Marie LeBaron is a writer, mother and giver of great advice for moms.  She’s the founder of a top-rated crafting, parenting, and recipe blog:  Make and Takes and in May, Marie was named a Power Mom by Nielsen. Marie is a mom you should know about!

I’m a fan of Marie’s blog,  MakesandTakes.com because she always has great ideas for cool crafts I can do with my kids.  I am not a naturally crafty mom, but her blog has a friendly tone and easy-to-follow instructions, so even most craft-challenged moms can pull off fun family projects.

mamaGloss: Tell us about yourself and your blog.

Marie: I’m a stay-at-home mom of 3 kids. I live in Utah where there’s hot summers and cold winters. The picture below is me and my husband skiing up at Park City this winter.

When I decided to start a blog, I wanted others to be able to take away something from it, hence the name Make and Takes! Most of my posts are about my everyday life, things we’re doing at the moment, like crafts and recipes. I graduated with a teaching degree over 10 years ago and taught 4 years of Kindergarten and at various preschools, so I’ve taken the ideas I’ve learned in those teaching experiences to craft with my own kids. Then I blog about it with fun pictures and simple directions.

mamaGloss: Mothers are masters of multi-tasking! Do you have a favorite gadget that helps you multi-task?

Marie: My laptop has been my most prized possession, aside from my family that is. It’s because of my laptop that I’m with my family more, wait that doesn’t sound right… but it is. I’m now in the same room with my kids, sitting side by side while we each work on projects. Before I was down in my basement corner office alone in a dark cave-feeling room. Now I’m upstairs on the table typing while my daughter is coloring next to me. I love it!!

mamaGloss: What do you do when you have ME time?

Marie: I don’t have a lot of “me time” with 3 little kids, so I’ve trained my kids to like what I listen to.  I’ll blast Ray Lamontague, Nick Drake, or The Shins and we all groove to the music in the kitchen. I especially love to listen to tunes while I’m cooking, making it much easier to prep dinner. And when I exercise or go out for a jog, Techno music gets my blood pumping, even some 70′s disco is good for this too!

mamaGloss: What are some of your favorite movies and TV shows?

Marie: I’m a sci-fi girl, secrets out! I love Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles, but rumor has it may get canceled… noooo!!! I also love Heroes, even though this season is a dud. And Lost is probably the best show on TV ever! Are they going to be Lost forever? Don’t you love Jack? Oh, wait then there’s Sawyer? I wish I was tough and adorable like Kate!

mamaGloss: Do you have any favorite songs or artists who inspire you?

Marie: Anything Joni Mitchell. She was my soul sister in college and can sing my blues away. I still love to listen to her music when I’m having a bad day!!   I also love to sing anything from the 80′s. During the 90′s, I was still listening to the 80′s. Madonna’s a good one, Howard Jones, Tears for Fears, A-ha, B 52′s, Duran Duran, oh the list goes on!!

mamaGloss: What are some of your favorite mom moments?

Marie: This winter we bought a little portable fire pit and love to cook hot dogs or marshmallows around the fire. Then we love to snuggle in blankets around the fire as it gets dark and a little colder.

We also love to go to Disneyland. The picture below is a pic of a family trip to Disneyland two years ago,  on my husband and I’s birthday.  We actually have the same birthday, my husband is 2 hours older than me!! So it was a blast to spend it in Disneyland, we’re going again this year.

mamaGloss: Who would play YOU in a movie about your life?

Marie: Jennifer Garner would play me as a secret agent with a double life!  In my movie, I’m hot, kick butt, and look good in a wig. I fight the bad guys at night, after I’ve made dinner and put the kids to bed. Okay, I’m dreaming but you get the idea.

You can find Marie on her main blog, Make and Takes. You can also check out Marie’s tips for moms over at Blissful Kids and AlphaMom.