Busy Moms Helper

Family fun, food, recipes, crafts, and free printables

Danielle Hey y'all, I'm Danielle - the crazy behind this blog, where I share my creative life adventures as I survive life as a momma of 5 superheroes & wife to my best friend & fellow nerd. Life doesn't have to be perfect to be GREAT! You can reach me at danielle (at) busymomshelper.com - ABOUT -

100 Journal Questions

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Do you keep a journal (or diary, if you prefer that term)? I don’t, although I know I really should. It’s ridiculous the different things I’ve forgotten, that I wish I had written down somewhere. That’s one thing I want to try to do better this year. Even if I only do a few sentences a day, or a page a week, that’s still something. My biggest thing is the ‘moments’. Like the funny things my kids say or do, that I swear I’ll never forget (and then do). Or the sweet things my Hubby does for me. Or people I meet. There’s so much ‘little’ stuff that I want to remember.
If you need some help coming up with something to write about, here’s some help! These pages each have 20 questions or prompts on them, to help you as you record your life and thoughts. That’s a total of 100 questions, so should last awhile!
They’ve been made boring white, but that’s so you can doodle, or print them on fun colored paper, if you want. There’s enough space to cut out each question, then you can put them in a fun jar and just pull a random one out every time you need a little ‘push’ for your thinking.

 

 

 

 

Yes, some are totally random and seem strange, but sometimes that leads to the most fun memories! You never know what it could spark, or what little tangent it could lead to. That’s the fun of it!

 

FREE Goal Printable

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Happy New Year Ya’all!!! I am so excited for this coming year, and have every intention of making it the best one yet, in many aspects of my life! One thing I really want to do is FOCUS myself…..make specific goals and work like crazy to reach them. One thing I’ve heard over and over when it comes to setting yourself up for SUCCESS with your goals, is to share them. Make it so you’re held ACCOUNTABLE.  So here’s me sharing my goals for 2014, to all of you, so I can be held accountable by someone (or many someones) – as well sharing some fun FREE Goal Printable Sheets!
My Goals for 2014 with Free Printables / Busy Mom's Helper
My Top 3 Goals for 2014
1. Build Busy Mom’s Helper into a full time career, so I can get my family out of debt faster.
With student loan debt and such, we’re budgeting as well as we can to bring ourselves out of debt. One of the biggest helps to that, and that will assist me in being able to stay at home with my Kiddos, is to have this blog become my career, with the income to allow that.
2. Exercise at least 4 times per week, and lose 15 pounds.
Yes, I’ve had four kids and will NEVER have my pre-baby body back. That’s okay. I DO want to be HEALTHY and STRONG, though, and at the moment I’m not. I need to fix that for my own sake, as well as my family’s.
3. No yelling at my kids. At all!
Many of you probably laugh at this, and honestly I do, too. This is a serious goal, though, and I know my family will benefit immensely if I succeed. Even if I can only make it MOST of the time, that’s better than not trying at all.
 
Now for some fun printables to help us TRACK our goals!!!
This first printable is a fun sheet to remind us of what MAKES a goal…it must be Specific. Measurable. Achievable. Realistic. Timeable. SMART!!!
Notice how it’s not colored – so while you’re brainstorming your goals, you can color and doodle – that’s what I did!!!
 
 
Now here’s where you can actually WRITE out your goals. I like being very specific, including steps so I don’t feel so overwhelmed and not knowing where to begin, so these are made for ONE goal per page.
I even put a spot to list a REWARD for when the goal is reached. Not sure about you, but I do my best when I’m working towards something, like a new camera, or some fun bloggy supplies.
 
The other printable you see in the top photo is a really great one that I found over at 30 Handmade Days.  She’s actually got several fun printables for the New Year, including some for your kids – go check them out!!!
What are YOUR goals for 2014?

Grinch Who Stole Christmas Party

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One thing I really enjoy doing is making themed family nights based on movies we watch together. Remember our Monster Party from this summer, before we went to see Monsters University? That was so much fun! The kids love things like this, and it’s definitely something that can bring the whole family together laughing. So I decided to do a How the Grinch Stole Christmas party!
Grinch stole Christmas Party / Busy Mom's Helper
I love the atmosphere of happiness, fun and love at Christmas-time. Now, I’m not talking the atmosphere at stores such as Walmart, where everyone is cranky, mean and in a hurry. That’s just horrible anytime, especially this time of year. I’m meaning the kids excitement, the counting down fun, and bright lights that put a smile on your face, giving to others, extra opportunities for serve – all of that just really lifts me up out of my normal slump. It’s WONDERFUL!
The Meal
For ‘Who Hash, we did mashed potatoes mixed with ham bits and cheese.
Who Pudding was simply Tapioca pudding turned green. Thinking back, I would’ve done it red.
Our drink was a pink-red Cindy Lou Who Punch. Simply some juice ice cubes in Cherry Pomegranate Crystal Light.
These Grinch Heart Cookies were just fun. I didn’t do them in heart shapes, but the cookie itself is pink (heart) and the cinnamon-sugar outside is green (Grinch fuzz, or whatever). Simple Snickerdoodles!
Want to print your own cards? Here’s some fun printables for you!
I included an empty one, so you can fill in your own little meal name!
The Activity
Needing something quick and simple, we did these coloring pages. Most of my kids LOVE art activities, so it was a winner! I even added this fun poem I found online (don’t know the source, but know that it wasn’t me that came up with it)!
Want some other fun Grinch Party Ideas? These two amazing blogs share some fabulous Grinch-ness!!!

Dear Santa: Kids Wish List Printable

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Thanksgiving week – WOW!!! I know everyone says how the holidays creep up on them, but seriously, this is pretty ridiculous! Now, there’s probably many of you who already have a good idea what’s on your shopping list for gifts this year. I, on the other hand, am not sure what my kids really want. It’s definitely going to be a mellow year, that’s for sure – moving, buying a house and a puppy….nothing extravagant this year! I do want my kids to be able to ask for a few things on their mind, though, and figure having that done BEFORE the big sales this week would be wise. So here it is…a darling yet simple Christmas Wish List Printable, for your kids, friends, or even you!

Dear Santa Printable

Superhero Soda Gift

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Have you noticed yet that my family’s a bunch of comic nerds? Or would it be geeks? Either way – that’s what we are, big time! My 6-year-old knows the difference between Justice League and Avengers. My boys will yell at you if you call the wrong hero the wrong name. It’s awesome! So, for Father’s Day, we wanted to do something ultra-nerdy and fun and decided to give Flash a gift that was simple, tasty, and reflected our family. Thus – our Superhero Soda Gift! Since there are 6 bottles in the set, each bottle represented a family member – perfect!
Superhero Soda Gift with Free Printables / Busy Mom's Helper
Being our nerdy selves, each of us has a Superhero name. My daughter is Wonder Woman, twins are Superman and Batman, and the youngest is Green Lantern. Hubby is Flash, and I’m Hawk Girl (when the kids say this, it sounds like ‘Hot Girl’ – not going to complain about that!).
Here’s the full Superhero Soda Gift set, in all it’s nerdy-glory!

Supplies

  • 6-pack of IBC cream soda (or orange – just so long as the bottles are clear)
  • Printables, found below
  • Tape or Mod Podge
  • M&Ms, Skittles or other candies the correct color (small enough to fit into the bottle)

Directions

Print and cut out the printable pages found below. Use tape or Mod Podge to attach them to the box, trimming any excess. Attach the labels to the top of the bottle caps, and tape the bottle wraps around each bottle.
Fill each bottle with the appropriate color of treats. Here’s the colors we did:
  • Flash: Red and yellow
  • Hawk Girl: Red and yellow (could also use black – but I didn’t know what candy to do for that)
  • Wonder Woman: Red, yellow and blue
  • Batman: Yellow (could also use black/grey – again, no idea what candy)
  • Superman: Red, yellow and blue
  • Green Lantern: Green (again, black could be used)
Replace the caps, and you’re good to go!
Notes: If using M&Ms, I found that in the 3 huge bags we had to use, there were more blues than any other color, except maybe brown. In all of those 3 bags – so that may just be the normal! Other thoughts for candies: Lemon Heads, small Swedish Fish, Skittles, Nerds, etc.
Printable Pages

Back of Box, Back of Handle, 4 Bottle Toppers

Superman & Wonder Woman Bottle Labels