Feature Friday (Over the Big Moon)

Lisa:

1. Lived for 3 months in Romania volunteering in an orphanage working with babies from 6 months to 18 months old.
2. I really dislike the snow! I promised my boys that once a year I will take them to the snow on Christmas Eve. Other than that no way!
3. I am pretty conservative in my normal day to day life, but I love adventure when I travel! I spent 2 weeks touring around Europe with no itinerary, sleeping on trains at night, only 2 showers! Just this year my husband and I took a trip to the Philippines where we traveled all over. In 12 days we rode on a plane, boat, taxi, v-hire, motorcycle, trike, jeepney, truck and a lot of that time we were hitchhiking.


Pam:

1. Can't stand the feel of carpet. I ALWAYS have socks on!
2. I am the Cub Master over the Cub Scouts in my area! I put the uniform on and all!! hehe :)
3. I love doing laundry! I do a couple loads every single day... I can't function if my laundry baskets are full!






Over the Big Moon is a place to find ideas for: traditions, routines, teaching, playing, learning, organizing, cooking, crafting, and anything else that helps make a house a home!




Pre-K Packs: We currently have 13 Pre-K Packs out! Our 4th of July Pack will be out soon!


Harry Potter Potion Bottle Labels


Pre-K Chore Charts


Pallet Backed Bookshelf


Fun Kitchen Printables


Facebook
Pam's Pinterest
Lisa's Pinterest
Twitter



How/Why did you start blogging?

In 2009 we started talking about doing a blog, but at the time Lisa wasn't really available for that kind of commitment. We always had ideas and projects going on and knew it would be fun to soon share them though. In 2010 Lisa's mom, Caroline, was diagnosed with Lou Gehrigs disease. She bravely faced her disease like she had all the challenges in her life. She passed away on Feb 1, 2001 and soon after she passed away, Lisa decided she was ready to commit to the blog! Caroline was an awesome and dedicated Mom, full of creativity and Lisa wanted to share everything she had taught her. For Lisa Over the Big Moon is her small tribute to her mother! We both love sharing all the things we do to try to make our house a home and being a wife and mom, not only rewarding, but fun!

Has your reason for blogging changed? If so, why??

No, in fact it has become even more clear. Hearing back from our readers and seeing others benefit from the things we create and share is so fun and rewarding! It only helps keep us motivated to keep sharing!
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Would you like to see your blog featured here? I'll be doing a "Feature Friday" post, featuring one blogger & their blog on Fridays throughout 2012. If you have a blog that you'd like to see featured, please send me an email to raisingmemories at gmail dot com to submit your blog.

Mom of The Year

Walmart is launching a Mom of the Year Award to help celebrate and recognize the huge contribution moms make as role models and integral members of the family and community.

When I started thinking about who I could nominate, I asked myself what makes a mom worthy of an award? I believe that there are MANY moms worthy of that title! We love our children fiercely, we work hard for them, we teach them, we play with them, we want the best for them and do whatever it is that we feel is best for them.

We love our kids and we love what we do. We also have great endurance. Whether we’re talking the kinds of things that happen to all moms (moments when your children (of any age) are making choices or experiencing things that are hurting them and you can’t stop it). Or whether we’re talking huge, life-changing challenges that come at you when you least expect it.

The mom that stands out to me as one who has gone through a lot of the “life-changing” variety of challenges throughout this past year is my friend Jenn. I’ve written about her on my blog before, and how she is currently mother to 2 adorable boys, advocate for children (like her son) who have severe, life threatening allergies, pregnant with her 3rd child, and whose dear husband has been diagnosed with Cancer, had surgery, and is now undergoing chemotherapy. I wrote earlier about the sweet children’s book that she published and is selling to raise money for her husband’s treatment.

Jenn is a powerhouse mom. She loves her kids like crazy. She works hard to do what’s best for them. She researches, she advocates, she defends, she supports, she plays, she teaches, and she never stops. She’s in the middle of one of those life-changing times that came out of nowhere, and that’s one reason why she stood out to me as the obvious pick for mother of the year- because not only is she a fabulous and strong mother in the best of times, but she is plowing through her current list of “trials” with all of her might.

Whether she becomes Walmart’s Mom of the Year or not, she is definitely Mom of a Lifetime to her children, and is an example to me and to others of what a strong mother can do when faced with hard things.

Who would you nominate?
You can nominate someone here.

Disclosure: I’m part of the Walmart program by Mom Central. I received compensation as a thank you for my participation. The opinions on this blog are my own. Mom of the Year Award: NO PURCHASE NECESSARY Internet access and valid email account required. Nominations open May 10, 2012 to July 8, 2012 for legal residents of Canada over the age of majority. Entrants cannot nominate themselves. One (1) grand prize available to be won consisting of $10,000 cash, a $100,000 donation by Wal-mart Canada Corp. to charity/cause and a trip to Toronto (ARV $22,000). Seven (7) runner-up prizes available to be won consisting of $10,000 cash, a $10,000 donation to charity/cause and a trip to Toronto (ARV $22,000). Charity/cause subject to verification and final approval by Wal-mart Canada Corp., at its sole discretion. Odds of winning depend on how the judging panel evaluates each entry according to the criteria. For Official Contest Rules and to nominate an entrant, visit [www.momoftheyear.ca].

For a "Good Techr"

Sometimes the best teacher gifts (or any gift) are the ones that come from the heart, are spontaneous, and are homemade from the child's own idea.

Talia knows her teacher's favourite colour is green.

June 2012 Sharing Time

HAPPY FATHER'S DAY! :)

Features for the May Sharing Time will be posted soon :)

Author Guest Post (Kelli Swofford Nielsen)

A couple of months ago I shared with you a book that I had read called "Journey to the Fringe" by Kelli Swofford Nielsen. Today I'm excited to have Kelli visiting my blog! She's here to tell us a little bit about herself, her book, and the future for her writing. :) Thanks for being here, Kelli!




I feel very pleased to be posting on Heather’s blog today and appreciate her great review of my novel, The Stone Mage Wars: Journey to the Fringe. I liked hearing that she felt the book played out like a movie, as I have had a similar impression of some of my favorite books.

I am so excited that Journey to the Fringe is finally released! I started writing it a little over six years ago after I left my position as a high school English teacher to stay at home with my infant son. At the time I had stories rolling around in my head, but had little motivation to turn them into something concrete. Then I read a collection of short stories by Garth Nix called Across the Wall. Before each story, Nix told a little about why or how he had written it, and I found that the way he described his thought process felt a lot like mine. I thought, maybe I should write short stories, and then I thought, maybe I should just write short chapters, and so I did. Over the space of a couple of years my short chapters eventually became a novel.

My inspiration for the story came from several observations of scenes and sounds and people, but mostly I just wanted to write the kind of story that I would enjoy reading—a little magic, an adventure, some romance, and a few surprises. I wanted the story to be honest and uplifting, and I wanted to write interesting characters—especially strong women. I do a lot of reading, and while I enjoy reading a variety of genres—classics, contemporary adult fiction, mysteries, some nonfiction, and of course fantasy—I am also a big quitter. I am not unwilling to put down a book that I dislike or that doesn’t keep my attention. I am a great fan of Jane Austen and I enjoy reading a Gene Stratton Porter novel, when I can find one. I loved the Harry Potter series, in spite of their popularity. Other favorite authors include Robin McKinley, Garth Nix, Ray Bradbury, and Louise Penny, to name a few.

When I first began writing, I had a basic storyline in mind driven by a few key characters—chiefly Princess Ivy, who was captured and whisked away to the perilous Fringe, only to find out that the end of the world was only an edge, and that her adventure was just beginning. However, as I wrote, more characters emerged and occasionally took the story places I hadn’t planned. They included a brave local fool, a jaded sea captain, a rejected witch, a young thief, and others. I felt that the characters grew as the story went on, and so even though I originally wrote Journey to the Fringe to stand alone, I was excited to let it continue when the publisher suggested a trilogy.

While I feel happy with the way that Journey to the Fringe turned out, I am eagerly anticipating an opportunity to tell the rest of the story and let the characters continue to evolve. Then, someday, I’ll get working on all these other stories floating around in my head, as long as someone is around to read them.

Kelli Swofford Nielsen

Mothers and Daughters (Athena & Jessie)

In May I did a Mothers & Daughters photography project.
I spent a morning shooting photos of 5 different moms and 9 daughters.

As I work my way through them, I'm posting a few photos on the blog of each mother & daughter.

Here are Athena & her daughter Jessie:










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If you'd like to see some more of the posts from the Mothers & Daughters project, click here.