The Dark Side of Christmas Lights: A Seasonal Sparkle or a Power Drain?

As the festive season approaches, millions of households across the globe are set to illuminate their homes with twinkling Christmas lights. However, beneath the enchanting glow lies a less charming reality: these holiday decorations consume significant energy. 

Christmas lights, a cherished holiday tradition, consume a staggering amount of electricity. In the United States alone, the energy used by Christmas lights amounts to 6.63 billion kilowatt hours annually, enough to power 14 million refrigerators. This figure is more than the yearly electricity consumption of some developing countries, such as El Salvador and Ethiopia. 

POGO Pass for 50% Off!!!

Here's what I know:

This is an AMAZING GIFT for your own family, another family, anyone who is new to the area, grandchildren, and newlyweds. 

This is not just for kids!

Kids older than 12 often count as adults and the price of things goes up, but with POGO Pass, it's just one redemption no matter the age of the person using it. 

The app makes it so easy to keep track of everything you've already done!

Here's how to buy one if you're ready to roll. $44.99 + tax through my site instead of $99.98 + tax just by going to my link!

Head over here to see how much all the current Kansas City Pogo Pass venues would cost WITHOUT a Pogo Pass.

How to Cope with an Irrational Fear of the Dentist

For many people who suffer from some degree of dental phobia, technically known as odontophobia or dentophobia, a typical visit to the dentist can be an absolute nightmare. People with a phobia of going to the dentist have a reflex to feel a fight or flight response whenever they are in the dentist’s chair, even if their visit is simply for the purpose of a dental check-up. Dental phobias can stem from a number of different things, including previous traumatic experiences at the dentist or an accident that required stitches in or near the mouth. When you have a phobia of the dentist, it can be severely detrimental to your dental health as those suffering from this tend to avoid dental visits at all costs, even allowing oral conditions to worsen.

Speaking to Your Dentist

If you suffer from dental phobia, the most important thing that you need to do is speak to your dentist and make sure that they are fully aware of the situation. Good dentists are fully trained to deal with nervous or frightened patients and will be able to help you when it comes to knowing what to do to get over your phobia and take positive steps towards overcoming these feelings of fear. For example, Dr. Michael Malek is a Santa Cruz Sedation Dentist who specializes in sedating patients with phobias to help them feel more comfortable. 

Fear of the Unknown

One of the biggest things that puts patients with dental phobia off registering at and visiting a new dental surgery is the fear of the unknown.

History of 9028 Grant Street in Overland Park, Kansas from 2000-2017

My husband and I moved into 9028 Grant Street in Overland Park, Kansas on April 1, 2000. 

We brought home each of our babies from the hospital, all five of them, to this home, starting with Joel in June of 2001, then Michael in April of 2003, Callie in February of 2005, Eva in December of 2007, and Samuel in October of 2009.

We homeschooled them all here as well. 

I started blogging in 2008, and you can find a lot of the history of the house, including photos, on this blog.

Things we loved about it:

Being across from the school = free playground on nights, weekends, summers, and school holidays.

Being within walking distance of the library!

12+ Ways You Can Save or Make Money Today

Finding Dave Ramsey back in 2015 was very inspirational for my family. Money had been flying out of our home in the form of co-op fees, sports fees, doctor and hospital fees, a vehicle payment and the higher gas and insurance and tags that went along with that, etc. Then we moved to a larger home but still had some debt plus grocery costs are soaring! 

1. Be a safe driver. Stop speeding and observe traffic rules and you won't have to worry about a costly ticket. I am being super careful on my errands today and when I am driving around town in general. You can even save money on your car insurance if you get an app that tracks your driving (probably something like Life360 where it can track your quick acceleration and hard braking).
2. Buckle up and make sure your passengers are also properly buckled. This applies to making sure your kids are buckled properly in your vehicle. In my state, it can be $60 per ticket plus court costs if your kid is not in the proper booster or car seat so make sure you know the rules.
3. Get the Ibotta app! You get cash back in the form of PayPal cash or gift cards when you buy specific products! I recently received a Pillsbury pie crust to bake a pie and take a survey and there was $15 in my account! Check out my post here.