People always ask me how I can work from home during the summer, when the kids are out of school and underfoot all day. I always reply that the interruptions of summer don’t even come close to what I deal with during the school year.

I don’t know about you, but at my house THERE IS A LOT GOING ON. Sports practices, Cub Scouts, fundraising, volunteering, school plays, homework, dances…and OHMYGOODNESS the laundry. Summer laundry never has socks. Flip-flops rule!

The school year isn’t easy and if it weren’t for color-coded calendars, strict rules about homework (my daughter gets a break after school, but my son doesn’t…because that is what works, so I’m sticking to it), and carpooling, I don’t know how I’d get through it.

Both kids have to empty their backpacks when they get home, wash their hands, then have a snack. It’s a well-oiled machine over here! Just don’t look at my desk, or my to-do list. They can choose from fresh fruit, a cheese-stick, or if they’re really lucky, on chilly days I’ll have something warm for them. My son likes to have tea, my daughter likes to have Tyson® Any’tizers®.

And, in addition to being one of my daughter’s (and her friends’) favorite snack foods, Tyson® Any’tizers® has a “School Year Survival Guide” on Facebook; with tools to manage your schedule (including downloadable calendars), to rejuvenation tips for mom and dad. Yes, please.

Check out their great tips and share your own, oh and while you’re there don’t forget to sign up for promotions and events.

Trust me, your kids will thank you.

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When I was a kid, my cousins used to have marathon sessions where we played board games for hours. We would carefully set my grandmother’s dining room table with the board, pieces, and/or money. We would stack cushions on her wooden chairs so we could be assured a soft spot for the entire afternoon, tossing pillows as we went if it got to be too soft.

We also spent many days outside playing. Entire days. From morning until night, we ran, climbed trees, rode our bikes and had many a snowball fight in the winter.

These days, my kids don’t do much of either of those things.

Gone are the days when kids sat around the kitchen table and played board games all day; there are just too many distractions and kids are too impatient. And, to be honest, it’s not safe to let kids do the type of things that I did when I was young. It’s a different world. They get exercise with organized sports, but sometimes that is more work than fun.

That’s where Wonder Forge games come in. I recently received two of their games to try out and they provided active entertainment for my son. We moved, we didn’t get bored. We played like I was a kid again!

He has long been a fan of Jake and the Never  Land Pirates (he’s literally watching it on the computer as I type this) so I knew he would be excited to try the Never Land Challenge Game, but what I didn’t realize is that he would have fun while getting some gross motor skills! Okay, I did too. When was the last time YOU tried to balance something on your head? How about crab walk? That’s what I thought.

We also tried out the Dr. Seuss Fun Machine Game Tiles, which pair with an app for memory and matching challenges for 1-4 people. I won’t lie. My son had a hard time getting this away from me. I’m 41, but I’m a kid at heart!

Wonder Forge has won more than 100 awards for excellence and has many great games to choose from (I JUST noticed their MythBusters game – my daughter is a HUGE fan – and it has 5 star reviews). Check out their site and see for yourself; they are a great resource for family friendly games.

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When I was young, my mom would take me and my cousin on long road trips to South Carolina. The two of us would fill the back seat of the car with pillows, blankets, books and games. This was back in the late 70s when cars were as big as boats, so we had a lot of room.

We spent much of the 14 hour drive (the speed limit was only 55mph) giggling about whatever it is that young girls giggle about; which is to say that we giggled about everything. We wrote notes back and forth to each other, snacked on junk food and we’d try to see who could make my mom mad enough to give us a “don’t make me come back there” look.

To be honest, the pool and beach in Hilton Head were really nice, but the journey there was half the fun.

We have such great memories of the time we spent in the car even though it was long before DVD players, or even walkmans. We did have an 8-track player so we listened to Roger Miller sing “King of the Road” over and over, but that would just make us giggle more.

There is something about a road trip that brings people together like nothing else really can. When you’re thrown into a confined space with the people who know the best and worst about you, you have to make the best of it and that’s just what we did. And, it was great.

My advice for your next road trip is to turn off the DVD player, pull out the earbuds and actually talk to each other. You never know how much giggling you might do.

Now it’s your turn; what is your best road trip advice?

Content and/or other value provided by our partner, Kia Motors

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One of the great things about blogging is having an influential group of readers and knowing marketers who realize that. Once it awhile I get to try products for free and share my opinions (and sometimes give my readers goodies)!

Of course, not all the products are gems, but you can be sure that if I’ve added them to a list of Holiday suggestions, that I’ve tried the items (sometimes for months) before I’ve decided to recommend them.

1. Lovesac – Phur Slippers

I received these a few months ago, but didn’t want to confirm my love for them until the weather turned cold. Which it did. It snowed here yesterday and then I cried. The end.

But, to help me get through what is sure to be a long winter, I have these soft, warm, delightfully padded slippers. They are made from a hypo-allergenic polyester knit and so far, they are as durable as Lovesac claimed they would be. Also, HURRY! They’re on sale!

2. Epiphanie Bags

I bought this bag over a year ago and haven’t carried anything else ever since. I may have recommended this last year, but I love it so much I’m going to do it twice.

This bag has so many great features, I don’t even know where to start. First of all, let me say that it’s technically a camera bag, but I’m not a photographer. I use it as a purse and occasionally throw my DSLR inside and I can really throw it, because the entire bag is padded. It has a back zipper that is big enough for my iPad, front zippers where I can quickly get to my phone and business cards and removable separators inside TO SEPARATE YOUR CONTENTS.

Let me tell you how genius, yet simple, this idea is. I ALWAYS know that my sunglasses are in the compartment on the left, that my gum is on the right and that my wallet and tissues are in the middle, and my keys are in the back. I know where EVERYTHING is and I don’t even have to look in my bag; I can just reach inside. Do you realize how many hours of time this has saved me?

It’s light enough to carry every day and big enough (and protective enough) to use when traveling. Hands down, it’s the best bag I’ve ever owned and no one is paying me to say so. So there.

Stay tuned for more gift ideas and happy shopping!

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