Tuesday, January 31, 2017

Davy's Tube Feeding Story

I used to think that only kids who were terminally ill, disabled, or premature had to have feeding tubes.  I never in a million years thought I would have a child who would need a to be tube fed.

I was so wrong.

Davy's Tube Feeding Story

Friday, January 27, 2017

What It's Like to be a Special Needs Mom With Special Needs


This post contains referral links which means that if you purchase from one of my links, I will receive a small percentage of the sale.  

I have 4 kids. Katie (8 years old) has Ehlers Danlos Syndrome, asthma, and a visual tracking disorder.  Nano (6 years old) has Ehlers Danlos Syndrome, asthma, and eczema.  Anna (4 years old) has Amblyopia, and Davy (2 years old) has Ehlers Danlos Syndrome, asthma, GERD, severe eczema, hypotonia, mild developmental delays, and is a tubie graduate


And then there's me, the source of my kids' bad genes.  I have Ehlers Danlos Syndrome, GERD, asthma, eczema, Eosinophilic Esophagitis, Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome or POTS, unexplained sudden anaphylaxis episodes, and PTSD.  I'm what is referred to as a spoonie.

Wednesday, January 25, 2017

Join the Free Birds Coffee Club!


My baby sister had a baby last year.  I'm still having a hard time wrapping my head around that.  Wasn't  it just yesterday that she was a little 4 year old with a head full of Shirley Temple curls following me around like a cute, but annoying little puppy?

But I digress.

She entered into motherhood with a lot of experience and knowledge under her belt, thanks to watching both me and our older sister have four babies apiece and being the cool babysitting aunt.

Join the Free Birds Coffee Club!

Basically, she's rocking the mommy thing, and I'm kind of amazed at how awesome she is at it.

One of the things she's learned about being a mom is that you will go crazy if you don't take some time to recharge every now and then.  So she decided that once a month, the three of us sisters and our mom will visit a coffee shop together while one of our husbands watches the kids.  Not only is she making sure that she stays sane as a mom, but she's making sure we do too.

Have I mentioned how amazing she is?

Tuesday, January 17, 2017

How to Share Your Affiliate Links


This post contains referral links which means that if you purchase from one of my links, I will receive a small percentage of the sale.  

So you signed up to be an affiliate (hopefully with the Sunshine and Spoons affiliate program!)...now what do you do with that referral link?

Obviously the goal is to share it with people so they'll make purchases and earn a commission for you.  To make that a little bit easier, here are 6 ways for you to share your affiliate link along with 5 affiliate companies I recommend joining.

How to Share Your Affiliate Links

First, the most important thing you need to know about being an affiliate is that you must always disclose in a clear and conspicuous manner that the link you're sharing is an affiliate one.  This post from Tricia Meyer gives an easy-to-understand overview of the FTC's disclosure guidelines.

Basically, if you include affiliate links in a blog post, you have to include a disclosure at the beginning of your post.  See the top of this post for an example of how I disclose.

Thursday, January 12, 2017

Special Needs and Chronic Illness Medical Binder Printable


When Davy was in the thick of his medical complexities, I put together a binder full of information and notes that I took with me to every appointment.  I used the binder to track Davy's symptoms, log his meds and hospitalizations, record questions for upcoming appointments, and more.  It was pretty basic...loose notebook paper shoved in plastic sheet protectors and held together in a 3 ring binder.  Nothing fancy, but it helped me stay organized and on top of Davy's care needs, especially when we switched health care providers.

Special Needs and Chronic Illness Medical Binder Printable

Then, last year, Davy along with two of his siblings and I, were all diagnosed with Ehlers Danlos Syndrome. 

Tuesday, January 3, 2017

How To Save Money With the $5 Method


If you've been on Facebook or Pinterest lately, you may have seen the 52 week saving challenge.

I tried it once.

I got to day 11 and realized that it wasn't working for me.  I usually didn't have the right amount of cash on me so short of writing myself a check each week, it just wasn't practical.

How To Save Money With the $5 Method

But, I still wanted to save money so I wracked my brain and came up with a different way to do it.

Monday, January 2, 2017

My Kids' 2017 New Year's Resolutions

I asked my kids what their New Year's Resolutions were.

They looked at me with blank expressions and turned back to playing with their new toys.

Soooo, being the awesome mom I am, I helped them out a little.