Anyone Else in a Snowstorm (but there isn't any snow?)...

I have seen no snow here, but feel like I have been in a snowstorm! My days are so busy, I feel like I have no time to turn around. Well, maybe I did turn around... it's just all such a blur, I can't remember. Does anyone else ever feel like that?
So, to console my tired mind, I found a couple wonderfully creative ladies who have digital scrapbook kits for FREE! It's better than chocolate cake, a pint of ice cream, and ties with an hour long massage. Sorry, but I a tie is the best I can do when I think of the knots in my shoulders and back from my 32 lb toddler saying, "Hold me!" while I am holding my 15+ infant.
I wanted to share these ladies because they are just to great to keep to myself.

1. Shabby Princess- They put of free digital scrapbooking kits that are not just mini kits, but full of lots of gems. You can sign up for their newsletter that will notify you when a new kit is available. Then, head on over to their blog which is full of tips, challenges, tricks, free downloads, photography lessons, interviews, inspiration and much more.

2. Summertime Designs- She is a busy mom of 4 who somehow finds time to design as well. The best thing is that she LOVES to share. Her name is Summer (hence the Summertime name :-p) and if you scroll down on her blog, on the right side you will find: Quick Links to Kits. Her kits are full of papers, alpha & numbers, and elements. I even found beautiful Christmas card templates, too.

Well, my two year old found the baggies of oatmeal choc chip and oatmeal choc chip with raisin cookies and wants one. Now that I'm holding the bags, I can't resist... It just puts a twist and makes it a new saying, "Have your cookies and eat them, too". Check out the digital desserts above, enjoy and then share!

Doesn't This Sound Delicious...

I'm sitting here while I drink my coffee and looking at the ULTA Beauty pullout that always comes in the "junk mail" bundle. I wish it was a scratch and sniff page because I am tempted to eat the paper they look so yummy! These are their names: have a cherry Christmas, candy cane, snow angel, gingerbread man and girl, Frosted Cranberry and more.

Imagine 16 fl oz of sweet cherry shampoo, shower gel and bubble bath all-in-one for only $16!

They have a printable coupon out right now for $3.50 off any purchase of $10 or more (online coupon code: 45800 good till Sat, Dec.4). There are some other coupon codes if you are shopping online: $10 off $50+ ULTA Beauty order- coupon code: HOLIDAY50, $5 off $20+ ULTA Beauty order- coupon code: HOLIDAY20, $15 off $75+ ULTA Beauty order- coupon code: HOLDIAY75 and Free Shipping on $25+ ULTA Beauty order- coupon code: 512213.You can go to their website and find all kinds of special offers, stocking stuffers and even an offer for a luxury robe with any fragrance purchase of $30 or more.

I am pretty sure this could be my new "Mommy time" escape. It's like going to an adult island that was filled with everything yummy smelling and feeling made just for me. Kinda like putting a man in Lowes with no time limit and no children. Shoot, I told Hubby we were expecting our first baby in Lowes because I wanted him to be somewhere familiar and comforting :-). I call it his "man land". Well, ULTA is the perfect "lady land"!

Advent Ornaments...

Pottery Barn's Advent Calendar- $69

I decided that this year since Princess One is old enough, I would start an Advent Calendar with her. I looked all over the internet for ones to buy and then ideas for how to make one since the ones online were so expensive. I saw some really neat crafty ones, but they were still out of my skill level. Luckily, when I was at T.J.Maxx (I walked in and my hubby pronounced that all my treasures now make me a Maxxinista- I'm actually proud- I got A LOT of great deals! :-) ) I found a 5 foot tall already decorated felt tree with adorable holiday decorated pockets and a moveable AND ATTACHED (wahooo!) candy cane that can be moved each day (our doggy already declared the candy cane a fun toy). It looks almost exactly like Pottery Barn's, but half the cost- $35 (with tax). I feel like I won the lottery! I am going to take it to someone and have them embroidery our family name to make it even more special!
The next thing I am going to do is extend the idea and practice of the advent calendar. Advent means "coming" and since my family believes in Christ, we are celebrating the coming of Christ to our earth as a baby. So, we will use this FANTASTIC idea from Erica over at Confessions of a Homeschooler and count down each day with these adorable paper ornaments. One side has a decoration and number and the other side has activities for each day. I love that these activities can be done together as a family and she also has other ideas. I also want to take a second to recommend her blog, especially if you homeschool.   Her site was voted the Best Homeschool Mom Blog 2010. Check out her ABC's and 123's portion that she created. There are TONS of wonderful teaching activities to do with your kiddos. Princess One loves when she gets to use manipulatives to do these activities. I found Erica when my friend, Leslee, forwarded Erica's Abiding Mom vs Super Mom printable. I love perusing her blog. God definitly blessed her with a mind for Him and organization. I have no idea how she homeschools 3, tot school for 1, blogs, creates, etc.

Preparing Your Home for the Holidays...

Preparing your home for the holidays is more than making sure you have all decorations, gifts, cards and food ready. It's the perfect time (while you are inspired) to gut out all the extra stuff collected over the year, tell the dust bunnies they can no longer hide in your house, let go of that outfit you said you would wear... 2 years ago!, reorganizing, filing and doing a "systems check" on how efficiently things are running in your home.
If you are like me, I understand that it is a work in progress. However, I do want my work to actually be progressing! I have two princesses (maybe more someday) and a hard working hubby (can't forget the two fluffy pups). Somehow, I need to find time to plan meals, grocery shop, and actually cook, activities, laundry, mopping, vacuuming, Windex-ing, dusting, putting toys up for the million-billionth time, dishes, cuddling, listening, and a hundred more things! So, by keeping my systems in check like I do my car, I can keep my home running more and more efficiently and hopefully my day will be even more enjoyable, smooth and fulfilling.
Imagine my excitement when I came across the blog Organizing Your Way- a [life your way] blog! There are tons of ideas and printables for getting your Home Groove on! Tara from Deal Seeking Mom and Laura teamed up to bring us a special series called Preparing Your Home for the Holidays. They advised how to declutter, cleaning, maintain (with ideas & suggestions), free printable checklists broken down room by room so we don't get overwhelmed. It really is the BEST Christmas present we can give ourselves and our families... preparing for the holidays is really preparing for 2011! It's coming quick so why not start day one ~ January 1, 2011, off on the right foot! They broke them into these areas: bedrooms, kids rooms & playrooms, kitchen, storage areas & garage, bathroom, family & living room.
Please take some time to look around the blog and then bookmark it because you will want to keep coming back over and over!!!!

Starbucks' 12 Days of Christmas...

I love when big companies share/give to the little people (me), but I double, triple LOVE when it is one of my favorite stores! It feels like a little "gift back" for how much money and time I spend there during the year. I love the proverbial pat on the back, aka: free deals!

Starbucks' 12 Days of Christmas starts tomorrow (Wednesday ~ 12/1). Make sure to text 12DAYS to 29943 (standard rates apply) to not miss out on their daily offers! You can also click HERE to share with your Facebook friends and check out a "check in at Starbucks" game to unlock goodies, too.
Pass this deal along to make another Starbucks addict (even if in remission) happy, warm and grateful for the pick me up!

Bath & Body Works Freebies...

Freebies! Did you hear the word freebies and your ears perked up and your heart skipped a beat?

Well, Bath & Body Works just sent out a new LUV BBW Club (luv-love and BBW- Bath & Body Works- OK, maybe you knew, but I had to look!) and it’s FREE to sign up. You’ll receive a membership card in the mail and you can stop by the store on any Thursday once a month to pick up a free gift. This offer is goes from January 1, 2011 – May 31, 2011. Membership card must be presented and will be punched each time a gift is received.

I LOVE me some good smelling yummy goodness (and so does Princess One)! Please share this as it is a great gift to pass along!

Preparations...

Let me start by giving Hubby a shout out! Thank you for being Mr. Dish Washer and Mr. Dad all day Wednesday! Yes, you all heard that right! My hubby kept my dishes clean (I must have used every one in the house) and loved on, fed, changed, put down and got up Princess Two ALL day! He even got up with her Thursday morning, too! I owe him a big back rub and once I recover from the exhaustion I incurred, he will get one. But I won't write about that! :-)
Wednesday was a fun one. I started bymaking our menu and refreshment list. Then, I had to "make it all happen". I printed out the drink decorations, Thanksgiving table trivia, GIVE THANKS banner, and more. I put my recipe pages in page protectors (left over from my teaching years), filled in my Menu planner outline and got to it! I am beyond thankful for The Pioneer Woman as her recipes are easy to read and follow. There are clear step by step pictures and I was able to print the recipe out by the size of my choice: 3x5, 4x6 or full page. Just perfect to keep me motivated after cooking for several hours and a mushy brain!


Thanksgiving Lunch Menu



I chose several of Ree's recipes. I will show pictures later. I got the ingredients out and measured before starting each dish. I have never been so thankful for my large island as it gave me the perfect space to lay out ingredients, chop, dice, measure, mix and more. The first dish I completed was the mashed potatoes. I had to demand Hubby to stop eating them. The next dish was the Thanksgiving stuffing. He had to demand ME to stop eating them! Then, on to the Soul Sweet 'Taters,  Delicious, Creamy Mashed Potatoes , Oven-Roasted Asparagus (I added carrots, too), Fresh Corn with Wild Rice(I used Uncle Ben's Long Grain and Wild Rice because after 2 grocery stores with 2 kids and no bags of just wild rice... I yelled "uncle".), Green Bean Casseroleeat a (I found a recipe on eHow for making the Panko bread crumbs.) (I bought the little jar of pimentos, but somehow the little buggers escaped before I could cook them!) (Also, I skipped the bacon because we don't eat it and one of my cousins doesn't eat any meat at all.), Cranberry-Pomegranate Sauce, what I nicknamed Make You Cry Pecan Pie, we made macaroni and cheese (thx Kraft), turkey gravy, and more. My mom- GramE made GramE's Delicious Dessert, Fluffy Orange Dessert, "Be Good" Deviled Eggs, pumpkin pie, and more. Nona Robin made a delicious cheesecake which we topped with fresh fruit and whipcream. We also had the best rolls ever... Sister Shubert's Rolls. They even have a $0.75 off coupon right now! There was more than I could remember. So, I made a menu in Photoshop.  

I am beyond thankful to Mandi Ehmand and her Life...Your Way free printables. They definitly helped me streamline my holiday cooking plans. She is very creative and giving because they are all FREE! Mandi has printables for holidays (get a jump start on Christmas), home planning and organization, meal planning and shopping, action planning and more. I especially appreciated her ebook: thanksgiving your way 2010. Great news... they already posted the ebook: Christmas Your Way then head and use their extra printables to add to your planner!

Well, in the end, we completed everything and it was super yummy (I have the elastic pants to prove it!!!!).

Mixed Happiness and Sadness...

Yes, you read that right. I have mixed happiness and sadness because my two year old is going to spend the next two nights with GramE and Pops so that I can cook, clean and decorate for the BIG Thanksgiving luncheon at my house for 13 people. I appreciate my adult me time and my mommy time both. However, I love knowing all my little ducks are safe under my roof. I take heart in the fact that the time is going to be spent with my parents. They LOVE and ADORE Princess One completely! So, I just need to put my "Get to Work" hat on and focus. I have a lot to do and not having a little "un"decorator running around behind me will definitely be nice. Hopefully, the final result will be a gorgeous Thanksgiving table/home, family fighting over seconds and lots of happy, fulfilled tummies! I'll miss you Princess One, but in the end... this is all for you, too! xoxo, Mommy

Keeping the Kids Busy While You Work: Thanksgiving Activity #1...

If you are like me, there are plenty of people, some little and some big, that always seem to NEED (want) your attention right when you are in the middle of something.

So, I have found some really neat ideas that I want to share. I am going to present some different ones until Thanksgiving that I am going to have my two year old attempt. I believe during the holiday season, all kids, young and old, will find even the most elementary crafts fun. There is just something about the joy holidays gush into our spirits.

As always: please use your knowledge of your kids age appropriate abilities to decide safety. IE: parent cuts out and helps glue. I also want to say that my kiddos are in the room with me when doing anything crafty. It cuts down on the crayon eating, drawing on walls, throwing on floors and whatever random mayhem may come into the mind. I also like to offer my assistance to cut frustration off quickly. I ask her if Mommy can help. If she wants, I help by guiding her so that she learns. I LOVE teachable moments :-)!

So, here goes. Thanksgiving Activity #1: Hand-Turkey Paper Dolls. 

How creative someone at Parents online website was to come up with this idea. It's easy as pie. Just click on the green link above, download and print out as many outfits as you want to make, cut and color. Trace hands and cut them out, too. And... wahlaa, your very own Hand-Turkey Paper Dolls.

My BUSY Weekend

Tomorrow morning I am grocery shopping for all the goodies I need for my first Thanksgiving to hostess. I downloaded/printed all my recipes from http://thepioneerwoman.com/ (I LOVE her printable recipes and picture step directions) and hope that all 13 people love the taste. Then, on to Hobby Lobby to buy fall fabrics to decorate my tables. Once I get home, I will sort and put away everything, double checking that I have all ingredients. Somewhere in there I will relieve my hubby from daddy duty (2 princesses 26 months and 6 months) until I am going to a "Home" party at one. When I have ogled everything and chatted with "the gals", I will return home, collect my Nikon camera and head to the local park where I am taking my neighbor's family Christmas card pictures. Hopefully, it will be warmer by then since I am a "my nose is running faster than I can blow it" recover-er. After that, I have to upload the pics and delete them from the card so that I can take pictures of our Sunday school class's Annual Family Thanksgiving Dinner which starts at 6. About 7:30 we head home and quickly (but gently) throw the toddler into bed and rehydrate the infant before she also lofts off to dream land, too. Last, I think I might make my favorite cup of hot cocoa and just crash in front of the TV with my hubby to veg out before hitting the sack.

Sunday starts early with getting myself, my hubby, and two angels fed, cleaned up, dressed, packed and heading to church. We get home about 12:30ish with traffic and a 15 min drive from the actual building. Princess One gets a quick lunch and then nap. Princess Two goes down to nap (pray), too. Then, I pull out several tubs of clothing, teaching materials and other odds and ends. I have to write down the items before the missionary organization people come and collect them. I probably should add getting started on that to my Saturday list, but have no idea if I can stand being outside in the dark, middle of the night, freezing because that is my only time free. Oh wait, that's not free either because I am penning (not pencil)... SLEEP! I will show my weapon of NyQuil to anyone who attempts to threaten this short, but sweet time. The rest of Sunday will be spent crafting holiday things with Princess One for the house and loving and cuddling with my song bird, Princess Two. When 7:30 rolls around, it's lights out for the little ones and time for my hot drink of bliss: hot cocoa. If I get all my to do's done, I might even reward my drink with some mini marshmallows. But don't tell Princess One, she's still working on the concept of sharing! Maybe she gets that from me... she doesn't want to share her marshmallows and I don't want to share my hot cocoa! Thank goodness for munchkin bedtimes... when parents get to eat all the good stuff, watch pg-13 movies, and dance around naked. Well, not me, but it's still an option... :-)

Life Lesson # Billion and Some Odd...

I learned a valuable lesson about downloads. They carry viruses. Yes, it was painful for me to discover that not everyone out in cyber-world can be trusted. I was raised to be honest and so I would never think that someone would deliberately want to hurt my poor little computer (inadvertently, me).

So, I have spent the last few days and MANY hours, painfully and slowly pulling three years of pictures, documents and more off of my laptop. I am putting everything on our desktop so that I can restore my laptop to fully functional (prayer). I have used several CD-R, two jump drives and my photo SD card working to accomplish this process and I am still not finished. Unfortunately, I haven't even ventured over to my hubby's side to pull anything off for him. I think that is better left to him. I wouldn't want to delete something he thinks is important.

Well, I decided to throw this tidbit of painful lesson learned so that if there is anyone else out there relatively new to downloading, you can learn from me. Please be careful. It's crazy that I was so naive. I guess all my prior experiences have been things I looked for when I was teaching or getting my masters. Now I'm looking for crafting ideas, delicious recipes, digital scrapbooking ideas, cheap fixes, and anything else that gets my creative puppy up and barking.

On that note, it's back to the: what am I going to serve 13 people at my first Thanksgiving? It feels like another hopeless challenge made even more difficult by the death of my laptop. But, I will prevail thanks to the ideas of many amazing women that I am so VERY thankful for this season. I promise to let you all know what and who helps me!

Blessings and we all prepare for LOTS of love, thanks and full tummies!

Original Family Tree Art...

Keep Your Family Close

How special is it to know who your family is. Sometimes our loved ones cannot be around. What a sentimental thought to put a unique and meaningful family tree up that created by you. Embellishing Life with handmade goodness is where I found this super idea. It's also a great gift idea!

I Wonder If Anything Can Tame The Monster Called Meal Time...

Plan to Eat - Meal Planner and Grocery List Organizer: "Weekly recipe and shopping planner. Create and share your recipes. Add them to your weekly planner. Go shopping with your categorized shopping list automatically created from your meal plan." I'm going to attempt their 30 day free trial. We will see if it helps and if I even last the whole 30 days!

A Store That Made My Inner Designer Sit Up And Beg...

Happenstance, that's what it is. I was looking around at different spots for adorable holiday ideas and came across this website store. My heart and mind went into overdrive as I began looking through their online store. I found so many unique items that it took me a while to try and think of every place I could fit the things! ModCloth is the store. They have $7 flat rate ground shipping, wish lists and even a share button so you can "hint" to someone about your great holiday find! A FUN tab is the "Be the Buyer"  where you can sign in and vote with your opinion on clothing that they are considering. Kinda makes you feel powerful :-)!

Give Thanks Banner...

How appropriate is this banner. We are heading into a holiday season that is all about being thankful for the things that we have, experiences, our loved ones, life, our freedom, religion, health, knowledge and more. This banner is an adorable creation by Leslie's Life. Check them out, use them and remember to be thankful during ALL 12 months of the year :-).

How special to know someone loves you!

Every time my Princess Bear goes to MDO, I put a little note in her lunchbox. I know that she cannot read, but I love the idea that just possibly she gets excited when it's lunch time because she knows something from mommy is in there. Her teacher told me one time that she went around and showed everyone that her note said she is a princess. Ahhh, melt my heart! I try to not just tell, but show my girls how important they are to me, their daddy and the rest of their family and friends. I believe that this is the foundation for their self awareness and esteem which will allow them to be leaders, not followers, and productive, loving, members of our world. :-)

I was looking around for neat ideas for the holiday seasons and came across these notes by Crafts & Sutch. They are as cute as you can get and I LOVE that they are Thanksgiving themed. Please check them out and show your special people some love! I know my people will love them!

I Love That My Girls Have... Sisters

by Wordle

Musical Group Who Play on iPhones, Amazing...

"Take Me Out" by Atomic Tom LIVE on NYC subway
How cool is this! I saw this group today on Rachel Ray. I wanted to share :-)!

One of the most original gifts I have ever seen...

I like good ideas, but I LOVE great ideas!
Domesticated Lady is a very creative mom that came up with a (one of many) fantastic idea of an easy to make gift for any bow wearing princess that you know. It's a simple, colorful, fun idea that is sure to be loved, adored and most importantly... USED! So, check out these easy instructions that are perfect for the visual (me *wink wink) learner. Enjoy!

Gobble, Gobble: Free Thanksgiving Printables...

..Super Cute: Free Thanksgiving Printables (decorations/table settings)

How Adorable!!!!

What a GREAT find! I am hosting Thanksgiving this year and am LOVING that the creating has already been done for me. Check out their other free downloads and MUCH more over at Paper Glitter you can also hit up their Etsy store for amazing printable party bling. All you have to do is "print, cut & play"!

Holla back at Stayfunnie-Mom for the find!

I'm Off to Check Out My Makeup Bag..

Make-Up Expiration Guide

A Beautiful Challenge...

Nice to meet you...

This is my first post. I have spent A LONG time to find out how to do blog thing. I love words! However, I am a stay at home mom and my words are mostly heard by a two year old and 5 1/2 month old. Therefore, I am bursting with an overload of thoughts, opinions, and feelings on just about everything! My blog will be about maintaining my sanity with two babies, a hard working hubby (works 50-60 hour work weeks), how to save money since we are working with only one salary, and neat things that I come across and would love to share. So, here's to the beginning of hopefully many memories and and lasting friendships!