Are you looking for a great LAST MINUTE gift idea? How about FREE OVERNIGHT SHIPPING?

L’OCCITANE FREE Overnight Shipping on ALL Orders Over $100. Order by 12.22 1PM ET to ensure Christmas Delivery!

How about a L’Occitane Cherry Blossom Gift Set

Or maybe the L’Occitane Honey & Lemon Gift Box

Wishing you a joyous Holiday!

This News Flash arrived in my mail box this morning. I thought my readers may appreciate this healthy information and savings!

General Mills to Further Reduce Sugar in Cereals

“General Mills announced this week a commitment to further reduce sugar in cereals advertised to children under 12 to single digit grams of sugar per serving. The company has already been reducing sugar in cereals while increasing key nutrients, such as calcium and vitamin D, and providing whole grain….

Continue reading to get your $1 OFF coupon and website links.

Don’t you just love gifts from the kitchen? For years I prepared a wide assortment of chocolates and candies for each household in my family. My dear friend’s youngest daughter Kayla stayed with me before and after school until her mother picked her up some years ago.  During those four years she helped with the gifts for my family. Right after Thanksgiving we started making and freezing the candy. Together we made more than 1500 pieces of candy!  Kayla, now a sophomore in college, still talks about those candy making days with great fondness. This is one of those memories that will be close to my heart forever, and the motivation behind this post.

The holidays are most definitely exciting, and stressful. This goes for CHILDREN as well as parents; a major point that parents must remember. It’s been a long time since I had to put the children to bed. St. Eve Kids and TwitterMoms have come up with a fun contest. Answer the question, “What are your five tips & tricks for getting your kids to bed on time and getting them to stay in bed?”

My boys are now 22 and 27. Thinking back, I found that the the number one thing that helped the children maintain their regular sleep schedule during the holidays was planning.

• First, set a realistic schedule for each week in December. Don’t cram everything into one week. Being a Christian, I used Advent as my starting time. Set a time to tell the children about the activities of the week, when they are scheduled, and what you expect from them. Sunday morning was my preference.

• Secondly, reaffirm the importance of sleep frequently. Interject this topic when discussing the weekly schedule.

• Third, rearrange bath times or other nightly tasks to accommodate an event that might overlap. This seemed to help with everyone’s stress level.

• Fourth, Don’t skip the nightly story or game. Whatever your normal bedtime activity is, don’t skip it! If it’s reading, then read even if it’s later than you expected.

• Fifth, be consistent. If you say the bath has to be done before we go, then make sure that happens. I found that during the holidays, especially the week of, being inconsistent can greatly increase that stress level for both parents and children!

These are the things that worked for me, hope the will be helpful for you too. As I remember it, my boys adjusted to the holiday schedule quite well and got a good night sleep!

About  St. Eve Kids and the contest: