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in Episodes on December 15, 2015 by The Mom Hour

Great Gifts For Moms (Any Time Of Year!): Episode 32



As Christmas fast approaches, we’re here to remind you that YOU too deserve great, thoughtful gifts under the tree this year! Join us as we talk about our own wish lists and favorite gifts from holidays past, and get some ideas you can drop as not-so-subtle hints this week!

Great Gifts for Moms

A Peek into Instagram…

First we shared some personal stories by way of our Instagram streams. Be sure to follow us (@MeaganFrancis, @PowersOfMine, and @TheMomHour) to see more funny kid pics and slices of life. Let us know in an IG comment that you found us through the podcast, too, so we can say hello!

Meagan on IG

Sarah’s wine cork snowman ornaments were inspired by several different online images, but this one from drinknectar.com is closest to what we did. Most of the materials are self-evident from the photos, but we used Lara’s Crafts® Wood Candle Cups (painted black) from Michael’s for the hats, which turned out so cute!Sarah on IG

Links We Mentioned (or should have!) in Episode 32

  • 20 Can’t-Miss Holiday Gifts For Moms (our 2012 guide at The Happiest Home – all the ideas stand the test of time!)
  • 10 Great Gifts For Moms (our 2014 guide at The Happiest Home)
  • All the great tech tips and products from Cool Mom Tech

Products We Mentioned in Episode 32

  • The gorgeous products from FASHIONABLE, the fantastic social good company whose tagline is “Beautiful products by women who have overcome.”
  • Long “wear around the house” cardigans like this one from PattyBoutik
  • Hoodies from American Giant
  • Warm feet – Muk Luks like these, the UGG boots Sarah wants this year, inexpensive slide-on slippers, and over-the-knee boots like the ones Meagan and Shana talked about in this episode of The Style Hour
  • High quality paper products, stationary and cards – we like Minted, Staples, and mom-owned kristinshop
  • KitchenAid stand mixer
  • Gift certificate to Art.com
  • Home and personal electronics like Meagan’s LG Electronics Tone Pro Bluetooth Headset and Sarah’s Belkin Charge and Sync Dock, or a wireless/bluetooth speaker like this one from Bose
  • Subscription services like Spotify, Amazon Prime, Audible

Let us know what you’d love for Christmas this year! Leave a comment below, or send us an email to hello@themomhour.com!

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« Meagan & Sarah’s December Favorites To Watch / Listen / Read: Episode 31
(Totally Not Overwhelming) Health & Wellness Inspiration: Episode 33 »

Comments

  1. Jacquie says

    December 16, 2015 at 11:43 pm

    Such a fun episode, you gave me lots of ideas! Currently, I have a google doc I share with my husband where I list out things I need/want, including links. Unfortunately, my ideas are pretty boring (um, electric griddle), so I need to update with some of these items that are just for fun. Have a wonderful holiday, I am looking forward to the reading of past blog posts.

    Reply
  2. Jacquie says

    December 17, 2015 at 9:35 am

    What are you getting your husbands? My husband is very tech-savvy as well, but I never know what the latest cool thing is and he buys that stuff for himself. He isn’t metro, so I can’t head that direction. As of now, I am getting him things he needs like an overcoat and a suitcase. Not terribly exciting stuff to open!

    Reply

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The Mom Hour
New episode! Let's go deep on the fluffiest of to New episode!

Let's go deep on the fluffiest of topics: personal adornment. In today's More Than Mom episode, Meagan and Sarah share our approaches to everyday jewelry, special gifts and heirloom pieces, jewelry trends and finding our personal styles. We also talk about where we like to buy jewelry, how motherhood seasons have intersected with accessorizing phases, and what our storage wins and woes are these days.

Find the episode wherever you get your podcasts, or click this image at the link in our bio!

#themomhour #motherhood #mompodcast #podcastsformoms #parenting #parentingpodcast #podcastlove #trypod #podcastersofinstagram #shepodcasts
Two things happened to me in the past few weeks. Two things happened to me in the past few weeks. 

First, my youngest child - my baby! - turned 14.

Second, I went on a trip with said baby (Clara) and her next-older brother Owen, who’s 17, and was reminded that few experiences are quite as humbling as being a middle-aged mother outnumbered by teenaged offspring...in public.

Whereas I was once the sun they orbited around, my teens are now spinning off on their own path. It’s not they don't like me (I hope, though it can feel that way at times), it’s just that the gravitational pull around which they organize their lives has changed. 
 
I was struggling to find words for this new state of affairs, when it struck me: I’m a lame-duck parent now, counting down my last days of power while adult and nearly-adult children look eagerly ahead to whatever’s coming down the line. 

Instead of ruling like the sun to their planets or some kind of benevolent monarch, as I did when they were little, I’m more akin to a city manager who must be tolerated and placated in order to get enough budget allocated for one’s pet projects. 

After twenty-five years of organizing my time, my home, my energy and my heart around small people, the emotional shift in these not-quite-empty-nest years has been surprisingly disorienting. 

There’s a self-protective urge to rush these last four years or so of parenting minors - to check out of all this confusion and skip to the part where I claim a whole new life for myself as an empty nester and they seem to value my wisdom again (as a mom to 20-somethings I know this is also a real thing.)

But I can’t abdicate my throne just yet, friends. 

Even though my subjects often don’t see things my way, I’m still their leader…and I still have a job to do. -M

(Friends, if you like these glimpses of my life as a mom of older kids, I'd love for you to follow my personal account at @meaganfrancis! I write there regularly about midlife motherhood, raising teens, and reinventing your life after 40.) 

#parentingteens #raisingteens #lameduckparent #motherofreinvention #midlifemom #midlifemotherhood #raisingadults #parentingbigkids #momlife
I (Sarah) have been pleasantly surprised at how lo I (Sarah) have been pleasantly surprised at how long my kids have hung in when it comes to decorating Easter eggs. Not only that, but as fine motor skills and - ahem - frustration-management skills have improved for my three, the sophistication level of our egg-dyeing adventures has increased dramatically.

Click this image at the link in our bio to read more about the egg decorating kits, products, and techniques that have worked well in our house for older kids, tweens, and teens!

#eastermom #easterfamily #eggdecoratingideas #eggdyeingideas #easterwithkids #easterwithteens #craftsforteens #craftsfortweens #eggdecorating #easter2023
New episode! It's our Podcastaversary (yep, we ju New episode!

It's our Podcastaversary (yep, we just made up a new word)! Today we are celebrating eight years of The Mom Hour by reflecting on some of your most-asked questions over the years. Beyond recurring queries like "should I have that third baby?" or "what's the ideal spacing between kids?," we're digging into some deeper through-lines that point to the fears, insecurities, and hopes of our community. We also provide snapshots of the many places we have recorded our 640+ episodes (the floor, the bed, different states and more).
👇 For an episode! 👇 It's the first day of 👇 For an episode! 👇 

It's the first day of SPRING, which means we're already thinking about SUMMER. And, specifically, making our own lives as moms and home managers easier and more joyful for Summer 2023.

If you have a tip or hack that falls into the general bucket of "do this now; enjoy summer later", we'd love to hear it! We'll be sharing our own in an upcoming episode and hope to include some from listeners as well. Can be from any area of summer enjoyment from childcare to travel to self-care to home management to backyard gardening!
Hear for yourself why The Mom Hour podcast is stil Hear for yourself why The Mom Hour podcast is still going strong after eight years, 644 episodes, and more than 15 Million listens! Click the subscribe links in our bio or ask your smart speaker to "play the latest episode of The Mom Hour podcast".

New episodes release every Tuesday and alternating Sundays all year round. Our archives have conversations about every stage of parenting from before-baby through launching young adults - and every aspect of motherhood, too.

#podcast #podcastformoms #mompodcast #parentingpodcast #mommypodcast #mamapodcast #womenpodcasters #podcastersofinstagram #shepodcasts #themomhour #motherhood
Do we call it a birthday or an anniversary? A podv Do we call it a birthday or an anniversary? A podversary? Birthcast? No matter how you slice it, The Mom Hour turns EIGHT years old on March 19!

Want to totally make our day? Leave a comment that tells us - in life milestones - how long you've been listening (i.e., "the baby I was pregnant with when I found you guys is now in kindergarten" OR "I have a middle schooler who was in preschool when I started listening" OR "I was on leave with my first when I discovered the podcast; now I have four kids!")

We appreciate this community so much - and we're not slowing down! Thanks for being here, friends. Talk to you Tuesday!

-M &S
Happy Friday! It's time for our monthly sponsor ro Happy Friday! It's time for our monthly sponsor roundup, where we thank our partners and remind you of their great deals. For our unique promo codes and links, just tap our saved "Sponsors" highlight or search the brand name on our website. Remember, when you check out our sponsors and use our links + codes, it helps support our show. Thank you!

We also collect ALL our active promo codes in our email newsletter - which is full of our latest episodes and blog posts, personal updates, community news, and more. Tap on this image at the link in our bio to subscribe today.

Shoutout to our NEW partner:
💰 @fearlessfinance ($50 off your 1st meeting!)

And welcome back . . .
⭐ @everyplate (meal kits for just $1.49 per meal!) 
⭐ @scholasticinc (books for kids of all ages!)
⭐️ @caraway_home (10% off cookware!)
⭐ @caredotcom (local, background-checked care!) 
⭐ @prepdish (2 weeks of free meal plans!)
⭐ @minted (art, bags, gifts & more!)
⭐ @chatbooks (the easiest photo books ever!)
⭐ @fabletics (2 workout bottoms for $24!)
⭐ @todoistofficial (2 mo. free of Todoist Pro!)
⭐️ @theessentialcalendar (10% off calendars!)
⭐️ @hiyahealth (50% off 1st order!)
⭐️ @kiwico_inc (50% off your 1st mo!)
⭐️ @athleticgreens (1yr of Vit.D + 5 travel packs!)
⭐️ @vionicshoes (free shipping on comfy shoes!)
It can *seem* like everybody has travel plans comi It can *seem* like everybody has travel plans coming up for Spring Break, but we know that every single year, just as many families aren't going anywhere - and that's OK, too!

This week on the blog @emilyeroark offers suggestions for mixing up your same ol' same ol' when kids are off for Spring Break. Check out the post by clicking this image at the link in our bio!

#stayathomemom #springbreakathome #staycationideas #stayathomeparent #toddlermom #preschoolmom #momofthree #springbreak2023 #spring #springbreakathome #kidsactivities
New episode! Bowling. Bonfires. The mall (no, rea New episode!

Bowling. Bonfires. The mall (no, really.) And board games (maybe?). What's fun for our families right now looks quite different than it did years ago, so today Meagan and Sarah revisit an oft-discussed hot topic on The Mom Hour: family "fun." We share several ideas for ACTUALLY FUN family activities that work for our current seasons, as well as some gripes about things that feel like they should be fun but aren't. Join us!

Find the episode wherever you get your podcasts, or click this image at the link in our bio!

#themomhour #motherhood #mompodcast#podcastsformoms #parenting #parentingpodcast#podcastlove #trypod #podcastersofinstagram #shepodcasts
New episode! It isn't always easy to appreciate t New episode!

It isn't always easy to appreciate the mundane tasks of our daily lives, or to see the glass half-full when something goes awry. Inspired by yet another social media trend that had us scratching our heads at first (and then reflecting in spite of our forty-something selves), today Meagan and Sarah talk about situations from our own lives where we romanticized the hard stuff to get by.

Find the episode wherever you get your podcasts, or click this image at the link in our bio!

#themomhour #motherhood #mompodcast #podcastsformoms #parenting #parentingpodcast #podcastlove #trypod #podcastersofinstagram #shepodcasts
If you fill Easter baskets for your kids, do you g If you fill Easter baskets for your kids, do you give them a theme? On the blog this week @hopefulsmiles makes a case for themed Easter baskets helping to simplify shopping, avoid clutter, and stay on budget.

Check out Sandy’s ideas for themed Easter baskets by clicking this image at the link in our bio - she's got over 35 different gift ideas listed!

#easter2023 #easterbasketfillers #eastergiftideas #themedeasterbasket #giftsfortoddlers #giftsforpreschoolers #giftsfortweens #giftsforkids #eastergiftguide #eastertips #easterwithkids
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New episode! Let's go deep on the fluffiest of to New episode!

Let's go deep on the fluffiest of topics: personal adornment. In today's More Than Mom episode, Meagan and Sarah share our approaches to everyday jewelry, special gifts and heirloom pieces, jewelry trends and finding our personal styles. We also talk about where we like to buy jewelry, how motherhood seasons have intersected with accessorizing phases, and what our storage wins and woes are these days.

Find the episode wherever you get your podcasts, or click this image at the link in our bio!

#themomhour #motherhood #mompodcast #podcastsformoms #parenting #parentingpodcast #podcastlove #trypod #podcastersofinstagram #shepodcasts
Two things happened to me in the past few weeks. Two things happened to me in the past few weeks. 

First, my youngest child - my baby! - turned 14.

Second, I went on a trip with said baby (Clara) and her next-older brother Owen, who’s 17, and was reminded that few experiences are quite as humbling as being a middle-aged mother outnumbered by teenaged offspring...in public.

Whereas I was once the sun they orbited around, my teens are now spinning off on their own path. It’s not they don't like me (I hope, though it can feel that way at times), it’s just that the gravitational pull around which they organize their lives has changed. 
 
I was struggling to find words for this new state of affairs, when it struck me: I’m a lame-duck parent now, counting down my last days of power while adult and nearly-adult children look eagerly ahead to whatever’s coming down the line. 

Instead of ruling like the sun to their planets or some kind of benevolent monarch, as I did when they were little, I’m more akin to a city manager who must be tolerated and placated in order to get enough budget allocated for one’s pet projects. 

After twenty-five years of organizing my time, my home, my energy and my heart around small people, the emotional shift in these not-quite-empty-nest years has been surprisingly disorienting. 

There’s a self-protective urge to rush these last four years or so of parenting minors - to check out of all this confusion and skip to the part where I claim a whole new life for myself as an empty nester and they seem to value my wisdom again (as a mom to 20-somethings I know this is also a real thing.)

But I can’t abdicate my throne just yet, friends. 

Even though my subjects often don’t see things my way, I’m still their leader…and I still have a job to do. -M

(Friends, if you like these glimpses of my life as a mom of older kids, I'd love for you to follow my personal account at @meaganfrancis! I write there regularly about midlife motherhood, raising teens, and reinventing your life after 40.) 

#parentingteens #raisingteens #lameduckparent #motherofreinvention #midlifemom #midlifemotherhood #raisingadults #parentingbigkids #momlife
I (Sarah) have been pleasantly surprised at how lo I (Sarah) have been pleasantly surprised at how long my kids have hung in when it comes to decorating Easter eggs. Not only that, but as fine motor skills and - ahem - frustration-management skills have improved for my three, the sophistication level of our egg-dyeing adventures has increased dramatically.

Click this image at the link in our bio to read more about the egg decorating kits, products, and techniques that have worked well in our house for older kids, tweens, and teens!

#eastermom #easterfamily #eggdecoratingideas #eggdyeingideas #easterwithkids #easterwithteens #craftsforteens #craftsfortweens #eggdecorating #easter2023
New episode! It's our Podcastaversary (yep, we ju New episode!

It's our Podcastaversary (yep, we just made up a new word)! Today we are celebrating eight years of The Mom Hour by reflecting on some of your most-asked questions over the years. Beyond recurring queries like "should I have that third baby?" or "what's the ideal spacing between kids?," we're digging into some deeper through-lines that point to the fears, insecurities, and hopes of our community. We also provide snapshots of the many places we have recorded our 640+ episodes (the floor, the bed, different states and more).
👇 For an episode! 👇 It's the first day of 👇 For an episode! 👇 

It's the first day of SPRING, which means we're already thinking about SUMMER. And, specifically, making our own lives as moms and home managers easier and more joyful for Summer 2023.

If you have a tip or hack that falls into the general bucket of "do this now; enjoy summer later", we'd love to hear it! We'll be sharing our own in an upcoming episode and hope to include some from listeners as well. Can be from any area of summer enjoyment from childcare to travel to self-care to home management to backyard gardening!
Hear for yourself why The Mom Hour podcast is stil Hear for yourself why The Mom Hour podcast is still going strong after eight years, 644 episodes, and more than 15 Million listens! Click the subscribe links in our bio or ask your smart speaker to "play the latest episode of The Mom Hour podcast".

New episodes release every Tuesday and alternating Sundays all year round. Our archives have conversations about every stage of parenting from before-baby through launching young adults - and every aspect of motherhood, too.

#podcast #podcastformoms #mompodcast #parentingpodcast #mommypodcast #mamapodcast #womenpodcasters #podcastersofinstagram #shepodcasts #themomhour #motherhood
Do we call it a birthday or an anniversary? A podv Do we call it a birthday or an anniversary? A podversary? Birthcast? No matter how you slice it, The Mom Hour turns EIGHT years old on March 19!

Want to totally make our day? Leave a comment that tells us - in life milestones - how long you've been listening (i.e., "the baby I was pregnant with when I found you guys is now in kindergarten" OR "I have a middle schooler who was in preschool when I started listening" OR "I was on leave with my first when I discovered the podcast; now I have four kids!")

We appreciate this community so much - and we're not slowing down! Thanks for being here, friends. Talk to you Tuesday!

-M &S
Happy Friday! It's time for our monthly sponsor ro Happy Friday! It's time for our monthly sponsor roundup, where we thank our partners and remind you of their great deals. For our unique promo codes and links, just tap our saved "Sponsors" highlight or search the brand name on our website. Remember, when you check out our sponsors and use our links + codes, it helps support our show. Thank you!

We also collect ALL our active promo codes in our email newsletter - which is full of our latest episodes and blog posts, personal updates, community news, and more. Tap on this image at the link in our bio to subscribe today.

Shoutout to our NEW partner:
💰 @fearlessfinance ($50 off your 1st meeting!)

And welcome back . . .
⭐ @everyplate (meal kits for just $1.49 per meal!) 
⭐ @scholasticinc (books for kids of all ages!)
⭐️ @caraway_home (10% off cookware!)
⭐ @caredotcom (local, background-checked care!) 
⭐ @prepdish (2 weeks of free meal plans!)
⭐ @minted (art, bags, gifts & more!)
⭐ @chatbooks (the easiest photo books ever!)
⭐ @fabletics (2 workout bottoms for $24!)
⭐ @todoistofficial (2 mo. free of Todoist Pro!)
⭐️ @theessentialcalendar (10% off calendars!)
⭐️ @hiyahealth (50% off 1st order!)
⭐️ @kiwico_inc (50% off your 1st mo!)
⭐️ @athleticgreens (1yr of Vit.D + 5 travel packs!)
⭐️ @vionicshoes (free shipping on comfy shoes!)
It can *seem* like everybody has travel plans comi It can *seem* like everybody has travel plans coming up for Spring Break, but we know that every single year, just as many families aren't going anywhere - and that's OK, too!

This week on the blog @emilyeroark offers suggestions for mixing up your same ol' same ol' when kids are off for Spring Break. Check out the post by clicking this image at the link in our bio!

#stayathomemom #springbreakathome #staycationideas #stayathomeparent #toddlermom #preschoolmom #momofthree #springbreak2023 #spring #springbreakathome #kidsactivities
New episode! Bowling. Bonfires. The mall (no, rea New episode!

Bowling. Bonfires. The mall (no, really.) And board games (maybe?). What's fun for our families right now looks quite different than it did years ago, so today Meagan and Sarah revisit an oft-discussed hot topic on The Mom Hour: family "fun." We share several ideas for ACTUALLY FUN family activities that work for our current seasons, as well as some gripes about things that feel like they should be fun but aren't. Join us!

Find the episode wherever you get your podcasts, or click this image at the link in our bio!

#themomhour #motherhood #mompodcast#podcastsformoms #parenting #parentingpodcast#podcastlove #trypod #podcastersofinstagram #shepodcasts

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