The Sensible Mom

Food, DIY, Chicago Mom Blogger

Sandra

January 2018: 10 Goals for the Week

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10 Goals to Tackle This Week

Happy New Year! For our family, 2017 was a year of learning and new experiences and getting closer to our Lord Jesus. We’re looking forward to what 2018 will bring. Whatever happens, we know that God is in control and we’re blessed to be able to walk each day with Him.

As for my goals, here’s what I have planned for the next week:

Family/Mothering Goals:

1. Do Bible devotions with the kids 4x

2. Take the boys to swim class

Personal Goals:

3. Email a friend

4. Exercise with dumbbells 3x

5. Finish reading through 2 Corinthians in the New Testament and read the book of Esther in the Old Testament

6. Journal 2x

Home Management Goals:

7. Help the kids with BookIt reading for January

8. Work on my Google Calendar

Business Goals:

9. Shoot, edit, & upload at least one new video to our family YouTube channel

10. Shoot, edit, & upload at least one new video to my YouTube channel

What are your goals for this week?


Holiday Fun at Santa HQ

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This is a sponsored collaboration with the folks that work with Santa HQ.

I hope you’re enjoying this holiday season. We’ve been loving all the Christmas lights and holiday decor that seem to be more prevalent this year than in the past. People are really getting into the holiday spirit here in Chicagoland! I like it! 😀

As a family, we’ve been finding ways to enjoy the holidays together and one way we recently took in some holiday fun was when we visited our local Santa HQ.

In case you’re not familiar with Santa HQ, here’s a quick video that shows you what it’s all about. And best of all, it’s FREE! 🙂

Our kids had fun exploring the different interactive areas of Santa HQ and we made great memories in the process.

Here’s our picture of the kids with Santa. I do wish Santa would’ve put on a better smile. Maybe he was just tired. Oh, well! 🙂

All in all, it was a great night, and we even found some fantastic deals on Star Wars toys for my Star Wars fans and a new Elena of Avalor doll for Elisabeth at the Disney Outlet Store because our Santa HQ happened to be located at the Fashion Outlets of Chicago in Rosemont, Illinois.

What kind of fun does your family enjoy around the holidays?

See if Santa HQ is visiting a shopping center near you by checking out the Santa HQ website.


2017 Hot Holiday Toys and Gift Ideas for Kids

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This blog post includes Amazon referral links and sponsored videos.

Hi, guys! Today, we’re sharing two fun holiday toy videos that will hopefully give you some great gift ideas for the kids you’re buying for this Christmas.

You’ll see a Minnie Mouse Pillow Pet, Zuru Hamster, Zuru Hamsters in a House, Zuru Tangles, Mayka Toy Block Tape, Zuru Fidget Cube, and the Barbie Fundamental Chemistry Set!

I hope you enjoy the videos and thanks for watching! 🙂


Holiday Gift Ideas PLUS My Top 3 Chicago Toy and Game Fair Picks

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This blog post includes Amazon referral links.

We’ve been visiting the Chicago Toy and Game Fair for a few years, and every new year is better than the year before.

This year was by far our best experience yet because in addition to getting to try out fun new toys, we also had the opportunity to enjoy a buffet Star Wars themed lunch! 🙂

In the past, we were always provided a nice breakfast of pastries which you can see in a previous year’s vlog here. I’m glad they switched things up and provided lunch this year. It made the day better and the ChiTAG fair more memorable.

Top 3 ChiTAG Toy Picks

There’s always a lot to take in at the ChiTAG Fair, but we manage to visit all of the booths we want to check out, and this year, I decided that I’m going to share my top 3 ChiTAG toy picks with you and, hopefully, in the process, give you a few gift ideas for the kids in your life.

But first, here’s a peek at our lunch table. And, yes, we got to bring all of the toys on the table home with us. Talk about happy kids! 🙂

Now for the picks!

First up is Playfoam.

I chose Playfoam because my kids loved playing with it both at the fair and at home, and it never dries out! So kids are free to create with it over and over again.

Creating with Play Foam at #ChiTAG2017 😃 @chitagweek

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My next top pick is Light Stax Illuminated Blocks.

I chose Light Stax because they’re so cool and Elisabeth couldn’t get in enough time with these blocks. We had to tell her it was time to move on or she would have stayed and played even longer. Kids can use their imaginations with Light Stax blocks for hours and they’re one of those toys you know your kids won’t get bored playing with again and again.

So many ways to use your imagination at #ChiTAG2017 😀 @chitagweek #toys #fun

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My final top pick is the Soggy Doggy Board Game.


Kids were able play a life size version of this game at the fair, and it looked like a lot of fun! No wonder it was a 2017 Toy of the Year Award Finalist.

That’s one huge #SoggyDoggy at #ChiTAG2017 😄 @spinmaster @chitagweek #toys #games #fun

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So those are my top 3 ChiTAG toy picks and a few holiday gift ideas. I hope they’re helpful. 🙂

Do you have any kids gift ideas to share? I’d love to hear them!