One thing that I am very proud of, is that my daughter (5) is a GREAT traveler.

I think it’s because as a family, we’ve done quite a bit of traveling since she was 3 months old. Whether it be by air or car (we still haven’t hit that cruise yet) she’s always been very happy even in the 9 hour car rides or the 4 hour layovers.

Here I’m going to share with you some of my top tips, tricks and products that I absolutely don’t leave home without.

First up- the tips:

It’s all about keeping your child happy, and on their schedule if at all possible. If you’re leaving on a 7:00am flight (that means security check in at 5:00am), make sure they head to bed an hour or two earlier than normal. You can start this process by 2 weeks before departure, cutting your child’s bed-time back by 15 minutes every 3 days. Your child will adjust because their bodies cannot tell 15 …Continue Reading…

This morning, it was within my time frame to book my 180-day Disney Dining Reservations. After 3 months of planning, I finally got to book where I’m going to eat in 6 months. While I’m not a fan of this much of an early reservation system (I miss you, my 90 day system!), it’s a necessary evil if you want to book some good places. The booking system online opened at 6:00am, and the phone lines opened at 7:00am. I was on at 6:00am planning most of our reservations, and on at 7:00am with a cast member to book some of the special events (like Bippidy Boppidy Boutique and Hoop de Doo).

So here’s my plan: …Continue Reading…

Thank you to TurboTax for sponsoring my writing about household finances.Learn more about how TurboTax can help you find every tax deduction you deserve. I was selected for this sponsorship by the Clever Girls Collective, which endorses Blog With Integrity, as I do.

In my end-of-year post, I mentioned that I took over our family finances in early 2010.

I also mentioned that it was a real eye-opener, and somewhat of a wake-up call.

That, was putting it lightly.

Every year, my family and I write a “wish-list” of big items we would like to purchase or do. 2011′s list has been made, and has grown (and grown, and grown…).Keep in mind, anything that makes this list MUST be paid with CASH ONLY. That’s right folks: COLD. HARD. CASH. Plastic need not apply. …Continue Reading…

This year, was probably one of my toughest yet rewarding years of my life. It’s a relief to see it behind me, but I am actually thankful I’ve experienced so much.

At the beginning of this year, I took over the family finances to ease the burden on my husband. It made it easier for just me to organize and pay the bills. It was a very rewarding growing-up experience. Before this year I’d never balanced a check book or really have to pay my own bills. Someone in my life has always just taken over that responsibility for me, and it was certainly an eye-opener!

January was tough. Because of this, behind the scenes, blogging has also been tough. Because I chose to write about my experience of abuse, I’ve dealt with a lot of harassment, hate filled blogs (that not only attacked me, but also my husband and daughter) and hate-mail on the back side.  It was from those who supported (or are) the people that did these things to me. I pray for their salvation daily, and in the end, I am so glad I have this forum to share my story. So many of you came forward with your own stories of abuse (whether it be physical, mental or both) and it’s nice to know that there are other survivors out there.

In February, I also went to Blissdom, and met some amazing people! I also got closer to some of my “Big Deal Moms” during the experience (a big shout out to my “Meals and Deals” crew!) and it helped …Continue Reading…