I love decorating for Valentine's Day. The beautiful red and pink accents of most Valentine's accessories are the perfect bright pop of color for winter. Since my house always feels a little sad after putting away my Christmas decorations, it's nice to have something else to look forward to. Looking for some fun Valentine's Day DIY decor? This heart tree, made with a branch, cardboard, yarn, and stones, is easy to make and looks so cute on a table.Valentine's Day DIY Decor - Heart TreeMaterials for the Heart Tree ? Small Dead branch with many small limbs ? Cardboard strong enough to support the yarn, but thin enough that you can cut through ? Scissors ? Thick yarn in red and white ? Clear jar or vase ? Red or pink jewels, stones or sand for the bottom of your clear ... View Post
Steps to Make This Your Year (Plus Printable)
It's the start of the New Year, which probably means you've made some resolutions, or at least some goals. After all of the spending and eating of December, January is a natural time to reboot and try to live a healthier, more productive life. While there's isn't anything magical about January 1st as a date, it is generally a good time to re-evaluate things.Want to make 2019 your year? Here are a whole bunch of tips and steps to take to improve things.Finances Look at your recurring expenses and see what can be reduced or eliminated. Are you still using that streaming service? Maybe you can cut cable or your home phone?Evaluate your savings plans, like retirement and college savings, and see if there are any changes to be made. Can you save more?Did you get a raise? ... View Post
Family Finance Resolutions for the New Year
It's the new year, time to create family finance resolutions, revisit your financial habits, make new goals, and start anew! It's a great opportunity to create a brand new budget, reorganize, and gain control. While this can be a long process, now is the perfect opportunity to set some goals. Family Finance Resolutions for the New Year Step 1:Review your budget. It's best if you compare your actual expenses to your original budget for 2018, and see if it's still realistic. If not, redo your budget, see if there is anything that can be reduced, and work with your new budget in 2019.Step 2:Organize your finances. Depending on your current situation, this could be a simple process or a longer one. First, put together a folder for your 2019 taxes, as you should be receiving ... View Post
Protecting Your Retirement
Disclosure: This is a sponsored post for Prudential and SheSpeaks. All opinions are my own.As moms, we have plenty of financial challenges. Parenting is expensive enough, and we also have to worry about college savings. It's easy to focus on the present and ignore the future. But retirement planning should still be a key piece of your family budget. It's always good to be prepared and start early.I recently attended an event in Copley Square Boston, hosted by the Alliance for Lifetime Income. The Alliance for Lifetime Income has been established, with Prudential as a founding member,to help raise awareness about the need for retirement income planning and to help educate about annuities.The event in Boston helped educate participants about protecting their retirement ... View Post
Burlap Ribbon Christmas Tree Decor
With Thanksgiving this week, it's almost time to decorate for Christmas. While many people have already started their Christmas decorating, I still have pumpkins outside! Once this week is over though, I'll start switching everything in our house over to Christmas and winter decorations. If you are looking for a fun, homemade decor for your home, this burlap ribbon Christmas Tree is fun to make and looks great. It's perfect for a rustic decor.Burlap Ribbon Christmas Tree DecorMaterials:Various types and widths of burlap ribbon with wire Styrofoam cylinder form Push pins Hot glue gun Scissors Pine cones or other small decorations for the top Instructions:Begin by cutting short lengths of your widest ribbon. These should be only a couple of ... View Post
DIY Glitter Ombre Christmas Tree Canvas
Ombre is so popular this year, as are gold and silver tones. If you are looking to add some of these trendy elements to your Christmas decor, this fun project is a great way to do it. You can even get the kids involved! Here's everything you'll need to create your own DIY glitter ombre Christmas tree canvas.DIY Glitter Ombre Christmas Tree CanvasMaterials:Silver, gold and deep gold glitter Small white canvas White school glue Thin tipped paintbrush Ribbon, twine or sisal rope Scissors Small jingle bell Hot glue gun Wooden Christmas tree form Pencil Instructions for the DIY Glitter Ombre Christmas Tree CanvasBegin by tracing the Christmas tree form onto the front of the canvas in the center.Using a thin tipped paint ... View Post
