10 Beautiful, Organized Art Stations for Kids

I miss our bar.

The one in our basement. It has been completely taken over by my one-year-old's art supplies.

It started out small: a bag of markers, a

2016 Bestsellers: Baby Edition (1/2 year report)

Is anyone else addicted to Amazon Prime?

I mean, I was pretty addicted before, but as soon as I had a baby, it got real. Free 2 day shipping- and you'll deliver it right to my doorstep? I don't have to

Your cloth diapering questions answered by real moms: What are your favorite cloth diaper accessories?

If you're thinking about using cloth diapers with your first baby (like I was) then it makes sense to add diapers and diaper accessories to your baby registry. But what, exactly, should you ask for?

I did a lot of research before deciding

Your cloth diapering questions answered by real moms: What is your favorite brand or type of cloth diaper and why?

I'm back with more cloth diaper survey results! Today's question really made me realize how much better cloth diapers are now than they were 20 years ago. There are so many great options out there! I can't wait for you to check out some of these moms' favorites.

A perfectly packed diaper bag: Toddler version

A few months ago, I published a post called A Perfectly Packed Diaper Bag. It's my most popular post to date. I dumped out all of my diaper bag essentials, photographed them, and created a free printiable checklist to keep you and your newborn organized

Your cloth diapering questions answered by real moms: What tips or tricks have you learned to make cloth diapering easier?

When I first started using cloth diapers, I had a lot of questions. How many diapers do I need? What kind of laundry detergent should I be using? How do I manage a weekend trip?

I learned the answers to these questions

Your cloth diapering questions answered by real moms: What made you decide to use cloth diapers instead of disposables?

So, you're thinking about using cloth diapers? A little more than a year ago, while I was pregnant with my daughter, I was trying to make the same decision. And it was really confusing to me.

That's why I decided to get together a

10 things you might not know about me

A year and a half after my blog took off, and I finally created an about me section. Better late than never, right? 10 things you might not know about me- I'm so excited to share this one with you. Let me know what you think, ok? Well, here we go!

Hope after a miscarriage: 17 comforting Bible verses

I would have been almost 4 months pregnant today. Instead, when we went in for our 12 week sonogram, we were told that our baby didn't make it. There was no heartbeat. I had a miscarriage.

I was absolutely heartbroken. I still am.

Get organized with a weekly to do list

UPDATE: 2021 Planner and calendar pages available here. :) 

I heard somewhere that successful people don't have to do lists. Instead, they schedule their "to dos" on specific days of their calendars. When those days come- they get it done!

That idea has stuck with me. I like it. But

Creative gifts for one year olds: Part 3 of 3 (Photos of family and friends)

Note: This post includes affiliate links. Read my full disclosure statement here. 

Looking for a creative and personal gift idea for a one year old? Want to find something they'll actually play with over and over (instead of taking one look at it and spending the rest of the afternoon playing with the box?) As a mother of a 14-month-old, I have a few tested and approved ideas for you! 

(If you missed it, be sure to go back and check out my other ideas for creative gifts for one year olds here and here.) 

Today's gift idea is all about photos of family and friends. Emma LOVES to look at pictures of people that she knows. Plus, she's just learning to say names (Grandpa is "Pa-Pa," Aunt Amy is "Emy" and her cousin Blair is "Bay") so this is great practice for her.

For this gift, I have two different ideas to share with you. The first one was actually a Christmas gift from my parents. They printed out a bunch of photos of Emma with different family members and friends, and framed them using these foam frames from Amazon . 

The result was fantastic! We keep the photos in a basket on Emma's toy shelf, and she gets them out to play with all the time. 

She loves carrying them around, and spends a lot of time pointing at each person and practicing saying their names. 

The frames are great- they are perfect for Emma's little hands, and I love how soft and bendable they are. However, I do have to say that without any reinforcement, your toddler will be able to pull the photos out of the frames (something that Emma did within the first few hours.) I fixed the problem by using packing tape to secure the back of each frame, and haven't had any issues since. A dab of glue would probably be just as effective. 

Not into the photo frames? Here's another option: A printed "Family and Friends" photo book. We ordered ours through Shutterfly. 

It was a really simple process, and Emma sits and "reads" this entire book at least once a day. She really loves it! 

Each family member got one page. At the end I added pictures of some of her friends as well. 

So that's it! Two ideas for ways to use family photos to make a creative and personalized gift that your toddler will play with over and over. What do you think?  

Here's another post you may be interested in reading: 

What to do with monthly baby pictures

Nowadays, it seems like everyone is taking monthly baby pictures. Not wanting to miss out, I also took pictures of Emma every month. One of my friends gave me onesies at my baby shower with numbers painted on them, and I had so much fun taking pictures of Emma in her special onesies every month. But what to do with all those adorable photos? Why, display them at her first birthday party, of course! I decided to make a banner using all of her monthly baby pictures and hang them up in front of our dining room window for the party.  

Creative birthday gift ideas for a one year old: Part 2 of 3

Did you catch my last post on making a DIY makeup kit as a gift for a one-year-old? Today I'm sharing another super-creative gift idea for a one-year-old that you can assemble yourself, and they'll play with over and over.  

Update: Make sure to check out part 3 in the series here!

Ever since she was a few months old and first started picking things up, my daughter has loved playing with the contents of my purse. Wallet, keys, phone- she loves it all! So I decided to assemble a purse of her own for her first birthday. 

I found a small purse at a thrift store (I did clean it, but if you're squeamish about germs you could purchase an inexpensive new bag.) I made sure it was small enough that Emma could easily carry it around. I also bought a wallet at the same thrift store. This one looks a lot like mine, so I knew she would love it! 

Next, I added a pack of tissues, my old iPhone, and some keys on a keychain. The keys were new (I was attempting to avoid germs) but I did find that the newly cut keys had really sharp edges- so be careful if you decide to take that route.

Next, I found some things to put in the wallet.

I added some [expired] coupons, wallet-sized photos of my husband, Emma and me, and a bunch of "credit cards." These were any cards I could find that I didn't need anymore, including used gift cards and rewards cards that I had doubles of or no longer used.

And that's it! I packed it all up and put it into the purse. Emma loves it, and she's even found some new items to add, like a hairbrush.

What do you think? I had so much fun assembling this purse for Emma, and she plays with it all the time. Be sure to stay tuned for part 3 in this series- coming soon!

#1 Best Seller of 2015

I'm a part of Amazon.com's affiliate program, which means that sometimes I recommend products and receive a small commission for purchases. (You can read my full disclosure policy here.)

At the end of the year, I get a list of the top-purchased items from 2015. This year something really interesting happened. My readers purchased one item WAY more than anything else.

Which is cool, because I consider this one item to be a must-have for moms. It's a little embarrassing, so I won't admit how many of these I own myself, but I will say... it's a large number.

Top 10 from 2015

Today I'm so excited share with you my 10 most popular blog posts from 2015. Looking back at this past year, it's easy to see a theme in my most popular posts: BABIES and ORGANIZATION! What a coincidence. Two of my favorite things in the whole world. . . 

Digital Christmas Card List

Are you planning on sending out Christmas cards this year? If so, who will you be sending them to? Do you have everyone's updated addresses? Do you know the exact number of cards and stamps you will need for your list? How will you make sure you aren't forgetting anyone?

For me, the answer to all of these questions is a digital spreadsheet that is 100% customizable, editable, and simple to use year after year. This baby saves me TONS of time every Christmas season. So today I thought I'd share so that you can use it, too!

8 Great Ideas for Organizing Wrapping Paper

Hi guys! If you follow me on Pinterest, then you know that I've been a little obsessed with wrapping stations lately. I've been scouring the world wide web for ideas and inspiration, and today I'm ready to share with you the best of the best gift wrapping stations!

Creative birthday gift ideas for a one year old: Part 1 of 3

My daughter, Emma, (who just turned one) loves to play with "toys" that are not toys at all. One time she found a ping pong ball and refused to put it down for two days straight. I am not even exaggerating. She took it into the bathtub with her, she slept with it, and she did everything one-handed for 48 hours. 

This got me thinking. 

When I thought about it, I realized that all of my daughter's favorite things to play with have three things in common: 

1. She loves "taking things out." She likes bags and boxes, and little things that fit inside of other bigger things. She likes to empty things out, one thing at a time. I know this because she daily empties the tupperware out of the kitchen cabinet, the contents out of my purse, and clothes out of her drawers.

DIY first birthday party invitations: teddy bear theme

I can't believe that my tiny little baby is about to turn one! When we started to think about a first birthday party theme, it didn't take long to come up with the idea of a teddy bear party. Emma's third word (after "mama" and "dada") was "BEAR!" She loves playing with her stuffed bears, and often carries them around, giving them hugs and kisses.

Once we decided on a teddy bear theme, it didn't take me long to start envisioning invitation ideas. I never buy invitations because I have an invitation-making method that makes it sooo easy to DIY. Basically, I choose 2 types of paper to layer, print the details on the top sheet, and decorate however I want. It's really simple, but they always turn out looking great!

Blogging resources that are TOTALLY worth your time

Note: This page contains affiliate links. Read my full disclosure policy here.

Have you ever gotten to a point where you realized that you were spending most of your "blogging time" researching ways to make your blog better. . . and not nearly as much time actually making it better?

I definetely fell into that trap when I first started getting serious about my blog.