Dance Recital Mania

Lily's second year of dance came to an end this weekend, and we got to see all of her hard work during the dance recital on Saturday! Lily is not a competitive dancer, but she does take classes at an award winning studio that's filled with awesome teachers and incredible competitive dancers. We love the dance studio, and the dance recital at the end of the year is a big event!

5 Healthy Ways To Start Your Day

This post is sponsored by Natrol but the content and opinions expressed here are my own. 

I might be a lot of things, but a morning person is not one of them! No matter how hard I try, waking up early is just not my thing. I do, however, focus on healthy living, and I strive to teach my kids the healthy habits they need to become healthy adults. Following a healthy morning routine is how my family starts each day!

Friday Mom Life Favorites

Happy Friday! We are a week into Summer Break, and it isn't nearly as relaxing as I thought it would be. I'm taking a much needed break from the chaos, and sharing a few of my current favorite mom life things!

Down For Summer Adventures with Zip & Zoe + 75 Things To Do This Summer

This post is sponsored by Babymel Bags, but photos and opinions are 100% my own.

It's officially Summer Break, and my kids are gearing up for all the adventures that are ahead of us! While it's true that we're going to have an unscheduled summer, we will still have many adventures together as a family. The next 2 1/2 months will be filled with the things we WANT to do, not the things we HAVE to do!

Mom Life Lately

I always say that May is the busiest month of the year, and it is, but June is shaping up to be just as busy this year! Summer Break isn't exactly going as I envisioned it. The truth is, life in a big family is always busy and loud, and there's NEVER a dull moment!

School's Out For The Summer!

It's official! School's out for the Summer! We made it through a busy school year with four kids in four different schools, and all of their sports and activities. The reward is the 2 1/2 months of Summer Break ahead of us!

4 Untold Ways You Can Use Gift Cards to Save Big

Today's feature is a guest post about saving money. With four kids to raise, I love finding as many ways to save as possible!

As their name suggests, gift cards are meant to be given as gifts. They are a popular gift item, especially during the Christmas season. However, did you know that you can use gift cards to save money every single month of the year? Being a smart consumer is all about finding those secret loopholes and deals to score extra discounts. We are not talking about gift cards you get as gifts. Those are 100% profit because you didn’t spend money to buy them in the first place. Instead, we want to share how you can buy discount gift cards for yourself to save big.

The Ultimate Beach Sensory Bin

We are big fans of sensory play! It's messy, it's fun, and the benefits are extensive. With Summer Break officially beginning this week, I put together a beach themed sensory bin to get my kids excited about having a summer full of fun!

May Days: The Busiest Month of the Year

May flew by in a whirlwind of activity! Every single day was scheduled, and I'm not quite sure how we made it through unscathed. But we blinked, and the month was over! 

Our Unscheduled Summer

The end of the school year is just days away for most school districts in the Pittsburgh area. Any parent who has a child in school knows from experience that the last month of the school year is pure chaos. When you multiply that chaos by four kids, life gets crazy! After months of having something scheduled every single day, I officially declared we will be having an unscheduled summer!

Head over to Pittsburgh Moms Blog to read my full post...

What's Up, Wednesday?

Happy Wednesday! This long weekend was a rough one, but we're trying our hardest to adjust to life changes, and stay focused on the end of the school year/sports and activity season chaos. From weddings to school events to sports and activities, and everything in between, we have been keeping EXTRA busy this month!

10 Signs It's The End Of The School Year

As the end of the school year rapidly approaches, the chaos level increases! Every parent who has a child in school knows that the end of the year is the busiest, thanks to all the end of the school year activities. The last few weeks of school is also the time when kids and parents completely give up, and choose to focus on the Summer ahead!

Four Kids and a Wedding

For the second weekend in a row, we had another family wedding! This time, however, all four of my kids were in the wedding. The weekend was incredibly busy, and I just finished catching up on all the the things that got pushed aside, but we had such a great time celebrating the marriage of Alexandra and Zachary!

Weekly Life with Four Kids

Oh, hey, it's me! I'm just taking a very quick breather from the BUSIEST WEEK EVER. I can barely form a complete thought right now, let alone tackle the unfinished blog posts in my drafts folder, so I figured I would give you a glimpse of life with four kids!

Celebrating Marriage & Motherhood

We had a weekend full of celebrating! From a family wedding to honoring our favorite moms, we packed so much into two short days. We made lasting memories and spent the entire weekend with those we love most!

A Few Of My Favorite Things

                                  DISCLOSURE: The bag and the games were sent to us for review. I only share the items I love the most!

Happy Friday, my friends! We are getting ready for a really busy weekend. My brother's wedding is tomorrow, and Mother's Day (and Lexie's soccer game) is on Sunday. It's going to be a weekend full of celebrating! Before the chaos begins, I wanted to share a few of my favorite things with you!

Capture The Moments in April

April came and went in a flurry of activity! It was easily the fastest month of the year. I sure hope time slows down just a bit for the rest of the year! Even though time went by so quickly that I could barely process what was even happening, I did manage to capture the special moments!

A Week In The Life Of A Mom Of Four

Several years ago, I used to recap my life with my kids every week on this little blog of mine! I love looking back at those posts, but as my kids grew, life got even busier, so that became a thing of the past. Instead, I switched to recapping each month by sharing my favorite pictures. What ended up missing from my blog each week were the personal posts: the reason I started blogging in the first place! My new game plan is to share a "week in the life of a mom" post each Monday, and kick off the week on a personal note!

Mother's Day Gift Guide

Motherhood is a tough job! Moms work tirelessly all day every day, whether they work at home or away from home. With Mother's Day coming up, it's time to treat the mom in your life with something extra special!

The BEST Items to Buy At Aldi {Including Gluten Free!}

I confess, I used to be a grocery store snob. I only shopped at one local grocery store even though they charged more than their competitors, and I only bought brand name items.  That changed when Liam was diagnosed with Celiac Disease, and I suffered from sticker shock while shopping for his gluten free foods. Everybody I knew who had to buy gluten free food recommended Aldi, so off I went into the unknown. And guess what? I was VERY surprised by what I found!

Weekend Life

Happy Monday! Is anybody else in disbelief over the fact that it's the last day of April? Where did the month go?!? We had yet another busy weekend, and didn't get much time to recover before getting into school/work mode. Let me be honest: lazy weekends are a thing of the past!

Friday Favorites

Happy Friday, friends! It has been a while since I posted a Friday Favorites roundup, so I figured it was a good time to post one. Every so often it's good to take a step back from content-based blogging and just share a fun, carefree post that doesn't take much thought! So here are a few awesome things that are on my love list right now...

Down For Adventure in Virginia Beach - Day 4 {Travel With Kids}

Life in a big family is always an adventure! Vacation is no different. Two parents + Four Kids + 1 Extra Chromosome + Our Favorite Beach Vacation Spot = Extra Fun Family Adventures!

Dirt Dessert Cups for Kids

Happy Earth Day! It's not really a holiday, but I like to do something fun to acknowledge the day. My kids are all about desserts, so I decided to whip up an easy batch of Dirt Dessert Cups to celebrate! (I even made a gluten free alternative for Liam!)

The Busy Mom's Guide To Beauty - 15 Time-saving Products I LOVE

I may be a busy mom to four children, but I still care about the way I look! I know that looks don't matter in the grand scheme of things, but truthfully, my appearance is the only thing that makes me feel like I'm more than just a mom. The reality, though, is that I just don't have enough time for an in-depth beauty routine, so time-saving products are a MUST!

Life Lately & Weekending

To say that life has been busy lately would be an understatement! The older my kids get, the busier life becomes. And sometimes, nearly a week goes by between blog posts. As much as I wish I could do it all, I simply can't, and my family ALWAYS comes first! 

Capture the Moments in March

Every month, I try to capture all the moments that make life so special! I know I take a LOT of pictures, but there's a good reason for it. So often I wish I could freeze time, but since that isn't possible, photos will have to serve as a reminder of all the moments I hold so dear. Someday, I'm going to be so thankful to have these moments to look back on!

10 Fun Ways To Encourage Family Bonding and Togetherness

This post is sponsored by I See Me! 

Family togetherness is very important to us! I come from a big family, but it's rare that we're all together. My husband's family is often the same way. Neither one of us are fans of that, so we do everything we can to encourage family bonding for our own little family. Our hope is that our tight-knit family will remain close, even when our kids are grown!

5 Easy Ways To Get Kids To Help With Spring Cleaning

As you can probably imagine, living with four kids, four large rabbits and a very large puppy is ridiculously messy. I spend most of my time cleaning up messes, so trying to fit in yearly Spring Cleaning is a huge undertaking. In order to tackle this job, I have to enlist the troops!

Easter 2018: No Words, Just Pictures

Easter 2018...sometimes it's best to just skip the words, and recap the moments with pictures!

Egg-cellent Easter Sensory Bin

Liam and Lily love sensory bins! We have a big collection of sensory bin fillers, and I try to rotate through themed bins twice a month. Sensory play is my secret weapon for those inevitable "I'm bored" moments! Our current Sensory Bin encourages egg-cellent Easter sensory play!

Easter Basket Fillers for Toddlers, Kids, Tweens & Teens

With Easter just days away, I, like many other parents, am scrambling to fill those Easter Baskets! We accumulate plenty of junk between four kids, so we try to make sure that almost every item in their baskets is useful or meaningful. And with a toddler/preschooler, a 6 year old, a tween and a teen, we have a lot of ideas to come up with!

Kids Fashion: The 5 Best Small Shops That Promote Positivity and Awareness

I love to shop! I mean...who doesn't?!? One of my favorite things to shop for is kids clothing. And with four kids, that can be VERY dangerous! Although my tween and my teen have strong opinions about what they want to wear, I shop small for most of Liam and Lily's clothing. There are so many amazing small shops that promote positivity and awareness, which is EXACTLY our mission.

World Down Syndrome Day: 21 Things You May Not Know About Down Syndrome

This post is sponsored by the CDC's National Center on Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities in collaboration with The Motherhood.

Happy World Down Syndrome Day! Today is a BIG day in the Down syndrome community. Today is a day in which we unite to raise awareness about Down syndrome, and to show the world that people who have Down syndrome really are more alike than different and have so much WORTH!

Life Lately Weekend Edition - Liam's Hospital Visit, The World's Largest Candy Store & St. Patrick's Day

Happy Monday! Our entire weekend was busy, and there was no time to rest. It kicked off with a VERY long day at the hospital, included a trip to the World's Largest Candy Store, was filled with St. Patrick's Day fun, and ended with a day full of errands. I feel like I need just one more day to recover from the weekend!

Deliciously Irresistible Vanilla Bean Shamrock Shake

With St. Patrick's Day just a few days away, I figured it was time to whip up a festive treat for my family! Milkshakes are always a quick and easy option! My family loves Shamrock Shakes, but I'm not a big fan of mint flavored milkshakes, so I made a milkshake that we all would love. Vanilla Bean was the winner!

I Scream, You Scream, We ALL Scream For Ice Cream!

This post is sponsored by Graeter's. 

Life with four kids can only be described as noisy, chaotic, and busy! It often feels like I'm frantically juggling every aspect of motherhood, and will never be able to slow down. There are days that are amazing...and days that are not. Some days are filled with so much joy that I honestly consider adding another kid to the mix, and some days are filled with so much bickering that it makes me wonder if my kids ever got along. That's just the reality of motherhood! But even on those rough days (like today), there's one simple thing we can all agree on: Ice Cream!

A Tisket A Tasket, A Chick In A Basket - A Fun & Rewarding Easter Tradition for Kids

DISCLOSURE: This post is sponsored by Chick in a Basket.

Easter is one of my favorite holidays! It feels like a new beginning, and it's the light after a long, dark, cold winter. I look forward to it every year! The preparations have already begun, and my kids are ready to celebrate. Holidays with kids are a lot of fun, and this year, we're starting a fun new tradition: Chick in a Basket!

Dear Hollywood Screenwriters, Please Reconsider Your Use of the "R" Word

Dear Hollywood Screenwriters,

I tend to be an open minded person. I don't get offended about much, I don't get caught up in controversy, and I try to understand both sides of an issue. But today, I need to bring light to a very serious topic that affects millions of your fellow human beings, including my own family: the overuse of the word "retarded" in the entertainment industry.

The word "retard(ed)" isn't just a casual word to toss around in everyday conversation. It has one particular meaning, and it's directed at an entire community of people who have a disability. It's derogatory, it's hurtful and it's extremely offensive. Did you know that "retard" was voted the most offensive word related to a disability? So why do so many of you continue to use it so freely?

Life with Littles: February Moments & Memories

I love the month of February! It arrives with the promise of Winter being halfway over, and is usually full of fun events for my family. This February was even more exciting than usual! It began with a fun mini getaway for my family, and ended with a new puppy!

7 Awesome Ways To Build Language and Early Reading Skills with Dr.Seuss

We are celebrating National Read Across America Day today, which is the birthday Dr. Seuss! Between four kids, we have an expansive book collection, and some of our favorite books were written by this beloved children's author. Reading is an important part of a healthy lifestyle, so it's essential to encourage this habit while kids are young. Boosting language and early reading skills will help kids become confident and successful readers for life!

Puppy Love: Introducing Ella the English Mastiff

After a 3 year hiatus from dog ownership, our family grew by 4 feet this weekend! The kids have been begging for a puppy since our beloved Great Dane passed away, but I just wasn't ready to bring another dog into our lives. Their pleas could no longer be ignored, and I was starting to miss having a dog, so we started researching breeds 6 months ago. We finally decided an English Mastiff puppy would be a great fit for us, and we welcomed 11 week old Ella into our family on Saturday!

Happy Birthday, Lexie! The 11th Birthday & Yearly Interview

Our beautiful Alexandria Elizabeth celebrated her 11th Birthday today! The day Lexie was born was one of the happiest days of my life, and she continues to be an absolute joy who fills our days with so much love. Lexie is an extraordinary human being, and we celebrated her to the fullest today!

10 Incredibly Important Safety Precautions All Bloggers Should Take To Protect Their Kids Online

Blogging has come so far since I first started sharing my family nearly a decade ago! There's no doubt that blogs are a big business now. But as parenthood blogs continue to gain popularity, it's becoming even more important to take safety precautions to keep children safe in this sometimes scary online world!

The 8 Most Difficult Things About Switching a Young Child to a Gluten Free Diet

We are now 4 1/2 months into this gluten free journey, and I'm not going to sugar coat it...it sucks! Eliminating gluten from Liam's diet definitely made life more difficult. I truly wish this wasn't happening, but it's looking like it will be his reality forever.

Travel with Kids: Family Fun at Cedar Point's Castaway Bay Indoor Waterpark Resort + GIVEAWAY

DISCLOSURE: This post is sponsored by Castaway Bay, but all opinions are 100% my own.

Last week, my family and I left Pittsburgh, and made the easy 2 1/2 hour trip to nearby Sandusky, Ohio, for two days of family fun at Cedar Point's Castaway Bay Indoor Waterpark Resort! The timing was perfect for a trip with kids. The winter blues were kicking in, and what better way to chase them away than by escaping to a fun, tropical-themed water park?!?

Snapshots of January

It's hard to believe the first month of 2018 is already over! I usually hate the month of January, because it's so blah with the holidays ending, and it's so long and cold. This year, however, I didn't have many complaints! It was actually a happy, fun, cozy month!

We Went On A Family Trip...And Left One of Our Kids At Home

Before we became parents, there were so many things my husband and I said we would NEVER do as parents. Even after we had children, we still had quite a few things on that never list. We quickly learned to never say never because life happens. And this weekend we did something on our never list...we went on a family trip and left one of our children at home!

Life Lately/Currently Loving in January 2018 ~What's Up (& WELCOME) Wednesday

Happy Wednesday, my friends! Can you believe it's the last day of January already? The first month of 2018 flew by! I'm usually not a big fan of January, but for some strange reason, it wasn't so bad this year. Perhaps I'm just getting older and starting to appreciate every gift life has to offer! (Although I AM finding it a bit difficult to appreciate weather below 32 degrees...just saying.) Because it's the last day of January, I thought it would be perfect to share a life lately/currently loving post!

A Day Trip With Liam {Life with Down syndrome}

When we brought Liam home from the hospital after his birth, there was no time to relax. With three older children, we were living a very busy life, and as the 4th child, Liam was along for the ride. He got used to life on the go when he was just a few days old! That has been our life for the past 4 years, and the truth is, Down syndrome was only a little hiccup on our parenthood journey. There simply wasn't time for it to be anything more!