What To Avoid If You Want To Raise A Problem Solver

I was first introduced to Mariah a couple of months ago when I saw her post in a Facebook group about a free webinar she was doing on helping our kids become creative problem solvers.  The idea intrigued me and as I listened to the call I knew I wanted Mariah to come on my blog and share her amazing insights.  She does a great job of sharing real life examples and empowering parents and caregivers to teach their kids that they can be creative problem solvers.  But first, there are some things we really should be avoiding if we want to raise problem solvers.  I'll let her take it from here!

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15 Ways To Play With Glow Sticks

When I think about the things that remind me of summer, I can't help but have glow sticks come to my mind.  What is it about glow sticks that make them so much fun?  Maybe it's that they glow in the dark.  Or it could be that just wearing them makes you smile.  Whatever the case, I really don't think you are ever too old to enjoy them with your family and friends, so today I'm sharing a round up of my favorite glow stick activities!

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Crock Pot BBQ Country Style Ribs

Using my crock pot in the summer is one of my favorite ways to save time, conserve energy and beat the heat.  A couple of years ago I found a recipe for BBQ crock pot country style ribs and after a couple of tweaks, it quickly made its way into our meal time rotation.  Country style ribs are a great meat alternative to chicken or beef/turkey and they are generally inexpensive and not very fatty so you get more meat for your money.  We've use this recipe for our own family, but it works equally as well when serving larger crowds.

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$10 at Target: Pretty Paper Edition

Hello and happy Monday!  I hope you all enjoyed your Father's Day weekend!  Our family went to a local theme park on Saturday and wore the kids out, then spent Sunday relaxing with family.  Just before the weekend got started, I had a chance to visit Target all by myself and it was a lovely hour and a half.  I didn't have anything specific I was looking for, but knew I could only spend $10 for this month's $10 at Target challenge.  I am a co-host for this challenge along with a group of lovely ladies and it's been fun to see how close I can get to spending $10 or less at one of my favorite stores.  Do you think you could do it?  Let me show you what I found this month.

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3 Ways To Raise Happy Kids

Before starting college, I had some ideas about what I'd like to study, but it wasn't until a couple years in that I found what I wanted to commit to: marriage and family studies.  I knew that what I was learning could be applied to both my current and my future relationships, especially my future family.  Growing up, I would say that I was generally a happy kid.  I got along with my parents, I had good friends, did well in school, was involved in extracurricular activities and active in church.  But if you had asked me then how I became that way--happy--I don't know that I would have been able to nail it down.  However, through my coursework, and now through practical application (aka parenting), I've seen three ways parents can raise happy kids: building connections, setting limits and encouraging independence.

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15 Minute Patriotic Wreath

My husband always groans when I come home with supplies to make a new wreath, but I love how easily they can update a room or brighten our front door.  With Memorial Day just a couple of weeks ago and the 4th of July coming up soon, I decided to pick up a few simple supplies from JoAnn's to make a patriotic wreath that I can use in my decor.  One of my favorite wreath forms to use are grapevine wreaths because the wreath itself is part of the decor and you don't have to do a lot to add a little extra something to it to make it your own.  The best part is that it only took 15 minutes to put together from start to finish!

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Hiking In Pioneer Park In St. George, UT

Last summer, my family and I did a big family vacation with my husband's parents and all his siblings and their kids to St. George, Utah.  With kids ranging in age from 17 to 2, finding an activity that everyone would enjoy was a bit of a challenge, but ultimately we decided on hiking.  St. George and the surrounding area is famous for its beautiful and unique red rock formations.  I've visited St. George more times than I can count, but hadn't spent much time hiking the trails found all around the city.  However, we did find an awesome little place called Pioneer Park.  We had so much fun that we visited two days in a row and it was a real hit with everyone in the family.

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May In Numbers

Whoosh!  Did you hear that?  It was the sound of May rushing past! *wink*  But seriously, I feel like I just wrote last months summary.  A lot of fun things happened in May, but most of them happened in single digits.

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7 Tips for Hiking with Kids

This last week we went hiking as part of our Memorial Day activities.  We live close to the mountains and there are a lot of canyons and hiking trails to choose from, so we are always finding fun new places to explore.  My kids especially love hiking and it is one of mine and my husband's favorite activities as well so we do a lot of it.  With this being the case, I've learned a few tips along the way that have helped make hiking a more enjoyable experience for everyone.

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