The 15 Absolute Best Netflix Originals of 2017

This post is sponsored by Netflix. I am a member of the Netflix StreamTeam, and receive service and promotional items in exchange for my review.

I can hardly believe that it's the end of 2017! Is it just me or was it the fastest year EVER?!? I sure hope 2018 goes by a bit more slowly!

Our fastest year ever was also the busiest year for my family. Even though there wasn't much free time, we still managed to make our Netflix Date Nights and Family Movie Nights a regular priority. And throughout 2017, we continued to watch our tried and true favorites, and also discovered a few new shows to add to the rotation!

The Long Christmas Break

Happy Friday, my friends! The past month has been very busy for me, and I was feeling really overwhelmed. I had so much on my plate that Grant urged me to take a brief blogging break for Christmas, and I agreed. I had only planned on taking a break for a week, but one week turned into two. Although it was the longest blogging break I have ever taken, it was exactly what I needed! 

Christmas didn't turn out as expected, but I will save that post for another day! If you follow me on social media, then you already know that Liam got really sick on Christmas, and ended up in the hospital. But in the spirit of easing back into a regular blogging schedule, I'm just going to recap some of the fun things my family did during my long break.

With four kids in school, there are a lot of activities during the holiday season. I'm not sure why that happens, but it tends to make the already busy time of year even busier! I could barely keep up this year!

10 Simply Relaxing Ways To Enjoy The Holiday Season With Kids ~ Featuring Cozy Holiday Style From OshKosh B'gosh + $50 Gift Card GIVEAWAY

This post is sponsored by Everywhere Agency on behalf of OshKosh B’gosh; however, all thoughts and opinions expressed are my own.

We are in the midst of the busy holiday season, and I am struggling to stay afloat! My to do list is 5 miles long, we have plans every single day, and I'm wondering how we're going to check off all of our favorite Christmas Traditions from our Christmas Bucket List. We should be enjoying the holiday season with our kids, but instead, we spend more time rushing from event to event, and trying to accomplish tasks from our to do list!

The Absolutely Stress-Free Way To Host a Cozy Holiday Brunch

This post is sponsored by Bruegger’s Bagels, but all content is 100% my own.

There’s no doubt that everybody is extremely busy this time of year! Between all the parties, school events, and holiday traditions, my family doesn’t get a moment of rest. There isn’t even any time left over to host our own Christmas party. We have to get creative if we want to see our loved ones, so we choose to host a simple holiday brunch for a few of our favorite people!

Teach Your Kids To Give Back This Holiday Season & Support Tackle Kids Cancer

Christmas is the season of giving, but for many kids, the focus is on receiving. As parents, my husband and I work hard to teach our own four children that it's so much more special to give than receive, and that it's especially important to give back during the holiday season. We don't want to raise selfish, ungrateful children, so teaching them the importance of giving back while they are young is essential!

The Start of the Holiday Season

Like most families, the excitement about the upcoming holiday season starts to kick in for us in October, but we don't consider it the true holiday season until Thanksgiving! The anticipation builds for 3 months, and no matter how much we try to slow down to enjoy each moment, it seems to go faster with each passing year. And even though it goes far too quickly for my liking, it's still my favorite time of year!

How To Live In The Now With Your Spouse AND Save For Your Future

My husband and I don't get out much for date night! With four children to raise, including one who has special needs, there's never enough time, and we can always think of so many ways that the money could be better spent. Date nights only occur 4-5 times a year for us, and truthfully, that's not ideal. We NEED to be able to briefly escape from our children to reconnect as a married couple more often. Being able to live in the now is every bit as important as saving for our future!

Super Sweet DIY Ice Cream Holiday Gift Bundles

DISCLOSURE: Thank you to Graeter's for kindly sponsoring this post. All opinions are 100% honest & completely my own.

If you're a busy mom like me, then you probably have lots of extra holiday gifts to buy, and not enough time to do it all! With four kids of our own, we have 13 teachers, 3 therapists, 3 dance instructors, a coach and 2 bus drivers to buy gifts for. Add in gifts for family, friends and party hostesses, and things get complicated AND expensive! Thankfully, there's a simple solution for some of those gifts: Super sweet (and easy) DIY Ice Cream Gift Bundles!

A Healthy Haircare Regimen for Everyone in Your Family

One of my goals for 2017 was switching to a healthier lifestyle for my entire family! Rather than overwhelm myself by trying to do everything at once, I made gradual changes throughout the year. Introducing healthier, more natural products was one of those changes. I even found a safer haircare regimen that is great for everyone! 

Welcome to the Teenage Years!

Last Wednesday, we celebrated a milestone birthday in our family! Although it feels like we've had a teenager living in our home for the past few months, November 22nd was Dylan's 13th birthday, and our official welcome to the teenage years!