Back to School for the Homeschooling Mom at Northwest Arkansas Mall #NWARK #ad

This post was compensated by Northwest Arkansas Mall. All opinions are honest and are my own. #NWARK

I'm so excited to be offering an awesome giveaway to my Northwest Arkansas readers! Someone is going to win a $200 shopping spree---and I hope it's YOU!

Last weekend, Lynzie, Selah, and I headed to the mall for some mom shopping. I love taking my girls along because they're so sweet about making sure we all have a fun day. This day was about blessing mom and they were 100% ready to serve.

I've always joked that one of the biggest advantages of being a homeschooling mom is that I get to spend all day in my sweats---or even pajamas---if I want to. However, the downside is that it often makes me lazy and unmotivated. This year, I'm committing to dressing for success, and Northwest Arkansas Mall in Fayetteville has everything I need to make that happen. Check out this adorable lace-trimmed sweatshirt from JC Penney and these super cute and comfy pants from Earthbound Trading Company. Why should I wear sweats and jammies when I can wear these?

JC Penney is one of my favorite places to find simple styles that I can mix and match with things that are already in my closet. I love shopping the sales and then getting surprised at checkout with an even bigger savings. That's what happened with this red and blue printed dress. It was originally $50, marked down to $20, but rang up for a little over $12! 

I was also excited to find a good selection of long skirts at JC Penney. Just the other day, a friend was struggling to find long skirts. Now I can tell her where to shop for them!

Once I finished picking out my outfits, I headed to another favorite stop. Whether you're going classy or comfy, Payless Shoe Source has a style for almost any outfit.

Now that the clothes shopping was done, it was time to look for some accessories. I love Claire's for cute jewelry and hair accessories. They've even got some cute school supplies. If you can wrestle them away from your daughters, you can fill up your own mom notebook with adorable things to make grading papers and making notes more fun. 

As a homeschooling mom to many, my days really are filled up with meeting the needs (and lots of the wants) of these nine kids. Usually our trips to the mall are for taking care of their shopping lists so it was fun to shop for myself this time around. (That's totally ok to do, you know!) I think the girls had fun, too, swapping places with mom and being the ones dreaming about the things they saw, rather than being the ones getting all the goods!

Ready to win your own shopping spree to Northwest Arkansas Mall? One winner will receive the following:

• $50 Gift Certificate to the Razorback Shop
• $50 Gift Certificate to Tradehome Shoes
• $100 Gift Certificate to JC Penney

THE RAFFLECOPTER WIDGET MIGHT TAKE A COUPLE MINUTES TO LOAD. Make sure to wait for it as that's how you'll enter the giveaway. Please make sure to share this giveaway with all your NW Arkansas friends! a Rafflecopter giveaway

Pasta Lunch and Grandma's Recipe Box

Welcome to the {Not Just} Homemaking Party! My mom, Christy, is sharing today. Hope you're having a blessed week!

I wonder if sometimes my great, great, great grandmother just pulled some random items out of her icebox and cellar pantry on a Saturday morning and decided to make lunch out of bits and dabs of food stock on hand?

Maybe while grandma was sitting at the table watching her family enjoy the impromptu meal she had prepared, she decided to write it down and put it in a little box for next time, so she would not forget the ingredients she used. Maybe each time that she "made up" an incredible dish she would place the instructions in the little box. And so, the recipe box was invented and passed down generation to generation.

Here is my random, quick, and easy pasta lunch I served yesterday with a salad and crackers. Of course, I wrote it down and placed the recipe card in my little box!

Quick and Easy Pasta Lunch
Prepare 1 boneless chicken breast by dusting with salt and pepper. Then bake for 30 minutes at 350º. Cool slightly and cut into cubes. In a large skillet, add cubed chicken, a small package of cooked angel hair pasta, 1 pound of grated white cheddar cheese, 1 pint sour cream, 1/4 c. of chicken broth, 1 TB olive oil, 1/4 c. melted butter, basil, garlic powder, and salt and pepper, to taste. Linking with:

How to Organize Homeschool Notebooks with Scotch® Tape #SchoolYearReady #Ad #cbias

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #SchoolYearReady #CollectiveBias

I've loved the beginning of the school year my whole life. Not only was I a social butterfly who couldn't wait to see her friends again, I also loved picking out new school supplies. The feeling of a freshly sharpened pencil on a newly opened notebook. Aaahhh!! I remember just sitting contemplating what would be my first words put down in a new "spiral". I wanted them to be profound, but they were usually something more like, "Dear Carrie (BFF), How's it goin'? Good here." I still love new school supplies---especially if they're cute! Last weekend, I hit Walmart for some new things for our homeschool and found some great products from Scotch® Tape.

When I was a kid, I loved to do art projects. All. Day. Long. These usually involved lots of tape and I remember my mom having a green plaid roll just like this one in her desk drawer. My kids are the same way now and there's usually several rolls stashed in my desk drawers for them. That's why I bought myself a super cute pink tape dispenser. They'll have their green rolls of Scotch® Magic™ Tape in the drawer and I'll have my dispenser on top---and a hands-off rule!

Even though we're not starting our lessons until after my England trip in mid-September, I'm still taking some time to prepare so it's not so overwhelming when I get home. Today I'm sharing the really easy way I keep multiple kids' notebooks organized, making my night time reviewing and correcting time super simple. I've been using this method for a long time. It's fast and inexpensive. All you need is a notebook, scissors, tape, a pen, and some sturdy paper like card stock.

I shopped for Scotch® Magic™ Tape at Walmart in the shipping supplies section. Since I have Etsy and eBay stores, I visit this section a lot to grab the things I'll need for mailing my sales. There's a large selection of Scotch® products here--great for home and homeschool.

One of my biggest issues with reviewing and correcting my kids' work is that I have a difficult time telling their handwriting apart. They write their names on the fronts of their notebooks, but I don't want to be flipping around the book when I'm just trying to go through them really quick. So, I make tabs that stick out the sides of the notebooks that indicate their names and the subject. It makes it easy for them to find their books in a large pile, as well.

I begin by cutting a piece of card stock to measure 2"x4". 

Then I fold it in half, open it up, and write the child's name on each side.

Finally, I tape each side down to the cover of the notebook.

Voila! Super easy and a huge time saver! What are some of your easy homeschooling hacks? Let me know and visit the 3M Social Hub for more great uses for Scotch® Magic™Tape.