Small Business Sunday

This month, I have the pleasure of having a couple small businesses on my side bar. I'm excited to introduce you to Ruth's Military Life's Moments, and Kathleen's Her Joyful Studio.

Ruth is a military spouse who designs greeting cards and other "snail mail" items to help bring families together throughout deployment. Ruth's goal is to help military families build stronger ties through separations and celebrations. Along with greeting cards for all branches, the Military Life's Moments cafe press store features items from home decor to clothing. 

BLOG - FACEBOOK - TWITTER

Kathleen started Her Joyful Studio in Spring 2013. She started off selling party decor such as paper garlands and cake toppers. After discovering that she was expecting twin girls, Kathleen dove into the world of headbands. Kathleen's girls are now seven months old, and she has since left her full-time marketing job to focus on creating beautiful accessories with her little ladies by her side.

BLOG - INSTAGRAM - FACEBOOK

July Sponsor Highlight

I'd like to take a moment to introduce you to the two lovely ladies that have been sponsoring my blog this month: Lydia and Kelsey. Both of these fantastic bloggers are military wives as well as members of the mommy of three club.

Lydia is voice behind The Few, The Proud, and This Marine Wife. You can find a little bit of everything on Lydia's blog. She writes about all sorts of topics ranging from DIY projects, to mommy life, to faith. Along with having a great blog, Lydia owns two Etsy shops. LE's Creations features all sorts of beautifully handmade military themed decor and accessories, and Popsies and Lace has a collection of fashion and vintage inspired accessories. You can stay up to date with Lydia through Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram, and Bloglovin. Make sure you stop by and say hi!

If you've been around these parts for a while, this won't be your first introduction to Kelsey of Pardon My French. Kelsey is the fashionista Army wife living up in Alaska. On her blog, you'll read about the ups and downs of parenthood, life in Alaska, as well as some great fashion pointers and collages like this one. Kelsey recently took a vacation and has shared some phenomenal views of Alaska: here, here, and here. See what Kelsey is up to via Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest, and Bloglovin.

Target.com is Dangerous..

And I don't say that because of the whole credit fraud mess. No. Target.com is most dangerous to me because everything is so damn cute and I want it all. If it wasn't for the actual store here in Hawaii being so much more expensive than the online store, I'd probably have a problem every time I went in there. Lucky for me, I was able to score some fantastic deals over the weekend.

It all started two weeks ago. Target.com had dresses for BOGO 50% off. Score! I loaded up my cart, but for some reason I never checked out. Fast forward to Saturday. Since Target's online sales start on Sunday, I knew I had to check out that evening in order to get the deal on my dresses. That night we got caught up doing something and unfortunately, didn't make it back to the computer where my shopping cart was saved to check out on time. Bummer.

The new sale for the week wasn't anything that interested me, so my dresses just sat in the cart in hopes of there being a repeat sale further down the line. I had no idea that I wouldn't really have to wait that long.

Since Hawaii is way behind the rest of the world, timezone wise, it's still Saturday here while it's Sunday just about everywhere else it the world. So, this past Saturday, I went to visit my favorite retailer's website like I do every Saturday night to scope out the new sale. To my surprise, clothing and accessories for the entire family were BOGO 50%. Not only could I buy my dresses now, but I ordered a few other items as well, along with a few little things for the girls.

In an attempt to be the ultimate cheap-o, I broke my order up into four separate orders. It would make no sense to order one item at $30 and another at $10, and only have 50% taken off of the $10. What I did was split all the items into orders according to their price. All the stuff that was around $30 per item went on one order, all the stuff that was around $20 per item went on another order, etc.. In addition to that, I got 5% off with my REDcard. If you don't have one and you shop at Target you MUST get one NOW. And with the REDcard, I actually got free shipping to Hawaii (that doesn't happen very often)!

Now I'm just anxiously awaiting the delivery of my fun new clothes. The image above shows a good chunk of what I ordered. I went all sorts of crazy with bright colors, since it feels like my closet has become a sea of orange and blue (Go Gators!). I also tried to keep everything new mom and breastfeeding-friendly since that will be my life for a while.

I don't normally do a ton of online shopping, so if you'd like to follow a mom that does and is constantly sharing her top outfit picks for herself and her kiddos, make sure you go pay Kelsey from Pardon My French a visit.

Need + Want

When John is off from work, there isn't much in the cleaning department that gets done around the house. Usually, the dishes pile up in the sink over the weekend until I get around to loading the dishwasher on Monday morning. I blame it on wanting to snuggle with my love while I actually have him around. Having him home for two weeks did not bode well for my to do list.

With Baby J making her arrival in just over a month, there are so many things that I need to get done. In fact, aside from moving the changing table around in Adri's room, I haven't done a single thing to prepare for our new baby. With Veronica, the clothes had all been washed and separated by this point. I can't completely blame having my husband around though. Part of it definitely has to do with third child syndrome.

+ Want: To focus more on scrapbooking for myself. If I have a chance today, I'm going to make a thank you card for the hostess of the spouses coffee last week and maybe work on that deployment scrapbook. I enjoy making the care packages for Etsy, but it's been a while since I've actually done a project for myself.

+ Need: Stop spending money. Having friends in town hurt the bank account a little bit. We've been irresponsible adults and have avoided looking at our balances. We need to just hurry up and pay the cards off and then survive off of ramen for the next few weeks. Kidding!

+ Want: Pick up some cheap summer fun activities for the kids. This totally goes against the last bullet, I know. Veronica asked to make some sprayable sidewalk chalk, so we need some spray bottles for that. I'm thinking that we should possibly also get a kiddie pool or slip and slide so that we can enjoy our back yard.

+ Need: Go through the boxes in Adri's room which still haven't unpacked to sort out clothes by size and season. Get it all washed and put away. In the dresser that still hasn't been purchased.

+ Want: More cloth diapers. My stash is pretty decent, but I want more. I'm missing a few of boyish colored diapers. I might buy them just so that I can have a complete rainbow. I wish BumGenius would come out with some new pretty colors or patterns for me to spend money on.

+ Need: Buy the few things that I need for the little one this time around, such as these muslin blankets. They're super thin, which will be useful in Hawaii. I have a friend who uses the blankets for nursing as well as keeping the sun off of her son. I plan on doing the same. I also need to get some newborn sized diapers and that baby book that is never going to be touched.

+ Want: To cut up the receiving blankets that we currently have and turn them into reusable cloth wipes. John thinks I'm absolutely nuts, but having cloth wipes will make diaper changes and diaper laundry so much easier. Yes, I have officially become one of those insane crunchy moms. 

+ Need: A nap. I know I've mentioned that Tuesdays are my busiest days. Gymnastics and grocery shopping are going to kill me today. I also still need to make a shopping list. Meal planning has not been my friend lately.

+ Want: To welcome my newest sponsor Lydia, the pretty lady behind The Few, The Proud, and This Marine Wife. She's a momma to three handsome little boys, as well as three angel babies. If her blog name didn't give it away, she's also a fellow military spouse.

+ Need: You to enter Amanda's giveaway for your chance to win this American Flag turban from Love Sewn Together.

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Thanksgiving Meals

Source

Can you believe that Thanksgiving is only two weeks away?! It seems as though this year has blown by! We still haven't decided what we'll doing this year. Between trying to find a place to live and waiting for our household goods to arrive, we're not even sure where we'll be. A restaurant is sounding better and better each day. Although I'll be missing out on some Thanksgiving favorites, I feel like it gives me more time to plan for Christmas, which is my real favorite.

Speaking of Thanksgiving favorites though, I can think of one thing that was never my favorite. Stuffing. Up until my parents started making it with sausage, I never touched the stuff. I also never knew that people referred to it as dressing. My blog sponsors: Angel, Ashley, and Kelsey are all on the same page as me with calling it stuffing.

Continuing with the stuffing theme, there's another stuffing related topic that causes a bit of a stir. Do you actually stuff it into the turkey, or is it a made as a dish on the side. Kelsey does both. Ya know, to be sure she has some leftovers. Ashley and Angel both make it seperately, and Angel's family actually makes it from scratch with dried bread.

Since I don't exactly eat everything in the Thanksgiving spread, I was wondering if anyone else was a picky eater life myself. Nope. Occassionally Ashley's grandma will cook beets, which she won't touch, but other than that, it's fair game. Angel and Kelsey eat it all!

Once dinner is done and it's time for dessert, Kelsey and I are totally on the same page. One pumpkin pie for me, and one for everyone else. Ashley's favorite dessert is a chocolate chess pie that she picks up from the fall fest at church each year. Angel's favorite desserts are two homemade treats that are gone by the end of the meal, double double chocolate (YUM!) and a pumpkin/cream cheese pie that is heavenly.

Now that you know what some of my sponsors do for Thanksgiving, what are you most looking forward to eating or doing this Thanksgiving?

Visit my wonderful sponsor:

Let's Talk Halloween

It's October, so you know what that means! Halloween candy has already been out on the shelves for a month! Am I crazy or are holiday products making their way into stores earlier and earlier? Pretty soon we'll actually be able to celebrate Christmas in July.

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Now that it's socially acceptable, I want to talk Halloween. I asked my lovely sponsors a little bit about their Halloween favorites, so I'll share some of mine, and some of theirs. First though, let me reintroduce these ladies.

 You can find Breanna at the bottom of every post. She's a 24 year old nurse and Big Brother fanatic living it up in Minnesota. 

Lanaya is the gym rat mom to toddler, Reagan. She's also a business woman and owner of Reagan's Toy Chest, an educational online toy store for toddlers.

 Fellow Army wife Kelsey, is a stay at home mom of three stationed up in Alaska. I don't know how she does it, but she does it all while looking fabulous.

I've casually started looking at costumes. I think I know what the girls are going to dress up as, but is can always change between now and the end of the month. Lanaya and Kelsey's are both on par with my idea for this year. Lanaya is thinking a Tangled theme, and Kelsey's favorite costume is when she and her husband dressed up as a cavemen and cave woman. I LOVE those matchy coordinating costumes. Breanna's favorite is actually another of my favorites. Ke$ha. You really can't screw that one up. I went the Lady Gaga route, but close enough!

Up until this point, I've done really well at staying away from the candy aisle. I'll more than likely pick something up next time I grocery shop. I love candy corn, but I'm kind of glad I can only find it around this time of year. I'd be pretty sick of eating it if I could find it year-round. All three sponsors are chocolate fans. Breanna is a Twix lover, while Lanaya and Kelsey both prefer Kit Kats.

Unlike myself, all three ladies are door-openers for trick or treaters. Remember my social anxiety issue? Yeah, I don't like dealing with strangers. Not even little kids. If it was up to me, the bucket of candy would stay at the door all night. Hubs likes to answer the door and chat up the little kids. Kelsey likes to scare them. Breanna normally doesn't get too many kids in her neighborhood. Since Reagan is old enough to trick or treat this year, Lanaya might go with a bowl at the door.

What are some of your Halloween favorites and traditions?

Don't forget to join in with Dara and I for the Share You Accent link up on Thursday!

<br /> <a href="http://www.munchkinsandmilitary.com/search/label/share%20your%20accent"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZpTOXQsSdLraaiLFYiafRoNvDHv6XtmOv21ho6k_0xvq9tcIOEk-rnv__MkPSlPVFdBssaawjSa8nvMqlVd2yaEYotZJ9EZROB5cXoktI4j4QJEjCnofT4IRnnY-8qi4mWKLmaVN9MVs/s1600/Share.png" border="0" alt="Share Your Accent"/></a><br />

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Blog Organization

I'd have to say that I succeed in getting my home life organized. I even cleaned the toilets! Like I said yesterday, today is the blog's turn. I've been blogging for a year and a half, and have learned so much in that time. One of the things that has helped me with blogging the most, is keeping a calendar. I've been using one for a while, but this trick that I learned from Sew Much Crafting, has made it so much easier.

Before I get into that, I'd like to introduce my two newest sponsors! Lanaya from Raising Reagan & Kelsey from Pardon My French! I know many of you know Lanaya. She is mom to adorable Reagan and business owner! Kelsey is a fellow Army wife, and mom of three gorgeous kiddos up in Alaska.

Now, my blog calendar. A few months ago, I purchased the printable blog planner set from Mama's Got It Together. The first things I started using was the monthly calendar. By the end of the month, it was looking like an ugly scribbled mess. I would either not have time to post, or something would come up and I'd need to switch posts around a bit.

That's when I saw Danielle's post. She gave me the idea to start using Post-It notes to write my blog posts on, so that they could easily be moved around with out causing a mess. I bought a $1 pack of four small Post-Its at Walmart, which I was able to cut in half and stick on one of the page margins.

Now when I get ideas, I jot them down on the sticky note and stick it on the calendar. This month I'm using four colors instead of just two. But only because I like pretty colors. I haven't really assigned a subject to any of the colors, so for now I just go in rainbow order. One day I might start color coding, since that usually helps with staying on top of things.

Do you do anything like this for your blog?

Check out my fantastic sponsor:

July Sponsor Highlight

It's time to introduce you to my wonderful sponsors again! This month I was lucky to have some great ladies on the blog. All three of these lovelies blog about almost completely different topics, so I can just about guarantee that you'll be able to connect with at least one of them. Please stop check them out and say hello!!

 Blog | Bloglovin | Twitter | Facebook | Pinterest

 Blog | Bloglovin | Twitter | Facebook | Pinterest

Blog | Bloglovin | Twitter | Pinterest

Also be sure to check out a few of my other favorites: Adventures of a Semper Fi Family, Not in Jersey and Army Wife Style.

Check out my fantastic sponsor:

June Sponsor Highlight with Giveaways!

I'd like to introduce my readers to some of the great sponsors that my blog has gained in past few weeks. Even before they became blog sponsors, I was a reader of their pages, because they really do have interesting content vc. Each of these ladies blogs about something completely different, but for the most part I am able to relate to all of them, and I hope you are too!

I'm Angel. I blog about family, crafts, cooking, gardening, sewing, and much more. You'll find Mommy Mondays, Craftastic Tuesdays, Blog Hop Thursday, Recipe Swaps, Giveaways and so much more. Hope you will come and visit.

Caitlin is an Air Force pilot's wife, Mama to Matthew, and her two furry children, Moose and Chewie. She blogs over at The Pearl and The Pilot about military life, her family, being accidentally crunchy, almost Catholic. Caitlin has a thing for wine, coffee mugs, Texas, and daffodils. Stop by, say hi, and stay a while!

Another one of my amazing sponsors, Glossy Blonde currently has a couple of giveaway up on her blog: here & here.

And finally, I am helped to sponsor one of my all-time favorite's blogiversary giveaway and you can enter below for a chance to win $300!

I CAN NOT believe it's been a year since I started my blog! You always remember the first birthday right? Happy blogiversary to me! To remember my day just a little more I have come together with some AMAZING sponsors to give you $300 in CASH!

Say what? Yep, cash baby!!

PLEASE, thank these amazing friends and supporters of Raising Reagan and enter below!

From Top Left {clockwise}:

♥ Tiffani - Tiffani Goff at Home ♥ Amy - Consider Me Inspired ♥ Sara - Confessions of a Redheaded Mama ♥ Sarah - Life in a Breakdown ♥ Angie - Snack Cups and Smiles ♥ Anna - Cuddlebug Cuties ♥ Angel - Sew Crafty Angel ♥ Janine - Janine's Confessions of a Mommyaholic ♥

Please also stop by and thank these lovely supporters and friends of mine as well ... I couldn't have brought you this amazing giveaway without them!

♥ April - 100lb Countdown ♥ Leslie - Violet Imperfection ♥ Rosey - Mail 4 Rosey ♥

♥ Krystal - My Life of Travels and Adventures ♥ Jessica - Girl Booklet ♥ Ruth - Viva Veltoro ♥

♥ Dara - Not In Jersey ♥ Datevitation ♥ Kera - Nugget on a Budget ♥

♥ Alex - Munchkins & The Military ♥ Reagan's Toy Chest ♥ Noel - High Heeled Mama ♥

♥ Koren - My Full Time Fit Life ♥ Josi - That Suburban Momma ♥ Paulina - Discovering Simply Me ♥

It's a $300 CASH blogiversary giveaway!

Giveaway open worldwide | Winner MUST HAVE a PayPal account | Entries WILL BE verified

Winner will have48 hours to respond to winning email or new winner will be chosen

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