Category Archives: Favorites

Deal Alert, Fashion, Favorites, Style

The World’s Greatest Jean Jacket: Costco Find!

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Jean Jackets have always held a special place in my heart. I actually vividly remember my very first jean jacket when I was probably 10 or 11 because it was the first clothing item I clearly remember choosing myself! Jean Jackets have been a fashion must-have for decades now and it’s hard to imagine a better choice for wardrobe staple than this American classic! But why is a good jean jacket SO hard to find? And why did I own SO many jean jackets that never really got worn? After years of searching, I’ve found a jean jacket that I truly love and it’s time to share with the world.

This post contains affiliate links. 

2025 UPDATE:
Guess what? Looking back on this post today in 2025, I still love the Costco Jean Jacket. But now that I’m styling more sustainable fabrics, like merino wool, cotton, linen, and silk, I have a couple different ideas for a natural fiber alternative:

Check out the Organic Cotton Jean Jackets from Quince! These jackets are SO affordable and I have been so happy with the Quince Denim I’ve tried so far. You can also find some incredible gently used or second hand jean jackets on ebay or on Poshmark!

In my adult life I have probably owned 6 or 8 different jean jackets and tried on countless others. I have always liked the look and thought it would make a great addition to my closet but never loved the fit and always found myself reaching for a cardigan or sweatshirt instead. Why? Jean jackets are often stiff, too loose, and fail to allow for the range of movement I need in my life!

Because my Barefoot Dreams Cardigan post has been one of the most popular posts on my blog, I wanted to make a similar post sharing this awesome denim jacket find!

The Jean Jacket of my dreams comes from Costco of all places. (This is not the first time I’ve found closet staples at Costco!) I bought my first one last year and have worn it so much I’m thinking of grabbing another. Because it’s a soft, stretchy knit rather than a heavy denim, it is comfortable and gives me all the room I need to move, reach, grab and slouch to my heart’s content. This year, the Costco Jean Jacket is back and my store recently marked them down to $9.97. Can you believe it? I totally recommend grabbing these if you can find them because you can’t beat the price. Unfortunately they aren’t on the website right now, but I will update if they pop back up again this summer.

If you can’t find these at Costco, never fear! They also now available on Amazon. Click here for Buffalo Knit Denim Jacket. I believe this is last year’s version although the wash seems a little different. But the magic is definitely in the knit! Here’s another Buffalo Knit Jean Jacket, in dark wash and in a very pale pink which is a great spring/summer neutral. You’ll be paying a little more on Amazon than Costco but I don’t think you’ll be disappointed in the comfort you’re getting for the cost!

Here are a few pics of me in the Costco Denim Jacket. Both jackets are size small, but as you can see they fit me a little bit differently. The one downsize to Costco clothing is that I’ve found their sizes can be somewhat inconsistent. I’ll try to update this post soon with some better pics of my jacket.

Do you have the Buffalo Knit Denim Jacket? Let me know if you love it like I do!

This post contains affiliate links. 

Deal Alert, Favorites, Shopping

Cheaper than Hanna Andersson: Matching Holiday Pajamas for the Family

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The Holiday Season is quickly approaching and one of our favorite ways to enjoy the cozy colder months is with matching holiday pajamas. Traditionally, we have invested in Hanna Andersson pajamas because they are incredible quality that really lasts from year to year (through child after child) but if you can’t find a deal they can be really pricey! Last year I found Christmas pajamas on a great sale in January or February but this year I’m scrambling in November.

The great thing is, more companies now make cotton pjs in family sizes and Amazon has a great selection right now, making them more affordable with our favorite 2-day-shipping. I really appreciate you clicking through my Amazon links which will help cover some of my family’s Christmas purchases (at no extra cost to you). 

So let me share what I’ve found! I’m only sharing pajamas that seem to have great reviews and most are also 100% cotton because we are obsessed with the softness and durability of our favorite Hannas!

Holiday Pajama Deals

First up, these Shelry Cotton Holiday PJs, in tons of sizes starting at only $12.99. There are traditional green white stripes, plus several festive prints including a really adorable Christmas Tree Truck style!

If you just need children’s sizes, these Shelry Striped Pajamas are the cheapest I could find for the traditional red and white or green and white striped sets in sizes 18 months through Kids 14. All sizes are only $11.99-$14.99 so these are a great deal! 

 

Hoping for a Red & Green option (with no stain-tempting white)? Here’s what I found from Leveret! This brand is a little pricier but I have found they have great quality and similar thickness to our favorite Hannas. (And still beat them price-wise).

Looking for something a little less traditional? I love this black and white Sykooria Christmas Family option with prices starting at only $16.59. There aren’t baby sizes for this style but this might be more fun for families with older kids like mine, since the style is a little more “cool”. 

I know a lot of families would abosolutely adore this PajamaGram Star Wars pattern! The pants for thsese are polyesther but seriously check out the cute pattern and these are priced starting at only $14.99.

Back to Red & White again, these Gold Treasure PJs are crazy affordable at only $9.90 each with limited sizing.  

This Yallet Christmas Family PJ listing starts at only $14.99 and includes lots of sizes. I love the plaid!

There are so many Christmas holiday pjs available on Amazon, with really affordable and unique styles. Click here to check out the whole selection and get ready for a cozy family holiday season!

This post uses affiliate links. Thank you for supporting ChasingSantee! 

 

 

Blogging, Everything Else, Favorites

My Ultimate Favorite Things Round-up!

I talk about favorite products a lot around here, but recently a few folks have been asking for more info on some of my favorites. So I wanted to take the opportunity to talk about some of my favorite items and why they are so amazing!

This post is in progress, so please pardon the lack of neatness! 

I’ll be using affiliate links throughout this post to take you right to my favorite products on Amazon. If you decide to buy something, it won’t cost you any extra but I’ll receive a small commission. It helps me keep my blog going and afford my next must-have items! Some of the posts might contain a coupon code so be sure to check!

*Instant Pot
Life-changing. I now have two. I can’t remember how I fed my family before I got them! Probably my top favorite invention and whoever is responsible has my undying, eternal gratitude. Yesterday returned from grocery store about 4:30 and had sweet potatoes and corned beef made in time for dinner with about 5 minutes of set up. I’ve mentioned it before and I’ll mention it again and again.

Click here to check out the Instant Pot. 

*Marpac Sound Machines
We are super vigilant with guarding sleep in our family and this is a must-have. We own three and will not travel without them. In the past we’ve used box fans and other sounds machines but because the Marpac is an electronic fan, there is NO variation or “seam” in the sound making it far superior as a white noise generator. Plus it’s way smaller than a box fan and perfectly portable.

Click here for the Marpac Sound Machine.

*Sash Bag Purse

I never knew how much I hated a purse until I switched to a Sash Bag! I never felt this way about a purse before. Beautiful, light-weight. ergonomic, doesn’t hurt my neck, eliminates need for wallet, completely organized, impossible to lose, best customer service I have ever encountered. I’m such a huge fan I’ve become a brand ambassador and as of this date I believe I’m the top referrer for the brand. It’s because switching to a beautiful, comfortable, perfectly designed crossbody bag that hugs your body is a total no-brainer!

Click here to explore the Sash Bag. (You’ll even save 10% when you buy through my link). Don’t miss the new reversible leather and cloth options, they are to die for!

*Coaster Tray-now we don’t waste cups and glasses and the kids don’t leave them everywhere.

*Vitamix-Totally worth the investment. We use our Vitamix almost every day. It’s a powerhouse appliance that lasts for years!

*NYDJ– Not Your Daughter’s Jeans are the best ever. I love them and have mostly culled my non-NYDJ jeans. They fit great and really do make you look two sizes smaller. I have found must of mine at Nordstrom Rack or thrift stores but you can also get them on Amazon. 

*Zip-it Bedding

I’m so glad we found Zip-It bedding and I have to say they’ve held up so much better than I expected. My son has a loft bed (shown in pic) and my girls have a bunk bed and it is just plain a HUGE pain to make them up and change the sheets. With our allergies, we need to wash comforters+sheets at least every two weeks, which is a tall order. With our old bedding, even when a neat-freak of an adult made them, they never looked neat because bedding isn’t designed for bunks. Now I can wash and re-make all three beds within a few hours and they look amazing. I consider Zip-it Bedding a Mom-hack for sure!

*Simplified cleaning/bath body-I’m still working out my cleaning routine but I know for sure that a simplified cleaning and bath routine works GREAT for us. We use e-cloth for cleaning (basically a budget version of Norwex) and Force of Nature cleaner!

*Color-coded towels

I love having one color per kid. It has vastly simplified our laundry and next time I need to replace towels I will probably get a separate color for myself and my husband too! It makes a huge difference in laundry and you never have to ask “Who left this towel on the floor?”

*Ikea furniture
We specifically love the Kura junior loft bed and the Mydal bunk beds. We have recently gotten the Svalnas built-in desks and love them also!

*Tangle Teezer Brushes
These are something that literally saved my time and sanity when the girls were little. I tried SO many products and SO many brushes but these were ultimately the winners! They made combing out those crazy tangled curls do-able!

*Sashka Co Bracelets
I love sashka co bracelets as a unique little gift for friends or teachers. Click here and use code CHASINGSANTEE25 to save 25% on all purchases! SASHKA CO. GLASS BEADED BRACELETS ARE HANDMADE BY SKILLED ARTISANS IN THE KATHMANDU VALLEY OF NEPAL. PROCEEDS FROM YOUR PURCHASE EMPOWER WOMEN IN NEED TO RISE ABOVE POVERTY THROUGH FAIR TRADE. ROLL A BRACELET ON AND MAKE A DIFFERENCE. 

*Plant Therapy Essential Oils
The more I learn about them, the more I love essential oils. I use a few Young Living products and some Doterra and I love them, but in general they are very expensive and the cost is padded to cover the direct sales platform. Plant therapy essential oils is crazy affordable and exceptional quality. I have been so happy with their safety guidelines, customer support and products. My very favorite product is Relax!


*AlexaPure Water Filter
I had been wanting a Berkey Water filter for a loooong time, but I couldn’t justify the price. We need the filter to remove fluoride, chlorine, and toxins and the AlexaPure does it all for way less! I’m super happy with it!

This post contains affiliate links. 

Favorites, Style

SoCal Curls Hairtie Review And Giveaway!

Welcome to ChasingSantee’s very first giveaway courtesy of SoCal Curls.

This post contains affiliate links for your convenience!

I love unique, natural, and American made products and SoCal Curls Hairtie is one of my favorite hair discoveries, EVER! Why? It’s heat-free, takes about 90 seconds of effort, and is portable, light-weight & comfortable to wear (also, only $18.99, which is a steal!).  For those who know me, I really don’t want to spend time on my hair, makeup, clothing or general morning routine. But I want to look nice, is that too much to ask? NO IT ISN’T! Here’s how you can get simple beachy curls, without pulling out the damaging (and pricey!) hot styling tools! Woot!

Scroll down for a coupon code that will score you 20% off and FREE SHIPPING!

Step 1: Heat it (microwave: 30 seconds)

Step 2: Wrap it (click here for a video!)

Step 3: Unwrap it (I’m sure ya’ll can figure this out!)

Step 4: Do all the things you need to do in life! Who has time to waste getting ready with everything else you have on your plate!

Click here to see my tips for using SoCal Curls Hairtie with Short Hair!

How it works: I started with second day hair that was a little damp from the shower (not washed, just went along on my head for the ride).  I simply microwaved the band for 30 seconds, wrapped my hair around the tie using these instructions, gave it a light spritz of hair spray and left it in for about 30 minutes. Voila! Beachy waves!

Ready to buy? If you’d like to buy directly from SoCalcurls.com, I’ve got fantastic news! We have a special coupon code just for you that will give you 20% off and FREE SHIPPING! Click here and use code: chasingsantee to take advantage of this awesome offer!

How to customize your curls: Just like any styling tool, there’s a learning curve to using SoCal Curls and, obviously, everyone has a different head of hair. You can customize your results by tweaking the time (even 15 minutes gets some nice waves in my hair), wrapping your hair damp v. dry or using different products like gel, hair spray, or sea salt spray (here’s my favorite- Not Your Mother’s Beach Babe Sea Salt Spray).  Also, you can never go wrong with a spritz of dry shampoo for extra grip (here’s my favorite- Aveeno Dry Shampoo). You will also get different results depending on if you wrap the hair straight up and over the hairtie, or twist as you wrap. Just give it a few tries to find out what works the best for your hair! It might take a bit of experimentation but imagine the time you will save in the long run.

Now, on to the giveaway! I can barely contain my excitement!

What are you giving away?
We are giving away one SoCal Curls Hairtie in Pinup Blue, valued at $18.99. Thank you so much SoCal Curls for making this giveaway possible!

Who Can Enter this sweepstakes?
You must be over 18 years of age and live in the US to be eligible for this giveaway

How do I enter?
Enter below starting on August 1, 2017! The contest will close at the end of the day on August 7, 2017!

How will the winner be chosen?
We will be selecting the winner via Rafflecopter.

How will the winner be notified?
Winner will be announced via Facebook, so be sure to like our page! We will ship your prize within 3-5 business days of receiving your shipping info. Good luck!

Anything else I should know?
Yep, the fine-print stuff: No purchase necessary. Void where prohibited. Odds of winning determined by eligible entries.

Disclaimer: I received a free product from SoCal Curls in exchange for my honest review. These are all my own thoughts just as if I were talking to a friend about the product. 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Everything Else, Favorites, Minimalism

Friday Favorites March Edition

It’s been a while since I have done a Friday Favorites, but I do a have a few new fun things that we are loving lately. Things have been super busy for work and homeschooling and my personal blogging has been put on the back burner, but I don’t want to leave it there! I only have a few minutes to create this post, so let’s get right to it. This post will contain affiliate links for your convenience! Don’t worry, it’s not all stuff!

Organic Mascara: I asked for this Organic Mascara (Endlessly Beautiful) for Christmas and it didn’t disappoint. It’s a bit pricey for me, but I have a really hard time with mascara irritating my eyes and have tried many brands. This is a nice, basic black mascara that is by far the gentlest I have found (better than Neutrogena, Almay, and Physician’s Formula). This doesn’t have some of the amazing features of drug-store brands (no extra crazy length or super waterproof coating) but it goes on nicely and stays well. Mostly, I am happy that I am not rubbing it off, so if you have sensitive eyes, I would recommend it.

The God-Centered Mom Podcast–I’m ridiculously late to the Podcast Party, but I’ve recently been catching up and mostly choosing minimalist topics. But my friend recommended The God-Centered Mom Podcast and it’s been fantastic. The handful of episodes I have listened to have been incredibly thought-provoking and relevant to where I am right now as a Christian mom and wife! I am still processing the last episode I heard about “Smiling Depression”. If you have ever struggled with shame or perfectionism I think this will really interest you. Thanks Susan for letting me know about The God-Centered Mom!

A Streamlined wardrobe. I am loving my simplified wardrobe. I have not made the transition to a true capsule wardrobe. However, I am trying to move in that direction slowly, with practical steps. I have cleaned out my closet in phases so that after each purge my clothing becomes more “me”, more simple, and more functional. I’m loving it. I have been forcing myself to experiment with monochromatic choices and it has been surprisingly helpful. Just another way of cutting out decision fatigue in my life! Specifically, I purchased a couple of these soft and comfy tees in grey and black and have been wearing them weekly. 

Just one purse. I had no idea the bags I owned were really complicating my life until I got rid of them. I knew that I had neck and back issues so I decided to eliminate all of my heavy bags (even though they tend to be *nicer*: Goodbye to my lovely leather Michael Kors tote!). Also, I realized the patterned bags were just to difficult to match (Vera Bradley, I’m looking at you). Plus switching bags by mood or color was causing the clutter to build up and receipts to become lost. Guess what? I don’t miss those bags a bit! I received a lightweight Thirty-One hipster for my birthday last summer and have used it every day. Recently, I decided to make one more handbag purchase keeping in mind my vow for embracing neutrals: the Houndstooth print Kavu rope bag. The compartments of this bag have taken me a little time to get used to, but I LOVE how light and comfortable it is. It feels almost strangely light on my back compared to a shoulder bag with the same contents! It’s obviously a casual bag, but it was time for me to admit that 99.99% of my time I am dressing casually, and HELLO!? there is nothing wrong with that!

Our evening routine: For the first time as a mom, I feel like our evenings (and mornings for the most part) are truly productive and we have formed actual habits instead of forcing ourselves through painful routines that just never became second-nature. Although I can’t completely explain how this process has been crystallized I will tell you it has 100% been about simplicity and mindfulness and all began by eliminating excess in every room of our home. Just embracing the idea that motherhood does not have to be a series of complete failures and looking for actual solutions to the problems has been revolutionary for me! It has become blissfully simple to leave our house neat each morning and go to bed with everything (at least in the living areas) in their proper place. I will try to blog more about this later! Right now, I just really intend this to be an encouragement. As moms, sometimes we don’t need to hear over and over: “it’s normal, everyone struggles like this, don’t strive for perfection”. Sometimes we need to hear, “Being a mom is hard. Look for the best way to succeed as a mom and work for it”. That’s what I am telling myself from now on.

Ellie Holcomb– Music used to be a huge part of my day…. when I had my days virtually to myself. Now there is so much NOISE that I often hesitate to add to the audible clutter by turning on anything. But I realized that I missed inspirational Christian music, so I was pulling out my old CDs from the 90’s. Then a friend on facebook suggested Ellie Holcomb (thank you Rebecca!) and I have got to tell you that I AM HOOKED. She has a beautiful voice and a wonderful message that I really relate to. Here is one of her music videos, but I have been listening to Ellie for free using Spotify! Click here for her Album Red Sea Road.

That’s it for now! Have a wonderful weekend!

Everything Else, Favorites, Health, Review, Shopping, Women

Just for Women: Part 2

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I mentioned in Part 1 that I have become a loyal convert to reusable feminine care solutions. I am so much happier dealing with “that time of the month” since I switched from disposable products. My first menstrual cup was the Diva Cup and it was revolutionary for me. However, recently I have been searching for something that would work a little better for me, and I am excited to share about it now!

FemmyCycle was kind enough to send me a free reusable cup to test and honestly review. I did not receive any compensation for this review, nor did I commit to writing anything other than my honest opinion about the product. Luckily, my honest review turns out to be very positive!

Here’s why I was really excited to try the Femmy Cycle. It has the largest capacity of any cup I could find. Also, it comes in three different sizes which includes a low cervix version. Finally, it has a unique leak proof design that no other cup offers. A few other things that make it different from the others: it’s softer, cleaning instructions do not suggest boiling, and it’s suggested lifespan is only two years.

Down to the details:

Is it comfortable? YES. I found it more comfortable by far than others I have used.

Is it easy to use? After practice, sure. Like most products in this category, it does have a learning curve.

Is it effective? For me, VERY. Performance was better for me than anything else I have used. Keep in mind that every woman is different, so results may vary.

Does the spill-proof feature work? To my amazement, YES.

I really like the FemmyCycle and will continue using it. I do think that the design makes it a little trickier to learn for a first-timer, but I think it’s a great option for those who have trouble with other cups or just need better protection. I’m not sure why it would need to be replaced every two years, when other cups’ suggested life span are closer to a decade. It’s slightly pricey compared to other versions on the market, but most of us can overlook the cost which is minimal over the life of the product. Women should be aware of all their options, and FemmyCycle is a great one!

FemmyCycle was kind enough to send me a free reusable cup to test and honestly review. I did not receive any compensation for this review, nor did I commit to writing anything other than my honest opinion about the product. Luckily, my honest review turns out to be very positive!

Deal Alert, Favorites, Shopping

Intro to Amazon Warehouse Deals

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This post contains affiliate links. As always, I only recommend products that I use or want to try for my own family.

Happy Friday!

In case you haven’t noticed, my hobby is finding deals and shopping. My parents just pointed out to me that this started when I was a young teen and I would call a list of stores regularly in search of hard to find Ty Beanie Babies. Then my mom, tybless her heart, would drive me around to buy them! This memory really cracks me up, but I would like to point out that my children still love Beanie Babies so that garbage bag in the attic wasn’t an entirely useless investment. (Also, hello? I loved shopping way before that age.)

Because I spend a disproportionate amount of time searching for deals (even those I have no real intention of buying), I wanted to share one of my favorite bargain spots, the Amazon Warehouse. You will want to bookmark this page because it is, for some reason, hard to navigate to at times. Amazon Warehouse Deals contains returned, discounted, used and possibly damaged items. There is usually an accurate description of the condition of the item and it is still covered by Amazon’s Return Policy.

My favorite way to navigate Amazon Warehouse is simply to search for my favorite brands or to browse an entire category like shoes. Within that category, you can search by brand or percentage of discount using the links on the left bar. For instance, I sometimes search by Women’s Shoes, 70% off or more. Shoes are frequently returned and can’t be sold as brand new even if they appear to have never been worn or tried on. Most of my shoes are from Amazon Warehouse Deals, this has been my favorite Amazon shopping tip so far.

Some other examples of deals I have gotten at the Warehouse:

Vera Bradley Get Carried Away Tote (Indigo Pop)
Sold by: Warehouse Deals, Inc
$12.27(regularly $92)
vb tote
Instant Pot
$65.33 (list price $219, regular Amazon price $89.99)
Clark’s Bronte Bootie
$19.79 (regularly $160)
Just as a reminder, deals found in the warehouse DO fluctuate in price, sometimes dramatically. So I usually keep $500 or so of interesting products in my cart just seeing what they will do. It becomes a bit of a gamble because sometimes I watch prices steadily go down (even lowering multiple times a day) only to shoot right up (or sell out) while I am waiting, mesmerized.
So that’s an introduction to the Amazon Warehouse Deals, I hope you find it helpful!
Cooking, Favorites, Health, Homemade, Kids, Recipes

Flour-Free Peanut Butter Cup Cookies

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We have had a fun spring break that has been full of relaxing, family time, waiting around for a nephew to be born, and playing at the park. Before school starts tomorrow, we thought we would have one more treat-fling. These are crazy-easy, surprisingly delicious, grain-free cookies! I stumbled across an easy recipe for peanut butter cookies nearly thirteen years ago, and have repeated it ever since. Tonight I tweaked it a bit and we think it’s the best version yet!

This post has some affiliate links, so that I can make a few pennies off your purchases, at no additional cost to you! Enjoy your cookies!

PBcupcookies

Flour-Free Peanut Butter Cup Cookies

1 cup Peanut Butter

1 cup Almond Butter

2 cups sugar

2 eggs

1 cup dark chocolate chips

4 tbls. additional sugar

  1. Preheat oven to 375 °F
  2. Beat 1 cup Peanut Butter, 1 cup Almond Butter, 2 cups sugar and 2 eggs together thoroughly in a large bowl.
  3. Gently stir in 1 cup chocolate chips
  4. Form dough into balls and roll each in additional sugar.
  5. Bake for 10-12 minutes and allow to cool thoroughly.
  6. Enjoy! Makes about 4 dozen cookies.
Cooking, Favorites, Homemade, Kids, Recipes

How we do Dinner: Part 1

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I really only cook cook two or three times a week. I always double/triple pretty much every recipe and my family is prepared to eat leftovers; “Here is your dinner of leftovers or you may have a banana”.
For the other nights, when we aren’t eating a “real” meal, we are big on customizable formulas. I have found my kids get really excited about “DIY” meals even if they are really simple. To be fair, my kids are not at all picky, which is a huge blessing. They are good about eating almost everything so that isn’t a battle (we have lots of battles, just not that one). These ideas aren’t revolutionary or original but they work great for us:
Any links I have added to this post are Amazon Affiliate links and they help me continue posting great content! Thank you for your support.
  • Omelettes: We do a lot of breakfast for dinner:eggs/grits/fruit or omelettes & fruit (I spent a long time googling omelettes and finally found a perfect photo tutorial on how to make them easily, but they removed the link). Options: sausage, bacon bits, onions, peppers, tomatoes, cheese, broccoli etc. I have also made omelette kits and put them in the freezer with small bags of fresh veggies/shredded cheese/cooked sausage/onions and put it all in a big ziplock to grab in a hurry. This makes it crazy easy and  cheap because you have just enough of everything right when you need it.
  • Oatmeal Bar: Sometimes we even do a “gourmet” oatmeal bar with tons of toppings. Yes, I give my kids a bowl of oatmeal for dinner but if they have a small sprinkle of chocolate chips and some sliced strawberries they say “best dinner ever”. The secret to delicious oatmeal is a big plop of real butter and a drizzle of half and half or whole milk/cream. Options: fruit, brown sugar, nuts (huge bag of sliced almonds from Costco lasts forever and goes into lots of our recipes), coconut, rainsins/craisins, chocolate chips, peanut butter.
  • Nacho Night: This is also an effort free meal that somehow gets my kids very excited. We often do Nacho Night on a blanket on the floor and have movie night, so that could be a big part of the appeal! Aldi has tortilla chips for like $1.20 a bag so we are never without these. Options: shredded chicken (canned works), beans, cheese, sour cream, guacamole, veggies, ground beef. Nachos “outside the box” can include breakfast toppings (my friend Katy does sausage, eggs, cheese on nachos), or chicken salad with chips (super delicious and lower carb than chicken salad sandwiches). One final touch that we love is serving in food baskets, just like you’d get at a burger joint or hot dog stand. It makes it so much more fun!
  • Just add a smoothie! When we have slim pickings for dinner (the end of leftovers, or something my kids aren’t thrilled to eat), we add a smoothie to round out our meal. After years of smoothies, my kids still LOVE them and I can make it healthy to add  to a not-so-fab meal OR decadent to add to a healthy but not exciting meal (big spinach salad with tons of toppings is great with a chocolate peanut butter smoothie on the side). This is when having a vitamix is 100% worth it for us. Seriously, it’s like a magic bullet at our house: “We are having salad……*crickets…..AND A SMOOTHIE” *big cheers* (affiliate link).
  • Fruit side/treat: Another thing we have been doing is swapping a side out for fruit. So say we have grilled chicken and rice as our main course. Instead of adding broccoli, we add fresh pineapple which is a big treat for us. Suddenly our meal is exciting and  I have found this really helps me not feel like I need dessert also, so it’s a win/win.

Like I said, these are not original ideas or revolutionary ones, but they are in our current rotation and are working for us now. Cooking for a family gets so tiring with all the other obligations of parenting, so anything that makes it easier is valuable in my book! I’d love to hear any ideas you have and I’ll be adding Part 2 soon!

Books, Deal Alert, Favorites, Homeschooling, Kids

What’s on my Kindle

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Please note that these links are Amazon Referral Links and that I will receive a small commission on purchases made through this link. Thanks for helping to make my blog dreams come true!

I was delighted to discover one of my favorite books from childhood is available for free for the Kindle: Freckles by Gene Stratton Porter.

This is a beautiful, soulful story of an orphan who finds his home in the Limberlost and falls in love with an “angel”. The theme of redemption is moving and the vivid descriptions of the swamp creatures, birds, and foliage are mesmerizing.

The book is free, but I discovered that you can purchase the audio for many of the free classics for a few dollars (in this case $3). The girls and I have been listening to this together and the narration is wonderful; the reading level on this is probably 7th grade and up but younger listeners will enjoy. You have to grab this book for the incredible vocabulary if nothing else! Also check out these titles (and many more) by the same author:

Freckles

A Girl of the Limberlostfreckles

Or the Gene Stratton Porter 10 Volume Collection for only $1.99!

Nothing can quite take the place of the gorgeous antique copies of these titles that I was lucky enough to be gifted, but I do love digital books also! Remember that you can download the Kindle app for free for your phone or right now Amazon has some great prices on Kindles, check them out here!

Books, Favorites, Friday Favorites, Homeschooling, Kids

Friday Favorites: Fancy Edition

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This week Friday’s Favorite is a flashback favorite to one of our favorite authors, Jane O’Connor.

I try not let my prissiness get out of control, but I’m really a girly girl at heart. Fortunately, my children seem to be a little more well-rounded; loving animals, sports, books, and still playing with dolls and wearing tutus occasionally. We all love the Fancy Nancy series by Jane O’Conner.Fancy Nancys

The illustrations are beautiful and the stories sweet. Not only does the series tickle a little girl’s pink funny bone, but it teaches a lot of great vocabulary words, even some basic French, while encouraging kindness and empathy. In Fancy Nancy we meet the Clancy family, and Nancy who feels it is “hard being the only fancy person in your family”. In Fancy Nancy Bonjour Butterfly Nancy apologizes to her mother for her behavior and learns that you must choose to have a good attitude even when faced with disappointment. The Clancy family learns about responsibility in Fancy Nancy and the Posh Puppy. One of our favorites, Fancy Nancy and the Splendiferous Christmas talks about the importance of family and establishing traditions and memories.

The series isn’t just about glittery boas and lacy accessories, Fancy Nancy Explorer Extraordinaire delves into plants, insects, and exploration from a “fancy” perspective. I love how it shows girls can be strong and feminine at the same time. We love these books and recommend you look to Jane O’Conner’s many titles for your daily fancy fix!

Deal Alert, Favorites, Homeschooling, Kids

Name Bubbles Coupon Code

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Even though we homeschool, we have been using Name Bubbles personalized stickers for years. With identical twins, we tend to have issues keeping tracking of whose items are whose and these perfectly solve the problem. Name Bubbles has several combo packs that include laundry safe and dishwasher safe labels. I have never had a label come off or even start to show wear, even after dozens of trips through the dishwasher or washing machine. As a matter of fact, I have even pulled the laundry stickers off of outgrown items and re-used them on the bigger size with success! That’s impressive. If you think you don’t need name labels for your child’s stuff, I invite you to take a look at our Homeschool Lost & Found. The mountain of hoodies and lunchboxes says it all! Today only get 17% off with code LUCK!