What Have You Been Up To?

I don't like the days when I am so busy I don't have time to sit, or think or reflect...I just DO!  Today has been one of those days.  I don't know if I need to start making a schedule and planning out my days but I know I don't waste time and find that on the days I am not teaching, I am crazy busy...but doing WHAT?  Well...here's a picture of today...

6:10am:  Turn off alarm.  Wake boy and get him to take a shower so his teachers don't call him the "smelly kid".

6:25: Head to the laundry room.  Let Miss Honey out...filled her food and water bowls.  Threw in laundry load 1 of 6 for the day.

6:30am:  Start working on breakfasts (ie. cereal for boy and oatmeal for girl.) Set out vitamins and juice.  Move on to lunches.  Sandwich for the boy, soup for the girl.  

6:50:

Lunches and water bottles are ready to go!  (We have decided to give up using plastic water bottles this year.  We stocked up on aluminum water bottles and so far so good.  Ok...I say that and today Ben was instructed to bring home the 3 bottles that he had in his locker.  We're TRYING!)

7:10:  My very sweet neighbor picks the boy up in our driveway (since it's been so cold outside) and waits with them at the bus stop.  One kid down...one to go.

7:10-8am:  I help Sis get dressed, her backpack loaded, hair done and if there is time...we read.  I love being home to get her ready for her day.  If I am substituting then I am out the door by 7:45 and her Dad takes her to the bus stop.

8:15-9am: Took a 3 mile walk with Chris and Lucy...had to take advantage of the Midwestern meltdown that is happening right now.  Seriously, it's getting warmer, snow is melting and it's staying light outside longer in the evenings....shhhhh...don't tell anyone but I think the groundhog was right!

9-10am:  Shower, dress, laundry.

10am-11am:  Worked on my writing piece.  Editing...editing...editing! (Thanks for your help Mom!)  In between times I was folding and switching loads.

11am-1pm: Headed out to the mall...hunting for new pants, shirt and tie for the boy who is being honored as Student of the Month tonight at the School Board Meeting.  SO PROUD!  (Not loving the fact that we are not very close to any good shopping to make this task easier!)  After several different trips to 3 or 4 stores I found the tie...2 shirts...and pants for the boy.  

1-2pm: Ran to the Junior College to visit eldest sister and see if her secretary (aka: Computer Whiz) could help me with a technical computer problem I was having.  Ran through the car wash on my way home.  Love that winter is melting but really frustrated at how grimy and dirty it makes cars and garage floors and house floors!  Ugh!

2-3pm:  Vacuumed house to keep up with all the grime and salt that is making it's way into my home.  

3:30pm: Got the girl off the bus and helped with homework and snack.

4:00pm: Sent kids outside to run around while I sat here and blogged.  Whew!  And the evening is still young!  We will be heading to our local Subway for dinner tonight and then it's off to the School Board Meeting to honor my boy.  Always a TREAT!  

Anyway, the point of all this rambling was to show that my days "off" are filled...packed...jammed with so many "to do" items I forget to take a bit of time for myself.  Feed the soul.  Feed the mind.  Whatever.  It's the kind of day that pops into my head when people ask me when I am going back to work full time and don't I get bored at home.  BORED??  REALLY??  That would be a NICE CHANGE!

Wishing you a "BORING" day!   :)

Happy Valentine's Day!

Happy hearts day...here is how we celebrated...



Here is what the kiddos saw when they got up this morning...love before school!  (Dad was in Florida so no Valentine breakfast for him.)




This was Emily's place.  (pssst...I made those place mats...what do you think?)

This was Ben's place setting...they both got Barnes & Noble gift cards and some love candy!

Here is Emily's Valentine box and cards to pass out to her classmates.  We made the box a PURSE (how cool is that?)  And the cards are a download I found on Etsy...they're Valentine Fortune Tellers...a 2nd grade favorite.

This is us at her Valentine's class party.  I planned all the games and the menu.  Hazard of being a parent at the school where you used to teach (kidding!)  See her cool 14 shirt?  Made it! Yep, I did.  I got the idea and ran with it.  It looked so cute on her too.  The kids had a great time and were SO SO SO well behaved!  The party was first thing in the morning because they had an early release day so by 10:30 we were all partied out! (Oh, can't forget...do you see my fancy necklace?  It was my gift from baby girl this morning...along with a handmade card...LOVE IT!)

While everyone was gone I set the Valentine's table for dinner.  Complete with a menu!  Now I need to go cook for the family.  I hope you had someone to love today.  Happy Valentine's Day to you!

A Valentine Craft

  I love the idea of original home decor.   Seriously, I am over wanting what everyone else has.  I've even dropped my love of Coach purses...ok...I still love them but I'd rather have a cute boutique find that no one else has!

That being said I feel the same way about my house.  I don't want to decorate with items every neighbor has in her house...I want to be ORIGINAL.  So I was in the garage last week and stumbled across this picture frame that I ALMOST gave to Goodwill...(why???)




Then I got the good idea to paint it...but the stand wouldn't separate from the frame...hmmmm?  I decided it's tooooo cute to give away, I think the old saying "absence makes the heart grow fonder" is true in this case!  I love that cute little frame...but what to do with it?  I decided instead of putting just another photo in there I would turn it into a cute holiday decoration.  I don't have too many Valentine decorations so I came up with this little number...and I am sharing my steps.   It was simple and except for drying time it came together very quickly.

I picked out some cute paper, traced the glass and cut.  Easy.  Yes, Mom, even you could do this!



Next, I found a chipboard heart in my scrapbook stash and painted it cream.  I used Making Memories paint.  I think the color was called "manila".  I gave it 2 coats and 20 minutes to dry.  I could have cut a heart out of vinyl too but I wanted it to have a 3-D look to it...FUN!



Then I chose to use my ever trusty "sticky tack."  It was one of my best teacher supplies and I still keep it around the house (need it when I want to hang a good paper or piece of art on the fridge, magnets don't work on stainless steel!)  By the way, I personally love the original blue sticky tack the best, it holds better.  I could have used foam dots or large glue dots but I didn't want to keep it this way forever and I didn't want to spend time cleaning the "stick" off the glass!  (learned my lesson one Halloween with those cute Martha Stewart decorations I just HAD to stick to my sliding glass doors...ugh!)



And there you have it...the finished project.  I looks great in this little nook in my kitchen.  I love that it's original and it was a FREE project!  Gotta love those!  Next week I'll share Emily's Valentine box and Valentines...oooooh!  I am so EXCITED about these!!!  xoxoxo




                      Happy Valentine's Day!

I am linking up to Frugal Friday at







Also linked up at  http://becca-homeiswheremystorybegins.blogspot.com/

A "Budget" Dinner

Since I shared my couponing secrets with you I thought I'd give you a peek at one of our budget dinners.  I made it this week and figured out that this delicious, balanced dinner cost about $2 per family member.  That really is amazing to me!  I'll break it down for you....

* Pork Tenderloin- 2 come in a pack.  I usually break them up and put each in a freezer bag.  I purchased a Tyson port tenderloin at Walmart for $9.  I only cooked 1 so that's $4.  I marinated the pork tenderloin in a sesame ginger marinade that I got FREE from Dominicks.  See the next bullet point for an explanation of how.


*I made a bag of whole grain rice that I got for FREE from Dominicks.  I got a coupon flyer in my mailbox a few weeks ago and there were several coupons for FREE items and others were $1.  It was a very uninteresting flyer and one that could have easily been thrown away but because I took the time to read it first I scored some GREAT deals...and HELLO....FREE STUFF!  LOVE IT!

*Last but not least I chose a few veggies I had in my veggie drawer to stir fry.  I used about half a red pepper, 1 small bunch of broccoli, half of a yellow onion and a handful of baby carrots.  It was about $4 in vegetables and that is a high estimate.


It was a delish dinner and my kids even ate it.  I had enough left over for lunch the next day too!

Just a little note about the flyer I got in the mail.  One of the coupons on it was $10 off your purchase of $50 or more.   I told you yesterday I got one online.  That makes 2 of the same coupons I got to used 2 weeks in a row.  Sweeeeeeet!  In this same flyer there was $4 off frozen chicken breasts, a free 24 ounce jar of salsa, a free large bottle of salad dressing and plenty more!  I know there had to have been several Dominicks customers who got this same flyer, figured it was just an ad and threw it away.  Big mistake!

I will stop blogging about my coupon craziness now.  (OK...maybe I will mention it a few more times if I stumble across a GREAT deal)

Food 4 Less...REALLY!

I have a confession to make.  Shhhh....don't tell!  Coupons make me happy.  This probably seems a bit off for me.  Especially since I didn't grow up using them.  Here is my "Mother Disclaimer"...it's not because my Mom was a spender.  We ate VERY well growing up, my Mom had a garden every summer and she was an incredible cook.  She bought only what we used and junk food was a rare treat.  My Mom was very careful with our money but she was not a coupon user.  And, quite honestly, even if she had used coupons, I was a typical teenager and wouldn't have paid any attention anyway.

I don't remember what triggered this coupon insanity with me but it started like a year ago.  I heard about this woman, Jill Cataldo.  You can see her website here.  I got online, ordered her DVD and was COMPLETELY impressed!  I tried to follow all her suggestions but I still struggle with getting multiple papers every Sunday.  When my parents were in town they would save their ads for me.  Now I've tweaked her program to work for me.  I don't really buy too much in bulk, but I stock up on things we use or consume often.  Also, I don't buy things just because they're on sale.  If we don't normally eat or use it, we don't need it.

 My hubby is so IMPRESSED with my new couponing ways.  Seriously, he can't wait to see my receipts when I get home from the store! OK...so here is my Dominick's receipt from last week.  I took some time the night before I planned to go shopping to look online and download the Just For U coupons on my Dominick's card.  Yep, it's THAT simple!  If you have a Dominick's card just go to their website and follow the instructions to register your card.  Then click on "Just For U" and you can put the coupons directly on your card.  No actual "clipping" and it only takes a little bit of time.  You can even print out a list of the items you clicked on to take to the store with you.  Sometimes there are "special" coupons...for example last week there was a $10 off your purchase of $50 or more.  That is FREE money!  After I downloaded all my items I switched over to Jill's website and clicked on her "Coupon Look Up" section.  You can find that here.  There you can enter any grocery item, name brand or by item and it will show you if there was a coupon in an ad, which ad, and the date...EASY!!!  I think I clipped like 4 additional coupons and I was ready for the store.  Here is a picture of my receipt.  Please remember...I am NOT  a professional.  I know so many people who can do so much BETTER than I did but this trip was my BEST yet!

                                      LOOK AT THAT!  I saved 40%! I saved almost $100!!
Like I said, so many people can do even better than I did but I figure it's more than I used to do and my cart was filled with fresh fruit, veggies, chicken, and other healthy food items for my family.  I think I had a smile on my face ALL DAY!

 I try to use her tips in other areas too.  Like I started clipping the Target coupons for a free $10 gift card with a new prescription.  HELLO!  There is now at least ONE good thing about my kids being sick!  I use Subway coupons, dry cleaner coupons, online coupons, shoe coupons, kids clothing coupons.  I buy things when they are on sale.  I stock up on really good sales like when Old Navy had their $10 kids' jean sale in December.  $30 got Ben 3 brand new pairs of jeans!  I also take the kids' better clothes to a great consignment shop so I get something back for all those big bucks I spend.  Even our vet has a half off shots day in April.  I could go on and on.  There are so many deals out there if you just take the time too do a little research.

I've been married for 17 years this coming July and I get frustrated thinking about what we could have done if I'd started this when we got married.  I know that even when the economy picks up and things are better for our country, I will keep clipping my coupons because it really feels good to SAVE MONEY!

Valentine's Day is ALMOST here!!

Valentine's Day is  a holiday that is a "feast for the eyes"...and the tummy in my house!  I love seeing all the hearts, the pink, the red.  I ADORE making Valentine boxes with my kids. I take this part of parenting quite seriously!  I will have to dig up some old photos of Ben's third and fourth grade Valentine's boxes.  He brought them up yesterday and was telling me what good memories he has of us coming up with some creative plan so he didn't just have a plain old Valentine's box.  I don't want to tell you what they are because that would ruin the surprise...I promise to find the photos and SHOW you soon!

We are getting ready to make Emily's Valentine box.   She came up with the idea (although I am SURE I gave her that suggestion last year but last year's box had to be a cake?)  and I've been collecting items on clearance the past few weeks getting ready for the big craft day.   I also found some super cute and original Valentine cards on etsy...I'll be downloading and printing those out soon too!  (Oh the projects...I CAN'T WAIT!)

I feel like all I've done this post is tempt you with things I have no intention of sharing right now so let me show you something we did about a week ago...that was YUMMY and actually turned out as cute as the picture in the magazine...

                                                                 Whoopie Pies!



I've been wanting to try making these forever.  I'd never heard of them until a few years ago.  I found a great recipe for pumpkin Whoopie Pies for the fall but never found the time to make them...hmmmm...wonder why???  Anyway, the above whoopie pies were featured in this month's issue of Family Fun magazine.  Family Fun is one of my favorites and my daughter even loves checking out the recipes and crafts each month.  This time the combination of chocolate and pink frosting got the best of me and I just HAD to try them!  So...you will find the recipe here, and they are so easy to make!  I did use my Pampered Chef medium scoop for the cookie part.  The frosting was easy to make, easy to spread and delish!  mmmmmmmm!  So...think about making some for a special Valentine.  I know as a (substitute) teacher they'd make the PERFECT teacher's Valentine!!

I can't wait to show you my latest couponing OLYMPIC SUCCESS...seriously...this was one of my best shopping trips...come back tomorrow!

If You Don't Like It...Paint It!

It's been awhile...I know. But I think I'm back for good. I mean...with all the time I spend browsing DIY blogs and Mommy blogs I really want to get back to the writing! I have been busy this January. I'm trying my hand at sewing place mats. I found a pretty simple step by step plan on one of my favorite new blogs here and I've decided that if I can't find place mats I like, I need to get busy on my new sewing machine... Right?

In regards to my title...my Mom's neighbor is AMAZING! Seriously, the woman has the most original eye for decor...and she can make any space look magazine ready on a shoestring of a budget. Years ago when we moved into our old house she came over to give me some decorating ideas. She saw a pile of items and asked what I was doing with them. It was old baskets, plates, etc. I told her I was sick of those items and was sending them off to Goodwill. She gave me some EXCELLENT advice, "If you don't like it, paint it." Those were some profound words and she was a woman WAY ahead of her time! This story is important because I have been trying to "lighten up" my family room. I love the decor but it's a bit dark. We don't have a make over in the budget, so I thought adding a few lighter touches would brighten up the space. I started with accessories. I got this cute wooden magazine holder (ok...I know, it was not originally a magazine holder...but that's what it is now :) at the Kane County Flea Market years ago.

It's traveled all over my house. It has been filled with greenery and ornaments, candles and everything else imaginable. I love it! But...it's brown. I love brown, but I have quite a bit of it in my house. Something has to go. Enter...INSPIRATION...spray paint! I love the distressed look and with my snazzy Cricut Expressions I can cut vinyl....

spray paint+vinyl= CUTE!

I know...it's very trendy to put numbers on things these days and I love that...but there is NOTHING better than a monogram! (Right?!) So...here is the new and improved "magazine holder."

What do you think? I LOVE IT! I am feeling inspired! What can I lighten up next?? I will let you know!

I am linking up to:     The Shabby Nest Frugal Friday