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Pure Joy from a Halloween Costume!

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Wal-Mart.com USA, LLC

Halloween costume

My son’s Halloween costume came in the mail today from Walmart.com, and you would have thought he had gone to heaven!!  He declared weeks ago what he wanted to be for Halloween, so I finally went online and ordered it for $15 with free shipping (once you spend $50) from Walmart.com.  When it arrived in a huge box today, among toilet paper and other items, we immediately opened its packaging and slipped it on over his clothes.  Once he got the costume on, he was just so happy, and would not take it off!  I left him alone, as he relaxed on the couch after school.  As I would walk by, I could tell he was just in his own little pretend world as his favorite hero, and he just seemed so content!  When it was time to get ready to go to our after school activity, he just kept going on and on about how comfortable this Halloween costume was, with the foam muscle arms built in and comfortable material.  I honestly did not know how well-made this Halloween costume would be, but for $15 and to be able to check this item off the list and get the costume he wanted easily with no hassle, I went for it!  Honestly, I am impressed with the quality and value- a full length costume with a mask and another accessory- for $15.  More so, I just loved how he changed into this hero of his in his little pretend world, and everything was right in the world.  Such joy to be a child!  And just like that, we are ready for Halloween!

Make it easy on your time and inexpensive on your wallet, and check out Walmart.com!  Find Shockingly Low Prices on Halloween Costumes, Decor and Treats at Walmart.com!

Grandparents Day

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Grandparents are the best, aren’t they?!!  Grandparents Day is this upcoming Sunday, September 13, and we want our parents and grandparents to know how much we appreciate them!  We’ve created a pinterest board with ideas that we’ve done in the past and others that we’d like to try, just to give you a few ideas so you can make this Sunday a special day to celebrate grandparents!

In the past, I have made the silhouettes for myself and then given them to grandparents, as well as the photo coasters, ornaments, all kinds of handprint crafts, and fill in the blank descriptions of grandparents, which is always fun!  While grandparents day is right at the beginning of the busy fall season, don’t forget the amazing grandparents in your life!  Just a simple call, Skype, or Facetime chat lets them know how much we care.  Check out Mom’s Priority’s Pinterest board for ideas!

 

Just in Time Delivery!

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I have to say, I love having packages delivered to my door- just in time- with no shipping cost to me!!  I ordered from Walmart.com on Monday, and the items we need for our household to run efficiently arrived just in time today via UPS and FedEx.  When you place an order over $35, you do not pay shipping, and the prices online match in-store prices.  I have several “lists” saved on my account, so whenever it’s time to reorder, I just click “add to cart” from my list.  It really has made our lives easier!

Wal-Mart.com USA, LLC


Similarly, you can go to Amazon.com, and usually if you order $35, you qualify for Free Shipping.  Amazon has a special feature called Amazon Prime Pantry, where you can sign up to have items sent to you on a set schedule based on your needs.

Such a time saver!  I highly recommend you utilizing this free delivery service.  I believe the way we are buying is going to shift in the upcoming years and home delivery is part of the future.

just in time delivery of household items

just in time delivery of household items

Freezer Meals for Busy Back to School Nights

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Freezer meals

It’s important to know that we’re feeding our families healthy meals, but with busy schedules, we just can’t afford to spend hours in the kitchen!  The Freezer and the Slow Cooker are the best inventions for busy parents, aren’t they?!

About once per quarter, I buy chicken breasts and ground beef in bulk (when they’re on sale), and make up meals to store in our freezer for busy weeknights.  Recently, I made 2 Baked Zitis and 1 Lasagna.  Sometimes, I make up chicken enchiladas, tex-mex chicken, and poppyseed chicken.  I use disposable pans from the dollar store to minimize clean-up and so I’m not using all of my dishes in the freezer.  I label them with the name and date, so I know what’s in there.  It makes life SOO much easier during busy times of the year.  Knowing that I have a real meal waiting in the freezer keeps us from eating out all the time, helps us stay on budget, and is just comforting!

If I have leftover ground beef, I might also make up chili or go ahead and season and cook the ground beef and then freeze in a Ziploc freezer bag (with the date and title) to mix with spaghetti sauce for a quick spaghetti night later on.

For the chicken, the easiest thing to do is to put chicken breasts in the crock pot with a jar of salsa emptied on top.  Let that slow cook all day, and then you have great pull-apart meat for your chicken enchiladas and also for any other Mexican dish you might have.  You can freeze the chicken meat in a Ziploc bag in good portion sizes for your family with the name and date on the bag.

A few of my favorite freezer-friendly recipes:

Mom's Priority Baked Ziti

 

 Find your new favorite freezer recipes on our Pinterest page!

Back to School: Healthy Kids’ Lunches

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Back to School Shopping

Back to School Saving Money Tips from Mom’s Priority

A fresh start to a new school year and a healthy start to packing nutritious and fun school lunches for our kids!  Pinterest has so many great ideas to keep our kids healthy and strong, and we’ve find some great ones!  Check Mom’s Priority’s Pinterest page for lots of healthy ideas!

Healthy Summer Snacks for Kids

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Summer is in full swing, and if you’re like us, at this point, you’ve relaxed your thoughts on “healthy” snacks, and it may be time for some new ideas.  Keeping our kids fueled with healthy and real foods that are accessible and easy to prepare is an important priority of being a mom.  So, as we’re headed to the pool or playground or ball field, or wherever else, consider these ideas pinned from Pinterest for inspiration HERE.

 

Banish Summer Boredom

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It’s the middle of the summer now, and it seems no matter how busy we are, inevitably I will occasionally hear, “I’m bored!” In

Banish Summer Boredom with these ideas from Mom's Priority
Banish Summer Boredom with these ideas from Mom’s Priority

 

case you have heard these words before too, check out Mom’s Priority’s pinterest page for ideas.

When the kids were Preschool age, the best sanity-keeping idea I had was to have the kids decorate large popsicle sticks and then I numbered them and listed an activity on them that matched up with some project/activity/craft around the house that was pre-packaged and ready to do.  This gave me something to direct them to if they ever said, “I’m bored” or “what can I do”?  Having the whole project kit ready to go made it easier as well, eliminating the frustration of trying to find the items for a certain project!

As the kids have grown, now no one wants to paint popsicle sticks, and I just have a list.  If they get bored, I say, Check the list for ideas!  Truthfully, at this age, we stay so busy that boredom doesn’t happen often!  But, it is nice to have options and ideas, because there are so many things we want to do in summer!

For more ideas, check out Mom’s Priority’s pinterest page.

 

Disney World on a Budget

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Mom's Priority's Tips for Saving Money at Disney

Mom’s Priority’s Tips for Saving Money at Disney

Disney World is on many families’ bucket lists of places to experience with kids, and truly, it is an amazing family fun experience for families!  Even if you can’t or won’t spend thousands of dollars on a vacation, you can still experience Disney World with these money saving tips.

  1. Plan your trip well in advance.  Hotels, while plentiful in Orlando, can book up with the number of visitors and conventions that are ongoing in that city.  Planning in advance also makes sense with regards to meal reservations and fast passes.  We’ll talk about that more below, but people start booking these up to 6 months in advance, so don’t wait!  You also can find out when is the best time to go to Disney.  We’ve found that November is a wonderful time- it’s already decorated for Christmas, the weather is very nice, and it’s not that crowded.
  2. Once you nail down the dates of your vacation, plan your days in detail.  Sound like planning takes away the spontaneous fun, right?  Well, time is money in Disney World.  One-day ticket prices are standard at $105/day per person and $99/day per child age 3-9, regardless of the Disney park you are visiting!  The price seems steep, but only until you realize how much you get for your money, with all of the shows, parades, rides, and character visits!  But, if you spend your time waiting in line unnecessarily because you didn’t plan well, you will miss out.  So, plan your days.  Look at the crowd calendars available on touringplans.com and undercover tourist.  Decide which days you want to go to which park, based on the crowd levels and what features you’re looking for in your day, whether it be the electric parade which vary in hours at night or the extra magic hours that you can receive by staying at certain hotels.
  3. Once you decide your days, plan out your route around the park, keeping your meal reservations, character visits, and fast passes in mind.  Doing this in advance will make the day go SO much smoother when you’re in the park with your family!  You can book character meals up to 180 days in advance, and they fill up so often you need to check back before your trip to see if better times/days become available.  Also, remember if you have a really young one, you can do Rider Swap on certain rides, meaning the parents can switch without waiting in line twice.
  4. When planning your hotel and meals, consider a hotel that offers a free continental breakfast in the rate, and remember that you can bring in food and drinks.  You can eat breakfast at the hotel, pack PBJ’s, snacks, and waters and take in the stroller, and then eat an off-time dinner in the park, and buy a few fun treats/snacks like ice cream when you really need a break from the day or in the evening.

Here are just a few tips on creating a memorable family trip at Walt Disney World.  Check out these websites for more tips on a wonderful Disney vacation!

All Ears

MouseSavers

Frommers

Undercover Tourist

Touring Plans

Disney

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