Photo Cred Denis Phillips Facebook Page

Update – Seeing how a lot of people are starting to worry about Hurricane Dorian, I thought it would be timely to repost my thoughts after we encountered the fear and threat of Irma. Please stay safe this week and the following few days. Stock up on essentials now (water, bread, propane gas) and fill your cars with gas. If you need to evacuate, please do. Be safe everyone!

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Thoughts on the past 7 days with Irma:

1) I’ve never been so concerned about the safety of my family as this past week.

2) The roller coaster of watching Irma come our way, and then be in the clear of her, to then see her coming our way as a category 5 is something I don’t want to experience again for years and years.

Tip: Always keep batteries on-hand. Especially size D. Most flashlights need that size and right before a hurricane, stores will run out of D first.

Bottled water will become a hot commodity when a hurricane is enroute. It wouldn’t hurt to keep a couple 24 packs stocked away during hurricane season because stores will run out when major hurricanes are enroute.

4) Sleeping in our safe room with the kiddos- although stressful and hard on the back – was lots of fun. I want more nonstressful adventures with my kids.

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Kindergarten. How did we get here? I don’t understand how you are old enough for kindergarten. 5 years ago today we were in the midst of adopting you and you and I were alone in Ethiopia learning how to be a momma and a son. I was scared and you were scared and slowly but surely, you became a momma’s boy and I became absolutely smitten with you.

I have a picture of you from exactly 5 years ago today right after I gave you a bath at the hotel in Addis Ababa. You were so small and so cute. Now, you are losing your baby face and while you are still the cutest, you have turned into a little boy. How did we get here?

I sobbed today before dropping you off at school but made sure you didn’t see. Then, as we were walking to school (me pushing your sister in a stroller while you biked), I marveled how you were old enough to ride your two-wheeler all the way to school. When I walked you to your desk in your classroom, I had to remind myself to quickly get you settled in and then to leave. I knew that being dramatic as I dropped you off would make it harder for you. But in all honesty, I wanted nothing more than to cry. How did we get here?

So many moms seem eager to send their kiddos off to school each fall. (And I get it, kiddos are tiring!) This year, I want time to stand still and to avoid this milestone. Your sister will be great company for me while you are in school, but I will also miss our non-stop day long conversations, your enthusiasm and of course the noise. (I never thought I would miss the noise.)

I am praying for your school year this year. I pray you will always try your hardest, even if the work is easy or challenging or boring or fun. Work hard always. You won’t be the best at everything and that is okay. No one is the best at everything – even if they think they are. Try your hardest and don’t give up.

I am praying your teacher will love you and understand you. You have so much joy and happiness and interesting conversations and facts to give. I hope you show that side of yourself to your teacher.

I am praying your classmates will be kind to you and that you will find kiddos that you can relate to and that can relate to you. You are a smart boy my son. I hope you find other children who know about hydraulics, the innerworkings of trucks, the joy of dually trucks, and who have fun of building unique and imaginative vehicles with Legos. If other children hurt your feelings, because at some point – they will – don’t shut down. Tell them your feelings are hurt and then play with children who are kind. And remember, children and grownups who are not nice usually have a story – instead of showing their sadness or their fear or their loneliness, they lash out. Remember that and don’t be that person.

Most importantly, I pray you will show the love of Jesus to everyone around you. Always be on the lookout for children who are sad or who are being teased or who are alone. Be their friend. There are always children who need to be shown love and friendship and you are the perfect person to do that. Your friendliness and happiness is contagious. Spread it around.

Lastly, you are and will always be my favorite boy in the world. I am thankful you are healthy, thriving and ready for Kindergarten. I am so lucky you are my son. As much as I wish time would stand still, I hope this is your best year yet.

Love,
Momma

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I have to admit, living in Florida, we are spoiled with very nice weather during the fall and winter. In fact, it’s my favorite time of the year once the weather gets cooler! One of the main challenges I am faced with each year is finding holiday outfits for my children that matches the warmer Florida weather while also being Christmasy. It’s tricky! When I was given the opportunity to shop at OshKosh B’gosh and find holiday outfits for my kids, I jumped at it. I love OshKosh B’gosh clothing and I love clothing shopping for my kiddos. So I figured this would be the perfect task for me!

Head HERE to find an OshKosh B’gosh store near you!

For my son, I wanted to get him a pair of cute jeans. I found these adorable Patchwork Jeans. To go along with his jeans, I selected the 2-Pocket Plaid Button-Front Shirt. The shirt is a lightweight twill flannel. I knew that I could roll up his sleeves on warmer days or layer it with a vest or jacket on cooler days. I was thrilled with the quality of his outfit. His jeans fit perfectly and the shirt is so soft and comfy. It is a great outfit for both the holiday season and also during the fall and winter!

Then it was time to shop for my daughter. Since we just adopted our daughter only 5 and a half months ago, I’ll still enjoying the process of shopping of shopping for a girl!

For my daughter, I fell in love with the Sparkle Tulle Jumper. It has sparkles on the skirt which to me is perfectly girly and also very holidayish. And, it has the overall look which I love so much about OshKosh B’gosh. I paired her jumper with this pink Eyelet Flutter-Sleeve Top. The top has shorter sleeves than typical short sleeve shirts and yet longer sleeves than tank tops. Since we are in Florida and the weather is still warm, this top is perfect under her jumper. And, when the weather gets colder, I will put a long-sleeve shirt under her jumper and pair it with tights. I love this outfit because it is so versatile for all types of weather!

Since most of you know I love saving money, we can save 25% on all OshKosh B’gosh orders of $30 or more! When online, use promo code OKBG3223 When shopping in the store, show the coupon in this post or have the cashier use retail code 036108 Please note – this coupon excludes clearance and doorbusters.

OshKosh will also have can’t-miss Black Friday deals, in addition to offering a “Dash In to Win” sweepstakes that will award promo cards to the first 100 people to arrive at their local OshKosh or Carter’s store. The Dash In to Win Sweepstakes will be held on Black Friday (11/24 – 11/25). Customers will need to check HERE to confirm what date the sweepstakes will be held at their local store.

And now for the giveaway! One Addicted to Saving reader will win a $50 OshKosh B’gosh gift card! Giveaway ends Nov. 30.

Entry is simple!

1) *Mandatory Entry* Leave one comment on this post sharing what OshKosh B’gosh outfit you would get for your child! Head HERE to OshKosh B’gosh for inspiration! 

2) Join our Holiday Deals with Addicted to Saving Facebook Group! This group will keep you up-to-date on all holiday related shopping deals – just like this awesome OshKosh B’gosh coupon! Leave a second comment stating whether you are a new or existing group member!

The post Holiday Outfits from OshKosh B’gosh & $50 Gift Card Giveaway appeared first on AddictedToSaving.com.

I wanted to send out a very MERRY CHRISTMAS to all of you! You all have stuck by my blog since I started it in 2009 and many of you have become like family! From my family to yours, I hope you have a wonderful day today and that your Christmas Day is filled with love, hope, wonder and grace.

The post Merry Christmas! appeared first on AddictedToSaving.com.

Are you a camper? I am not. I’ve camped a few times in my life and have not had enjoyable experiences any of those times… until now. Have you tried “glamping”? Glamping is another word for glamorous camping. I decided to try my hand at glamping and see if I had a better time spending time outside glamorously than the normal camping experiences I’ve endured.

It was… fun! It was a lot of work to set up. I’m not going to lie. And I am not going to lie and tell you we went somewhere exotic to for our glamping experience. We did not. Having a three year old who is very very active and who also only sleeps good in his own bed, we decided to create our glamping experience right in our front yard. That way, I had running water, electricity AND indoor plumbing. Wink wink. Oh – and my three year old could sleep in his own room!

I headed to Walmart and bought some of the glamping supplies we needed including Honey Maid Graham Crackers and Freschetta® Brick Oven.

We set up our tent and got to work making it more glamourous. I brought out one of my favorite white leopard print blankets. It is SO soft and so luxurious, I knew that sleeping on an air mattress plus being

covered in this blanket would make my night’s sleep relaxing. We also hung light, airy, white curtains in the back of the tent as well as the front of the tent to give the tent more of a luxurious feel.

This is the view from our bed. The tent has an open air feeling as the top of it is just see through screen (you can cover it if it rains). I was so relaxed seeing the palm trees overhead!

On the entryway leading into the tent, we used an outdoor rug that is both visually appealing and also practical as I don’t like walking barefoot in the grass. So we could go from inside the chairs outside without having to walk on any grass.

And then we added both real candles and battery operated candles both on the inside and outside of the tent. (The candles inside the tent were all battery operated – no fire hazards for us! )

At night, we hung a strand of white lights to give us a bit more light.

Once we had our tent set up, we got to work on the food. I’ve never really associated Freschetta® Brick Oven® pizzas with grilling out before but now that we’ve grilled it, we will definitely do this again. Freschetta® Pizza has a crust that is made like fresh baked bread with only natural yeast and no chemical leaveners. It is topped with the most premium ingredients including sauce made from real tomatoes, 100% real cheese and the highest quality meats. You must try Freschetta® Naturally Rising Pizza while #glamping if you haven’t already!

Uncooked pizza on the grill.

Grilling the pizza gave it a bit of a grilled flavor and really kicked up the regular flavors of the pizza!

I do have to state that we covered the entire bottom of the grill with tin foil, however, you do not need to do this.

Cooked pizza after cooking on low for 14 minutes.

I made a butter dipping sauce to go along with the pizza. I used a half a stick of butter and added about ¼ Teaspoon of Garlic and about ¼ Teaspoon of Italian Herbs. The sauce was perfect for dipping our pizza into.

For dessert, I wanted to make a reliable dessert that most people associate camping with – S’Mores. However, I wanted to kick it up a notch. I made Peanut Butter Chocolate S’Mores Dip.

In a cast iron skillet, I started with chocolate bars and peanut butter.

Once the chocolate melted, I topped it with marshmallows.

The Freschetta® Brick Oven Pizza with Butter Garlic Sauce and Honey Maid Graham Crackers dipped in Peanut Butter Chocolate S’Mores Dip made my glamping experience extremely tasty!

Have you gone glamping before? Share your tips for making a night of glamping truly glamourous!

The post How a Non-Camper Goes Glamping with Freschetta® & Honey Maid appeared first on AddictedToSaving.com.

To all of the fathers that frequent Addicted to Saving, I wanted to wish you all a Happy Father’s Day! And to all of the families out there who are longing for the day when you can experience parenthood, I wanted you to know that we have been there and we know that days like today are tough. Hang in there.

To my own hubby, while parenthood didn’t come easily to us (nothing really has, has it), in less than two years, you have become a pro dad. Our little boy looks up to you and he loves you! And let’s be honest… out of the two of us, Asher thinks you are the fun parent!

I also had to share this Facebook post my hubby made today. Since our son has entered our lives, we have begun looking at race issues differently. This past week has been a hard one for us as we have grieved for and with the people of Charleston. And we have watched the reactions of many people across the U.S. (including some friends) and it has showed us that most white people have no idea how bad racism still is. We’ve tried to figure out how we can help make this world better for not only our son, but for all black people. And honestly, we have no answers. I have heard it said countless times that all we need to do is love one another. And it’s true. But we are realizing prior to making that statement, we have to first acknowledge just how bad the problem is. We are trying to really listen and really learn about just how prevalent racism still is. Anyways, below are hubby’s thoughts this Father’s Day.

On Fatherhood and Racism:

I have never been a racist. But it was only until I became a father to a black son that I realized just how prejudiced I had been. Not overtly, for my own father taught me that we are all equal at the foot of the Cross. However, I had not ever attempted to truly, sincerely empathize with the plight of the black person in America. To me, racism was over, b/c I wasn’t a racist. That’s quintessential narcissism.

The events of the past two years in our country – from Ferguson to Baltimore to Charleston (and many in between) – have caused me to reflect on how my son will be treated as he grows. He’s cute now – what 2 year old isn’t? But I ask my white friends with white children – have you ever prayed that your children might not be profiled simply for walking down the street? Or stopped b/c they were driving in the ‘wrong’ (i.e. “white”) part of town? Or apprehended b/c they fit the only description onlookers give (“he was black”)? Because I have.

The post Happy Father’s Day appeared first on AddictedToSaving.com.

Photo Credit

Am I the only person that didn’t understand this concept when I got married? As a young (too-young), engaged senior in college, I envisioned my future married life to be a fairy tale. I definitely was not envisioning the reality of what marriage is like after heart-ache, financial problems, infertility, loss and arguments. When I saw this quote on Pinterest today, it spoke to me. And encouraged me. I wanted to post it hoping that it would encourage you too. Love is a choice. Sure, there may be moments of fairy tales in your lives, but I’m thinking that more of your days are like mine – hard. Choose to continue on. <3

Am I the only person that feels this way? I would love to hear your thoughts on marriage, love and choices.

The post Love is a Choice appeared first on AddictedToSaving.com.