Oops and Daisies

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My 10 Favorite Books From the 59 I Read in 2025

January 1, 2026 by Liz SanFilippo Hall Leave a Comment

Favorite Books of 2025

I almost hit my Goodreads reading challenge in 2025: 60 books read in 2025! (I was only one shy, and I blame the fact that I typically read two to three books at a time). Even so, as usual, I read a huge variety of books, from middle-grade fiction with my kids to lengthy fantasy books based on incredible worlds.  So, out of these 59, which were my favorites? Keep reading for a round-up and why … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Book Reviews, Uncategorized, Writing, Books, & Resources Tagged With: book reviews, books, historical fiction, inspiration, middle grade fiction, young adult fiction

Oops, Daisies, and Dreams: Interview with Author J.M. Guilfoyle

December 3, 2025 by Liz SanFilippo Hall

J.M. Guilfoyle

A supportive writing community can make a world of difference in an author’s journey, and that’s precisely where I met Jenn, who publishes under J.M. Guilfoyle. Our local writing group hosts more than just educational monthly meetings; the group features a number of “paths,” based around interests. From a critiquing group to a tech path (which Jenn leads), there are an incredible amount of ways to … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Interviews with Creative Moms, More than Mama, Work From Home, Writing tips Tagged With: author, creativity, interview, interviews with creative moms, j.m. guilfoyle, types of writing, writing advice, writing community

5 Gift Ideas to Encourage Creativity in Kids

November 28, 2025 by Liz SanFilippo Hall

5 Gift Ideas to Encourage Creativity in Kids

One corner of our house is bursting with art supplies, the drawers full of colored pencils, markers, beads, pipe cleaners, construction paper, and oh so many odds and ends. The kids use all of our random art supplies when they just want to explore and experiment. That alone can be an incredible way to encourage creativity in kids.  But sometimes kids just want a project to play with, or to test … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: art set, arts and crafts, Christmas, creativity, drawing, gift guide, gift ideas, life with kids, sensory kits, stem kits

Network Marketing was a Mistake… But I Don’t Regret It (Completely)

November 7, 2025 by Liz SanFilippo Hall

I used to sell makeup through network marketing.  Oof, that felt a bit hard to admit! The industry as a whole is controversial, and I get that. To some, it seems scammy and annoying. To others, it feels empowering and a great way to earn financial freedom on your own terms.  It was that second part that got me. When my first was born, money was tight. I had gone from working full-time to … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Inspiration, Journaling, Network Marketing, WAHM Life, Work From Home Tagged With: creativity, direct sales, energy, freelance writing, journal, mindset, network marketing, work from home, work from home jobs

Oops, Daisies, & Dreams: An Interview Series with Creative Moms

October 30, 2025 by Liz SanFilippo Hall

When the kitchen is overflowing with dishes, the toys are everywhere except put away, and the calendar is jam-packed with work, school, and extracurricular activities, it can be hard to imagine doing anything other than ‘surviving.’  But there are moms who have carved out a creative space for themselves in this world.  Maybe they’ve incorporated their creativity into their own … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Interviews with Creative Moms, More than Mama, WAHM Life, Work From Home Tagged With: creative moms, creativity, inspiration, interview, mindset, mom life, more than mom, oops daisies and dreams, self-doubt, wahm

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Recent Posts

  • My 10 Favorite Books From the 59 I Read in 2025 January 1, 2026
  • Oops, Daisies, and Dreams: Interview with Author J.M. Guilfoyle December 3, 2025
  • 5 Gift Ideas to Encourage Creativity in Kids November 28, 2025
  • Network Marketing was a Mistake… But I Don’t Regret It (Completely) November 7, 2025
  • Oops, Daisies, & Dreams: An Interview Series with Creative Moms October 30, 2025

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oopsanddaisies

Developmental Editor | Creative Writer & Author | Coach
Just an imperfect mom trying to inspire and support women who want to write and create 👇

Nine years ago to this day, I was 41 weeks pregnan Nine years ago to this day, I was 41 weeks pregnant. We were waiting for baby boy to be ready to make his grand entrance into this world. We should have been full of excitement and joy… but I felt torn in two. Just days before, my sister lost her boyfriend and his brother because of a drunk driver. I couldn’t fly out to her. I couldn’t be there for her. I felt completely and utterly helpless. But Little Miss was excited about her brother. We were getting ready, and we were waiting… but everything felt out of my control. And right now, I feel a similar pain.Helpless to so many things that are outside my control. I didn’t know Alex Pretti. Or Renee Good. Or Keith Porter. I don’t know the thousands of people who have been detained/impacted by ICE. But I feel this pain… this is not the world I wanted my kids to ever grow up in. I feel like I need to DO something… but what? I feel like I need to do MORE (beyond calling my reps and going to protests). But I’m already pulled in a million different directions, and sometimes, just keeping my head above water feels like an act of resistance. I wish this was more hopeful. I wish I had some words of wisdom for this moment in time… but this moment in time just seems to keep repeating. And I don’t know what to do. Despite not knowing, I’ll keep showing up. I’ll use my voice whenever I can. I’ll focus on raising kids who know how to use their voices too. It still doesn’t feel like enough, but we all just need to do what we can.
Journal for five minutes, that’s it. Let’s see Journal for five minutes, that’s it. Let’s see where it takes you. #NotesFromMyPastSelf #Journal #LetsWrite #MomLife
Ever since I could hold a pencil in my hands, I’ Ever since I could hold a pencil in my hands, I’ve loved to create — from artwork to stories of my own imagination, it brought me a sense of peace few other things could.But I didn’t always show up at the page when I wanted to. Was it fear of judgment? Of my words not being good enough? Of not being sure where to start?As I’ve grown through my writing, I’ve realized:Everyone has a story that needs to be told.We often hold ourselves back from what’s possibleWe tell ourselves - I’ll start when I’m “ready.” When I’ve lived more. When I know what I want to say…But the thing I’ve realized? We need to let go of expectations when we show up to the page, and just give ourselves permission to SHOW UP.Facing the blank page can be intimidating. But not telling our stories, the ones that live inside us, can also lead to regret.So, if you dream of writing, consider this your permission slip. Now, go forth and write.#WritingLife #Journal #AmWriting
What happened with your first attempt at a novel? What happened with your first attempt at a novel?Complicated friendships have long been one of the many tropes that I enjoy writing about, so it only made sense that it played a central role in the very first novel I wrote while I was in high school.The general gist: Meg and Bliss haven’t been best friends in years, but after Bliss dies, Meg needs to cope with the permanent loss of someone who meant the world to her, even if they had grown apart.I wrote a lot of the book by hand; then again, back then, we only had one family computer. I took a few years to revise it, with fabulous input from my “first editor,” a high school friend that I also went to college with, and then I started querying it.Spoiler alert: it was not ready for the public. Now I consider that novel attempt my “training wheels”: not only did it teach me what goes into writing a book, but it also proved that yes, I could write a whole novel. While that story will never ever see the light of day (there are no ‘stakes’ in the book), it was a huge learning experience for me.#LizsWritingJourney #WritingProcess #BookWriting #AmWriting
Did I have three journals open in my lap the other Did I have three journals open in my lap the other day? Why yes, yes I did. I normally only have two journals going at a time (my bullet journal and my writing journal) but I’ve started plotting a new idea… and it needs its own journal! 😅🙌Can’t wait to share more about it with you when it’s ready! #Journaling #AmWriting #WritingLife
What is journaling to me? A place to… * Explore What is journaling to me?A place to…* Explore everything: from my thoughts and lived experiences to anything that catches my eye* Play with words and images and meaning* Capture things I NEED to remember* Record of my memories and my life* Challenge myself without expectation* Work out the ideas behind my stories, poems, and essays* Toy around with new ideas and thoughts* Reflections (and a lot of deep thoughts)Journaling is the quiet engine underneath my creative life, and I do not know where I would be today without it. Is journaling a part of your life?#WorldJournalingDay #MomLife #AmWriting
Do you remember your first big writing “accompli Do you remember your first big writing “accomplishment”?I don’t even remember what the short story was about, but I do remember opening the envelope. The letter had been printed because this was around 1994.I had won.The arts council chose my story—mine—for an award, and they were honoring me at an upcoming reception. They liked my story!!! The sheer fact that someone enjoyed my writing thrilled me… but I didn’t want to make a big deal out of it. I put the letter on the counter and left it there.My mom found it later that day. “You won?!” she had asked me. “Why didn’t you tell me?”Decades later, I honestly still don’t know. I was beyond proud of myself… but I didn’t want to toot my own horn. I knew my parents would find out, eventually, because, duh, of course I wanted to go to the reception, but for some reason, I just didn’t want to make a big deal out of it.Writers, have you ever had a reaction like this to one of your accomplishments?#LizsWritingJourney #WritingLife #SelfDoubt #ShortStory
3 signs your writing spark is still there… waiti 3 signs your writing spark is still there… waiting for you to be ready. #MomLife #LifeWithKids #Writing
I launched my in-person journaling workshop today! I launched my in-person journaling workshop today!We’re harnessing the power of journaling to unlock our voices and stories. Week one was all about different ways to journal that I have personally used many, many times over the years. We talked about 10 different techniques and put one of them into practice… can you guess what the 10 are?#WritingLife #Journaling #YourStoryMatters
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