• Travel

    The Disney Flag…

    Originally posted Spring 2020-Note: All advice is the opinion of this blogger and is pre-COVID-19. As more is known about WDW (Walt Disney World) operating procedures I will try to update these posts. UPDATED SEPTEMBER 2023 Overwhelmed at where to begin planning a Walt Disney World vacation? Never fear! The Chaos Manager is here! Read on for my favorite planning resources for Disney. I realized that I’ve been writing (or thinking about writing) this blog for a year and a half now and have yet to let my Disney flag fly. Well, I’m flying it high now, we are definitely one of those Disney families! ***Some links are affiliate links…

  • Motherhood

    Pinterest Fails

    Updated September 2023 Do you love a good Pinterest Fail? Or want to be sure to avoid making your own? Keep reading to learn what not to do when taking pictures of your infant this fall.    So if you’re a Pinterest parent or a wannabe I’m sure you’ve seen these adorable pumpkin photos before… or this… Baby Photo Shoot Props on AmazonWell, I got something like this… Seriously, his face doesn’t look much different from this emoji, do you see those little balled up fists?  #PinterestFail  #Angrybaby Obviously I am not an authority on baby photos.  What I can tell you is what not to do! Here are the…

  • Recipes

    Tortilla Soup

    Updated October 2023 Jump to recipe September is here! I’m not a crazy pumpkin spice person (gasp!) but I do love the crunchy leaves, sweatshirt weather and making warm cozy meals for my family.  I decided to do another freezer meal stash before school started (I promise that post is coming at some point! Edit: It’s been three years now and I still owe you all that freezer post…whoops but I have made a few dinner idea posts! See here and here) and wanted to include a soup.  I asked the kiddos what they wanted and tortilla soup was the clear winner. Note- Some links may be affiliate links, This…

  • Breakfast nachos
    Recipes

    Breakfast Nachos

    Updated September 2023 Over the course of my dinner planning I’ve noticed we have a Mexican dish at least once a week. Even my picky daughter seems to love anything to do with tortillas and cheese! Taking this idea, I decided to change things up and make some Mexican for breakfast in the form of…Breakfast Nachos. It couldn’t have been easier (I made half of it with a baby strapped to me) and it was a huge hit with everyone…which as you know, doesn’t happen often. Go directly to the recipe! Some affiliate links are provided in this post.  By clicking on them and making a purchase I may make a…

  • Organization

    Meal Planning

    2018 Meal planning. Blech. I feel like meals, specifically dinners are the bane of most people’s existence.  Over the years I’ve come up with a few strategies to make this process a little more manageable or at least routine and not quite as difficult. Some links are affiliates, by clicking on them I may make a small commission at no extra cost to you! Thank you for your support. Freezer meals I cannot say enough about taking an afternoon and bustin’ out some freezer meals (…so stay tuned…Updated Sept. 2023…still haven’t made a freezer meals post even though I whole heartedly stand by the practice!).  One of my favorite go…

  • Activities

    Our first fail…

    Originally posted Summer 2018; Updated September 2023 Some links may be affiliate links. I may make a small commission based on your purchases with no additional cost to you, thank you for your support! One of the first projects we attempted this summer was Chalk Rockets.  Sounds awesome, right? Well, in my typical fashion I crossed all of my t’s on this experiment but forgot to dot the i’s.  Let me explain… I found this activity on Growing a Jeweled Rose, their version and successes can be seen here. The idea is to make homemade chalk, load a film canister with it, add an Alka-Seltzer and blast off-messy, colorful chalk…

  • Organization

    The Summer Game Plan

    I’ve been a working mom since day 1.  This means I’ve never enjoyed (endured) a summer break with my kids.  They’ve always been in day camps or at home with family…until this year.  Knowing this time I would be the day camp and knowing my kids don’t function without a schedule, I used my four months of bed rest to concoct a game plan for a full calendar of summer activities for kids. Affiliate links appear in this post. I may receive a small commission if you click on these links with no extra cost to you! Thank you for your support.  Step 1: Printing off a calendar for each month…

  • Motherhood

    Motherhood

    This was not going to be my first post-in fact I’ve been trying to come up with my first post for a few days now.  I wanted something that would define what I hoped this blog to be about, something that really explains who I am.  Then, this morning, on my second day solo with three kids this post found me.  Its 9 AM and I’ve been peed on, spat up on, blown out on and argued about poop emojis…and I’m fairly unfazed.  Pretty sure there’s pee on my carpet and possibly my robe…and I don’t care.  Welcome to Motherhood people, it’s a messy, smelly, lonely place. My husband went…