Prior to the fake wall being put up in our kitchen to protect us from the addition construction, Newsweek author Anna Quindlen’s essay on motherhood hung on our bulletin board. The whole thing. I’d read it a lot. Over and over, often focusing on this particular part:

But the biggest mistake I made is the one that most of us make while doing this. I did not live in the moment enough. This is particularly clear now that the moment is gone, captured only in photographs. There is one picture of the three of them, sitting in the grass on a quilt in the shadow of the swing set on a summer day, ages 6, 4 and 1. And I wish I could remember what we ate, and what we talked about, and how they sounded, and how they looked when they slept that night. I wish I had not been in such a hurry to get on to the next thing: dinner, bath, book, bed. I wish I had treasured the doing a little more and the getting it done a little less.

Amen, right? I think about this so much. And then I think about how, I’m quite certain, that in the future I will so miss.. right now. Ages 8 and 2 are rocking my world. I’ve hit that sweet spot. Sure, there is homework and activities and fighting and diapers and tantrums and visits to the pedi and the pacifier to take away and refusing to eat anything that basically isn’t plain white but honestly. This is as good as it gets. I’m quite certain it’s what I will be missing when I’m very old. This exact right now moment.

So, in my new kitchen design there isn’t all that much wall space due to my obsession with windows, but there is one small little area right to the left of my farm sink. I originally thought the above pictured art would be great upstairs by the boys’ room; makes sense. But I think I’m going to keep it right by me in the heart of the home. It’s going to be my daily reminder that every single time L and B are put to bed, they wake up a day older. I know there is a lot of good in that as well, but I can’t help but want to cling to exactly right now. 

So, as a Mother’s Day gift to all of you rockstar moms of boys, I’m giving away one of these darling prints, made by House Of Belonging. Just follow the simple steps in the Rafflecopter widget below to get entered. Remember, the more you enter, the better your chances of winning this amazing prize!

But don’t wait! This giveaway is open now through next Saturday, May 9th, and the winner will be announced on Mother’s Day over on the ALFS Facebook page.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Giveaway rules: No purchase necessary. Giveaway is open to US residents only, except where prohibited by law. Giveaway will run from May 4 through May 9, 2015 at 11:59pm EST. A single winner will be randomly selected by Rafflecopter (powered by Random.org) and notified via email. Winner will have 48 hours to claim their prize; failure to do so will result in forfeiture of the prize. Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest do not sponsor, administer, or endorse this promotion. Participants must read and agree to Rafflecopter’s Privacy Policy before entering and participating in this promotion. By entering this giveaway, entrants give their consent for their email address to be added to the ALFS newsletter list.

It’s about time for a giveaway around here, don’t you think?

I knew I had my heart set on a photo wall in our new family room but to be honest, I was a bit tired of the whole gallery look. I was ready for something with more punch, but I still wanted to show treasured family memories from over the years.

After hours and hours obsessively searching Pinterest, I knew I stumbled upon my answer. How amazing are these family posters? Talk about a statement. They come in two sizes, and you can share 50, 128, or 200 photos on each one depending on how large you’d like the photos to be. I went with 50 so they were easier to view.

After that, the process couldn’t be easier. Simply tie in your Instagram account with Social Print Studio and bam – all your photos are ready to be placed exactly where you want them. Or use their ‘randomizer’ like I did. Took me all of 5 minutes. Don’t have an Instagram account? Don’t fret – you can use photos outside of Instagram. 

Oh and the customer service is killer. Any questions I emailed were responded to within hours and once I placed my order, my posters were on my doorstep within a week. So fast!

One tip: when you order, be sure you’re ready to actually place it. I left my options in my cart for awhile, but their servers don’t hold your photo data more than 8-12 hours. So, make your beautiful poster and order ASAP!

So, what’s in it for YOU? Well, We’ve teamed up with the darling Social Print Studio to offer you one large 20X38 poster free of charge! Yippee. You can pick your orientation (landscape or portrait) and how many photos you’d like to include. Simply enter by following the instructions in the Rafflecopter widget below. There’s one mandatory entry and several optional entries! Remember, the more you enter, the greater you chances to win! Score.

Just be sure to get entered by next Sunday night, April 19, at 11:59pm EST. We’ll randomly select a winner whose name will  be announced Monday morning on the ALFS Facebook page. Make sure you’re following me there so you don’t miss out!

Good luck to you friends and thank you, Social Print Studio, for sponsoring this great giveaway!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Giveaway rules: No purchase necessary. Giveaway is open to US residents only, except where prohibited by law. Giveaway will run from April 13 through April 19, 2015 at 11:59pm EST. A single winner will be randomly selected by Rafflecopter (powered by Random.org) and notified via email. Winner will have 48 hours to claim their prize; failure to do so will result in forfeiture of the prize. Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest do not sponsor, administer, or endorse this promotion. Participants must read and agree to Rafflecopter’s Privacy Policy before entering and participating in this promotion. By entering this giveaway, entrants give their consent for their email address to be added to the ALFS newsletter list.