Archive for March, 2016

Do You Feel Like Giving Up On Your Side Gig? How To Stay Motivated

Are you worn out and exhausted and wondering why in the world you keep trying to make money with your side gig when it’s the millionth time that you have hosted a home meeting, brewed the coffee, baked the cookies, spent hours practicing your presentation, prepared handouts, creatively displayed your products, sent out tons of invites, received a long list of RSVP’s, only to have your phone ring over and over with cancellations 10 minutes before the meeting, and then no one shows up at all?

Or here, let me set a different scene – have you spent hours and hours waking up super early each morning to work on your blog – day after day – you are writing for hours and hours and usually that is between a child or two that decide to get up early too? You write, photograph, design beautiful “pin-worthy” images for every blog post, create catchy slogans, read every book by the famous bloggers who have made it, go to blog conventions, rub shoulders with celebrity bloggers, all to have your latest blog giveaway of a free lunch only have 3 people comments (and it’s a FREE lunch people…free…and you still can’t even get people to enter).

Both of these scenarios are in addition to everything else that is added on top of your regular daily jobs as a mom of cooking, cleaning, taking care of the kids, soccer practice, grocery shopping, school carpool, etc. – and somehow you are also trying to carve out time to be an entrepreneur and be successful because you have lofty dreams of one day being one of the celebrity bloggers you read devotedly each day, or one of the top level earners who just got a new car!

I’ve been there. I’m there now. I’ve been on the upside and have looked down and I’ve been at the very bottom. It’s all hard. There are pluses and minuses to both sides. But I think the biggest thing to remember in all of it is your attitude and how you look at your present circumstances. These are my top 5 tips on how I stay motivated to keep working towards my dreams:

Remember that being broke is a state of mind. If you are an entrepreneur and already have a side gig, then you are leaps and bounds ahead of most people – broke people.
Consistency is key – keep at it. Don’t give up. Hold on to the reason that you started your side gig to begin with.
Identify your “why” and write it on a sticky note and paste it up on different places in your house to remind you of why you choose the struggle to have a side gig. If you don’t have a “why” then stop everything and identify it right now. Focus on it, and keep going.
Surround yourself with people who encourage you to reach your goals – if they don’t get super excited when you are winning than they are not your friends.
Your success is up to you. If you want to grow your business, it’s up to you – not anyone else. If you want your blog to be amazing, write amazing blog posts. If you want to take your business to the next level, then hustle and make it happen.

And finally, moms, give yourself some grace. If you don’t get it all done in one day, that’s ok. Like they say, Rome wasn’t built in a day. Give yourself grace, go to bed, and get up and try again. Just don’t ever stop trying!

We can do this together – plus I’m praying for you and would love you to pray for me too! Please feel free to send me an email with how I can be praying for you and your side gig! If you want to pray for me, please pray that God would direct my side gigs to be whatever He wants them to be and that I would humbly follow His direction. Hugs momma!

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March 30, 20162 commentsRead More

Where I Eat: MAD Greens

I’ve been on a health journey for years now. I feel like as soon as I turned 30 my body has fallen apart. I’ve been working very hard at figuring out what is the new normal for me and repairing the damage that was done. In this process I’ve learned so much about how my body actually functions, and the best things to put in it – foods, supplements, etc. (If you are interested in the supplement I recommend read this post that I wrote about it.)

Every morning I wake up with the very best intentions of eating right the entire day, because I have really seen the effects of what food does to my overall energy levels (I wrote several blog posts a year ago all about my Health Quest journey that you can read about here), but, let’s be honest, some days I just don’t do that well. One of my errands might take a lot longer than I expected, or I forget that we have soccer pictures after practice and all a sudden I’m left in a pinch and having to pick up fast food. It’s nice when there is a place you can go that has very fresh and healthy options not only for adults, but for kids as well – hello MAD Greens! I love this place – the entire restaurant is full of amazingly healthy, fresh food that your whole family will love!

Everything MAD Greens prepares, from salad dressings to bread, is made in-house from scratch with the freshest ingredients, and you can taste it! MAD Greens serves salads, wraps, soups, paninis, and juice combinations, and their salads are very interesting to say the least! I’ve tried several and love their Ty Cobb salad the most – full of flavorful crisp ingredients and I’m very partial to their hand-crafted Ranch dressing. So yummy! I like any excuse to go to MAD Greens and with their new location in Castle Rock, CO, its very close to me!

Last weekend I took the whole family to the Castle Rock, Colorado location of MAD Greens to enjoy dinner and it was excellent! I have three kids and my two oldest were very excited to eat salad – and I’m not kidding! They love salad and one of the choices on the kid’s menu is a mini salad, where they got to pick their own salad ingredients and they were very happy about this! They each made a unique salad and once they picked their hand-crafted salad dressing they were set. I love seeing my kids enjoy healthy food! My youngest son chose to have mac n’ cheese and was very pleased about this – I’m still working on him – he’s not a big fan of ‘green stuff’ yet. :) The kid’s meals also come with a homemade cookie, and drink. Of course, my youngest said the cookie (which was gigantic) was the best part. My daughter said her favorite thing was the salad and the feta cheese and my oldest son really liked the homemade balsamic vinaigrette salad dressing. To each their own, right?

Honestly, I’m just really happy that my kids are willing to try new things, especially very healthy things, and that they like them. Now if we can only get my youngest son to enjoy the ‘green stuff’ as much as his siblings…he’s a work in progress! My husband, got a wrap and loved picking out each individual ingredient that went inside it. He said it was delicious, and he also decided to try their Strawberry Cooler Juice, which was really refreshing – in fact, we all tasted it. I think my youngest could have had the whole thing if we would have let him!

We enjoyed our experience and would highly recommend trying MAD Greens! Besides being a genuinely healthy option for your whole family, I love knowing that MAD Greens is committed to their food and the communities they are located in by using produce from local farmers, and they strive to use organic ingredients whenever possible. For me, I find that very exciting knowing that the meal I’m about to eat is from the farm down the road! Plus, I live in community that has a small-town feel, and we all love to support our community by shopping local – what could be better than enjoying a fresh meal of superb healthy ingredients that came from my neighbor? I just love it and am so impressed by this business model.

Check out MAD Greens and go enjoy a healthy salad! Currently they have locations in Colorado, Arizona and Texas.

Just for Katrina’s World readers, I’m giving away TWO $25 gift cards to TWO lucky readers to enjoy a meal at MAD Greens. All you need to do is THREE SIMPLE THINGS:

Comment below and tell me who you would take to enjoy a meal at MAD Greens and why?
Then share this giveaway on your Facebook page and encourage your friends to enter.
If you have not done so already, LIKE my Katrina’s World Facebook page.

Winner will be picked randomly on April 15^th and notified via email. Winner must supply their address for shipment. Thank you to MAD Greens for sponsoring this giveaway. Visit MAD Greens on their Facebook page - or on Twitter or Instagram.

Thanks for reading! Hope you enjoy your meal as much as we did! I can’t wait to go back!

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March 16, 201611 commentsRead More

Why You Should Use IBOTTA

Ever wonder what IBOTTA is all about? Have you heard people talking about how great it is? Have you read bloggers who have written about IBOTTA being their favorite coupon app? Well, you have come to the right place and I’m just one more blogger who absolutely LOVES IBOTTA and would love to tell you why you should use it too (I guess that’s also my way of saying to stop reading right now if you don’t want a super-easy way to save money on the groceries that you already buy).

IBOTTA is a very easy-to-use coupon app for your smartphone. Available for both Android and Apple devices and is free to download. If you join IBOTTA via a friend referral code you will instantly earn $10 after you redeem your first rebate. You can sign up now via my referral code – SIGN UP NOW so you don’t miss out on that extra $10! The great part signing up via a friend is that your friend also earns a $5 reward for signing you up! It’s a win-win! After you have joined IBOTTA you can start referring your own friends and you will make $5 for every friend you refer that signs up via your own personal link and redeems at least one rebate, plus they also earn that $10 reward as well! Can you see why I think IBOTTA is awesome?!

Don’t wait, go ahead right now and get signed up – SIGN UP NOW, and then once you have the app installed on your phone, continue reading. I’ll wait, seriously, go ahead. SIGN UP NOW

Now that you have the IBOTTA app installed, let me give a quick overview of some the great things IBOTTA can do and how you can save
the most money:

How IBOTTA Works: Download the app, unlock rebates by browsing the app before you go shopping, go shopping and buy the items you unlocked, verify your purchases and upload a quick picture of your receipt, then get cash loaded to your account. SO EASY!
Extra Savings on Groceries: You will see that the IBOTTA app works at most major grocery stores and you can use IBOTTA and paper coupons to purchase the same item! For a lot of things that you mean you can get them for free with the double savings.
Not only for groceries: I use IBOTTA mostly for savings on my groceries, but you can also earn rebates at restaurants, on electronics, clothing, even movie tickets, and so much more!
Redeem for CASH! After you have earned $20, you can redeem your earnings for cash, or gift cards to great places like Starbucks or the movies!

Now do you see why I love IBOTTA?! If you still haven’t downloaded the app, do it now, SIGN UP NOW and start saving and making money today!

Some links in this post are affiliate links, thanks for using them – while they help you save money, they also support me and my blog.

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March 12, 20160 commentsRead More

7 Budget Birthday Party Ideas For Girls

I’m a big planner – I like to start planning for my kids’ birthday parties about 4-5 months in advance. I do this because I’m a tad bit neurotic, but I also do this to save money. When you plan in advance, you are able to start thinking about what you’ll need and can pick those items up whenever you see them on sale, instead of having to buy them the week of the party at a more expensive price. You can always save more money when you have more time to shop around. To save money you need to be consistently patient as you look and wait for deals. My two oldest kids have birthdays 2 weeks apart, so I tend to plan way in advance because I have to do two parties near the same time. While researching ideas, I’ve gathered my top 7 unique, easy, and frugal birthday party ideas for girls. My daughter’s birthday comes first and she is turning 7 this year, and after gathering all these great ideas from other amazing moms, we have picked the theme for her party that I’ll tell you all about in the next few months!

Top 7 Unique, Easy, and Budget-Friendly Birthday Party Ideas for Girls

Art Party - There are lots of things I love about this party, especially the 6 layer rainbow cake! Being an artist myself, I love the idea of sharing that love with a bunch of other little artists! If you have a budding artist, this is a great party idea with lots of ways to keep the kids busy! I’ve tried the marble painting idea in this post and it’s so much fun.
Slumber Party - Who doesn’t love a good old fashioned slumber party? There are so many fun things you can do with the actual ‘slumber party’ being the theme of the party. I love the revised Spin the Bottle game – I know my daughter would love this since she loves to paint her nails all the time! There are many other good ideas on this post of frugal and fun ways to have a great time hosting a slumber party that your daughter and her friends will love!
Cheerleading Party - My daughter loves cheerleading and this is the party we did for her last year which had a cheerleading theme! We made easy invitations from home and had very simple decorations. All the girls got their faces painted, they got to make their own megaphones out of poster board, and they made simple hair ties to match their new pom poms. As an added bonus they got to learn a cheer and they performed it for the parents! If your daughter loves cheerleading, check out this very budget-friendly cheer party!
Cooking Party - Such an adorable idea for a party! The cooking courses are simple and fun and what could be easier than salad on a stick and english muffin pizzas? Yummy! Instead of having to make an elaborate cake all the children get to decorate cupcakes instead! With cooking as the theme, you don’t have to purchase any extra snack foods! Great for your future chef and her friends! I’ve even seen some easy chef hats on Pinterest that you can make out of poster board and tissue paper that are adorable!
Tea Party - What group of girls doesn’t love to get dressed up and have a fancy tea party? Adorable and budget-friendly ideas on how to decorate and save money on the entire party. Wait until you see the fancy cake! This party is so cute and fancy and will be a big hit that I’m sure your daughter and her friends will remember for a long time!
Science Party - Do you have a future scientist who loves to experiment? She and her friends will love this science themed party full of frugal science experiments that will have them in awe! I really like the notebook idea for young scientists to take notes about each experiment, as well as the great idea for lab coats. Plus, a party schedule and printables are also included!
Breakfast In Your PJ’s Party – YUMMY!!! This party includes all things breakfast – doughnuts, pancakes, cereal, and all while in your pajamas! What fun?! This party is great if you don’t feel like doing the sleepover the night before, but want to still achieve the same sort of idea. The pancake relay game sounds like a lot of fun and is super simple to do. All in all, this looks like a great party theme with some really simple and yummy food!

So many great ideas by some amazing bloggers! I hope you all enjoy this list as much as I do and that it gives you lots of great ideas for the next birthday party you host. Sometimes the best ideas are the simple ones! Enjoy!

Don’t forget to shop early, use your coupons and pay attention to all the great extra savings you can achieve using my favorite coupon app – IBOTTA - when you are buying items you need for your party. The great thing about signing up with IBOTTA is that you will automatically earn a $10 rebate after you redeem your first offer! It’s a quick way to not only save money, but make money!

If you plan to purchase anything online such as party decor, make sure you use eBates to earn extra cash back on everything you purchase! eBates is a great site that you will want to check out and start using anytime you shop online – it’s very simple, you just use the eBates site to earn additional cash back on your online purchases. You can shop at major retailers like Walmart and Target and earn an additional percentage back on your total purchase! When you refer your friends to eBates they pay you $25 for each referral! It’s another great way to save and make money!

All photos and content are copyrighted and from the original blogs on which they reside.

Some links in this post are affiliate links, thanks for using them – while they help you save monney, they also support me and my blog.

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March 7, 20161 commentRead More

Being Ok With Being Average

I’m an overwhelmed mom. Each day is a little bit crazier than the one before. I’m busy, tired, and trying way too hard. Some days are amazing, I get a lot of things done; I make dinner from scratch and have time to play with the kids, finish all the laundry, and work on my business. The best days are when my youngest son takes a long afternoon nap allowing me lots of uninterrupted time to work on my business. Those days are very rare, but when they happen, I feel like I won an “Super-Mommy” award for all the different hats I wore that day.

On all the other days, when life is just normal, and I don’t get the laundry done, and my son gets up too early (even though I got up really early to get stuff done without him) just to hang out with me. The days when I don’t find more than about 20 minutes to get any work done on my business before I’m fast asleep at night – those are the days when I feel so totally disappointed and wonder what in the world I’m doing and why am I’m trying so hard?

I have a drive to be more than just average. I want to leave my mark on the world. I’d like to be known for something. I want to help people better their lives. But, I also realized something yesterday – more than anything, I just want to be whoever God wants me to be. For me, it’s as simple as that, even if it’s just average. Daily, I’m on a journey to understand just what exactly it is that God wants me to be. I know that focus is wrong when I get caught up in feeling sorry for myself that I’ve failed for the day as a mom because I yelled at my kids too much, or because I didn’t get all the laundry done.

When I start comparing myself to other bloggers who have a much bigger following and get a lot more blog comments than I do, or when I compare my short stubby legs to the mom at school who looks amazing and she just had a baby, that’s when I know I’m not not focusing on the right thing. When I get really frustrated about work I have to remind myself that God is in control and He knows exactly where I am on my journey. He reminds me not to compare my beginning to someone else’s middle.

When you feel average, but want to be more, look to God. Tell Him all about it, then take some time to pray. Ask Him to guide and direct every step of your day, and to be content with what He gives you that day. I’m asking Him to change my perspective to see everything inside my day as a way to honor Him. Also, to be thankful for exactly where He has me on my journey – even if I’d much rather be farther down the road. The final thing that I’m asking Him is to change my thinking to be content with whatever He wants me to do – that day, that week, that year – trusting that He has it all planned out and even if I never really do anything I think is awesome, amazing, or important with my life, as long as it’s what He wants me to do, then that’s all that really matters.

Jeremiah 29:11-13 “I know what I’m doing. I have it all planned out—plans to take care of you, not abandon you, plans to give you the future you hope for. When you call on me, when you come and pray to me, I’ll listen. When you come looking for me, you’ll find me. Yes, when you get serious about finding me and want it more than anything else, I’ll make sure you won’t be disappointed.”

I love knowing that God has it all planned out and I don’t need to stress about anything. I don’t have to worry about the big things in life, like if my business will be successful, or the little things in life, like how will I get my youngest son to listen the first time I ask him to do something. When you call on God, He does listen. When you really take the time to seek Him, He will be right there. Then, you can take a deep breath and rest in knowing you are exactly where He wants you to be.

What do you stress about?

Hugs!

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March 1, 20160 commentsRead More

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Archive for March, 2016

Do You Feel Like Giving Up On Your Side Gig? How To Stay Motivated

Where I Eat: MAD Greens

Why You Should Use IBOTTA

7 Budget Birthday Party Ideas For Girls

Being Ok With Being Average