monikapatel
Monika is a mom of two beautiful daughters (aged 7 and 5). She has enjoyed living in Scottsdale for the past 7 years with her husband, Neel. She previously worked in corporate finance at Anheuser-Busch and continues to love beer to this day. She loves to play piano, planning play dates and has a passion for all things education. She never thought she would love being a mother as much as she does. Contact Monika at monika (at) scottsdalemomsblog (dot) com.
Scorpions – What YOU can do to keep your family safe
It's summer and They. Are. Back.
Scorpions. Just the word sends shivers down my spine. A prehistoric monster is coming for my family.
Having lived here for 9 years with kids I have learned how to defend...
Visit Summer’s Hidden Gem
Planning your family’s summer vacation plans? California is a usual spot for most Arizonans and my family loves visiting too. To shake things up, my family recently stumbled upon a new perfect summer vacay spot:...
Celebrating Our Teachers
Celebrating our teachers is important for kids and their families. May 4 -8 is the week when children have the opportunity to show how much they love their teacher.
How do we do that? For teacher appreciation...
Are Your Kids Safe Online?
An important question every parent should ask: Are your kids safe online?
As my kids have grown from plastic toys to tech gadgets, I am struggling to allow them to play and learn, but safely....
How To Throw A Magical Harry Potter Birthday Party
I love Harry Potter. I have all the books. I watched all the movies. I anticipated, with the excitement of a child before Christmas morning, each and every new release.
So what does this Mom...
If I Could Raise My Children Again, Here’s What I’d Do Differently
For all the first-time moms or moms with young kids - this one's for you!
Coming across my eldest's baby book the other day, I found myself giggling at all the things I had written about,...
Sunday Meal Planning Series {The Salad of All Salads}
Welcome back to our Sunday Meal Planning Series. With all of the PGA and Super Bowl events (read: unhealthy eating) this weekend, we thought we would share our favorite salad recipes to round out...
A Game Plan for Super Bowl – With Kids
It's the Super Bowl. It's in Phoenix. Your cold brew, chicken wings and cheesy apps are calling your name, as is your comfy sofa ready for you to settle in for the game with...
Sunday Meal Planning {Italian & Mexican Easy Weekday Meals}
In this week's Sunday Meal Planning Series we are featuring two EASY weekday recipes (1 Italian and 1 Mexican) to help round out your week. With this series we hope to help you find a...
Best Holiday Gifts {toy edition}
Looking for children's gifts that will be used for years? Look no further!!
Here are 6 of the best gifts for children this holiday season.
Not all toys are created equal. There are those that are...
Thoughtful Gifts for Moms {Sponsored Post}
Products for this sponsored post were provided to the contributor by AZ Family TV Channel 3 to review, but all opinions expressed here are her own.
Looking for some great gifts for moms in your life?...
Sunday Meal Planning {Quick Dinner Recipes}
In this week's Sunday Meal Planning Series we are featuring a quick solution for a weekday dinner. With this series we hope to help you find a few great meals that you can cook for...
Fun Free Backyard Activities for Toddlers and Preschoolers
With the weather improving, it's finally time to get outside and play! Here are some of my kids' favorite backyard activities when they were toddlers and preschoolers.
Create Animal Habitats: My kids love doing this, even...
4 Favorite Fall Activities to Make the Most of this Season
In our corner of the country, sweaters and jeans, crisp air, and the crunch of fallen leaves do not abound. But, there are still ways to Ring In Fall with your kids to get...
“7 Mommy Secrets” (I wish I knew when I had my first baby)
You always hear that babies don’t come with manuals.
But bookstores continue to house shelves of "How To Books" on childrearing. When I had a baby I took to it like signing up for a...
A mother’s wish for her kids this year {A Back to School Letter to...
A Back to School Letter to My Daughters:
Our summer days with their minimal schedules and seemingly limitless time together have now come to an end. You are both going to start going to school,...
Blessing Bags! {A simple way to teach your kids about compassion}
We’ve all been there.
Driving in our air-conditioned cars, coming from or going to our air-conditioned homes, and we see someone on a street corner, holding a sign asking for help.
One part of me...
The Arizona Biltmore Staycation with Kids {And the scoop on how to win...
A grateful Thank You to The Arizona Biltmore Hotel for providing my family and me, a one night stay and dinner at Frank and Alberts for the purpose of this review. All opinions are my...
Reasons NOT to have a pool
We have a pool.
If you don’t have a pool, then I know what you’re thinking:
I’m lucky.
I have a fun activity that’s perfect in the intense AZ heat … and it’s right in my...
Diaper Bag 101 {What you need to pack to be prepared!}
I recently read an article about how mothers in France “live and let live”. They don’t pack huge diaper bags or thrust all kinds of emergency paraphernalia into their strollers for all of life’s...
The silver lining to the stomach bug
My eldest daughter came down with a stomach bug-- YES- that awful thing! One minute she was bubbling with energy, running after a ball at her soccer game. Just a few hours later she was back...
Moving on up, in the middle of a new “new” | Becoming a Big...
Meet our newest contributor: Monika Patel! As the mother of two elementary age daughters, Monika is busy with school, parties, soccer, running the business side of SMB, and of course, birthdays.... which sometimes are...
Cheerleaders, Yelling, Beer, and Time-Outs! Experiencing a Suns’ Game through the eyes of a...
Recently, my husband scored 4 tickets to a Phoenix Suns basketball game. We loaded our 5 & 7 year old daughters into the car and headed off, excited to watch the game together!
We splurged...