Will Blog for Sleep

Ah, it's that time of year again.  The time of year when the Carlsons wage a battle of multi-color vs. white lights on the tree.  Tracy learned the best tactic is to decorate the tree under cover of night and was crowned this year's victor. Tracy is still plugging away at the same job, and for the sake of managers potentially reading this, is loving every minute of it (doing Event-Based Marketing at BMO Financial Group)!  Due to frequent trips to Canada, she is becoming somewhat of an expert on all things Toronto - hit us up if you are heading that direction and need some travel recommendations. Many of you know Tracy's father passed away this year from a short battle with an aggressive brain cancer.  Thank you so much for all the thoughts, prayers, and kindness shown to our family as we deal with the loss and the first moments without him as we move throughout the year. Kevin started a new job at Heitman as a Finance Manager.  While it was tough to leave his colle

Family Game Night is so nostalgic.  To remember family game night is to remember nights with family and friends -- evenings filled with laughter, teasing, bickering...and general hilarity with everyone around. That, and my dad peacocking around as he annihilated his 8-year-old daughter in ping pong, cards... anything else, really. Finally the day came when our children were functional enough and ready to start a new tradition.  Most importantly, ready for me to kick everyone's butt (in an absolutely gracious, lovely way) with my mad skills in games like Sneaky Snacky Squirrel . Things went really well...for the first full minute. Until our older son realized he wasn't winning. There were tears.  Pieces went flying. Not exactly the idyllic family bonding moment I had envisioned. To be fair, research does say it may take time for kids to catch on and be able to play without getting upset.  Many stress how important games are to learn the art of winning gracefully

Thought I would come out of my semi-blog-retirement to post a completely untypical blog for the Will Blog for Sleep site. This weekend I pulled together a Car Themed Do-It-Yourself Party for my 3 year old, and wanted to share for those who also have car enthusiasts at home!  After spending hours researching ideas online, I pulled together these favorites, which ended up being hits for the kids too! Invitations The theme revolved around the collateral found on Etsy - LuluPaperPrints She worked with this pattern to create invitations, Food Tent Cards, and some of the signs below: Activities Next came the activities - wanted something where kids didn't have to be watched 24/7 (it's a party for parents, too, for goodness sake!) and where everyone would still have fun! We  chose (we, who are we kidding...my husband learned what was happening the day of): Car Photo - Made with cardboard and Spray Paint, specialized license plate Race Track  - Raced hot

I am a tad behind in the app-world of smart phones, as I have been fumbling around with my first smart phone for only a week now.  And, I have to brag, have yet to drop it. That being said, am hoping you can feed into my growing obsession of apps.  Below is a ((very) short) list of my favorites and would love to hear from others on apps they prefer and why.  From apps for hobbies, working out, kid-centric, I want to know about it! If you have a favorite, tell me.  Favorite ten, even better.  Faves in excess of 20...maybe think about getting a new hobby...after sharing of course. City-Centric: SpotHero - Best parking rates available near any location to provide. It's been fantastic for us in Chicago.  Which is great when you are cheap like us. Park Chicago & Parkmobile - parking meter apps for city of Chicago.  CLUTCH if you are like me and typically carry your phone.  And only your phone.  Side note: I need to start remembering my wallet. GasBuddy - Locates the leas