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Jen from Tatertots & Jell-o

I Am…
An optimist. A dreamer. In love with anything creative. A believer in the good in others. A girl who loves music. Driving with the windows down and the radio turned up. A good friend. A shy girl. Sometimes insecure. A hard worker. In love with being a wife and mom. Addicted to diet coke and chips and salsa. An insomniac. A addictive painter. Unorganized. An impulsive person. An introvert who loves people. A compulsive reader of long, historical books. A romantic. Impatient. A fashion wanna-be. Obsessed with shoes, chevron and hot glue guns. A crier at sad movies and the thought of her children leaving home. Hyper. A giggler. Afraid of heights and speaking in public. Infatuated with high heels. So grateful for my blessed life so far.

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Jen is my personal HERO!!  She has been the biggest WhipperBerry cheerleader from the very beginning of our little blog.  She is the most warm and inviting person and I was over the moon when I had the chance to me her in person at Creative Estates.  I’m sure you all know her because in the creative blog world she is a ROCKSTAR, but if you don’t… you must head over to Tatertots & Jell-o and see what she’s all about!  Tell her that WhipperBerry sent’cha!

With summer break almost here I’ve been thinking of how to manage my kiddos effectively while they are home.  Like I’ve said before… I’m kind of a free-form Mom which can be fun, but not always productive!  I’m also trying to teach my kiddos the value of work and how to manage their money in a healthy way, every parents quandary!  And in walks…

I’ve gotta say… I was a little skeptical.  It’s just one more ineffective “job chart” that I subject my kiddos to.  Come on admit it, we’ve all tried’em.  Well My Job Chart has totally proven me WRONG {yes, I said wrong, I’ll admit it.}

This site is AMAZING!!  It takes a little bit of time to set-up, let’s just say about 30 minuets, an hour at the most depending on how many kiddos you have.  But once it’s set-up it works like a dream.

The basic gist…

Every family member has their own separate login.  Isn’t this a fun welcome screen?

This is the parents home page.  This is where you assign jobs, and manage rewards.  It’s super easy to use and navigate.

I love how they set-up the job assignment page, very user friendly.  You have morning jobs and evening jobs, you can assign jobs to happen on a daily basis or be crazy and shake things up a bit!

This is the job screen that your kiddo will see.  When they finish a job they check the box and when all jobs are complete they get a BIG ROUND OF APPLAUSE!!  How fun is that?  As the parent you can set it up to receive emails or texts when they finish so that you are in the loop.  At the end of the day you’ll receive an email with everyone’s progress for the day.

Now, the fun stuff…

With each job completed, they earn points.  In the rewards center you sit down and decide what rewards your kiddo would like to work for.  You can set-up things like TV time all the way up to a trip to Disneyland and everything in-between.  They can also earn straight-up money and even spend it in their very own Amazon store!!!  How cool is that for them to watch how their money grows and then to be able to buy something ONLINE and have the box sent just to them!!  I don’t know about you but that’s COOL!!

They even have an option to save some of their points to give to charity.  What a wonderful way to teach your kiddos to think of others and not just themselves. 

All I have to say is BRAVO!  Way to go My Job Chart people… I now have hope for a fun and productive summer with my four kiddos!  Head on over… IT’S FREE and will take the chore stress out of your life forever!!!

{This is a sponsored post}

 The Fabulous Ladies from Eighteen25

Something about the impending heat of summer brings out a craving for tart lemons wrapped in a generous dusting of sweet sugar. If you’re hankering for something light and sweet that won’t blow your bathing suit dreams, try this tastefully trim and delicious Creamy Lemon Pie. You won’t believe your luck when you sample this dreamy treat. It’s only four Weight Watcher’s points, if you’re counting, and well worth it with lots of lemony bang for your buck. Try it out! You’ll thank me later.

Creamy Lemon Pie

6 whole reduced-fat cinnamon graham crackers

2 T butter

11 oz fat-free sweetened condensed milk

2 large eggs

½ c. fresh lemon juice

1 T lemon zest

Begin by putting your grahams into the food processor and pulsing until you have fine crumbs. Or you can involve your Little Bits. Put your grahams into a Ziploc and let them have a whack at them with a rolling pin until you have fine crumbs. My kids thought it was the most fun ever.

Place crumbs in a small bowl. Melt butter and pour over the graham cracker crumbs, mixing until all the crumbs are moistened. Press crumb mixture into a 9-inch pie plate and place it into the fridge until your ready for it.

In a medium bowl whisk together the condensed milk and 2 eggs until smooth and creamy. Add lemon juice and zest and stir until everything is incorporated throughout. Pour this mixture into the pie crust.

This literally takes about ten minutes to do, even with kids helping. Another reason I love this recipe!

Now bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes. Cool your pie completely and then chill through for best flavor.

Weight Watchers says you should get 10 slices….don’t know how in the world to cut ten even slices, so I cut eight and then slice some thinner ones for the kids. This pie is best eaten slowly, savoring every lemony bite. YUM!

I hope you enjoy this better-for-you confection. If you can keep it away from your family, serve it to your friends and they’ll never once complain about eating “diet” food. Enjoy!!

Don’t forget to run over and enter this weeks giveaway!  It’s a BIG one… a Silhouette SD plus three rolls of Heat Transfer Material!!!

On a side note… The amazing flowers that Heather used for the photo are from the amazing Kylee from Stylish Stems!

We’ve linked to…

• Tatertots & Jell-0
• Not Just a Housewife

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Come meet Christene, one of the WhipperChicks as part of…

I’m the girl who:

Is intense about my four little ones….Married a Big Hunk and is grateful for his love everyday I live…Is guided by my faith…Is a quilter by heritage and loves the feel of material between my fingers…likes to haunt graveyards, imagining the stories that are hidden there…loves to be with friends but can find the enjoyment in being alone too…loves creating a great meal…Is moved by words, quotes and great music…Is a slow runner, enjoyer of exercise and lover of sweets – not the best combo…Doesn’t have pierced ears but loves to wear dangly earrings…Tries new recipes on company…Pinches pennies…Wants to outlaw familial drama…Aspires to be a gardener…Has written in my journal for twenty-five years…Needs pictures in my cookbooks…Delights in throwing a great party…Has to have a plan for piece of mind…Leaves longwinded messages…Appreciates old things and the story of every life…Has serious problems doing the dishes but loves a clean kitchen…Reads obsessively and adores Jane Austen…Is inspired by nature and all its glory…Loves to sing at the top of my lungs and play the piano…Takes long showers by candlelight…Is fascinated by photos and the memories they capture…Secretly dreams of publishing the next NY Times Bestseller…Enjoys creating…