Keeping Kids Busy/Homeschool Science/Art/Geology

There are many FREE ways to keep kids occupied, but why not go to Michael's and blow a bunch of money on, say, a lip balm making kit or on a paleontologist kit? Then why not hit a garage sale and buy a bunch of cheap Easter egg kits and color Easter eggs in August? And then why not just call it art and science and geology?

Tackle-It Tuesday: Kid Shoes

Every Tuesday, I tackle a different project around my home that's been bugging all of us!

I have a very nice problem: too many kid shoes. We receive shoes from all over the place. We have shoes for Sam that his brothers gently wore. We have shoes from older boys for our older boys. We have shoes from older girls for our girls. Sometimes we find we don't have a particular size and have to go buy a cheap pair. I can't remember what happened in Wyoming but I do remember having to stop at Target in Salt Lake City to buy new shoes for Eva. We accumulate shoes around here. Not me, but the kids. Definitely not me. I wish!

So the only thing I've been putting off longer than SPACKLING (yes, I will get around to it ... probably when the weather is colder. Then you will be sick of spackling and sanding and painting pictures, mark my words.

Packaways Rockin' Storage Solution Review

I swear the blogging/reviewing universe is looking out for me because I keep getting these totally useful and absolutely wonderful things to review! Packaways Multipurpose Storage Boxes are no exception.

Here's my daughter modeling the product for you, readers. We'd just been to the pool, so that would explain the swimsuit!

Here are the reasons why I love these boxes:

1. They are colorful (more colorful than clear plastic bins, that's fo sho!)
2. You don't have to keep track of the dang lid (stuff gets lost around here, SHOCKER!)
3. They set up fast and easy and anybody could do it, even a kid
4. They have white panels on the sides so you can write on them what's inside the box
5. They stack easily
6. They come in different sizes
7. They are sturdy
8. They store FLAT when you're not using them so you I don't have to listen to your my husband gripe about having too much stuff and where will we put it all and on and on (hint: you store stuff INSIDE the boxes and keep it wherever you want and if you don't need the box right now you store it nice and flat, say, under a bed or in a closet or behind the fridge!)
9. They make good fort boxes for the kids
10. They make great moving boxes
11. They store old baby clothes so I can't actually SEE them, thereby making me want another baby
12. They are made in America (not that there's anything wrong with other countries, dear readers from other countries, but I happen to live in America and like to support American-made stuff when I can)

Here they are on Facebook (you gotta LIKE them!), and here's a little ditty on YouTube.


I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.

Live Clean (Baby) Products Review

This Live Clean (Baby) stuff makes me want to have another baby. Instead, I used it on my current brood and on myself and absolutely love it! Let's go over the products, which are available at Walgreen's and also through Walgreens.com (and I found some on Drugstore.com also). I love that these products are eco-friendly with natural ingredients that are good for my family and for the environment.

Non-petroleum jelly. Wondering why it's NOT petroleum jelly? Check out this creepy article. This stuff is just as great as petrolatum-containing products but I feel better putting it on Sam's buns, on owies and on my lips.

Shampoo and wash. Smells great and works great to clean my little grubby ones and their hair.

Baby bath. Smells amazing and makes great bubbles for the littles to mess around in the tub.

Baby lotion. I kinda mighta stolen this for myself. I did put some on the kids, but why should they have all the soft skin? It smells nice (seeing a trend here?) and keeps me moisturized all day.

Bar soap. This comes 3 bars to a box, so I put one in the kids' bathroom and one in ours. My husband and I love it for showering and I love knowing I'm getting the kids clean without perfumey junk.

Check back in the coming weeks because Live Clean (Baby) had agreed to send an entire set of these products (plus diaper rash ointment) to one lucky winner in a giveaway. I'll be tweeting and Facebooking like crazy so make sure you click the top left side of the blog to stalk me everywhere you possibly can!

Disclaimer: I got these products for free but was not paid to review them.

Returning to School Uniquely

Today I'm taking a little break from the production of The Kerrie Show, and we have a guest post by HB Redbird about heading back to school in a unique and trendy way.

More schools are going to uniforms and pre-packaged school supplies. It is difficult for children to feel unique in a public-school setting. Parents are left with children who wish they could have a specific color notebook or something to call their own. Of course, children could be unique with backpacks and lunch boxes, but parents can make their children light up with the use of personalized gifts for school supplies.