Family Archives - Page 2 of 3

Tips for Taking A Road Trip with A Toddler

September 30 by Christina Tiplea Filed Under: Family, My Life

I’m excited to finally share some photos of our road trip with you today! As you all know, we took a week-long road trip from Chicago to The Smoky Mountains (Gatlingburg, TN to be specific) and Charlotte, NC.

We had a super smooth drive down there and Little Miss was seriously an angel for the first few days of being in the car, eating in restaurants, and being out of her element. But then things got a little hairy, as they quickly do with a toddler in tow, and we learned some very valuable lessons in traveling and taking a road trip with a toddler!

I wanted to share what tools and strategies we found helpful in traveling with our 14-month-old in hopes that this will help any of you that are planning on traveling with small children in the near future. [Read more…]

3 Things Every Parent Should Do to Prepare for The Future

September 23 by Christina Tiplea Filed Under: Family, Saving Money

When I was pregnant and we were anticipating Little Miss coming into our lives, we did a few things to make sure that we were financially prepared for her arrival.

While we also tried to make sure we were emotionally prepared, there’s only so much you can do on that front before you just have to jump in and experience parenthood yourself 😉

Bringing another human into the world can be terrifying for all kinds of reasons, and I think that the financial aspect of it is what is worrisome to most. I know plenty of couples who say they are hesitant to start their family at this point because they are worried about being able to afford it. While I think that you can never be 100% ready for having kids, there are several things you can do to prepare yourself before they arrive.

Today I’m sharing the top three things my Hubby and I did to prepare for bringing Little Miss into the world! [Read more…]

5 Reasons to Downsize Before Having Kids

September 16 by Christina Tiplea Filed Under: Cleaning & Decluttering, Family, Saving Money, Simple Living

Hi All! One of my best friends (both online and in real life) Alexandra from My Urban Family has an awesome guest post for us today that I know you will all find fascinating. As someone who has moments where I want to downsize from our current home to live more simply with kids, this post really struck home for me. Enjoy! XO Christina [Read more…]

How to Save Money on Kids Clothing Without Thrift Shopping

September 9 by Christina Tiplea Filed Under: Family, Saving Money

A big thanks to PatPat for sponsoring this post!

I absolutely love having a toddler to dress in cute outfits and accessories (when she isn’t ripping headbands and bows off her head, of course).

And while I have a blast dressing Little Miss, I am also realistic in knowing that she will only be wearing an outfit for a few months before she quickly outgrows it. I appreciate the look of designer clothing on kids, but I’m too practical of a person to spend our money on expensive clothes for her. I would rather use that extra money to do fun things as a family, like going on our recent road trip or excursions around town! [Read more…]

Easy Ways to Take Professional Looking Photos

September 7 by Christina Tiplea Filed Under: Family, Saving Money

Hi Friends!

I’m really excited about today’s post. I am joining some awesome fellow bloggers for the Make It Happen Blog Hop. Every month these ladies challenge themselves to try out something new and “Make It Happen”. This month was a photography challenge and I was thrilled when they invited me to participate!

Ever since Little Miss was born last summer, I’ve been trying to get better with my photography skills so that I can take some quality pictures of her myself.

Like any other parent, I want cute photos of my baby girl to proudly display in our home. But I just don’t find it very affordable to pay the average of $500 or so that most photographers near us typically charge for a single session. I completely admire their work and think they desire to be paid that amount, but I can’t stomach paying that amount for the several times every year that I’d want to get some nice pictures taken. [Read more…]

Simple Ways to Enjoy Fall

September 2 by Christina Tiplea Filed Under: Family, Holidays, Saving Money

It’s officially September and I’ve definitely got fall on my mind!

Our road trip has been an absolute blast so far. And I know what you’re thinking…Christina, why are you writing this post while on vacation? Well, I wasn’t planning on it…but I felt really inspired and couldn’t wait to share some of these ideas with you all. Plus Little Miss is sleeping and this is a very fun way to keep myself entertained while being stuck in our hotel room for the moment.

I plan on sharing some pictures and more details of our trip either later this week or sometime next week 🙂 .

After spending the past few days in the Smoky Mountains where I spotted a few trees that are already changing colors, I have been so excited thinking about the same happening at home in Chicago in a few weeks. Fall is upon us! [Read more…]

Makeover Your Mornings – Course Update + Flash Sale

August 22 by Christina Tiplea Filed Under: Family, Intentional Living, Productivity

Hi Friends!

I hope you are all having a fabulous weekend!

I am having a great weekend besides for some pretty bad tooth pain. I actually have a root canal scheduled for Tuesday morning that I’m slightly terrified about. I know it’s a completely routine procedure, but I have a big time fear of dentists and am getting high anxiety just thinking about it. So if you have had a positive experience with one yourself, please do leave me a comment below letting me know that I’ll be just fine 😉 I need the extra encouragement!

Tooth anxiety aside, I wanted to pop in and give you an update on the Makeover Your Mornings course that I mentioned in this post a few weeks ago. I officially completed the entire course myself and am very happy with how it’s helped me to make positive changes in my own life. I’m also sharing some special deals that are happening with the course in the next few days, and I’ll talk more about them below. [Read more…]

How to Makeover Your Mornings

August 10 by Christina Tiplea Filed Under: Family, Intentional Living, Productivity

What do your mornings look like? Do you wake up feeling rushed and stressed out?

As a natural night owl, waking up early in the mornings has never been much of a priority to me in the past. I would either wake up to rush and get started on work, or wake up to Little Miss screaming for me to come get her.

Not exactly a serene way to begin the day on a peaceful and enjoyable note.

I have been very intentional with my morning time and getting out of bed well before I need to lately though, and I’ve noticed how much it’s really helping me set myself up for a day of success and fulfillment. [Read more…]

The Importance of Making Time for Yourself

July 15 by Christina Tiplea Filed Under: Family, Productivity

Last week I had an especially daunting week as a Mom. I had a few days that felt extremely painful to just get through, much less be the usual fun and fully present Mom and Wife that I typically strive to be.

I felt really disengaged from my daughter and was in a funk that I just couldn’t seem to snap out of. l felt so guilty that I wasn’t being the best Mom I could be. [Read more…]

Tips for Saving Money When Hosting a Party

June 29 by Christina Tiplea Filed Under: Family, My Life, Saving Money

This past weekend we finally celebrated Little Miss’s 1st birthday with our families! She was sick on the original party date so we had to reschedule for a week later, but ended up having even more family members able to attend once we changed the date so it actually worked out better for everyone!

We had a great time seeing everyone and it made her birthday a bit more “official” feeling. Although I’ve hosted parties before, this was the first time I’d ever pulled off a birthday party like this entirely on my own. [Read more…]