I’m on vacation with my girls in lovely Ft. Myers Florida en route to the promised land…aka Disney.  Our trip down was a total nightmare – a 5:30 arrival time turned into 12am.  Needless to say, two very excited girls were were tested to the limits.  So was I.

However, I walked way being completely impressed, amazed and in complete awe of my girls.  I totally underestimated both of them.  I really thought they’d break down, but instead they stayed focused on the ultimate goal and proved to be hearty travelers.

We spent much of the time talking about how when the times get tough, (and they will) it really helps to focus on what you have instead of what you don’t.  They were close to tears so many times and I just kept reminding them that we were together and fun was just around the corner.  They dug deep and it was really wonderful to watch it unfold.  My positive was seeing how they handled it and it made me proud.

Now we all have a story and shared experience – even though it was dramatic.  I also know that I can’t underestimate my amazing girls again.  Lesson learned for mom too.

Have you ever underestimated your kids?  How do you focus them to keep them positive when disappointments come their way?

Off to the beach…..

One of the items on my “must do” list is to try new recipes.  I love to cook but I find that when I get busy during the week I tend to cycle through the same old recipes that I know.  One of my goals is to try a new recipe every week and add the ones that work to my regular repertoire.

I discovered the Photo Cookbook app and it is so lovely and inspiring, it makes me want to leap to the kitchen.  The photos are arranged step by step, but they literally leap out of the iPad and demand your attention.  I also love the unique way you can scroll through the recipes as well as narrow down the choices.

The only downside is that the number of recipes is small compared to other apps, but that is because of the level of detail as well as the quality of the photos.  I’m certain the base will increase.  The recipes are all approachable and look delicious.  In my opinion the $4.99 price is well worth it.  I’d love to hear your opinion as well as any other cooking apps that you enjoy.

The Photo Cookbook

The Photo Cookbook

I’ll admit it.  I’m guilty of trying to do too many things at once.  Between getting the kids ready for school, cleaning the house and all of the other “mom jobs”, I do find myself handling a million things and probably not being the most efficient.

It hit home for me this week while on a call with my mom.  It was a busy day and I was working around the house while talking to her on the phone and then I realized that I missed half of what she said.  Seriously?  She deserved better.  I should have sat for five minutes to listen… really listen and then I could have continued my housework.  Someday I’m really going to want that five minutes to talk to my mom and someday I’m going to be the mom calling my girls and hearing their exasperated and busy life taking over on the other end of the phone.

So, as I work on staying true to what I preach – I’ll begin small.  I’ll take the 5 minute call and really listen.

So, where do we begin on our new journey?

First with a little thought on social media.  Part of the reason I was a bit burned out was due to social media overload.  Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, Blogging = ugh.  While some of it can be interesting and inspiring, it was just too much of the same.  I seriously dialed it back.  I deleted my Pinterest account because that was a major time suck, (at leas for me it was).  I am also concerned about their terms of use and so I’ll give it a little time to shake out and then go back for another stroll.  I think we’ll see an evolving and more comprehensive TOFU down the road as well as users that are more proactive about Pinning from the original source.

Where am I going with this?  I needed new sources for inspiration that DO NOT come from my computer screen.  Starting small is good…. my husband is busing prepping the garden and I wanted a little bit of green in the house.  Our natural light in the living room is not stellar so I’m trying succulents.  They are so adorable and supposedly a no brainer for care and maintenance.  I’ll be the judge of that!  I love how they are all so different, odd and lovely.  Succulents might not be what one would call “beautiful” like a tulip or rose, but I prefer that.  A little bit of different is wonderful!

SucculentsGalore on Etsy

Hi everyone!  I’m back after a much needed break from blogging as well as a major reassessment of why I want to blog.  Thanks to the fabulous Nicole Bateman of the Pixel Boutique  for my beautiful new banner.

I began blogging about three years ago with the idea that I’d have content to support my business.  A few months ago I was left feeling that I wanted to blog for different reasons.  Mainly, I love to have the creative outlet and I want to inspire myself and others.

I was really having trouble deciding how to approach a new format and a series of short chats with my very wise friend Karla helped it take shape.  We were discussing our kids and  that I’m amazed with how quickly my girls are growing and how many things I feel like I still need to teach them.  Thinking about it later, I decided that there is absolutely no way I can teach my girls everything they need to know.  However, what I can show them is a love for learning how to do new things, a love for being inspired by something small and not being afraid to let it take you someplace new.  I can teach them that trying something new might not be a perfect path, but one worth taking nonetheless.   This is the path I want to take for myself and for my girls.

This new format is also a place for me to find that wonderful 20 something fearless energy.  A place for me to try new things just because I want to.  It might be something as simple as discovering (or rediscovering) music and art, or maybe a new adventure like a cooking class.  I’ll still give new ideas for inspiration around the house but I’ll be challenging myself to do more and discover more.  I hope that I can inspire you to try a few new things along the way.

Please share your discoveries with me and send me your ideas for new things to try.

Best,

Kristin

Your Savvy Find this week is courtesy of the Daily Grommet.  Stuffitts Pro Shoe Savers will help dry the inside of sports shoes.  This is a great way to save shoes from wetness and odor and hopefully make them last longer and I imagine this will be particularly helpful for those of you that have kids in sports.  There are Suffitts available for helmets, shoes, gloves and gear, so check them out, dry it out and smell lovely!  Have a great weekend.

Stuffitts - via Daily Grommet

There are some truly innovative space saving products on the market and the Shower Shelf is certainly high on the list.

The Shower Shelf is stain and slip resistent shelf that slides right on a towel rack in your tub or shower area.  This is a perfect solution for an apartment or rental because there are holes to drill and no suction cups.  Installation is really as simple as sliding it over your existing towel rack.

The shelf is incredibly sturdy and has slots to hang loofahs along with holes to hang razors or other shower items.  Your existing towel bar remains completely functional to hang washcloths, towels or other items and you gain shelf space for shampoo, conditioner and soaps.

The Shower Shelf solves the problem of bottles cluttering the sides of the tub and makes cleaning easier because you don’t have to move everything to wipe down the shower.  Simple and brilliant.

I actually think they should market the shelf to hotels because there is never enough room to put your things when you travel.  I like that it made my shower towel bar functional.  I really only use mine to dry washcloths and now it has been transformed into something I can really use!

If you would like to try it out for yourself, they are offering my readers $5.00 off if you use the code savvyspaces5 at checkout.

www.theshowershelf.com

www.theshowershelf.com

I was compensated for this post with the product to try from the Shower Shelf. All opinions, as always, are completely my own.

I am excited to share this very fun recipe with you.  The Baked Creamy Chicken Taquitos inspired by Chef in Training were absolutely delicious.  I basically followed her recipe, so I’ll link you there.  However, I did make a few minor edits:

1.  For the shredded chicken I sautéed chicken thighs with garlic, onion and olive oil until brown and cooked through.  I let the chicken cool slightly and then chopped finely and added to the mix as directed.

2.  I really wanted a margarita to go with the taquitos.  Please heed my warning and have the ingredients on hand before you begin.  I suggest one margarita while cooking and another while eating.

3.  I don’t have a microwave (it’s okay, I don’t want one;) so I heated the tortillas in the oven before filling them an it worked just fine.

4.  I made my own guacamole and it worked very well with the taquitos.

• 1 avocado
• 1 lime
• 2 cloves of garlic
• 1 jalepeno
• 1/4 to 1/2 onion (depending on how strong it is – don’t overpower the other ingredients)
• 2 tablespoons of sour cream
• drizzle of olive oil
• Salt to taste
• Blend everything together in a food processor

Head on over to Chef In Training and give the taquitos a try.  They will definitely add some zip to your meal.

Chef in Training Creamy Chicken Taquitos

I found this Savvy Find while reading through daily tips and finds on the Facebook page for Ducks in a Row, (Helane finds some great things and give good tips by the way so click on over).  I just think it is a brilliant solution for storing board games AND decorating a kid friendly space.

Beckie at Infarrantly Creative came up with the idea of mounting game boards in frames and then hanging them on the wall = brilliant.  Simply take them down when you want to play.  She even suggest storing the game pieces on the back of the framed board in a baggie.  So incredibly clever.  Head on over to check it out.

Do you receive unwanted email notifications?  I do.  Most of the time I’m just too busy and I delete them because searching for the preferences just takes too long.  I recently tried Notificationcontrol.com and I think I actually squealed with delight.  They’ve assembled links to all the major players like Twitter, Facebook, Google+, Pinterest and more so that you can edit your notification settings in one click of the mouse.

I’ve noticed that companies are coming up with new ways to try and get your email to send messages.  I was at Macy’s yesterday and they offered an electronic receipt.  I love that, but then there was a little box above my signature that if checked, gave them permission to send me promotional emails.  I noticed it too late and I already had emails from them by the time I arrived home.  I unsubscribed right away, but you get the point.

This inspired me to do a major unsubscribe campaign as my email hits the box.  I’ve noticed a significant decrease in the amount of email I never touch and that puts a smile on my face.

Notificationcontrol.com