemicals in a lot of cleaners are linked to cancer, many health problems for kids, etc..). I also love that these products are re-usable- so I am not having to get online every month or whatever and "reorder". Some of the products do require that (laundry detergent), but overall most of their products work with WATER!!! Perfect and so great to kick the chemicals! 
SO...I thought we could have a little "virtual" party here- I will give you links to my favorite products and the sign in- and if you want any products you can join our party! I will also do a little recap this week because I am all excited about my cheese/chocolate/wine spread! (who doesn't love those things?)

Here you go:
WEBSITE: www.kerrilindsay.norwex.biz

*Go to Products
*Shop now...make your selections
*Don't forget to choose the name of your hostess (Jenica McMaster) towards the end of check out.

My 10 Favorites...So Far:
1. Enviro Cloth: this is awesome wet or dry- I use it for my computer screen, sunglasses, iPhone, iPad, etc.. when I use it wet it is amazing- my high chair has never looked better..after all 3 kids used it! It traps bacteria in the cloth so it doesn't spread it around the house- I have been really amazed by this cloth (apparently you can even take carpet stains out with just the cloth and water!)
2. Enviro Cloth Travel Pack: this is so great for kids- just a smaller "wash cloth size" of the Enviro Cloth- great for kids, traveling, etc..
3. Window Cloth- this is my next purchase, the enviro cloth is awesome on glass tables, windows, etc.. this cloth just makes it shine up really easily, and it is great on jewelry also! (I am wondering about it on my silver stuff too, cant wait to try that)
4. Dusting Mitt: I HATE, HATE, HATE dusting- this makes it a cinch- I just throw the mitt on and walk around wiping the dust, it doesn't spread at all!
5. Kids Mop: I like this idea- the girls can help clean with only water- they are always asking to mop...there you go! 
6. Makeup Removal Package: I am dying to try this- it says it takes off mascara with only water! I will let you know, it is on my short list!
7. Laundry Detergent: I love this! 1tsp per load- this should last forever! It is all natural so it doesn't leave any film or fragrance on your clothing- which is so much better! 
8. Bathroom Scrub Mitt: this is also on my short list- apparently it cleans shower doors in a swipe- and the "orange stuff" really easily, with just water.
9. Cleaning Paste: this is also on my short list- all of the ladies at the party I went to were raving about it!
10. Dish Cloth: according to my friend Maggie, this is amazing- gets anything hard to scrub off in a swipe- I totally trust Maggie, so this is on my list too! 

OK- there you go! I am so excited for the party and cant wait to give you a little recap..if I remember to take pictures! Have a fabulous week! 





6.04.2013

Giveaway/"I am Truly Loved"

This is a fun week on DMS- we are doing a giveaway! One of my most popular posts is THIS ONE- a list of books that help young children focus on the Lord. As a result of that article, I met Cheryl! She has an awesome book called "I Am Truly Loved", my girls love the book and so do I! I am so excited for her, last month she won a  CIPA Evvy Award
Here is her story below and she has generously agreed to give away 2 copies of the book to YOU! So make sure and enter to win your signed copy! You can also order your copy HERE.




When my son was little, I read to him frequently. I loved to take time, sit with him, and share a book. Watching my son learn and enjoy the messages in these books became something that I thoroughly treasured. I think, then, my dream to write my own children's book was placed in my heart. My son is now a sophomore in high school and is an avid reader and talented writer.
In November 2011, my husband challenged me, " When are you going to write your book?" I then made up my mind up, I was going to go for it! If God wanted me to do this He would provide, as I knew absolutely nothing about how to accomplish this task set before me.
My story was there, I just had to put pen to paper and I Am Truly Loved began to come to life. The message I wanted to convey for children is to know that God loves them. We see this in all He has created, as He tenderly provides for all life! I prayed the story would plant a seed that young children could understand. I hope they will be reminded as they gaze at a flower, or listen to a bird singing, that God loves them and that this will continue as they grow into adulthood.
If you know that you are loved by The One who with a word brought everything into existence, you are blessed indeed. This message also is something you desire to share with others.
I Am Truly Loved became a reality in December of 2012 when it was published. My dream has come true and yes, I was completely equipped by God who put it in my heart! To Him be the Glory!
Cheryl Lashmit 





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