I am big on the holidays-- Not only physically big (from the pounds of holiday desserts that I stuff into my pie-hole), but also big in the metaphorical sense. Christmas is my time of year. Yes, I am that person who could sing carols and display holiday lights year-round if it wouldn’t make the Hubs and kids question my sanity.

Whoever came up with the idea to celebrate Thanksgiving and the December holidays so close together should be raked across hot coals—or at least forced to babysit my kids while I prep for the holidays. I barely have enough time to get the cranberry sauce out of my hair before it’s time to hunker down and get ready for December.

It’s just before Thanksgiving, and as the holiday approaches each year, the Hubs and I try to teach our kids the concept of being thankful.

Sometimes we are more successful than others. A couple of years ago at bedtime, we tried teaching my daughter, Elle, the concept of being thankful.

When my children were little, they attended an elementary school whose border straddled both sides of ‘the tracks’. Our school, on paper, had everything against us: we were under-enrolled, with low test scores, and over 70% of our students were on free or reduced lunch. Our budgets for P.E. and arts were already whittled down to nearly nothing, and our school was on the chopping block for closure.

What we needed was money. What we raised was awareness that local schools are the center of communities, and that saving them is crucial to everyone.

It’s Fall. And like me, you’re kind of a slacker. I recently wrote about why fall cleaning is important as the colder weather approaches and we all end up huddling indoors more often.

School has been in session for almost two months, and 3 of our five-person family have already been home sick. And I’m sure this situation is playing out for tons of moms and dads across the country.

While I thought my kids would be the first to get sick, I was actually hit first. I instantly blamed the germs that they were bringing home. Germy hands, germy backpacks…and who knows what else! I started disinfecting everything they came in contact with. Doorknobs, railings, fridge doors and even the remote.

Like I said, I wasn’t the only one to get sick. My youngest was next in line. When my kids are sick, I encourage them to be couch potatoes for the day. We catch up on cartoons, watch movies, and I use it as an excuse to get to snuggle up with my kids. I don’t get to do that too much anymore! While I love spending quality time with my kids on a school-day afternoon, I never want them to get sick.

It’s that time of year again, when your child insists on being some Halloween character you either think is wonderfully adorable (usually if your child is under 10) or severely disapprove of (usually if your child is over 10). While you’re on your own for that costume thing, here are some ideas for a safer and healthier Halloween for your family this year.

We’ve all heard of spring cleaning but how about its counterpart, fall cleaning? Now, I’m the last person to willingly add more tasks onto my to-do list, but I started coming around when I realized that there are many good reasons to consider another big cleanup in the fall.

If you need some motivation to hunker down and get your home ready for the coming months, here are 5 reasons to consider fall cleaning...

Nicole Feliciano is a mom of two, co-founder of Fashion Forward and blogger at Mom Trends.

Some of my favorite things include dressing up, getting together with friends and chatting about one of my most-loved topics – fashion. So what do you get when you bring all those things together?