Dear Moms

Dear Moms,  OMIGERD!! I have been swamped! Let me fill ya in: I am STILL in school full time, for my Graphic Arts Associates Degree.  I am getting the kids ready for a brand spanking new school year in an entirely new city AND state. I am getting my company: Essential Bath Elements off of the ground. I am working with the susband (soon to be husband) on both the ministry AND the cleaning company.  Oh- and did I forget to mention that I am MOVING?? AGAIN?!? Yeah, moving- once again. We have been in this house for a little under six months...but, the landlord was doing fraudulent things by renting it out during a foreclosure. Long story short, Fannie Mae purchased our home and then asked if we would like to continue renting, OR they offered us, "relocation assistance" to move. $$$$$ Cha-CHING! I was ready to pack while we were still on the phone with the broker! 👀 Am I alone?! Hands? Needless to say, I am scouting places for boxes and taking art...

Dear Moms, Great morning to you all! Here's hoping that you all had a fabtabulous Mother's Day 2018- mine wasn't the best, but it certainly wasn't the worst. 🙈🙉🙊 My apologies for bot bringing you all a Mother's Day blog to get you ready for the celebration of your moms as well as yourselves; but I am in the midst of studying to get my Associate's Degree in Graphic Arts. My time is very limited as I study, work TWO jobs and get the family's home up to par. I'm working actively on some better tome management strategies to be able to better keep up with you all... No worries! I am so happy to be back with you and giving you the "Spring Download!" This post is going to be dedicated to Spring LOOKS! These looks are not fashion based, but how to bring a bit of spring into your home- with some really great affordable items, new looks at old food faves, and also some of the hottest colors of the season. It's so great how this season brings ...

Dear Moms, Beware the Ides of March! Lol did I just give you a creepy azz high school literature flashback? Yes? You. Are. Truly. MY people!! No? Well, you are a much better adjusted human being than I. Because, every time I hear that sentence I think (in rapid succession, almost while hyperventilating): Shakespeare, Sophomore World Lit, DID I DO MY HOMEWORK?! 😱👀😲 Then, I snap out of it. Realize I have loooong since graduated high school, and my undergrad years. #WHEW Now that I have exposed yet another layer of my mental instability, let's get down to business! This week ushers in St. Patrick's Day! This is the date celebrating one of the patron saints of Ireland who ministered Christianity to the Emerald Isle in the fifth century, St. Patrick. Here's the download on St. Patrick. First, he wasn't even Irish. It's believed he was Scottish.  Even though the actual birth date and locale aren't certain, he was born around 375AD by way of Roman parents (liv...

Dear Moms, Howdy! So much happened this past week! Lol wowzers! Let's see what you've missed... 1) I started school on Monday 3/5/18! Yup. I decided to go back to school by accident! It was in the midst of doing some research for my job. Let me tell ya, the sales reps are really, REALLY effective for some of these schools! 😂 Well, I ended up getting my FAFSA done only to discover I had a defaulted student loan. 😱 I then began the relatively easy, and surprisingly, actually painless consolidation process. #ShoutOut to Great Lakes ! (Only took about a month from start to finish) Regardless, I am now an actively enrolled Graphic Arts, "freshman" at Independence University . 🎓 As I was writing this post..  I got some grade updates too! I had been stalking my professor for grades all week! 2) I have been up to my eyeballs in packing materials! Okay...I'm going to come clean guys- I have been doing a whole lot of online shopping. Lol like, Wal-Mart and ...

Dear Moms,  Hey there! How have you been?! It's so good to see you! You're looking good! Have you lost weight? gotten a new 'do? Well, whatever you've been doing, it looks good on you! Keep it up, Honey! Anyway, I am doing the same old same old...hustling, working, looking to make a way in the world. Lol ALL while trying to not screw my kids up COMPLETELY! So- where do I begin? Let's dive right in with one of my fave things to address here with you guys/gals: (hell, however YOU mother- mother up!) COCKTAILS!! With Mother's Day fast approaching- cocktails for the season will soon be flowing, and hopefully- with reckless abandon! Yes, hunty- I know how very stressful this whole parenting gig can prove to be, so let's not beat around the bush- no, BAR and let's get to it! It is officially spring and we have just entered into my birth month- so the turn up is underway! I like to find cocktails that either embody the season. Be it, the holidays within...

OMG- We're EXPECTING!!   Dear Moms, I have recently been stricken with "BABY FEVER!" I have been inundated with all of these adorable little smooshy faces on my News Feed on Facebook, my twitter timeline, my Instagram feed, AND my Snapchat! Goodness gracious! So, I began to not only CRAVE another little ball of drool; but wonder HOW and WHEN you all knew that you were pregnant! I personally, experienced NOTHING in the way of symptoms of pregnancy. I just missed a menstrual cycle- took a test and BOOM! Well, with the first one. The second was much more interesting. I actually felt MOVEMENT before I realized I may have been expecting! I mean REALLY? Lol I was under the impression that you didn't ovulate while you are nursing...which by the way is a complete and total LIE! Anywhozit, I was nursing my first born and still actively having unprotected intercourse with my then SO. Well, one evening after a particularly amorous encounter I rolled over onto my stoma...

DE-Clutter for (and DURING) the Summer! Dear Moms,  So, I may or may not have already conveyed that I have developed OCD in the years I have been a mommy...lol but, it has turned out to be something that's been more favorable in my life than not. I say that to say this: when school lets out, I begin to get into Organization Mode. That means, I remove all the winter clothes and pack and label them to be put away, and I rotate out the summer clothes. I also start purchasing school uniforms, backpacks, etc in JULY- that way, by the time school gets started again, I have missed the rush, and I am already done. We buy the last minute items, and the things the kids WANT- versus what they NEED. In the same vein, I take the summer vacation to get the house, the activities, etc all organized as well. I have the types of children that if they are not given stimulation throughout the day, they will self destruct and go off the rails! I have a very stringent schedule for their down...

A-Ha! Bet You Thought I Forgot... Dear Moms,  A-ha! I bet you thought I had a crazy mom moment and forgot to include the cocktail recipes!! NOPE! I DID have a crazy mom moment, but then I just figured I would put this out there in a separate post... I mean, cocktails are easily worthy of having their very own post; they have kept my children alive for YEARS! I kid, I kid...or am I? lol  (I am, by the way- but there have been days that a good cocktail got me through to bedtime! We've all been there, right?!) Sooooo, with that being said, I have done extensive research online on summer cocktails (mainly because school is about to be out and well, YOU know... wink, wink, nudge nudge. I have scoured the web- left and right far and wide, I have found a few AWESOME sites that offer email newsletters, so that's a plus! Anyway, why needlessly blather on...let's get to those recipes! This one, I got from Food & Wine via Bobby Flay; is SUMMERTIME in A Glass! It's ...

MEMORIAL DAY!! Dear Moms,  So busy these days! I'm looking around for part time gig for the summer, gotta keep the kids in camp money- and ice cream truck stops! Lol anyway, I have been doing the interview shuffle this week and the application cha cha! This time of year makes me really glad I have my own business for the other 3/4 of the year; job hunting is a JOB in itself! I haven't had to spend so much time on Linkedin in a LOOONG time! Regardless, the Memorial Day holiday is this weekend- Woohoo! Some of us are celebrating the long weekend with no work on Monday and a cookout- and i have a few tips for that! Some foodie fun and some cocktails too! Keep reading to find out how you might be able to add something new to your hoilday soiree! Burgers are a staple at any backyard barbecue. Be it a veggie burger, or beef; a flame broiled patty is quintessentially SUMMER. Below is a recipe courtesy of Tasting Table . Give it a try this weekend and see what YOU think. (I hav...