I found the coolest online tool for creating slideshows: Animoto. Actually, calling this a “slideshow” is an understatement because the software remixes your photos with your choice of tunes and very cool, Hollywood-style effects that are spectacular. Even your kid-less friends who never quite get why a baby face covered in mashed carrots is adorable, will enjoy these home videos.

Create 30-second shorts for free or if you want to go longer they are $3 each. You can also get an annual All-Access Pass — it is $30, but trust me, you will get so addicted that it will be well worth it.

My two year old cut her own hair. A story often told, but gladly my older daughter never tried out this particular stunt. Looking back, I know exactly where I went wrong — just last week my four year old got her first haircut (yes, that is pretty old for a first haircut, but my kid’s hair is very thin and grows slowly). Piper witnessed this event, and today during nap time, she snuck off to get a trim of her own.

Why do kids have to be so darn observant?

Luckily her hair was in ponytails so when it is down, the part she cut is underneath and doesn’t show.

Well, new to us anyway. I love our huge, old dining table, but sadly it is too big for the space in our new house, so we had to find another one. I searched Craigslist and found this beauty.

I love Craigslist — even though we had a very tight budget I was still able to track down something I liked. I searched for “round table” but in conjunction with terms like “retro,” “modern,” and “vintage” I was able to narrow the results to find just what I was looking for.

I wasn’t sure what to do for chairs, it originally had these big orange chairs that were super cool, but only fit four around the table and we really need to have six. I finally decided to pair it with six white Gilbert Chairs from Ikea. They are slim and the white brightens up the dark table.

Something about summertime puts me in the mood to eat healthy. Maybe it’s all the colorful fruits and veggies in season or the fact that it is 115 degrees out and anything not frozen — or at least fresh — sounds totally unappealing. Even more likely would be that I’m frequently donning a swimsuit, but whatever the reason I can’t resist stopping by the local farmer’s market and filling a basket full.

This evening I got apricots, peaches, plums, blueberries (my favorite), bananas, a cantaloupe (that smelled so good I nearly broke it open deserted-island style and ate it right in the aisle), tomatoes, limes, eggplant, zucchini, squash, and some homemade granola.

I felt so pleased as I unpacked my grocery bag without a single pre-packaged or processed item — thinking of how well my family was going to eat this week and proud of the stellar eating habits I’m instilling in my children. Now I just have to remember to use everything I got rather than let it spoil in the fridge. (The guilt of tossing a bunch of wasted food later would certainly undermine my super-mom high.)

They say it is good to laugh at your mistakes, and it looks like science may be backing up this proverbial advice. A study from the Mayo Clinic identified both short-term and long-term health benefits from a good laugh, and that’s no joke!

Of course having a good sense of humor can’t cure all ailments, but laughter can alleviate a variety of health woes, including day-to-day stress. Lucky for us moms, kids offer lots to laugh at.

Short-term Benefits

A good laugh has great short-term effects. When you start to laugh, it doesn’t just lighten your load mentally, it actually induces physical changes in your body. Laughter can:

• Stimulate your organs. Laughter enhances your intake of oxygen-rich air, stimulates your heart, lungs and muscles, and increases the endorphins that are released by your brain.
• Activate and relieve your stress response. A rollicking laugh fires up and then cools down your stress response and increases your heart rate and blood pressure. The result? A good, relaxed feeling.
• Soothe tension and stomachaches. Laughter can also ease digestion and stimulate circulation, which helps reduce some of the physical symptoms of stress.

Long-term Effects

Laughter isn’t just a quick pick-me-up, though. It’s also good for you over the long haul. Laughter may:

• Improve your immune system. Negative thoughts manifest into chemical reactions that can impact your body by bringing more stress into your system and decreasing your immunity. In contrast, positive thoughts actually release neuropeptides that help fight stress and potentially more-serious illnesses.
• Relieve pain. Laughter may ease pain by causing the body to produce its own natural painkillers.
• Increase personal satisfaction. Laughter can also make difficult situations a little bit easier.

This morning as I was contemplating what to write (I’m trying to get back into the groove after my brief hiatus), I couldn’t help but think about an experience my husband and I had on our cruise. As we were walking back to the ship after a day of fun in Ensenada, Mexico, we passed sitting on the sidewalk a mother, grandmother and two children — the little girl asleep on the concrete. Upon boarding our ship we sat down for lunch at the all-you-can-eat buffet and both teared up at the abundance we have when there are others who lack so much. I was always taught that it is a blessing to live in the United States of America, and it truly is. Happy Fourth of July!