Investing in Family

I got a Kindle for Christmas from my loving hubby, and I love it. I especially love the large selection of freebie ebooks out there (even if some of them could use some a bit more help in the editing and proofreading departments). Anyway, a couple of these free reads had a theme in them that caught my attention: workaholic dads/husbands. While this was not the main crux of the stories (one was the start of a zombie series and the other was a ghost story of sorts), the idea of the dad and/or husband working so much he barely knew his kids or had time to spend with his wife was there.

They say time flies, and I now agree with them (whoever that mysterious "they" and "them" are). My gals are turning six this year. This year, most of the kids in my girls' kindergarten class have had parties with friends, and guess what my two are clamoring for? You got it: a friend-filled bonanza at a happenin' spot. And what am I clamoring for? You got it again: a happenin' spot that doesn't break the bank.

Recently, a certain well-known chain restaurant hosted Pancake Day in which they urged everyone to come on down for a free stack of flapjacks. While my family didn't head out to join the crowd of brave souls who lined up for this promo, we did do our own celebration at home. Okay, maybe celebration is a strong word, but we did observe and mark the special occasion with some of our own pancakes for dinner.

February has a way of turning our thoughts to romance and dates and the like. While it's wonderful to spend time one-on-one with your siginifcant other, if you're a parent, there's someone else in your life who could benefit from some alone time with you: your kiddos.

I don't know about where you live, but this year's winter has been a strange one, indeed. Normally, western New York is known for a virtual bounty of snow. Up until very recently, we had very little of the white stuff on the ground; in fact, a good majority of our winter has consisted of temperatures well above normal.

Finally, though, we got a good dose of the lake effect special, our lawns finally covered with a blanket of white. My five-year-old twins and I took the opportunity to try our hands at turning some of the snow into something other than a snowball: snow ice cream.

I don't know about you, but sometime it's so easy to become almost lost in the rush of days leading up to your holiday celebration. There are presents to buy and wrap, goodies to make, parties and gatherings to prepare for...and all of this falls on top of the normal stuff of life like school, work and home. There's something about this season that makes life just busier, as if it weren't busy enough.

Although MomVesting has focused on the holidays in the last few weeks, we do realize that there are many people of differing religions. In fact, I am one of the few. As someone of a differing faith who dislikes commercialization, I know that I’m not alone in my “Bah Humbug” mentality. However, I also realize that I must make it through the holiday season somehow, so I want to share how I skate through the holidays, even with a distinctly pro-Christmas family.

Accept Your Differences

Now that Thanksgiving has passed, many of us are starting to focus on the other big days in our holiday celebrations, whatever religion we may be. And many of us have been busy making preparations for the day, figuring out our menu and who's going to sit where. Of course, the holidays go deeper than food, drink and gifts. They are often a time to gather together with family and friends while reflecting on the blessings we have in our lives.

Start a New Tradition

In today’s hectic world, sometimes it’s easy to overlook life’s little victories. Oftentimes, we go-go-go and forget to enjoy the journey. At other times, we budget ourselves into a corner so that we feel we cannot celebrate the small things.

Unfortunately, skimping on recognition may leave us feeling like the goal we accomplished may not have meant as much as we thought, which could leave us less inspired to tackle new goals. Thankfully, setting aside some time or money can help alleviate these feelings. Let’s take a look.

Celebrate on the Cheap

With school back in full swing and the approaching winter, now is the time for some of us to consider a day in our homes doing absolutely nothing. Shocking idea, isn't it? A day when the family is not piling into the minivan and rushing from one thing to the next. A day when you're not heading to the office and/or not managing the home. Rather, how about a day to simply be at home, relaxing with your family and, you know, spending some quality time together.