Presents for Everyone - Including Myself~!

Thanks to Walgreens for underwriting this post. I was paid as a member of the Clever Girls Collective, but the content is all mine. Visit http://www.walgreens.com/beauty.

You'd never know it if you took a look outside, (no snow and FORTY PLUS DEGREES TEMPS ON DECEMBER 18TH IN MINNESOTA! YES! PLEASE!!)

But...
Christmas is coming! Christmas is coming!

This time next week we will be winding down our holiday festivities...
It seems to have snuck up on us this year, and, just as I have in previous years, I find myself trying not to fall victim to the commercialism that seems to surround my favorite time of year.

The gifts are purchased and wrapped, the stockings are hung -
and that seems to be where I get hung up...the stockings, the Santa thing.

I see various posts around the social media sites of some pretty awesome (and extravagant) gifts that Jolly Ol St. Nick is leaving all of the good little girls and boys ~ And so, I feel a little caught up in the rush...

A quick chat with my husband and I am talked off my ledge...
And I bring you, stocking stuffers we have come to know and love around the Gust House!

Who doesn't love fun AND useful gifts? We have made this a tradition at our house...one that so far the kids don't seem to mind:

Fresh tubes of 'his and her' toothpaste - Always a fun surprise!

 

Fresh Toothbrushes! Who can't use these?

Another Fav around here - Character Band Aids!


 We really love our puzzles around here - it's something we can all sit around and work on together - all the while, holding a conversation and accomplishing a task that doesn't involve running around from here to there to everywhere - and, it feels sort of like a 'toy' - yet, it isn't really! (and we have a LOT of toys around here!)Win-Win!


A 'toy' or 2 for good measure!





A little something for boys & men of all ages to find in their stockings!



Tired of sharing your loofah? Why not have Santa deliver this?

And...What about YOU...or ME? I have a stocking hung by the chimney with care too - Santa can't forget about me can he? Ah yes, presents for everyone, including myself:

Winter in MN does a number on our skin - hand creme is a must & a very useful gift!

A MUST for all faces seeing the light of day in our dry frozen tundra!

So, there you have it - some useful, thoughtful, won't get tossed aside and go ununsed presents for everyone, including myself!


For some money saving coupons from Walgreens - Feel free to CLICK HERE ~

Holiday Comforts ~

This post is sponsored by Tempur-Pedic, the brand millions of owners trust to deliver their best night’s sleep every night. Enjoy our Buy 2, get 1 free pillow offer now and give the gift of custom comfort to someone you love.

December has arrived ~

in a few short weeks it will be Christmas - & oh, how I love love love me some Christmas. The festive lights, the glorious music that can be sung by people spanning generations, the smell of fresh evergreen in your home (during a time when your windows have been closed up for what feels like forever.)

I love it all -

This year marks the 2nd holiday season since my mom passed away - a very short, yet very long, 7 week battle with cancer took her from us much too early. Even though this is my favorite holiday and I just love Christmas, I approach the season with a sense of sadness, a sense of loss, a sense of something...missing.

There is. Something that no matter how hard we try, can never be replaced...

So to keep the spirits bright (I've got two little kiddos to think about here!), and keep enjoying the season that I have loved forever ~

How do I find comfort?

It's not as hard as it seems -

By simply continuing to do the things we did together, and remembering her in our hearts.

Even when my mom was here, I took comfort in sitting in that church pew for Midnight Mass on Christmas Eve - listening to the carolers sing like angels 'Oh Holy Night, the stars are brightly shining..........A thrill of hope the weary world rejoices'

There's something about sitting in the darkened church, listening to the music...and then...one lit candle lights another which lights another until hundreds of people are smiling, singing, rejoicing, remembering...basking in the glow of the flickering candles.


Afterwards, in the wee hours of Christmas morning, we take the long way home to view the holiday lights around town, until finally collapsing in bed, exhausted from the day. I can't do this with my Mom anymore - but I can do this with my own family and carry on the tradition!

Perhaps my own children will find comfort in the slowing down, the quiet visiting, the accomplishment of finishing the task at hand...

Another thing that brings me comfort this time of year...When the weather outside is frightful, the fire, so delightful -


As silly as it might sound - is sitting inside the warm cozy house putting together a jigsaw puzzle...This is another 'together' thing I enjoyed doing with my Mom...and something the whole family can do! Just this weekend we pulled out one of our puzzles...

Even our dog chilled with us while we worked on the puzzle...

Something is missing, yes...but something feels the same, quiet & comforting....

How do you find comfort during this extra hectic, extra busy time of year?
Do you have something special that brings you peace and solace?



Comfort is the perfect gift for everyone on your holiday gift list, so be sure to take advantage of Tempur-Pedic's Buy 2, get 1 free pillow offer! I was selected for this sponsorship by the Clever Girls Collective

(Our First) Back to School! ::gulp::

Thank you to Crocs for sponsoring this blog post. Please click here to learn more about Crocs’ new Back to School line. I was selected for this sponsorship by the Clever Girls Collective. All opinions expressed here are my own.

Every year there is so much hype about back to school, back to school shopping, and the like. As a kid, I looved going back to school shopping. That was the one time each year that I got a few new articles of clothing, and new SHOES! I have always thought there was a crispness and a cleanness that comes along with the fresh air of fall, and with new school clothes!

Fast forward many many years later ~ and now, for the first time EVER, I have a kid who will be heading 'back to school' ~ It's official...we're part of the back to school rat race! In a couple of short weeks, our baby girl heads off to kindergarten!

This may be very exciting for most families, and don't get me wrong - we ARE excited.

Very Excited...

BUT...

There's always a but....

If you've met our girl...You know of her strong will and determination. Her desire to choose her own outfit (and shoes) each day. This girl of ours has been known to wear long sleeved velvet dresses in July, and strappy sundresses in January. (This would be one of those times the school uniform would be awesome wouldn't it?)

Shoes? Do not even get me started on her shoes...Cowboy boots with everything for weeks on end (A.DORABLE! I might add) or fun little slip on sandals...
Fine for hanging with mom and dad and occassional running around...

But...back to school?
Oy.
What will her teachers say if she shoes up in Butterfly Flip Flops or Cowboy Boots every day?
(Do they even care???)

How do you handle back to school shopping with a strong willed kid who flat out refuses to wear X, Y & Z? Yes, yes, I know...I'm the parent...she shouldn't have a choice - but I believe in choices...and in the power of self-expression.
What do I care if she wants to wear vertical stripes with horizontal stripes in clashing colors? So she wants to wear the same outfit days on end? We have a washing machine - as long as it's (mostly) clean...eh...whatever.

What I do care about however, is her having a few new things to get her by...and essentially, keep her safe...ie: Shoes for the playground.
I was pleasantly surprised when I went to the Crocs site & found 13 new styles for boys and girls in from grades K-8! The Crocs Back to School kids' line are school-approved on the outside (because they're close-toed and close-heeled), but have the same comfort in the inside!!

That is music to this mom's ears...as I can't even remember the last time my soon to be kindergartener wore close toed shoes! (or her Mama for that matter!)
The apple doesn't fall far.......

I just might be able to convince her to wear something like this...



Or this!!


I wonder if when she gets to school and sees what her new friends are wearing - she will feel the pressure to wear what they wear?
Good in some aspects, but frightening in others...
I'm hoping in the coming days, she and I can get out alone and do some compromising shopping for her upcoming school days...

*** Tell me...how do you handle the back to school shopping at your house?

Do you just buy it and they just wear it?
Do you let the kids have a say?
Do you shop all year long and back to school is just another marketing gimmick to you???
___________
Check out the interactive music video below - you can click on the shoes in the video to go directly to the shoes' corresponding pages on the Crocs official site
AND...see if you can find the hidden Easter Egg within the video, click on it and see what happens!
(hint: it looks like the pic below!)




AND...while you are there - don't forget to enter the family getaway give away - NO PURCHASE NECESSARY!

little note = big impact

Thank you to Yahoo! Mail for sponsoring this post about staying connected. I was selected for this sponsorship by the Clever Girls Collective, which endorses Blog With Integrity, as I do.

A year ago this month, I received a phone call that would forever change my life.

For the seven weeks that followed...life was a blur.

Heart Attack. Fluid in her lungs. Cancer.

Phone calls, text messages, emails.

ICU. Nursing Home. Hospice.

Those seven weeks were painfully slow and painfully fast.

Drive 4 hours.
Head to ICU. Be quick. You've got ten minutes.
wishing, hoping, praying, holding.

Sit. Wait.

In the quiet waiting area of the large, sterile hospital. I sat. I waited.
Staring at the walls.
Out the windows.
At the floor.

There was one lone computer for public use in the corner of the waiting area.
A coveted spot to sit, if only for a short time.

Logging in to my Yahoo! email account enabled me to check in with the rest of my world ~ Enabled me to tell everyone at once, without having to form the words in my throat, again and again and again...

Checking my Yahoo! email helped me to not feel so alone.

Short messages, that said not much of anything...but so very much of everything.
Like this one from a friend who's been there...

~ I hate knowing that you get it. I really don't have any other words than just to email and say I'm thinking of you

Those words...They meant so much at the time...They still do.

Rest In Peace
1933-2010

After things were all said and done and life had returned to normal (HA!), I had intentions of sending snail mail thank you cards to some of the people who made a difference during the toughest of times. People who often go unmentioned, unhugged, unthanked.

Well, life got in the way as it often does, and soon those 7 weeks turned into 7 more weeks which turned into 7 months...Finally, I decided, better late than never. It was not however, snail mail.

It was...email.
Why not? It's fast, it's free, and it's efficient.

I started with the hospice care folks and simply sent a note saying something like 'Thank you for taking such great care of my Mom during her battle with cancer last summer & for continuing to think of our family'

(Hospice has been amazing sending thoughtful notes and newsletters in the mail to us, even still!)
Imagine my delight when I received an email back immediately from the Bereavement Specialist. I asked her if she might know how I could get in touch with the patient advocate that we had spent many hours with during the course of the hospital stays. The person who saw us at our absolute worst. It didn't take long for her to email me the information I needed to get my choice of snail mail or email out to this gentleman who holds what I could only imagine is one of the toughest jobs out there.

I sent a short note to him, telling him that I was sorry it was so late, but that I'm a firm believer in the fact that a person can never hear 'thank you' or 'you're doing a great job' enough...and that I was very appreciative of the work he did with my family during our darkest hours...

Immediately (GAH! How I love email!!) I received a reply...in part, it read...

I appreciate the note -- thank you very much. I value your words and thoughts very much. I'm humbled.......As I think back on that difficult time, I remember your family doing a really great job loving and caring for your mom.

Those words, those few simple words he took the time to send to my email, get me through some rough patches even still.

If only I had known....the guilt I feel felt about not being there more...

What I'm saying is...
Have you told someone how important they are to you today?
Have you said I love you? I'm thinking of you. I care?

Right now...
Stop, open up your email, and send a note or five or ten to people that you care about...and tell them so.
You won't regreat it.

I promise.

-------------
Click the cute little video below for a fun cartoon about staying connected from anywhere - A few minutes to stay connected really does make a big difference!

Bing! Bing! Bing! Time Saving Winner Here!!

Thank you to BING for sponsoring my writing today. To learn more about BING Shopping Rewards, click here. I was selected for this sponsorship by the Clever Girls Collective, which endorses Blog With Integrity, as I do.

Work.
Carpool.
Daycare.
Swimming lessons.
Karate classes.
Softball games.
Dinner with friends.
Dinner with family.
Grocery Shopping.
Walking the dog.
Planting the garden.
Weeding the garden.
More Work.
Mow the lawn.
Put gas in the car.
Get gas for the mower.
Laundry.
Vacuum.
Mail that birthday package.
Do the dishes.

A small smattering of a typical week around these here parts...

Notice anything missing? Aside from the GROCERY shopping...where's the shopping? The regular old, honest to goodness, browse around until you find just what you are looking for shopping? The, we have family pictures this Friday what on earth are we all going to wear kind of shopping! The oh my gosh is it really my Mother-in-Law's birthday next week WHAT are we going to get her kind of shopping...

That, my friends...is where the power of the internet comes in!

If I'm being honest, I used to have a major aversion to online shopping. I want to touch and feel what I'm buying. I want to wiggle the drawers and handles. I like to feel the craftsmanship (or lack thereof) of whatever it is my hard earned money is going towards. Besides those things, who wants to pay shipping on items that I can drive to the store and pick up myself?

Cue the aforementioned schedule and the $4.00 a gallon gasoline and the shipping promo codes that float around the internet every second of every day.

::choir of Angels signing here::

Online shopping from the comfort of my own home, from all of my favorite trusted retailers, at a time of day that works best for me, shipped directly to my front door, OR, my Mother-in-Law's door (on TIME!), with rewards!?!

Where do I sign up?

Bing!

That's where!

While I'm no longer new to online shopping, I am new to Bing. I have heard a lot about the different search engines that reward you for using them, so I decided to see for myself what the fuss was all about.

It could not have been easier - I started here - and within minutes had the Bing tool bar installed on my computer, and a nice deposit of 250 points in my account just for signing up! I also discovered that you don't even have to make a purchase for little deposits of bonus points to be added to your account!

Awesome!

I quickly visited some of my favorite retailers via the Bing bar and I am well on my way to earning myself a nice little gift card! OR...you can donate your credits to a charity of your choice!

Everybody wins! The kids have new clothes for summer, the lawn gets mowed, and I earned points that will eventually get redeemed for something like an Amazon gift card!

Why didn't anyone make me do this sooner??

Invisible Friends

Thank you to Yahoo! Mail for sponsoring this post about staying connected. I was selected for this sponsorship by the Clever Girls Collective, which endorses Blog With Integrity, as I do.

***************************
Almost 4 years ago, I started blogging. For myself really, and eventually, when they are old enough to care & look back, our kids...So that they might have a journal, if you will...of our lives. I never really expected other people to read this blog, although I was reading other blogs and leaving comments on them from time to time.

One of the blogs I was reading every day was a blog called Cribsheet. And just over three years ago, when I was a busy (newish) mom of a one year old and a two year old, looking to that blog for advice, reassurance and sanity...my life was forever changed.

An email entry from one Matt Logelin -

hello…
i just came across your blog…
i’m a proud new father (originally from mpls, now in los angeles) who is definitely in the process of managing changing priorities.
i’m doing it on my own (my wife passed away the day after our baby was born).
i’ll be reading your blog often (while baby sleeps). i’m finding much of the content very helpful.
i’m writing a bit about my experiences.
some of the language is a little blue, but i can’t help it.
it’s been a tough two weeks.
matt

WHAT?
You have GOT to be kidding me.
First comments...and then emails, started flying through the interwebs.

What happened?
What can we do?
What do you need?


People who had not yet met for REAL, sending email, watching email, replying to email...

Matt wanted nothing - he was just reaching out and sharing his thoughts...and we did the same. Keep in mind, none of us had officially met 'in real life' at this point. Many of us who knew each other only by our online personas began collaborating. Comments among strangers turned into email between friends...

What can we do?

Formula checks that we weren't using, a collection of cards for his first Father's Day, and eventually, several thousand dollars that would become the first of many donations given out by what is now The Liz Logelin Foundation.

Strangers, who became friends, AMAZING friends, because they dared to send each other a few emails...

*** Below is a cute little Father's Day video from Yahoo! mail ~ I love that it shows a Father & his daughter - because that's is exactly who connected me to my invisible friends, who are now some of my greatest friends, in the first place...And, because it makes me think of my hubs, who just so happens to be the world's greatest father to our own little girl and our own little boy ~ Enjoy it!