Summer

Tuesday, October 20, 2009

Mommy and Daddy's Quiet Weekend.

Frank and I took a trip to Amarillo this weekend, in fact this was the first overnight trip we have taken since the kids were born. It was so quiet, no crying kids, 7:30 wake up calls or middle of the night visits!
Amarillo is probably not the most glamerous place to visit, but I remembered how much I really enjoy it. The weather was beautiful, 40's and cool in the morning and would heat up to the 70's during the day. We drove around with the windows down the entire time. It is so flat up there, I swear you can see for miles. The sunsets are amazing, I can't even explain it.
We of course did the touristy stuff and visited Cadalliac Ranch, had to take pics for Lily. We also went to the TEXAS office to get souvineers. But the main reason for our visit was to see the new Performing Arts building on the West Texas A&M campus, it is amazing! We also got to see Fiddler on the Roof starring one of our professors from college. Neither of us had ever seen the show, but it was great. We visited the bookstore, ate in the old food court and walked campus. Things have changed so much since I graduated just 5 years ago. It is pretty amazing.
It was nice to get away and get recharged, we both missed the kiddos 2 days was a perfect amount of time. We need to do this more often, not only for us but also for the kiddos.

Monday, August 3, 2009

Shopping...Shopping...Shopping

Well I had another great shopping trip today. Walgreens is running some great deals on Ragu and Skippy if your family eats either one. I ended up paying .25 for each. I had to buy 8, but we will go through it. I also ended up getting poptarts for .25 a box, which is great. Here is how it worked

(4) Ragu $2 each
-(2) $1 on 2
(4) Skippy $2 each
-(2) $1 on 2
-------------------
$12
-$10 Register Rewards
-------------------
$2 for all 8!

(4) Poptarts $2 each
-(2) $1 on 2
(2) Cheese-its $1 each
-(2) .75
--------------
$6.50
-$5 Register Rewards
--------------
$1.50 for all 6!!

(2) Fruit Loops $2.50 each
-$1 on 2
--------------
$4
-$2 Register Rewards
--------------
$2 for 2 ($1 is the most I will pay for cereal)

I did 3 transactions so I could use some of the Register Rewards today. ( I lost $14 worth of Extra Care Bucks for CVS the other day so I am going to roll my transactions from now on so I don't have a chance to lose them again!)


Kroger was a good shopping trip today as well, I saved 58%. Too much to list, but always check the managers specials. I got yogurt that will not expire until the 15th for .29!

Sunday, July 12, 2009

Shopping Success!

So I did really well at CVS and Walgreens this week, so I thought I would share how I did it.

CVS
(3) Paper Mate Grip 8 ct Pens
regular 1.99
sale .99
-.99 ECB = FREE
(2) CVS 1 subject notebooks
regular 2.79
sale .99
-.99 ECB = FREE
(1) CVS blunt tip scissors
regular 2.99
-2.99 ECB = FREE
(2) CVS rulers
regular 1.50
sale .99
-.99 ECB = FREE
(2) Electrasol Power Tab Dishwasher
regular 5.89
sale 3.99
-2.50 coupon = 1.49
(4) Colgate kids toothpaste
regular 2.99
sale BOGO
-.75 coupon = .74 each
Gilette mens razor
regular 11.99
sale 7.99
-3 coupon & 4 ECB = .99
(2) Twix
regular .89
- .89 coupon = FREE

I also had $20 in ECB from a previous transaction from CVS, so total I paid $1.44 and got back $14 in ECB for my next trip


WALGREENS
(3) Listerene Mouth wash
regular 3.49
sale 3/$9
-(3) $2 coupons & $3 RR= FREE
(2) Mead Envelopes
regular 1.29
sale .59
----------
(4) huggies wipes
regular 2.79
sale 2.50
-(3) .75 coupons =7.75
(1) huggies diapers
regular 11.99
sale 10.00
-1.50 coupon = 8.50
+when you spend $20 on Huggies items you get $5 RR so
total between these 2 items
=16.25-5 RR=11.25 for 1 diaper and 4 wipes
----------
(4) Blue Diamond Almonds
regular 3.49
sale 2/ 3.59
-.50/2 coupon = 1.55 each
(2) Dove Trail size deodorant
regular .99
(2) Dove body mist
regular 4.29
-(2) .75 dove deodorant
-(2) buy deo get mist free
=both deo and mist for 2.50 (there was a limit of 3.29 on the BOGO coupon)

I had $2 in RR from a previous purchase + $25 for transferring a prescription!
I paid 1.19 out of pocket and received $10 in RR!

Monday, June 22, 2009

Great Shopping Trick


I did so well at Target and Kroger today. I got everything in the picture for less than $40. Woo-hoo. Frank has been asking for "man body wash" for a while, he is so excited. My savings at Target was round 80% + I have a $5 giftcard for next time. My savings at Kroger was 61%, this is the first time I have broken 50% there!

Hair Cuts All Around

This weekend was haircuts for all which included T's First haircut. We went to Sharkey's in Rockwall and they did so well with the kids. It was worth the overpriced hair cut to get someone used to working with kids. I dont have any pictures, I was to busy bribing the kiddos with m&m's, but mom does and if I can get them I will post. T got the classic little boy cut, sooo cute. Lily got hers cut into a bob just like mommy. She looks so grown up with this hair cut, but it is so cute on her.

Friday, June 12, 2009

Why oh why...

SO I am laying in bed asleep last night about 11:00 and the smoke alarms start going off. Not just one all of them. So I frantically get up and ask Frank, "DO you hear that?". Yeah I know stupid question, but I was half asleep. Frank checks the house to discover there is no fire so we call the alarm company. After being on hold with the alarm screaching in my ear the kind lady informs me this is not an alarm event, but one of my smoke detectors battery is low. SERIOUSLY do they all need to go off if one has a low battery??? So we scower the house looking for a culprit. We change the battery in the one causing the problem and decide we had better do them all while we are at it. We change all the batteries and the alarm stops going off continusly, but every 5 minutes or so it alarms for about 30 seconds. So the hunt is on again. We find one of the alarms does not have the light on showing that its battery is good, so we changed the battery out and no luck. So Frank decides to unplug it from the celing and the alarm stops!!! YEA...silence. At this point I am relieved, but guarded. If I go to bed and this thing goes off again it is going to piss me off! So I stay up for about 30 min (now 12:30) to make sure that fixes it. It did, so I am off to be.
Dont get me wrong I am glad we have smoke detectors, we have needed them before, but do they all need to go off when one of their batteries are low? And why does it alway seem to be the middle of the night when it happens?

Monday, June 8, 2009

Walgreens & CVS Deals this week

This week was really good at CVS and Walgreen's, this is what I did.


CVS
(2) Dawn dishsoap @1.00 each
(2) .25 coupon
= 1.50 & recieved 1.00 off next purchase (.25 each)

(6) Always pads @ 3.00 each
(3) 1.00 coupons
=15.00 & recieved 6.00 off next purchase (1.50 each)

(8) Degree Antipersprent & Deo @ 2.50 each
(4) .75 coupon
(3) 1.25 coupon
=13.25 & recieved 10.00 off next purchase (.41 each)

(1) Gamer Rasor @ 7.99
(1) 4.00 coupon
=3.99 & recieved 4.00 off next purchase (FREE!!)

TOTAL
spent $33.74
saved $47.69
$21.00 off my next purchase!


WALGREENS
(2) Oscar Mayer Bacon @3.99 each
BOGO
(1) 1.00 coupon
= 2.99 (or 1.50 each)

(2) Blue Diamond Almonds @ 3.49 each
sale price -3.39
(2) .50 coupons
= 2.59 (or 1.30 each)

Mars Candy Deal
Snickers .89
Twix .70
Milky Way .80
Snickers .79
Twix .80
M&M .69
Total before coupons 4.67
(3) BOGO coupons - 2.18
sale price -1.67
=.82 (or .14 each)

Johnson & Johnson Baby Powder 3.49
(1) 1.00 coupon
=2.49 & recieved 1.00 off next purchase

TOTAL
spent $7.89
saved $15.43
$1.00 off my next purchase!

Thursday, June 4, 2009

Family Updates

OK I have been informed (by someone to remain nameless) that I am the worst blogger EVER! I know sometimes life just gets us sidetracked. So I thought I would give a quick update to all of this interested.
Lily: Miss Lily is doing GREAT, she is so smart (sometimes too smart). She is very into swimming and has informed me (because she usually does not ask) she needs swimming lessons this summer. Which is great because she is completely fearless. We are having so much fun on our break before summer session starts. Next week she will be in Austin with Grandma and Grandpa, hope they can keep up. Lily is very proud of her garden (although mom does all the work). Ask her about it sometime, but make sure you have about 30 minutes, she is a talker!

Thomas: Oh my can this baby get any BIGGER??? He is growing like a weed and is a very active little boy. He has started pulling up and toddleing around objects, but once he is up he is scared to sit down! He loves playing with his sister (mostly going into her room) and getting into things Mommy doesn't think he should have! We still only have 2 teeth, but it is not slowing us down we eat everything mommy, daddy and Lily have for dinner.
Mommy & Daddy: We are doing well, Frank will be taking a trip to Amarillo & Roswell in July to see a friend. We are taking Miss Lily to see Dora Live in July (but shhh dont tell her).

Duncan: Cant forget Duncan, he is good. Thomas loves to play with him, usually his tail which I find disgusting, but Duncan just takes it in stride!

I promise I will make an effort to blog more often.




Sunday, May 24, 2009

Reusable Bags


I finally drug out the sewing machine and dusted it off to make these reusable sandwich and snack baggies to replace out ziplocs. Below is a picture of the first set. They are really easy to do and you can use whatever fabric you think is cute. Lily picked this one out and she is giving it to Aunt Cindy tomorrow for having us all over. (Paybacks for all the "cute" things Griffin gave us when he was little) I totally expect her to use them!

Tuesday, May 5, 2009

Bread Making Success

Well the bread making was successful! In fact I am making another batch today. You can see some of the steps below.
The first picture is the wet and dry ingredients separate.
The second picture is of the Kitchenaid doing the kneeding for me (love the Kitchenaid).
The third picture is the bread after the first rising.
The fourth picture is of the bread in the pan before the second rising.
The last picture is the final product. I have also included the recipe I used. It was yummy!
Homemade Wheat Bread

1 C warm water
1 TBS milk
2 TBS oil
2 TBS honey
2 TBS brown sugar
2 ¼ tsp (or one packet) instant active dry yeast
1 tsp of salt
1 ½ C all-purpose flour
1 ½ C whole wheat flour

In large mixing bowl combine first 5 ingredients. Sprinkle yeast on top and gently stir to mix. Let sit for 15 min
Sift together salt and both flour
Attach dough hook to mixer and turn on lowest speed. Slowly add flour mixture until dough ball forms and pulls away from side.
Turn mixer to speed 2 (no higher) and let kneed for 5-8 minutes
Take dough out of bowl and kneed a few times by hand
grease mixing bowl with 1 TBS of oil.
Shape dough into ball and place in bowl. Turn ball to fully cover in oil.
Place damp towel or plastic wrap over bowl and place in over with light on. (Do not turn the oven on.)
Allow dough to rise for 1 hour or until doubled in size.
Take dough out and punch down
Kneed a few more times by hand
Shape dough into loaf place in greased and floured loaf pan
Return to oven and allow to rise for another 30 minutes or until 1 inch above pan.
remove from oven and preheat to 350.
Bake at 350 for 30 min. It is done when you tap the top and it sounds hallow
Allow to cool on wire rack

Sunday, May 3, 2009

Yummy Hand Scrub

I found a handscrub online and decided to try and make it. Oh my, it is yummy. I love it and it is all natural. I think this is going to make wonderful Mother's Day gifts, if I can wait that long to give it away. Below is the recipe, try it I think you will love it!
1 1/2 c sugar
1/3 c Kosher salt
zest of large lemon (you could do any citrus)
1 c of Olive Oil (cheap stuff)
10 drops of orange essential oil (optional)
mix together and store in a jar. This recipe makes about 4 small canning jars.

Friday, May 1, 2009

What Happened To The Old Me?

I am beginning to wonder if Frank is thinking, "What happened to the person I married." I don't think he is thinking this in a negative way, just curious. Lately I have suprised myself at the things I am trying out and enjoying. BTW, this is all Anna's fault for getting me started with cloth diaper (JK, love ya Anna!)
Actually it all started when I decided to make T's baby food. People ask me all the time why I do this. It takes very little time, maybe 2 minutes every few days and seriously I would not want to eat that stuff out of a jar. Don't get me wrong we buy jarred baby food, but I make everything I can fresh and he loves it.
Then came the cloth diapers, suprisingly easy, fun and GREEN! This is my new shopping addiction, I think Frank has figured out it is probably not less expensive than disposibles.
Then I started thinking of other things in our house that were not so green. From that came the laundry detergent, dishwasher detergent and all the other cleaners followed. The cleaners really made me feel good about what I was doing. There is a sense of accomplishment every time I get to walk by the cleaner aisle at the store and not buy anything.
Now I find myself researching 2 different things, one making my own soap and the other is making my own bread. The soap issue come from T and I haveing sensitive skin and I want to find another fun use for my essential oils. When I started researching the soap it seems very time consuming, so for now I think I am going to buy some natural soap (I found some I think I am going to like alot). The bread thing I have wanted to try for a long time. I think it would be fun, but I have to admit I am a little intimidated. I am going to conqure it this weekend, I think. Dont hold me to that!
Now that I have gotten completely off topic, I know I have changed alot in the past 9 months. You could have never convinced me a year ago the things I would be doing now and the fulfillment I get from it.

Wednesday, April 29, 2009

My Wrinkle

I am devestated.
At the age of 20 something (did you seriously think I was going to post my age for the world to see?) I have a wrinkle. I thought only old people with kids and bills and a mortgage got wrinkles.....oh yeah I guess I am one of them.
I pray that I can age gracefully and accept the changes!

Saturday, April 25, 2009

AH-HA Moment

I had an Ah-Ha Moment and a well duh moment this week. I had a shirt of Lily's that had a stain (if I had to guess spegatti sauce, her fav) so I washed it in 3 differnt detergents and tried spray and wash, nothing worked. We have this problem often with Lilys shirts, but this was a really cute one her Grandma just bought! So I gave up until I could think of something else to try. I hung it out to dry, in honor of earth week. When I went to get it from outside the stain was almost unnoticble. In fact I am probably the only one that could find it. I was so excited! Then it hit me duh the sun.
When I started cloth diapering I leared that the sun will bleach almost any stain out and you don't have to put harsh cleaners next to your babys skin. If it is a really bad stain a little lemon juice will help the sun along. So it makes sense that it works on clothes as well.
So I guess this is just another added benefit of drying your clothes outside!

Wednesday, April 22, 2009

Detergent Update

OK
I know you have all been on pens and needles wondering about my homemade detergent and dishwasher soap.
WELL (DRUMROLL).....
Laundry - No problems. It cleans just as good as Tide. I have not used this batch on T's clothes yet because I made it with a strong soap. I am making a batch this weekend with Ivory soap because I will be able to use it on all his stuff. I have not tried the vinegar for softner yet because I am in the middle of a bottle of Downy, but as soon as it is gone we will. I do miss the smell of Tide, but I am going this weekend to get Orange Essential Oil to add to my detergent and cleaning products for a clean scent. Also in honor of Earth Day (or Week in our house) we are not using our dryer (the biggest energy sucker) unless absolutely necessary. We are drying all of our clothes outside!
Dishwasher - Same result, no big problems. I did notice a film on my glasses, but I also noticed my Jet Dry was empty. So I have refilled it and that solved the problem. I also have not tried the Vinegar in the dishwasher as a rinse agent, but as soon as my jet dry is gone we will try that as well.
So Far So Good we are going to try household cleaners next. I will post recipes as I find and try them.
HAPPY EARTH DAY!

Monday, April 20, 2009

Lily's Being Creative




Last week when I told my friends I don't let Lily use scissors they looked at me like I was crazy, so I decided to try. She loves it and it keeps her occupied for 20-30 minutes.




Of course she can't cut with her mouth closed! It's genetic.

Our Peas Have Sprouted

We are so excied our peas have sproted, I am glad to see my hard work is starting to pay off. Of course Lily says it is her garden even though she didnt want to help plant it! Oh well. Anyway here are some pics of the garden so far.

Friday, April 17, 2009

Thursday, April 16, 2009

I Bet You Would Have Never Thought!

I bet any of you that have known me for long would have never thought I would cloth diaper a baby or make my own cleaners.
Well these two thinks kinda have to do with one another. Once I started washing T's cloth diapers I starting having some problems with his little tushy breaking out. (I am sure he is going to kill me for this when he gets older!) Anyway so I have tried many different detergents "espically for sensitive skin babies" and no luck. So I started researching how to make laundry soap hoping I could identify what was making his booty red. I was VERY suprised to see how easy and cheep it is to make your own. I also realized that you can make ALL the cleaners you need for your house out of 6 different items (Washing Soda, Baking Soda, Borax, Vinegar, Bleach [never combine the two!] Dawn). So I am giving it a try, why not right. So for any of you that are interested here are the recipes I am trying first. I am starting with what I think are the most used and most expensive cleaners in the house

LAUNDRY DETERGENT
1 bar of soap (Ivory, FelisNepal, or something without oil or fragrance)
1 c of Borax
1 c of Washing Soda
1 c of Baking Soda
Mix all together and use 2TBS for a load of laundry or 1TBS for a load of diapers

DISHWASHER DETERGENT
2 c of Borax
2 c of Baking Soda

Really that is all. For the Fabric softner in your wash you will use white vinegar. You can put it in a Downy Ball or in the Fabric Softner dispenser. And for the Rinse Aid (Jet Dry) in your dishwasher you also use white vinegar.
This solves multiple problems for me. 1. I have 3 different laundry detergents I am using now (one for family, one for T's clothes and one for T's diapers). Not only does this drive me nuts, it sets us up to put the wrong thing in the wrong load and that causes problems! 2. I have to say this is better for the enviroment. 3. It is much less expensive, depending on the soap you use the laundry detergent is between 2-5 cents per load compared to 20 cents per load for Tide. 4. I don't have to keep a thousand different cleaneds on hand for cleaning day.
I have a realization I have come to recently, I think we make things difficult for ourselves. We have to have the bigger house, the more expensive cars, the name brand stuff.... And in doing this we HAVE to work, we lose time with our families because we have to work those hours to pay for things we WANT. If there is a silver lining to the recession thing I think it is that more families are spending time together, grandparents moving in with their kids and helping raise their grandchildren, and basically getting back to the way our Great Grandparents did things. And that was what I was trying to get at (before I got on my soap box!) I want to get back to a simpler way of doing things, the way it was done before all the short cuts.

Friday, April 10, 2009

Thomas' First BAD Habit


I am sure this is the first of many, but Thomas now bangs REPEATEDLY on his tray when he wants more food! It is drving me NUTS! Then he smiles and lays his head on his shoulder when I give him the look. Oh he has me wrapped around his little finger. :(

Sunday, March 29, 2009

If I Had Just One Wish

If I had one wish it would be for a 3-day weekend every weekend. It seems on Saturday there is always family obligations (ex: birthday parties, clothes shopping, house cleaning ect.). And on Sunday I have to get all the grocery shopping, still cleaning (yes I clean almost every day...I have 3 messy kids!). I wish I had just one more day to spend resting. Yes I am sure this day to would become full of To-Do's.
We had alot of fun this weekend. T cut his first tooth, but does not like anyone looking at it. I will post a pic as soon as he allows me to take one! We had Colby's 1st Birthday on Saturday. On Sunday I got up early and went grocery shopping, the store was EMPTY! It was great. I love going when it is quiet (I actually caught myself singing to the store music a few times) and the grouchy ladies aren't trying to get you to hurry up. I did good at Kroger this week, I saved 47%!! I am proud of myself. After the store I made T's food for the week, Frank got a hair cut and I went to CVS (saved 98% there!) and Walgreens (saved 55% there). After a 2 hr attempt to get Miss Lily to take a nap, I decided it was a lost cause and took her to Lowe's with me.
We went to get some flowers to plant in a pot to put on the back porch, we came hoem with alot more. Every time a turned around I had 3 more things in our buggy and Lily kept telling me "we need lots of flowers mommy" We ended up with Red-tipped Photunias for the backyard along the fence, 3 Gerbera Daisy's for a planter in the front and a Asiatic Lily for the back porch. Of course while we are shopping we had to take a trip to the potty and Lily announces while we are in there, "Mommy your big booty is coming off the potty." Thanks Lil!
So overall it was a good weekend, not so restful, I guess that is what tomorrow is for...oh nope, tomorrow is laundry day :(

Thursday, March 12, 2009

San Fransico

Per "Uncle Dexter's" request here is my perspective on the San Fransico trip.
When I was in high school uncle Dexter and aunt Cindy said they would take me to San Fransico and the only requirement was I could not eat chicken nuggetts or a hamburger the entire time I was there. This was ALL I ate as a teenager (and sometimes now)! So in the airport we sat down for our last hamburger at Chili's (Sissy's Cafe). The trip was long, I think I lost 10 lb. There was noting I liked to eat. At the time I didn't eat Seafood(still don't), Chinese or Italian. So I was pretty much out of luck. One day for lunch Cindy snuck me out for a burger at a restraunt, I think she was afraide I was going to starve! But I did try something new at that meal, Yucka Fries. They are actually really good. One night we all went to a hole in the wall Italian restraunt and there was NOTHING on the menu. I was almost in tears. The chef came out and asked what I like and made something special for me! I am not sure if it was the starvation or if it really was the best grilled chicken pasta I ever had!
Anyway I survived the trip and San Fransico is still one of my most favorite places to visit, just without all the restrictions!

Tuesday, March 10, 2009

UGGGG Nap Time

How is it possible that I need a daily nap and my 3 year old does not seem to think she needs to?
Is she too old to be taking a nap? This isn't only a nap issue, but nightime issue as well. We put her to bed at 7:30 (always have) and she is staying awake until 10:00 sometimes!!! This is past my bedtime. Then she is back up at 7:00 (that is 9 hrs) and she doesn't think she needs a nap....Is she CRAZY!?! All the research says she needs atleast 12 hrs asleep at night. And I can tell she still needs a nap because at 3 or 4 in the afternoon we have a total breakdown.
I dont know what to do, I can't duct tape her eyes shut!! I hope somone out there has some insight...PLEASE HELP!

Wednesday, March 4, 2009

Ohh The Things Kids Say

I have to share this story with yall it is the classic embarrassing parental moment.

We are standing the the check out line at Babies R Us this afternoon and the is a man with an eye patch behind us. Lily says "Look mommy, there's a pirate." I was so embarrassed. I apologized to the man and he jokingly says "well I kinda look like a pirate." I am so relived at this point that the man has a sense of humor!

Tuesday, March 3, 2009

A Wonderful Weekend

I had such a wonderful weekend.
Frank was so nice to keep the kids (one of which was sick) all weekend so I could go to Austin with the girls. Not anything too exciting. We went to a cake show, ate at some really good restaurants (no Dexter I did not have Chicken strips the entire time), and did some shopping in Saledo. I think the best part was no one asked me for anything all weekend, tugged on my leg, asked me to prepare food or change their diaper!
I know it probably doesn't sound like much, but it was very rejuvenating. Monday I noticed I was more patient with the kids and enjoyed the little things that usually irritate me. Without Frank I never could have done this, I love that Frank is a true partner which allows me to get some time away.

Tuesday, February 24, 2009

Story Time at the Library

Story time at the library was more than frustrating today.
On the way to the library I find myself going over the way we should act with Lily. No yelling, sit on the rug during the story, don't climb all over the librarian, you know the norm! Lily agrees and repeats it all back to me so I know she understands.
We get to the library to discover it is all about Dinosaurs today. Yeah Lily's favorite so it should be a great day, right. She will sit attentively and listen to the story, right. NOPE! Not two minutes into the story time the librarian has Lily in front of her and says maybe you would rather sit in mommy's lap. (because she was trying to climb all over the librarian.) So I have her come to me and sit in the floor next to me, but she can't see. She promises me she will sit still on the rug during the remainder of the story so I allow her to go back up to the rug with the other kids. A few minutes later I realize she is playing along the walls where they have flowers painted. I think to myself ," at least she is not being disruptive" and in an effort to pick my battles I don't say anything. A few moments after that I realize she is playing with the librarians buttons and name tag while she is trying to read. The librarian doesn't acknowledge her, but Lily does not lose interest she continues now playing with the books and the white board. That was it. I walk up there with Thomas in one hand, who by the way is screaming because his bottle is not warm enough, and try to get Lily to come with me so she is no longer disruptive. But she has another idea, she is not going. She plants it on the floor and shakes her head no with a look on her face "I want to see you make me in front of all these people". I give in because I know I can not make her do anything at this point. We finish the story mostly sitting and listening, but then it is time to leave. Except Lily is not ready to leave. So she stands her ground in the middle of the Children's center at the library (thank goodness we were in the Children's area so I was not so concerned about her yelling). I tell her I am leaving and she says NO! So I turn and go to check out the books, without her. She thinks I am leaving so finally follows screaming "I don't want to go, I don't want to". We get to the car and in our seats and then she asks if we are going to lunch with our friends. We weren't because some of the mom's had other obligations, but she didn't know that. So I decided to use this as a opportunity to show her we only get to do fun things when we behave. So I tell her no we are not because we did not behave during story time. She begins to scream, I am surprised someone did not think I was killing her! I ask her if she understands why we can not go eat and play with our friends and she tells me because she did not sit and listen to the story and she bothered the librarian. SO SHE DOES UNDERSTAND!!! So why does she do this. She continues to scream most of the way home, which is ok because now she is taking a great nap!
I would not be surprised if we were asked not to return to story time!

Thursday, February 19, 2009

Granny Barnett Would Be Proud!

So for those of you who were never lucky enough to meet my Granny Barnett she was a feisty little lady that didn't take sh%$ from anyone. That has little to do with this, but she also lived through the depression which made her a compulsive hoarder!
Some other mom's I work with have gotten me started doing this thing called the grocery game. Basically you cut coupons and this website tells you when to use them to get the best deal. When you get a good deal you stock up on stuff so it holds you over until the next cycle of sales.
So I get home from CVS last night with a bag full of stuff. The shelf value is $45.00, I paid $25 and received $23 in store cash to use next time I got to CVS. So really it cost approx $2! I start putting the new treasures away to realize I have accumulated 10 tubes of toothpaste (we will never have bad breath again!), 10 different shampoos (our hair will smell good too), 5 deodorants (no BO!), 5 toothbrushes and some other misc things. It made me think of Granny Barnett :)

Monday, February 16, 2009

Lily's Green Thumb

Lily definatly did not get her green thumb from me! I am actually very suprised my children are still alive, but they cry when hungry and plants don't.
Our Roma tomatos began to sprout on Saturday night and they actually have leaves today! We are so excited about our garden this year. It reminds me alot of Papa & Granny Barnett. In fact we planted purple hull peas just so we could sit on the back poarch this summer and snap them. I still remember the garden at their house and picking veggies in the summer time. Unfortunatly living in the city (yes Forney qualifies as a city) my children will never experience the real thing, but we will get as close as we can.

Thursday, February 12, 2009

I Can Do This!

I am starting to feel more comfortable being a Stay at Home Mom. It took a few months, but I think we have most of the kinks ironed out.
When I first considered staying at home, I had this idealistic picture of things. Much like June Clever. House cleaned, Dinner on the Table, Clean well dresses kids, Make up and Hair done all in time for hubby to be home from work. Boy was I mistaken. It has taken a few months for me to get comfortable with the fact that things will not be this way and it is ok. I am home to be with my kids not to be the maid. Don't get me wrong, I pick up the house as the day goes, but be real when you have 2 kids that are home most of the day we are doing good just to clean up the messes we make not to mention the ones that already existed. We do have a rule about getting up and getting dressed in the morning, except for Monday's which are our Pajama and Laundry day. Dinner, this has been a hard one for me. I will always think that dinner as a family is extremely important. As a child we all sat down to dinner together and it was our family time. So I still strive to get dinner on the table by the time Frank gets home, but there are days that someone is hungry or sick and our schedule gets out of wack.
Hubby has been wonderful about this, I think he knew from the beginning it was not going to be the "June Clever" house when he got home.
We are however getting to do things we have never done before. We planted our first garden last night. Well we started the seeds last night. Lily is so excited. I am fully expecting the Jalapenos to be growing in the Petunias! It is so hard for little fingers to put those tiny seeds where they belong! We are also trying to be more "Green". I know this is the word of the year right. I do think it is important to leave the Earth better than we found it. I am not going to push my ideas on anyone, but we try as a family to recycle, use reusable bags and such and the newest is using cloth diapers. I know YUCK right, but you would be surprised how much like disposables they are. The only thing you have to do extra is wash them. Anyway, this is exciting to me (thanks Anna for talking me into it!). And they are too cute. We also go to story time every week and we are checking out books from the library. We have a play date once a week with our friends from Mother's Day Out. We also are going to Open Gym twice a month to get all our energy out.
So I am beginning to get more comfortable with my new role. Thanks to a few special friends who have adopted me and made me get out of my house. I don't think things would be the same without them.