Tuesday, November 29, 2016

Meet MaKenzie - Chrohn's Disease Awareness

November is almost over, but I made it in under the wire!  In honor of November being Chrohn's Disease Awareness month, I interviewed MaKenzie who was diagnosed with Chrohn's when she was just nine years old.  

Meet MaKenzie - Chrohn's Disease Awareness

Monday, November 28, 2016

Gift Guide - For the Spoonie


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.  

If you know what a spoonie is, then there's a good chance that you either are one or you know one.  To celebrate how strong spoonies are, here's a gift guide with something for everyone! 

Gift Guide - For the Spoonie

Wednesday, November 23, 2016

Dear New Tubie Momma


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.  

To the mom whose child just got a feeding tube,

Right now, you're probably pretty overwhelmed.  You've just been thrown into a world you never expected to be a part of, and it's scary.  There are tubes and syringes, feeding schedules and pumps, and possibly a stoma if a G, GJ, or J tube is involved. 

Dear New Tubie Momma

Tuesday, November 22, 2016

Meet Elizabeth - GERD Awareness

November is GERD Awareness month!  GERD stands for Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease and affects approximately 20% of the US population. It's also referred to as acid reflux, heartburn, and acid indigestion by doctors.

Davy and I both have GERD and it definitely affected Davy as an infant.  He vomited a lot and battled constant GI issues because of it.

Holly's 22 month old daughter, Elizabeth has GERD.  She graciously let me interview her to learn her story and raise awareness for the disease.

Meet Elizabeth - GERD Awareness

Monday, November 21, 2016

Gift Guide - Baby's First Christmas


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.  

Four kids later, and the first Christmas was just as special for my fourth baby as it was for the first.  There's just something magical about that first Christmas.

To celebrate your little one's first Christmas (or Hanukkah!), I put together a gift guide with a collection of unique keepsakes.  Enjoy!


Wednesday, November 16, 2016

You Can Help Make Sunshine and Spoons Better

Hey guys!

I'm working hard to make Sunshine and Spoons even better for you, and I'd love your help!

If you have a few minutes, would you please take the short survey below?  At the end, you'll be given a $5 off coupon for my shop, www.sunshineandspoonsshop.com.

I really appreciate it!  Thanks so much!





Giveaway Winners!

Thank you to everyone who entered the giveaway for the two welcome home kits and the tubie shirt and congratulations to the three winners!  Without further ado, here they are!

Friday, November 11, 2016

Gift Guide - Unique Toys Under $20


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.  

My kids are watching the mail like hawks right now.  Why?  Because they know that Mommy does most of her shopping online, including the Christmas shopping.

Which is also why I'm glad that the mail usually comes while the older kids are in school.


Anyways...if you're like me, you can sometimes have a hard time figuring out what to get your kids for Christmas.  I don't like to spend a lot of money on their gifts since they also get a lot from relatives.  Bigger ticket items are usually reserved for birthdays.

With that in mind, I put together a gift guide of toys under $20 each for kids of all ages.  I hope you find some good ideas for your Christmas list!

Thursday, November 10, 2016

30 Random Acts of Kindness to Do With Your Kids

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.  

Update 12/7/2020: I've received a lot of comments and feedback on this post and I wanted to address some of them. First of all, I live in a small rural town where homemade treats are the norm, but I understand that that's not the case for everyone. That's okay! Just substitute store bought treats and you're good to go. This list is meant to give you some ideas of various things you can do with your kids. Adapt it as needed to make it work for you, your kids, and your community. Not everything needs to include spending money or giving it away. One of the best random acts of kindness your kids can do is to be kind to others. Also, for those worried that people might think finding things in public places is "creepy" or accidental, make sure you're including a "random acts of kindness" card with them so the meaning is understood.

I want to do something with the kids this Christmas that encourages them to put others first and focus on the real reason of Christmas.  After being inspired by this book, I put together a list of 30 random acts of kindness that I can do with them at Christmas and all year round!

30 Random Acts of Kindness to Do With Your Kids

I thought it would be a good idea to leave a little note with each random act of kindness so I created this printable sheet of cards to cut up.  I plan to print mine on card stock to make them a little more heavy duty.  I'm also going to print extras to keep in my wallet for those times when I come across an opportunity to do a random act of kindness unexpectedly :)  If you don't feel like making your own, you can buy some really cute ones here.

Tuesday, November 8, 2016

Welcoming My Tube Feeding Kid Home with Nestle Health

This is a sponsored post and I received product to write my review. However all opinions expressed here are my own.  This post also contains affiliate links.

Davy had just been discharged from his nine day hospital stay.  Just the day before, he'd had surgery for a G Tube placement, and I was terrified of that little button in his tummy.

Welcoming My Tube Feeding Kid Home with Nestle Health

It took me several nervous breakdowns and four training sessions with a G Tube nurse in the hospital before I was even able to hook up the extension tube to Davy's Mini One Button.  Thankfully, the nurse provided me with a dvd that she had made for her patients that gave details on what to expect when your child gets a G Tube.  She also brought me a stuffed bunny? kangaroo? (we're still not sure what it is...) that had a G Tube that I could practice on without the stress of having to hook up an extension tube to a screaming, flailing two month old baby.

Monday, November 7, 2016

Sunshine and Spoons Is Growing!


Sunshine and Spoons is growing again!!  No, I'm not pregnant...that ship has left the harbor with a one way ticket.

Introducing the Sunshine and Spoons group on Facebook!  It's a place where we can get to know and support each other through this crazy thing called life.

We'll share tips, advice, encouragement, and more, plus members of the group will get sneak peeks at new products coming to Sunshine and Spoons Shop along with special deals.

Friday, November 4, 2016

Christmas Shopping with Groupon Goods

This is a sponsored post, but all opinions stated below are mine.

Um, guys...it's November.  As in, next month is Christmas. *gulp*

Usually I have most of my Christmas shopping done by now, but this year, I've been slacking off.

I have lists written down of ideas for what to get everyone, and I already have the kids' Christmas gift ideas finalized, but that's as far as I've gotten.

Time to hit up Groupon Goods!