Many of us have goals this year to be more organized around the house. And some of us also have a goal around healthy eating and wellness – everything from cooking more meals at home, eating less processed food, or making healthier choices that promote weight loss. These goals can be a challenge, but the good news is that you can tackle them both simultaneously by focusing on your pantry! They say the kitchen is the heart of the home – well, I say the pantry is the heart of the kitchen. Having an organized pantry can help you cook more, shop smartly and efficiently, and help foster the choices you and your family want to make with regard to food. And you can do all of this while creating a functional and aesthetically pleasing display just like those #pantrygoals posts on Pinterest!
I am sitting in an airport lounge. Without my kids. It’s cold and flu season. One of the twins might be suffering from appendicitis (or a bad pizza). Schools are on strike. And as I write this, my daughter will be waking up and coming to my bed to discover I’m not there, for the first time in her life. I can’t imagine the scene that will follow.
Once upon a time, there was a little boy who loved dinosaurs. He’d play with dino figurines for hours, draw pictures of them and roar around the house in full character. It started before his first birthday, continued on through toddlerhood and kindergarten and now, at age seven, remains his key interest. Sure, he likes other things – Beyblades and Pokemon and snowboarding, to offer a few examples – but dinos are his one true love. This is a kid who would choose a vacation to the badlands over a trip to Disney World any day of the week. He has already decided which paleontology program he’ll be attending in university ten years from now. BBC documentaries are his bible and the ROM is his church.
As a hockey parent, there is nothing I love more than watching my boys play the sport they love. I love watching them give it their all out on the ice and since both of our boys are forwards, we get to watch them score goals too!
It’s January, which means the kids are asking where we’re going. It’s the time of year we usually take off for some sun, sand and surf, and boy by this time of year, do we need the holiday.
Here are some of the best vacation spots we’ll be dreaming of this winter.
Choosing a name for your baby is no easy task. There is so much to consider: the flow of the name, nicknames, trends, origin, spellings and the list goes on. At Mabel’s Labels we see a lot of names whiz through our printers daily and we’re often surprised, amused and confused; but more often than not, we see a great name and swoon over it. We know that 2020 will be no different, and we look forward to the new trends and lovely surprises we’ll see.
Here’s a list of names we think are on the rise and bound to be popular in 2020. These names are the ones the stats and pop culture tell us are shooting to the top of the list. Some of the trending themes we’re seeing in baby names this year include a strong royal influence, more international choices, names that hint at astronomy and the rise of short, one-syllable names.
Male Baby Names:
Archie (name of German origin, meaning “truly brave”) The newest Royal baby; Archie, will no doubt continue to be a popular choice for parents in the next year. Credit to the rise in popularity can also be given to the TV show, Riverdale.
Easton (English origin, meaning “east-facing place“) A high-class sounding name with a touch of the directional names trend (North, Weston, etc.)
Axel (Scandinavian origin, meaning “father of peace”) This name has risen in the charts over the last few years, and with all things Scandinavian being on trend, this strong name is sure to be, too.
Cash (English, Latin origin, meaning “hollow”) This name is short and holds its own with no need for a nickname. To many Americans, it’s likely inspired by the legendary Johnny Cash.
Otis (German origin, meaning “wealthy”) Again, a short and sweet name with no need for a nickname. Thanks to Otis Redding, this name makes us think of a smooth, classy man with a lot of soul. Kai (Many origins including Japanese, Hawaiian and Scandinavian) Another strong single-syllable name with multi-cultural ties that’s a quickly growing choice. Kit (English origin) Increasing in popularity due to Kit Harington, who plays Jon Snow in Game of Thrones. A short but strong name.
Milo (German origin, meaning “soldier or merciful) This name is gaining in popularity partially due to the Milo Ventimiglia of This Is Us TV show, and Milo and Otis.
Female Baby Names:
Freya (Norse origin, meaning “a noble woman”) Freya is the Norse Goddess of Love and Fertility, so what’s not to love about this name. It’s increasingly growing in popularity in North America.
Teagan (Irish origin, meaning “little poet or fair”) Teagan, although a popular boys name in Europe, is also picking up traction as a girl’s name in North America.
Greta (German origin, meaning “pearl”) The German name Greta inspires not only climate change activists, but parents to-be, too. This will likely continue to increase in popularity in 2020 as we’re sure many millennial parents will proudly name their babies after the inspiring young activist.
Aurora- (Latin origin, meaning “dawn”) Aurora is the Roman goddess of sunrise, or in North America, it refers to the Northern Lights, the Aurora Borealis, which makes this beautiful name increasing popular. Rory, is a popular short form for the name and may play into the popularity.
Maisie-(Scottish origin, meaning “pearl”) Often short for Margaret, this name stands strong independently of that. It has been a top name in the UK for many years and gained popularity in North America after Game of Thrones star Maisie Williams played Arya Stark.
Nova (Latin origin, meaning “new“) Similar to the name Luna (popular from 2019), the name Nova also has an astronomical tie and has been climbing the charts rapidly in recent months.
Billie– (English origin, meaning “resolute protection”) Likely trending due to popularity of Billie Eilish.
This is the year. This is the year that I finally get my family’s finances under control. It’s been spinning out of it ever since we had twins—talk about a surprise! All of a sudden, we had jumped from a family of 3 to a family of 5, only our incomes had stayed about the same. Needless to say, our money stress shot through the roof.
Let’s be real, it’s hard to keep your house clean and tidy when you have kids. It’s even harder to do so if you’re out of the house from 9 to 5, Monday through Friday. It means you have limited time at home to catch up with chores and quite frankly, who wants to spend their evenings and weekends cleaning, tidying and organizing. You need a weekly cleaning routine! Listen mamas, the first thing to we want to make clear is that keeping a cleaning routine IS NOT about having a perfectly clean house all the time. It’s not realistic to be on top of every single room of the house, but what is manageable is creating a regular easy-to-manage schedule that works for you and can become second-nature in your daily routine. So how do you do that? Start by figuring out a weekly cleaning schedule that makes sense…
.jpg)
