Teaching Kids to Slam Medicine Like a Shot

Do Not Eat My Son's Snack Cake #funnykids #bigfamilyproblems

*Michael is my most mild-mannered kid, the quietest and also hilarious. I opened the fridge to this yesterday morning and couldn't stop laughing. I did not eat the snack cake, that's for sure. (it's something he does where he coats and Oreo with some cream cheese and sugar concoction)

Stainless Steel Wire Grill Brush Review (Cave Tools)

Okay, so when Mr. Kerrie and I were asked to review this grill brush, we were pretty excited and curious. We'd used the same grill brush for a long time and it was one of those regular ones that's shaped like a rectangle and was super scratchy and got all smooshed down when we would clean the grill a few times.

Immediately I noticed this grill brush was different.

I love that it has a long handle (21 inches) so nobody will be burning themselves on my watch. It took care of the gunk on my 20-plus-year-old grill with no problem at all and then easily hangs on the deck near the grill so we can just grab it when it's time for another cleaning.

This would make an excellent gift for anyone on your list who likes to grill out. Anyone who owns a grill, for that matter! Birthday gift, Father's Day, Valentine's Day ... but Christmas is coming up pretty quickly so I recommend you grab one of these for every man or woman in your life (including yourself if you love to grill out)! Some people grill out all year round ... we have been known to grill out in the winter and the grill gets grubby ... this is an awesome tool!

Here's the product page at Cave Tools so you can check it out! It also includes a lot of great info about the product. It even includes a free recipe book!

The best way to order, though, is through Amazon.com, below. Readers get 20% off is they use the coupon code XNTLKUOV, and I might get a little something as well since I work with Amazon Affiliates.


Thanks for checking out this review!

Why Are More Young Women Choosing Botox Before Their First Wrinkle Appears?

There have been a lot of stories in the media in recent months about younger and younger women using the anti-aging treatment Botox. Botox has been around for a long time now, and hasn't really been replaced yet as the most popular and effective way of reducing facial wrinkles as you age. It works by locally paralyzing the muscles it is injected into, meaning that the movements of the face don't cause wrinkles to show.

Preventative Botox

It is also thought that this temporary paralysis can prevent wrinkles from occurring at all, because it is the repeated movement of the skin due to changing facial expressions, talking, laughing and smiling that leads to permanent lines. Of course, to get those benefits you would need to start having Botox injections before any wrinkles appeared, and it is this idea – that Botox can be used as a preventative measure – that is leading women as young as 20 to go under the needle.

Does Preventative Botox Actually Work?

While the theory behind preventing wrinkles by preventing facial muscle movement is sound, it is such a recent trend that it is impossible to say for sure whether these 20-something women will indeed avoid wrinkles by keeping up a regimen of Botox now. There is also the fact that Botox only lasts for a few months, and many of these women may not have the money or the inclination to keep up their Botox for the rest of their lives – for many people vanity becomes a less important use of money once they get married and have kids than it is in their early twenties. However, Botox is believed to be safe, so if a woman does have the time and money to give preventative Botox a shot, then there isn't really any reason not to – assuming it works, she may well be grateful to her younger self for taking these measures when she gets to 45!

What Is Getting Botox Like?

Botox is a procedure that can be done very quickly, with many people seeing it as something they can have done in their lunch hour - though this does mean going back to the office with what look like bee stings on the treated areas. It involves a series of quick injections, which feel like, well, intramuscular injections in your face, but are more of a discomfort than an agonizing pain, and aside from a bit of soreness and redness there is no real recovery to worry about. If you go to a good Botox Los Angeles clinic like Your Laser Skin, the process will be safe and hygienic and you will be well taken care of, and the practitioner will explain exactly what to expect.

While there are various arguments for and against getting Botox before you look like you need it, for many women it is worth it to feel that they are doing everything can to preserve their youthful good looks. If you want to join them, Botox is a fairly routine procedure now, and it can be well worth talking to a good clinic.

Babysitting Spaghetti Sauce and Another Redneck Swimming Pool #FamilyFun #Books

Today is Monday. I love Mondays. Used to HATE Mondays. Then I quit the cubicle life and joined the stay-at-home mom ranks over 14 years ago and never looked back. I love working from home, being a mom, homeschooling, taking care of my home and cooking. Okay, I don't ALWAYS love these things ALL THE TIME ... but some days it all comes together in a beautiful symphony of family life and those days make everything worth it.

Today we got a lot of homeschooling done, my writer friend who I never get to see anymore since we started doing coop came over with her daughter, I got to go for a long walk while listening to inspirational podcasts (love-based marketing versus selling in an obnoxious way) and dictating book and blog ideas, the kids got to play with the neighbors a lot, I got some writing done, and I got to babysit spaghetti sauce ... some of which then turned into a manicotti dinner, which is Mr. Kerrie's fave.

Here's the recipe for my husband's spaghetti sauce, plus what to do with tomatoes when you aren't ready to can them or process them yet.

Two big pots for babysittin' and stirrin' ... Goodfellas style

At one point I did wonder if it was too early to drink my Trader Joe's moscato with the foil lid instead of cork.

My struggling reader girl read a book to her brother so I could shave my legs. TMI?

Samuel got creative and made our cooler into a redneck swimming pool. Wheelbarrows, truck beds and now coolers.

The sauce made this manicotti!

And the laundry did not get put away because you just can't do everything every day ... it's just the way it is.

Oh, and I got to order my anniversary gift early ... a book by Elizabeth Gilbert called Big Magic. You may know her from Eat Pray Love fame, but she has written more since then and it's always amazing. I also want to check out The Signature of All Things ... being made into a multi-part movie as you read this. Here are some book covers and I also follow her on Twitter and Pinterest and YouTube and Facebook because I am super in love with her and her writing.