Tone up Tuesday:

So what are you doing this week for Tone up Tuesday? Don't just exercise. Eat right.

A thought just came through my head today as I was getting ready to post this blog. One of the most important things you can do for your body is to eat breakfast. People say this all the time and it is true. You need to eat breakfast in the morning. I know so many people who skip breakfast. I have been one of those people. It was not one of the greatest things have ever done. It was actually pretty stupid. Every time I skipped breakfast I always felt really lousy throughout the day. Now that I actually eat breakfast in the mornings I notice I have more energy to get through the day. I am also less grumpy.

So here is an article I found that I thought was a good read. (taken from WebMD)

Why Breakfast Is the Most Important Meal of the Day

Kids Need Their Morning Meal
While adults need to eat breakfast each day to perform their best, kids need it even more. Their growing bodies and developing brains rely heavily on the regular intake of food. When kids skip breakfast, they can end up going for as long as eighteen hours without food, and this period of semistarvation can create a lot of physical, intellectual, and behavioral problems for them.

A Good Investment
If you and your kids regularly skip breakfast in the interest of saving time or getting a few more minutes of sleep, remember that eating a wholesome, nutritious morning meal will probably save you time in the long run. By recharging your brain and your body, you'll be more efficient in just about everything you do. Interestingly, studies show that kids who skip breakfast are tardy and absent from school more often than children who eat breakfast on a regular basis. Preparing a good breakfast can be as quick and easy as splashing some milk over cereal. Time invested in breakfast is much more valuable than the few extra minutes of sleep you might get by bypassing the morning meal. If you and your kids seem unable to make time for breakfast, consider enrolling your children in a school breakfast program, if possible, or pack a breakfast brown-bag the night before so that you and your kids can eat on the way to school and work.

Break the Fast to Shed the Pounds
Some people skip breakfast in an effort to lose weight, but the practice is more likely to cause weight gain than weight loss. Skipping breakfast is strongly linked to the development of obesity. Studies show that overweight and obese children, adolescents, and adults are less likely to break the fast each morning than their thinner counterparts.

According to research, skipping meals, especially breakfast, can actually make weight control more difficult. Breakfast skippers tend to eat more food than usual at the next meal or nibble on high-calorie snacks to stave off hunger. Several studies suggest that people tend to accumulate more body fat when they eat fewer, larger meals than when they eat the same number of calories in smaller, more frequent meals. To teens, especially teenage girls, skipping breakfast may seem like a perfectly logical way to cut down on calories and lose weight. It's important for moms to educate their kids about the importance of the morning meal and the role it plays in maintaining good health and preventing obesity.

The Winner of the Sandy Feet Note Cards is...

Tiana B. I will be contacting you shortly! Congrats on winning!

Tone up Tuesday:

Tone up Tuesday...What are you doing this week? If you have not already read the wonderful guest post from yesterday you should check it out. It was written by Rachelle from Livin the Fit Life.





Here are some interesting finds this week...

Have you ever wondered how to measure yourself? I know I have and now I know.




Morning workouts:




And a little motivation...

Guest Post: By Livin the Fit Life

Today's guest post comes from Rachelle from Livin the Fit Life. Thanks so much Rachelle for the wonderful post on being fit.

Being fit and healthy is a passion for me, especially now that I am in my 30's and have to work harder and smarter. I have always been a cardio girl. I love to run and this is my true passion. However, as I got older I knew that weights needed to enter my life and I wasn't too happy about it.

You see, after you turn 30, your body starts to lose muscle. What does that mean? That in order for your body to burn the same number of calories as it did in your twenties, you need to start building your muscles back up. The more muscle you have, the more calories you burn.

Most women look at me funny when I tell them to lift weights. They have the wrong idea that if you lift weights you will look like a bodybuilder with massive muscles. Of course this won't happen. Lifting weights will tone your body and increase your calorie burn to make your workouts more effective.

3 great starter exercises with weights are squats, bicep curls and tricep extensions. I don't know about you, but triceps are an issue for many women as we don't typically use those muscles in everyday life.

Start out with smaller weights (3-5 lbs.) and do 3 sets of 10 reps each, alternating exercises as you go. As you move forward you can change your routine by increasing your weight and your reps. You can then start to add more exercises to your routine to change your overall body.

I am also a huge proponent for using your own body weight for resistance. I like this method because you can work out at home with just yourself and nothing else. Examples of these type of exercises would be push-ups, crunches, tricep dips, etc. This way you can build your muscles without having to spend money on weights or the gym. Also, for moms with young children at home, you can stay at home and still get your sweat on:)

I hope you will all add some weight training to your workout regimen. Your body will thank you!

Thank you Terri, for allowing me to write this post for your blog. Now everyone get your sweat on and start Livin The Fit Life!

Family Friday

Wow this is my first Family Friday of the new year. For give me because I have been slacking a little on my blog. With homeschooling I have been a little slack with posting. I am trying to get through finishing up homeschooling with the kiddos. Right now I am in a review process with them.

Anyway we are still doing fun things. I just have not posted about much. The latest thing we did was last Friday. My husband had the day off so we took the kids to the Science Museum.

Here are a couple pictures...




So what kind of fun have you been having with your family this new year? I know it is cold a lot of places, so what do you do on those cold days?

Happy 10 Year Annivesary!

My husband and I got married 10 years ago today. We are just as in love as the day we got married. We also have four beautiful children to share our love with...

The night he proposed

Our wedding day

Us today

Sandy Feet Review and Giveaway:

Are you one of the few people who still like to sit down and hand write a note instead of sending someone a quick email? I know it is one thing I love to do. Writing notes to someone has pretty much become a lost art. Not many people want to take the time now a days and sit down with a pen and a note card and write a heart felt note to someone. Today most people like to write an email and send it instantly to someone they know.

I personally love to write notes to people, also I like being on the receiving end and get hand written notes. Once you receive a note in the mail it is a wonderful feeling to know that person took the extra time out in their life to sit down, think of you and write you a little note.

Technology has become an easy way out of doing so many things. If my kids want to write to someone they send a letter. Of course they are not old enough yet to have their own email but when they are I will still have them send hand written letters.

So this all brings me to my review...

Sandy Feet makes unique and beautiful note cards that you can send to your friends and family on a special occasion or just a little note just because.

A little about Sandy Feet...

Sandy Feet Cards is a division of Sandmade Photos and is located on the Outer Banks of North Carolina. We take messages written in the sand and turn them into one of a kind note cards. Our Christmas Cards are sure to impress your friends and family this year and our Thank You Cards are perfect for anyone who loves the beach. We also have a large selection of cards that can work for a variety of occasions. We hope that you will find something you can't live without, but just in case you do not, we can create a custom message written in the sand just for you.


Below are some of the cards that I received to review...






As you can see there are many different ones to choose from. The cards I received were 3.5x5 inch in size. A pack of 10 (with the envelopes included) on the website costs $7.50.

I am getting ready to sit down and send a note to someone very soon. Actually my husband will probably take it for me because the lady that works with him is like a mother to me. She and I always send little notes back and forth. This card is the one I have chosen to send to her...



So now for some fun. You get to win some of these beautiful and unique note cards.

I will be giving away 4 packs of Sandy Feet Valentine Cards to one lucky person.

Here is what you have to do...

Leave me a comment with your email (I will not accept any comment without an email.) or do one of the following things below for more chances to win....

Follow me on Twitter 1 entry (if you are a new follower)

Follow my blog 1 entry (if you are a new follower)

Add me on Google+ 1 entry (if you are new to adding me)

Like Mom's Point of View on Facebook 1 entry (if you are a new follower)

Like Sandy Feet Cards on Facebook 1 entry

Tweet about this giveaway 1 entry per daily tweet.


*If you do any of these please leave it in a comment below. The contest will end Wednesday January 25th at Midnight.

*Open to US and Canada

*Note I did not get paid for this review. It is my honest opinion of the above product.

Tone up Tuesday:

Tone up Tuesday: What are you doing this week to Tone Up? I really love Pinterest. It is such a great site to find things all in one place. I found an exercise program that has different levels to it.

Guest Post: By Chrissy

My Guest Post today comes from a dear friend of mine named Chrissy. She and I have been online friends since we were pregnant with our now 5 year olds. I can't wait to meet her one day. You can visit Chrissy's over at her family blog.

Thank you so much Chrissy for this wonderful post.

Don’t you hate it when your kids get sick? I know when my girls get sick, I just want to fix it, to take it away, take on the sickness myself. But what if you can’t fix it? What if you can’t take it away? Ever. What a nightmare!

This is my nightmare. Every day.

Nearly two years ago my little girl was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes. It started out with her being hungry all the time. I mean STARVING! She’d eat a meal and not even thirty minutes later she would want more to eat. I figured it was a growth spurt or maybe she was bored.

Then, she became thirsty. We have one of those in-the-door water dispensers on our fridge and she’d constantly fill her cup up with water and drink like she was dying of thirst.

She began to go to the bathroom a lot, too. And wet the bed at night. We attributed this to all the water she was drinking. So we tried limiting her on her water intake. A couple of times I found her sneaking water at night. She was SO thirsty.

A tiny light bulb dimly blinked on in my mind… “Diabetes? Nah.” My father has Type 1 Diabetes, so I was aware of the signs, but I didn’t want to believe that my child had it. I started doing internet searches on diabetes and its signs.

• Frequent urination check
• Increased thirst check
• Increased fluid intake check
• Feelings of extreme hunger check, and double check

Uh-oh… These things were starting to freak me out. But wait:

• Severe fatigue nope

Quite the opposite. Emily always has energy, right up to the moment she is forced to close her eyes and give up the fight to stay awake.

• Unexpected weight loss (type 1 diabetes) didn’t find this out until her diagnosis
• Skin irritation in the legs and genital area check
• Slower healing of superficial wounds not really

Emily did have some irritation on her bum, but when we had taken her to the doctor a couple of months earlier for it, the doctor thought it was because of the pull-ups Emily was wearing at night since she was wetting the bed so much. (Keep in mind, at that time she was still three, newly potty-trained.)

I still wasn’t convinced (I was in denial). I called a friend of mine whose little girl had been diagnosed a several months earlier with Type 1 Diabetes and I went over my concerns and Emily’s symptoms and she said, “Go to the doctor!” Dang it.

We arrived at the doctor’s office and when they weighed Emily, she had lost three pounds since her visit a couple of months before. I didn’t really notice. She had gotten taller, but she wasn’t gaining weight. I had noticed that her underwear looked a little saggy in the bum, but I just didn’t think anything of it. The doctor had Emily pee in a cup and they took the urine to the lab to do some tests.

The doctor was asking me questions about Emily and her symptoms and putting all this info in her laptop. All these things were coming together and I was starting to feel some dread. Then all of a sudden the doctor stopped talking and looked at her laptop. She said, “We’ve got the results of her urine tests, but I need to check something...” Then she got up and left the room. I knew it wasn’t good. I knew right then that Emily had diabetes.

I looked over at Emily; she was playing with the toys in the exam room, oblivious to what was happening, not even aware that in a few moments her life would change. FOREVER.

The doctor came back into the room and said that Emily had diabetes and to go straight to the hospital to check her in and expect to be there for three to four days. Okay, so now we knew and all I could do was look at her, my sweet, innocent Emily, and just feel sadness. I was sad for her…sad for me. I knew she was going to be fine and live a normal, healthy life. I was just sad that this was going to be a part of her in every aspect of her life. I was sad that I couldn’t fix it.

She can lead a normal life while living with Type 1 Diabetes. She can do everything anybody else does. She can eat anything anybody else does. She can eat that cupcake at her friend’s birthday party. It’s okay! Really! The only difference is she has to get an injection of insulin. See, someone without diabetes has a pancreas that produces insulin, the hormone that regulates carbohydrate and fat metabolism in the body. A person living with Type 1 Diabetes has a pancreas, but it doesn’t produce insulin. So instead of her pancreas taking care of that cupcake’s carbohydrates, an injection of insulin will.

There is no cure for Type 1 Diabetes. There is no diet that will reverse Type 1 Diabetes. What we do have is insulin. And HOPE. Hope for a cure.

Two Foals, a Dash of Sprinkles, and a Cherry on Top! Review

Are you looking for a darling book about horses? Look no further because I have a great book for you. Two Foals, a Dash of Sprinkles, and a Cherry on Top is written by Brittany Bevis and Illustrated by Pam Talley. I received a complimentary copy of this book from Caballo Press of Ann Arbor. This is my second book that I have reviewed from this company and couldn’t be more pleased. The first one I reviewed you may remember was Hayseed’s First Race.

Two Foals, a Dash of Sprinkles, and a Cherry on Top is about a sweet little girl named Madison who comes to stay with her grandfather on his farm. In the morning Madison liked to sit at her window and count the horses just like her grandfather taught her, to make sure no horses strayed during the night. As she was counting she noticed there were two new horses. She realized that those were new baby foals. One of those little horses however was covered in spots and made Madison worry that the foal was sick.

Madison rushes to tell her grandfather about the sick foal. He wants to know what makes her think that the foal was sick. She told him when she had spots all over her one time she was itchy and sick. To ease Madison’s mind her grandfather decided to walk with her so they could take a look at the foal.

Madison was still in a panic but her grandfather assured her that the foal was ok. He asked her if he ever told her the story of why horses have spots. Madison said no and her grandfather continued on to tell the story. I don’t want to give away the story but let me tell you it is one of the sweetest stories I have read in a long time. It all has to do with God creating animals and also eating his favorite dessert.

I know what Two Foals have in common with a dash of sprinkles but I want you to find out for yourself by reading this wonderful story. I will tell you that sometimes a big mess can lead to one of God’s greatest creations.

You can order this book on the Caballito Children’s Book section of Caballo Press Website here. A hardback can be purchased for $18.47 and a paperback for $12.47.

*Note I was given a complimentary copy of this book for review purposes. I was not paid for my review. This is my honest opinion of the book.

Tone up Tuesday:

Tone up Tuesday: So what are you doing this week to tone up? Here are a few things I found while browsing the web and one of my new favorite apps...







First let me talk about the app that I have found and use. It is called Lose It. See the nice orange scale? That is what you have to look for when searching your app store. This is a free app that keeps track of calories, exercise, and weight. All you have to do is punch in your info or use the search to find what you are looking for.

Lets look at some screen shots of the app...


When you first open the app you will be asked to punch in your weight and your goal weight. You will also be asked to set a goal for how much you want to loose per week. I set my goal as 2lbs a week. It then calculates how many calories you are allowed a day.

Don't be put off by my screen shot of me not loosing any weight. I set up this app but did not start using it until Friday December 30th. Also the reason no weight change is recorded is because I do not have a scale! Yeah I know how am I going to keep track with out a scale? My husband is supposed to order one soon. He says if I don't have a scale then maybe I will be really happy when I do get on a scale for the first time. That may be true.



This screen shot above is what you will see when ever you first go to your app every day. You can see what you have done for the day. This was just a random day I chose to show you. You can see my calorie budget of 1,2o1, that I ate 988 calories that day and that I did not burn any calories because I did not get to exercise. It also tells you how much you are under your daily calorie count.


Here is another screen shot above of a random day that shows my breakfast and lunch. You can see how many calories I had for those.



This screen shot above is one of the cooler parts of the app. You can actually scan the bar code of the food that you are eating. So if you have a can of soup or something you can scan the bar code and then it will bring up how much of it you can eat and how many calories it will be per serving. You can see the scan right under the search. You can also search many food already in the data base and also create your own foods. I have created my own many times.


This last screen shot above shows your week. Yeah I had a few days where I forgot to add stuff because my husband had my phone and I had his. (Long story but the calories are recorded on his phone.) I will get to plugging that in soon :) Also you can see where I have been bad in red and had more calories in that one day then I should.(naughty me)

So if you are someone who likes to keep track of weight and calories then this is a great app. It is free! My husband even though he doesn't keep track of his, has actually started to look at calories in foods. He makes better choices now.

And now because I am a homeschooling mom another good thing I found for exercising from Pinterest is this:

It is a good work out to do at home when you don't go to the gym...

Guest Post: Changing Diapers and Taking Names

First Guest Post of the New Year comes from Brittany. Brittany is a single mom and full time Certified Nursing Assistant living in South Carolina. She loves the men in her life, her three year old son and 80 year old patient. She blogs over at Changing Diapers and Taking Names about finding herself between toddlers and elders.

I am so grateful that Terri asked me to do a guest post for her! But as I sit here and struggle with what to write about, I keep going back to the conversation I had last night over dinner with a dear friend. She and I were discussing parenting (as I am a mom and she is not) and how she does not feel she has the patience for children yet.

I said to her, “You never will have the patience,” because honestly, you can never be prepared in any way for raising a child; not emotionally, mentally or financially. Am I right? Since my pregnancy started off a little on the unexpected side, I don’t really know for sure if there is ever a moment that you wake up and say, “You know what, I’m ready, let’s do this!” People try to prepare you by saying “your life will change forever!” Well, thank you captain obvious for your valuable input! Truthfully, there is nothing anyone can say to prepare you for parenthood.

Raising a child is different for everyone, every situation is different and every child is different. This is my situation; I am a single mother to a three year old boy. My three year old has the energy of four three year old boys put together. He never stops talking, running or destroying. I am not a patient person (understatement of the year) so parenting an overactive child proves to be quite the dilemma.

I think the best thing anyone could have done for me while I was pregnant is say "Congratulations, you will now feel inexplicably guilty and like a failure consistently for the rest of your life. Good luck!” That way I would not have been so disappointed with my parenting skills from the very beginning. Some may say that I am being overly dramatic (now you know where my son gets it) but I say, show me a mom who does not feel disappointed in her parenting abilities at least once a day and I will gladly listen to what she has to say (and over zealously take notes).

Do not get me wrong, I love being a mom! Having Brody has taught me so much on a variety of subjects. All I’m saying is that no amount “pep talks” or classes could have prepared me for the reality that is parenting. I know there is no such thing as the “perfect” mom, even though most of us strive to be one, but sometimes doing the best I can does not always feel like enough. Am I alone in this? Does anyone else constantly feel inadequate (if no one raises their hands, I know you’re lying)? I think the best thing we can do for ourselves is keep it real. We moms need to stick together. Cut the cookie cutter stuff and be honest about your successes and failures, so maybe we can figure this out together!

Brittany and her son

Thank you Brittany for the great post!

Tone up Tuesday

Happy 2012! I know a lot of you have made a resolution to exercise, eat better, loose weight or just get in better shape. I like to call mine more of a promise to get healthy for my children.

So that being said I plan to make Tuesdays on my blog Tone up Tuesday. It will have little ideas that I get around the web on what you can do to exercise, eat better, loose weight or just be in better shape then you are now.

I hope you all will join me and follow me on Tone it up Tuesdays. I really would love the support and would love to give you the support as well to get healthy in 2012. If you have any tips or anything you would like to share along the way please leave them in a comment.

First things first. Get moving anyway you can...

One of my favorite ways to get moving is Just Dance 3. My kids and I all dance together. We only have 2 Wii remotes and I keep mine the whole time while the kids switch off and pick their favorite dance. I try to do this 30 mins to an hour. That all depends on how cranky and clingy my 1 year old becomes while I try to dance. I must say I love getting high scores on this game and then beating my high scores as well. I try my best to beat my score from the last time I play.

And today I just found this on Pinterest. What a great way to burn 100 calories and have an extra boost of confidence while reading the end.

Happy New Year: Reuseit Glass Water Bottle Review

It is a New Year! Have you made any New Year’s resolutions? I know a lot of people have made the resolution to eat better or exercise. I usually don’t make resolutions because I don’t really care to. I have made more of a promise to myself to try to eat better and exercise.

So what do I have to review for you that can help you with a resolution of eating healthy and exercising? Reuseit has many glass water bottles to choose from. These glass bottle are reusable, naturally BPA, lead, and phthalate-free and can be recycled at the end of their use. There are selections for kids and adults.

I had the chance to review the Glass Water Bottle Enchanted Garden. This bottle has a beautiful red design with butterflies and vines on it. It holds 20ozs of water and has a twist cap that controls the flow. It can be bought here for $12.95.

The cap can twist so you can control the flow of the water that you drink. Not sure if I did it right or not but I got more than I wanted every time I tried. I got a little wet in the process.

You can see in the picture below that you can grip the little tabs and twist to adjust your flow.

In this picture it shows the cap all the way off.

You can also take the top all the way off and drink the water.

The only dislike I have is getting wet when drinking water from this bottle. I think the issue can be solved by taking the whole top off of the bottle. I do like that this bottle hold 20ozs and is pretty heavy in weight so I don't have a fear of breaking it. (I am pretty clumsy.)

So if you are looking for a new glass water bottle check out the Reuseit site. You can ring in the New Year with a new water bottle and also stay fit by drinking lots of water.

Happy New Year!

*Note I was not paid for my review. I was given a complimentary water bottle for my review.