Despite what James Brown claims, historically, women have contributed to some of the greatest innovations in science, art, business, environments and cultures. In fact, research shows in the early school years, girls are social butterflies and rank top of the class, but by middle school peer approval and physical appearances take priority over self-worth, skills, and assertiveness.  As the mom of a couple of wonderful, beautiful, talented and smart elementary aged daughters, this just saddens me.  My eldest girl heads to middle school in another year and it would break my heart if she lost everything that makes her great just because she’s worried about what other people think.

One mom is determined to inspire a new generation of conscientious, emotionally fit and assertive girls with the launch of Go Luna Girl Go a confidence and kindness building app for kids three to eight and available on iTunes for $1.99.  The app, compatible with iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch, is the first in a series of influential stories with activities from the Beyond the Moon with Luna book series.

Go Luna Girl Go is an interactive story with bonus coloring activities celebrating women in various careers. Girls adventure with Luna as she prepares for her first flight. Just a young cow on the farm ready to clickity-clack down a pre-determined life, Luna meets girls leaping for their dreams; discovering they can make a difference in the world.  With the support of a wise ol’ frog named Chester, Luna finds her confidence, shares her curiosities, and takes a chance that her fears will be drowned out by cheers from the other girls in the field.  Luna ponders the social risks and considers many paths before acknowledging she is capable, and worthy, of leaping beyond expectation to realize her dream.

Go Luna Girl Go is created by Stephanie Rach-Wilson, a mother of two daughters growing up in a world more embracing today of women in roles previously filled by men.  “The paradigm is shifting as it pertains to opportunities but women need to champion each other so we enter into leadership roles more confident of ourselves and considerate of other women,” says Ms. Rach-Wilson.

Each download includes a free physical copy of the book, to encourage girls to read and role play with parents and friends.  Details available with app download.

A portion of proceeds supports the Turner Syndrome Society of the United States (www.turnersyndrome.org). TS is a broad-spectrum chromosomal abnormality affecting one in 2,000 females physically, mentally and emotionally.  One of Ms. Rach-Wilson’s daughters was diagnosed at age eight with little hope for a viable life yet she leaps beyond expectations everyday.

Download the Go Luna Girl Go app on iTunes and visit www.golunagirlgo.com to learn about great women in history, modern girls and women making a difference, resources for social and emotional development, and activities to build confidence and kindness in kids.

Go Luna Girl Go is produced by Bay Area based It’s All Good Media, Inc (IAGmedia). The Company also produces the award-winning, eco-educational series, Let’s Go Chipper, promoting 21^st Century learning and social-emotional preparedness.

Press release provided by IAG Media, Inc.

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Jon and I play a lot of video games in our very little free time time, and I work very hard to make sure at least some of our games encourage the active life we’re working hard to live…that’s why I’m always so interested in playing Kinect games.  Ubisoft’s latest installment in Kinect gaming has completely innovated the way gamers play and fitness lovers have fun – Marvel Avenger’s Battlefield Earth engages not only your mind, but mostly your body.  My only real complaint was the lack of a real story line, in truth, this game is mostly a set (or unending sets, even) of hand-to-hand battles pitting the “real” Avengers against the “Skrull” Avengers.  This game had us sweating and panting within a few short minutes the very first time we played and we were able to track our fitness over the course of our playing the game – the more we played the longer we could play and the better we did.

In the storyline of the Battle for Earth, the Skrulls have landed & taken over some of your favorite superheroes, now it is up to you to embody one of 20 different characters including the Avengers Iron Man, Hulk, Captain America, and Thor, as well as other fan favorite super heroes and villains from the Marvel Universe super heroes and defeat epic enemies during the Secret Invasion.

• EMBODY ICONIC MARVEL SUPER HEROES AND VILLAINS:
  Choose from 20 classic Marvel characters, each equipped with four unique superpowers
• USE MOTION TO FIGHT AS A SUPER HERO:
  Trigger super attacks with your movements.
• EXPERIENCE A WIDE VARIETY OF GAME MODES:
  Co-op, Campaign, Arcade, Challenges, Versus, and Tournament.
• TONS OF BONUSES TO UNLOCK:
  Work your way through the battles, you’ll unlock unique outfits and collector cards.
• BATTLE WITH AN ENHANCED FIGHTING SYSTEM:
  Use Super Attacks, Velocity Boost, Breaker, or Frenzy to beat your opponents.
• EYE-CATCHING COMIC BOOK STYLE:
  Inspired by iconic comic artwork based on the Secret Invasion storyline.

What games do you love playing with your significant other??

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Establish a Grocery Budget

First things first, Jon & I tracked all of our grocery spending for the month of January to give us a starting point for our grocery budget.  Our monthly budget is now set at $500 a month to cover all of our food, cleaning, and paper goods…that sounds like a huge feat, even for me, but with my system of once-a-month shopping, couponing, and menu planning and by keeping my shopping list consistent, I can easily stay on budget and keep my family eating healthy all month long.

When we met for our monthly budget date in February, the budget date is something we’ve done for years now, we were able to pin down a whether our grocery budget was reasonable, but not outrageous, using the tracking we did the month before.  Through our new awareness, we also discovered we were losing a lot of money through food waste and by shopping once a month, rather than weekly.  If you’re anything like me, you tend to pick up at least a couple of items not on your list…these couple of items can really add up monthly if you’re shopping weekly.

Master Grocery List

I’m terrible about making grocery lists every week, and that can really cost me, so I also created a master grocery list spreadsheet in January for us to use in our grocery shopping for the month.  Over the last couple of months, I’ve added items that I had forgotten and it’s been great for keeping up with our pantry…it also gives me an inside look at what we’re eating a lot of and where we could use some diversity in our diet. 

Since I’ve spent so much time fine tuning our pantry list, I wanted to share it with you.  You can view and save your own version of our grocery list in Google Drive or in PDF format…I hope it helps make your grocery shopping go a little more smoothly.  I’ve found with a pantry full of basic items you can create a month’s full of recipes with ease.

Once A Month Shopping

Every month, on the first Friday of the month, you will find me taking the day off from client projects and tackling our grocery list.  Since I only shop once a month, my grocery shopping can take as much as 5 hours to complete – and about a week to prepare for.  Yes. Really.  But really, it only takes me so much time because I am running a company, raising a family, and preparing to start school (again).  I usually only hit up three different stores: Costco (LA & I share a membership), Walmart, & Kroger.  Here’s a look at how I spend my week leading up to the big trip and how it works for me:

Monday – Print out pantry list and fill out needed items + quantity (I do this in pencil because I know I’m going to make edits as the week goes on).

Tuesday – Create monthly menu & recipes. Add items needed for recipe to grocery list.

Wednesday – Review weekly grocery store ads and add any sale items to list.  (Now is a good time color code your list per store.) 

Thursday – Go through coupons and cut/collect those needed for your trip.  Spend this time also paring down the expired or undesired coupons.

Friday – After dropping off the kids at school, I head straight for Starbucks – I use my holiday gift cards to pay for this little excursion, so it doesn’t come out of our budget.  I also try to schedule any other errands in the city for this day, so that I can be as budget friendly as possible.  Then I start my trip at the store that is the farthest away and start working my way back home.  By the time I’m done I’m exhausted, ready for another cup of coffee, and a nap.  But alas, I’ll spend the next hour unpacking and putting away those groceries while throwing back a couple of cups of coffee.

I have to tell you…it’s a lot of work, this once a month shopping, but it’s also really nice.  I’m alone in my car with my Spotify playlists for the majority of the day…and then I get to take the music with me in my ear buds in the stores.  We’re also down to slip pickings when it comes to groceries by this time, so I’m just excited to have food again.

So what do you do to save time and money on groceries?

Like what you read? Try these!:

1. 5 Money Saving Tips to Save Money Fast
2. Money Talk Monday:Make Financial Management a Priority

Last week, thanks to the generosity of a complete stranger, Jon & I were able to enjoy some date time for our tenth anniversary…not just any date either…but we were able to go to a Dirty Heads concert in Lexington.  Have you heard of the Dirty Heads??  No?  Well, shoot…let’s change that today!  The first time I heard the Dirty Heads was last summer and I was instantly hooked….they have this great blend of reggae & rock; they remind me of Sublime and as y’all know I love my Sublime. Don’t get me wrong, they don’t sound just like them…oh no…of course, Sublime brought a sound all their own.

But then the Dirty Heads do too.  DH bring their own style of music to the table by blending the classic sounds of summer with reggae, acoustic rap, and garage band grunge.  Their music brings me to a happy place…when I listen my stress simply floats away, I smile without trying, there’s just a kind of joy…peace, if you will…when I listen.

I’m sure you’ve heard Spread Too Thin and Lay Me Down, but I want to introduce you to some music you might not have heard yet…so let’s go!

First off, let’s start with Dance All Night. This song is so much fun and it just brings all kinds of joy to my life when I give it a listen. When we saw them in concert it was absolutely the most fun song of the night.

Stand Tall is the next song I’ve got for you, the acoustic version of this song is amazing…it’s on my constant play list.

There were three other bands with Dirty Heads and I’ll be introducing you to their music over the course of the following three weeks: Shiny Toy Guns, Midi Matilda, and Oh No Fiasco!

So what are you listening to this week?  PLEASE share it with me!  Don’t forget to be adventurous in your music this week, listen to a new band…you might find out something new about yourself.

Like what you read? Try these!:

1. Tuesday Tunes: The Pixies

As I am certain you know by now, our home is over run with LEGO® blocks of all shapes and sizes, not to mention the figurines and finished masterpieces that occupy every available flat space in the house.  Jon and the girls are always looking for a new challenge to take on over the weekends, but they often take just as long to find said masterpiece as they do to create it.  Thankfully LEGO® has created The Official LEGO® Channel just for parents like us jammed packed with over 600 mom-approved videos made specifically for kids 6-11 years old.  It’s the perfect way for my girls to get their LEGO® fix while also being assured that each video is safe for their viewing.

That’s right! Now YOU can create your own LEGO® video play list with all of your kid’s favorite LEGO® videos and minibrands.  On the Official LEGO® Channel, parents can add videos from LEGO® Star Wars™, LEGO® Hero Factory, LEGO® DC Universe™ Super Hereos and more.  While I would never just allow my children to have free rein on YouTube, with the video list creation so easy to use and so safe for family use.  Just this weekend, I created a LEGO® playlist for the girls to satisfy their adventurous spirits and was pleasantly surprised by how easy it was and how much fun the girls have had with it since.

So now, when Jon is scouring the ‘net for the next project, the girls will have plenty of fodder (and fodder I can change as needed) to keep their minds safe and entertained.  The girls have also found that they get ideas for new inventions and LEGO® creations – now KG is forever making projects she wants to send to the LEGO® club magazine.  This latest ability to create playlists will open up lots of opportunities for children everywhere to safely view videos that keep them entertained.

Super Easy Create LEGO® playlist

·     Visit Youtube.com/LEGO and watch one of your favorite videos
·     Click “Video Options”?
·     Select “Add To Playlist”?
·     Sign-In using your YouTube Login ?
·     Add your selected video to an existing playlist or create a new one?

There is a lot of content on web; creating a playlist on the Official LEGO® Channel is a great way to ensure your kids are entertained and watching videos you can feel good about.

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of LEGO. The opinions and text are all mine. Official Sweepstakes Rules.

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It’s no secret that children learn best through play and there have been countless studies done in support of this fact, these days parents everywhere are looking for new ways to pack the most educational benefits into their children’s playtime.  While there is certainly a surplus of “educational” toys marketed specifically for children’s enrichment and learning, parents don’t always need to head out to the store for the latest toy when they usually have everything they need to provide endless opportunities for learning already in their home.

Sensory Play

With the recent wave of eco-conscious parenting that has flooded the nation, parents and caregivers are discovering out of the ordinary educational possibilities in every day toys; one parent who really stretches her children’s imaginations through play with household items is Catherine Moss. Catherine regularly fills large shoe boxes with bulk dried beans and small toys like alphabet fridge magnets turning these average items into sensory bean boxes where her children can dig, pour, sort, pretend and more with the beans and box contents. Every day items like these are being used by parents in a variety of ways to encourage and reinforce counting, sensory development, and spatial skills, while simple tricks, like encouraging a child to describe their choice in dress-up clothes for a pretend play, help children develop valuable social and language skills.

Reinforce Life Skills at Home

It’s natural for parents to want their children to succeed in school and in life, which is why the recent push for the mastery certain skills before Kindergarten has propelled parents across socio-economic classes to seek out new ways to help their children be ahead of their peers. Homeschooling parents like Christina Strickland have been incorporating learning into every day activities as a natural extension of their day to day life. Christina suggests that parents talk to their children and explain the processes as they go throughout the day, for example:  “When you cook together, explain fractions; when you do laundry, talk about how washing machines work; and when you go for a walk, point out animal prints or how the leaves have changed.”  Since children has a deep rooted desire to learn and are sponges for information, parents are learning how every day life can open up the possibility of learning, simply by doing.

Repurpose Toys

Parents are also finding new ways to repurpose some of their children’s older toys or toys that have been passed down over the years.  Educational consultant and mother, Candice Lindemann likes to use her son’s old toy cars to reinforce the concept of physics and gravity with ramps and tunnels made from blocks and tubes from other games.  She also suggest using animal figurines to learn about the different animal classifications, to reinforce size difference, and more.  More and more, parents are finding new ways to sneak learning into playtime.  Whether they’re practicing counting and currency skills with the play money that came with their parent’s monopoly game or sorting and building with their blocks, there’s no doubt children have ample sources of education and play surrounding them, not only in their “educational toys” but also in their beloved baby doll.  The opportunities for learning through play are endless and parents are just beginning to truly grasp the possibilities found in their every day toys and household items.

How do you think out of the box to encourage learning through play in your home?

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At heart I am nothing if not a punk rock girl – I’ve been rocking out with pure disdain for the last 15 years – long after punk was declared dead.  One of the bands it took me the longest to discover is one I found, or rather was introduced to, as a doe eyed freshman in college: The Pixies.  Now, don’t ask me how I had gone so long without setting my ears on the roots of some of my favorite music…I just had.  Maybe I had to meet my friend, Mark Adolf, before I was meant to hear them…maybe because we had something teach each other.  Maybe, simply, because I grew up in rural Kentucky and the Pixies are just not regular listening for around here.  Who knows…yeah…I came into them a little late.  What can I say?  Now, though?  Now I listen to them all the time.  Every chance I get.4

So, in case you’re like me and you’ve still not set your ears upon them…give them a listen.

If you’ve seen the movie Fight Club, you’ve probably also heard The Pixies and maybe not have even known it…here’s the most recent popular song/video: Where is My Mind?

This is my personal favorite Pixies song, Debaser…I can’t really place why…the gritty sound and catchy hook probably have something to do with it.  Heh.  No, really.  I do love this song…I also really like Here Comes Your Man, but I won’t share that one here this week.

Have you heard of The Pixies?  What are you listening to this week?  What songs move you?

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Keyboarding Skills

Learning Games for Kids – Keyboarding Skills: Fun keyboard for early elementary and young learners

Powertyping: QWERTY & Dvorak + lots of typing games

Free Typing Game: 30+ different typing games for learners of all ages

…more typing games from About.com.

Digital Citizenship

Digital Etiquette Lessons: Digital lesson for older elementary students

Stay Safe Online: Teach your children to become good digital citizens with these resources

Digiteen: Online lessons created by teenagers to help students learn digital responsibility

Reputation: Tips for teaching your children how to maintain digital reputation management

Microsoft Learning Suite

TechnoKids: Collection of technology projects through Microsoft Office Suite activities for children from Kindergarten to 12th grade.

How To Do Things: Basic idea of how to teach your child how to use Microsoft Office.

Structured Learning: Basics of how to use Excel

GCF Learn Free: Basic Excel 2010 usage learning guide

ABC Teach: Tons of learning games for young learners to learn how to use PowerPoint

Presentation Software – About.com: Powerpoint tutorial

Recommended Reading

Raising Digital Families For Dummies, by Amy Lupold Bair: This easy-to-understand guide helps you get up to speed on everything you need to know NOW in order to keep up with your children’s online and gadget activity. This book will be out in April, but you are going to want to order it asap.

Computer Ethics, Etiquette, and Safety for the 21St-Century Student, by Nancy Willard: This book encourages students to adopt legal, ethical, safe, and courteous behaviors when using technology from International Society Technology in Education.

…more books recommended by ISTE.

Since teaching our children digital responsibility is of the utmost importance for parents raising children in this new age, these resources are so valuable for teaching children how to use the new digital world safely and responsibly.

Do you have any resources you swear by?

Affiliate links have been used in this post. I might make some pennies if you buy a book.

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Why a 5K?

Why the 5K you ask?  KG turns 10 this June and I am always looking for new ways to relate to and connect with my tween…running is something she truly enjoys doing and since it’s also a release for me, I’d like to find a way to incorporate it more into our lives.  My reasons don’t only have to do with connections though, you see…I don’t know if you remember, but KG has had to work hard to be able to physically handle running.  When she first joined Girls on the Run, I worried all the time that she would have a hard time breathing while she was running and to be honest she did have one time when it got a little scary for a minute; what I really saw over the 2 months KG was involved in this part running group/part self-awareness class was a real strengthening in her body, her lungs, and her confidence…and didn’t only stem from the great lessons or fabulous coaches (though they did play a huge part)…it came from finding her stride in running and pushing herself in a way she hadn’t done before.

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I want to continue to stimulate that part of her and because running is something I also love, when my body is trained for it, I was quick to start looking for races for myself & KG and family fun run/walks for the entire family.  One of our family resolutions for the year was to spend more time together as a family and combined with Jon & I’s desire to live healthier lives, I couldn’t think of a better way for us to enjoy several weekends a year…also, if we choose carefully, we can participate in races that benefit causes we believe in while also supporting our desire for health and togetherness.

KG and I went ahead and picked out a few races we are interested in running, in addition to the Clover Leaf 5K, which benefits a local park system, over the next several months and in the interest of accountability I wanted to share them with you as well:

• March: Clover Leaf 5K
• April: I haven’t found one for me and KG, but Jon and I are thinking about signing up to be zombies for the Zombie Run in Louisville.
• May: Throo the Zoo @ the Louisville Zoo

5K Training

I officially started the C25K training Monday and KG starts up next week (I wanted to make sure I was a week ahead before she got started)…of course I’ll be running with her as well, so it should be double the bang for my buck I suppose.  Heh.  One of the things I’ve been struggling with most is trying to find a way to fuel my body without breaking our budget, so I tend to make up recipes whenever possible to try to find ways to use ingredients I already have on hand.  This week we had some strawberries, blue berries, and Greek yogurt left over from our recent Costco trip so after my work out Saturday, I threw those in the blender with two scoops of my protein mix and about 8 ounces of milk, then proceeded to blend it really well.  The mixture was still really thick so I poured about three-fourths of it into some Mason jars I had laying around the kitchen and through them in the freezer – thirty minutes later (just long enough for a nice cool down yoga dvd) I had creamy “ice cream” that was really good!  I added a little bit more milk to the other 1/4th I had left and Jon drank it for an after workout smoothie.  Apparently, it was quite tasty.

Here it is in smoothie form.

The Plan

This week I’ll be repeating the first week of the Couch to 5K with KG and trying to focus on my breathing since that’s where I tend to fall behind.  Speaking of falling behind, I’ve made it clear to KG that it’s not about how fast we complete the 5Ks, simply that we do complete them.

So what are you up to?  Any fitness plans for you and the fam?

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1. Fitness Friday – formally known as Fat-Burning Friday

While spending some time helping a local winery with their holiday open houses I came across their rather ingenious way of storing and serving wine in their open house venue…I just had to share it with y’all today!

For more inspiring photos be sure to check out:

Better in Bulk, Not Your Momblog, The Divine Miss Mommy, Colorado Moms, Rajean Blomquist,

BrainFoggles, The Centsible Life, Rachel Ferrucci, Lil Kid Things, Resourceful Mommy, ShanaMama and Zensible Mama.

Like what you read? Try these!:

1. Wordless Wednesday – Impromtu Stay At Home Day
2. Wordless Wednesday – Hanging with My Girl
3. Wordless Wednesday – Disney Dino Fun