There are a million articles, books, and blog posts about sleep training on the internet. With a million different thoughts and opinions. Much of parenting boils down to personal preference, and our personal preference has been to sleep train our 4 kids from birth. We recommend sleep training your newborn! (Good thing we did… because…
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How to Sleep Train with a Parent Led Method & Teach Your Newborn to Sleep Through the Night
There is a lot of advice about how to sleep train out there… everything from “dictate your baby’s life down to the minute” TO “my baby sleeps whenever they want and I never know what to expect.” We have taken what we call a holistic, parent-led approach in our sleep training. The philosophy of a…
Wondering how to get baby to nap longer? Your baby is probably over tired!
One of the most common sleep-training problems I encounter is moms wondering how to get a baby to nap longer. I hear a version of this naptime problem a lot! “My baby only naps for 30-45 minutes. And they wake up screaming.” “I try to keep them awake for 2 hours or so because they…
Everything You Need to Know About How to Transition Toddler to Their Own Bed
Okay, are you ready? This is probably going to be the world’s shortest blog post, but I finally decided to write it because I get this question a lot! How do you transition toddler out of their crib? Don’t. There. The end. (Just kidding – I’ll flesh our our theory on moving toddlers to big…
Why Baby Should Sleep In Their Own Bed From Day 1
It seems like moms would do almost anything to get their babies to sleep more. Getting your baby to sleep for 12 hours straight at night is the holy grail of baby sleep. But, maybe you’d even settle for getting baby to sleep for even just 4 or 6 hours without feeding. There are so…
Top 7 Things to Do When You’re Preparing for Baby
Let’s be honest. The title of this post is ridiculous. Nothing could ever totally help you with preparing for baby. But, should you find yourself expecting a baby (or hoping for, adopting, or fostering a baby), there are a few things that might make the transition to mommy life just a tad bit easier. 1. Find…
Pregnancy Tips for the First Trimester: 23 Pregnancy Hacks From a Mom of 4
I have been pregnant 5 times in the past 5.5 years. One of those pregnancies ended in an early miscarriage, but all 5 came with varying degrees of morning sickness. With each pregnancy, I had more other small children at home to take care of (because that’s how that works… ha!) Thus, I had to…
Life Long Readers
One of our goals for our kids is that they develop a love for reading and maintain it throughout their entire lives. To that end, here are 10 specific ways we encourage reading in our home: 1. BECOME LIBRARY NERDS We go to the library almost every week. When the girls were 1 and 3…
Joy and the Temporary Relief of Me Time
I thought I deserved me time. Everyone told me I did. “You should get your nails done.” “Just buy yourself a cup of coffee.” “Just do a little shopping.” “You’ll feel better if you can have a night to yourself.” And all those things are nice and were said by well-meaning people. Sometimes even by…
YNAB Review (You Need a Budget) // Is YNAB Worth the Money?
YNAB stands for You Need a Budget. In 2016, YNAB moved from being a downloadable software program to being an online (web-based) budgeting program. We have tried several budgeting systems and tools over the years: Mint, Everydollar (my complete Everydollar review here), spreadsheets, random apps, and now YNAB. Though it’s not perfect, YNAB is by…
How to Cut Your Grocery Bill
It seems like everyone and their mom wants to know how to cut your grocery bill down. Whether you’re trying to stop overspending on credit cards or want to spend less on groceries so you can hit a savings goal, this grocery-bill-cutting process works. If you stick to this, you will learn how to cut your grocery…
The Best Google Photos Tutorial // A Complete Solution for All Your Phone Pictures
Mommas, I see you at the park (and the zoo, pool, checkout line, library,…) snapping a zillion phone pictures like a boss. I do it too. And then a month later, you start getting the dreaded YOU ARE ALMOST OUT OF STORAGE notifications. What’s a girl to do!? If you have an iPhone like me, Apple wants…
A Practical Guide to the Parent-Led Grace-Filled Home
Our 4 year old’s bedtime habits had gotten out of control lately. One more toy, one more kiss, one more hug, one more drink… if we said no to something, dramatic tears ensued. Perhaps you can relate? Any one of those things on any given night wouldn’t be an issue. But, slowly we had let our 4…
Let Us Not Grow Weary of Doing Good, Mommas!
It all started when I had a 10 month old. We had just moved across the country and my husband was in a crazy intense masters program. I was staying home in our tiny 3rd floor apartment, with no family nearby, no friends, and no car. AND we’d just found out we were pregnant with our second…
Do I Have A Spending Problem or an Income Problem?
People often feel like they don’t have enough money… like the solution to their financial problems is making more money… an “income problem,” if you will. While it’s possible that you do have an income problem, it’s also very possible that you have a spending problem or an expenses problem. So how can you tell which it is? If…
Budgeting When You’re In Survival Mode
Budgeting and tracking your spending are helpful habits for anyone who wants to achieve financial goals, but budgeting when you’re in survival mode financially is a non-negotiable!! If you are exhausted by your financial mess, or not sure what the first right step is, this post is for you! You will learn exactly what to do, step…
#1 Meal Prep Tip: Make Dinner in the Morning To Save Stress and Money
Ever feel guilty that you order too much last minute takeout? You’re just tired by the end of the day… it’s understandable. Or maybe you have every intention of making dinner tonight, but then the baby doesn’t nap well and needs to be held, and you can chop veggies very well while holding a 1…
Stop Yelling at Your Kids | 3 Parenting Lessons From Losing My Temper
(Disclosure: Some of the links in this post are affiliate links, which means I earn a commission off purchases from customers I refer, at no additional cost to you of course. Read my full disclosure policy here.)Have you ever said something to your kids impulsively? You know… where the words are coming out of your…
Meeting My Husband (Aka: We Got Married 10 Months After We Met)
Wanna hear a little love story? It goes like this. Boy: “Hey, girl hey. My name is Ben, what’s your name?” Girl: “Oh, hi, Ben. I’m Renee. Nice to meet you.” Boy: “Wow, you’re nice. Wanna get married?” And they lived happily ever after Okay, okay, it wasn’t quite that fast. But close. When people…
7 Principles to Make Goals and Crush Them… Like a Mom Boss!
Do you make goals? If so, how? Do you tend to crush them all, or do they just kinda float around in your head until you get interrupted by a kid who desperately NEEEEEEDS you to help them find that one little lego piece RIGHT NOW? As a mom, it’s so easy to get caught up…