Dang Etsy!

Etsy was mentioned today and I've subsequently been sucked into a trance- look at these great things! (click pictures for links)

Tracy Chong's pop-up cards:

This adorable Halloween pin by Daena Ortego:

And am I the only mom who hates when you are trying to give quick baths before you go out and the kids soak your clothes? This is a GREAT idea.

$10 shopping trip

Thanks to a good sale at Albertsons, manufacturer coupons, and Coupon Sense for letting me know about it all, I got all this for only $10! That's 3 gallons of milk, 2 packages of Wholly Guacamole, 4 boxes of Life cereal, 1 box instant oatmeal, 3 boxes granola bars and 2 boxes of granola bites. It would have been a lot more exciting but they were out of most of the Quaker stuff but they did give me a bunch of rain checks. And actually, I made money this trip because I transfered my prescription for prenatal vitamins there and used one of the hundreds of CVS coupons for a free $25 gift card so I spent $9 on a prescription, and got $25 free for next time! If you are pregnant, breastfeeding, or thinking about getting pregnant, your dr. will probably give you a prescrip for those and you can transfer it around every month and most pharmacies will take the CVS coupons- it can be a little profitable to take your vitamins!

Mr. Darcy - I'm Too Sexy

Any Colin Firth as Mr. Darcy fans out there? (Pride and Predjudice)

Spilling the beans

I like to wait until I hit 3 months to tell people I'm pregnant, but it's gotten harder with each pregnancy as I start to LOOK very pregnant before then, so I shared the news with family and close friends once I had an ultrasound at 10 1/2 weeks that showed a ticking heart. (HOORAY!) I wanted to hold out on my blog a lot longer, like until I knew the sex, but today I got to meet/hang out with some fellow bloggers (Thanks Stephanie!) and I don't want people to wonder if I'm pregnant, or if I've just been drinking too much Dr. Pepper! (Which I have not been, for the first time in my life, I actually have moments when the thought of it makes me feel ill, but luckily other times I can enjoy it still.) So that explains more why my blogging has been pathetic- I'm tired a lot, and sick sometimes but hopefully I only have a few more weeks of that! And if you see me with my big belly anytime soon, you know why!

Cute card and envelope templates

Traci Sims has these really cute Halloween envelopes and cards that you just download and print:and it got me thinking that I could make my own cute envelopes with stuff I already have. (But hers are SO stinkin cute!) I found this great site with lots of different templates for cards and envelopes you can make yourself: http://www.ruthannzaroff.com/mirkwooddesigns/templates.htm I can't wait to try some!

And THANK YOU so much for all the great dinner ideas! They have really helped me- keep them coming if you think about it!

I know I have been a really bad blogger, I have been busy and tired, but I will get better soon! I have gone through my blog and tried to make it a little more "anonymous" without making it private. My children are now going to be known as "Miss B, Miss G and Miss E." I got a little creeped out by those commercials where random scary people knew this girls name because they saw her MySpace or whatever. (you can see it by clicking HERE.) Not that there is anything of interest here for creepy people, but I do feel better knowing that strangers won't be able to call them by name from reading my blog!
Today I started making some BOO letter blocks (like THESE I did for Easter) and I will post a picture when they are done. After a month of doing nothing creative, I am ready to get busy!

What's for dinner?

I am having food issues- I don't know what's for dinner. What are you having? Comment on this one every day please- this is a common problem around here. I would love to know what everyone else eats.

I love vintage/victorian art

I don't really know what to do with it, but I have a little collection of vintage and victorian clip art on my computer and I just love it. I got most of the clips from The Vintage Workshop. They have CD's or you can download smaller sets straight from their site, plus lots of great things to print on- including inkjet printable canvas! I recently discovered this ebay seller that has compiled huge collections and sells them for really reasonable prices. Click HERE to see the Holidays collection. So if you like it too, check them out! And if you have a good project idea share it because I really want that holiday cd but I can't justify it until I have a specific project in mind. Doesn't it just make you happy to look at these?

Hints of Fall

After months of the hottest summer ever, I opened my door this morning and left it open. For almost an hour. Until the second time the a/c kicked on.
Also, I noticed cool water coming out of the faucet the other day. The end is in sight!

We went camping

It was our ward camp-out. The once a year I will sleep out on the hard ground, in the cold, listening to wild animals wanting to eat me. (in a tent of course) The kids have the time of their life getting filthy, playing in or near a fire, and running wild with other kids. I used to think I was a camper, but I think I'm a cabiner now. Miss E fell in love with Uncle Preston and his hammock.

Me + Sam

Sarah I am considering myself tagged, I have been struggling with blogging topics! Here's the beginning of Sam and I:

1. Where did you two meet?

We actually met twice- the first time, he was on a group date, and a friend of mine had to work, but he wanted to meet up with them later so he asked if I would go. (kind of "be my date for this un-date) I saw him standing in front of this Mexican restaurant next to Filibertos and felt all fluttery! We went to Kyle and Ashley's house (first time I met them) and we watched some really lame movie over there. I watched him through the whole movie to determine that the girl he was with was not his girlfriend, and then I tried to strike up a conversation on my way out. ME: "I like your hat." HIM: "Thanks- it matches my belt." (he reveals his superman belt that matches his superman hat.)

Now he has no memory of this conversation. (hmm, I wonder why?) So our next first meeting was the next day on my first visit to the singles ward where I joyously spied him right away and got to watch him through Sacrament Meeting and then stared at him until he noticed me, and started talking to me.

2- What was the first thing you said to him?

oops, I already answered that. I will make my answers shorter.

3- Where was your first date?

We went to Macaroni Grill for dinner, and then went and listened to Esteban. (you know, the guy who sells guitars on infomercials?) We doubled with his parents, his sister and her husband, and 2 other couples they were friends with. No pressure.

4- Where was your first kiss?

This is so sad! I need to go get out my journal because I am not sure! I bet it was my doorstep though...

5- How long did you date?

Four months before we were engaged

6- Did you have a long engagement?

I don't think so, it was 3 months.

7- Where did he propose?

Officially, with the ring and everything, we were waiting to eat at American Grill (I think it was called?) and we walked out to the fountain in front of the Bank of America building. He had slicked his hair and borrowed his dad's Corvette and everything. I was clueless. (isn't my scrapbooking of the event awesome??)

8- Where were you married?

The Mesa Temple.

9- How did the reception go?

It was long and I thought it looked pretty- I heard it was fun though- I was in a daze, and really hungry.

10- How was the honeymoon?

Fun! We went to San Francisco and got to wear jackets in July! And ate caesar salad every day.

Now if you're reading this, I'm tagging you! Go! Tell!

First, I would like to thank all my fans...

I'm really slow on this- Crystal from Crissybug's Crazy Clan awarded ME the Rockin' Girl Blogger award! Thank you! I really was quite flattered- my blogging has been pretty pathetic lately though, she might want to take it back but I will be better, I promise! So the bad part is I have to pass the award onto 5 other Rockin' Girl Bloggers, and I think there are a lot of them out there, and I hate to not nominate everyone! But here are my picks and why:

1. Stephanie of Barefoot in the Kitchen has to be my first pick- hers was the first blog I ever read, and I still find it so inspirational and fun to read. She is so creative and has such a wonderful view of her role as a stay at home mom- reading her blog makes me want to be better.

2. Shauna of Here We Are Together- well I might be playing favorites a little with this one because she has been one of my best friends since we were like 15 but her blog is so fun to read. She has the most adorable boys and always has the cutest pictures and funny stories. Plus her husband is in Iraq, and she's pregnant with #3, and she is amazing.

3. Katy of McDonalds Army Brats- She is very on top of her blog- I can almost always count on a new post! Her husband is in Afghanistan, and she is a stay at home mom of 4 boys! She is beautiful and smart and and her blog is full of uplifting, spiritual thoughts and reading it makes you want to be more patriotic and a better friend.

4. Sarah from Sarah's Nonsense- Ok Sarah is going to be a writer someday, and she is just all around funny. Her blog is smart and always makes me laugh out loud! Plus, if you're a reader, she is big time, and can always recommend a good book. And she loves the movies, she sees them all.

5. Sarah from Palmer Family Post- It must be something about the name Sarah, but this girl is hilarious! I laugh out loud every time I read her blog too. I worked with her years ago at my first *awesome* job and I remember laughing to tears every day. She always had the funniest stories and nothing has changed. She doesn't post often enough, (hint hint!!) but you will be hooked.

Ok, congrats ladies! Come accept your award and pass it on to 5 more rockin' girl bloggers! (sorry about that part, it's hard!) I'm sorry to everyone I left out- really everyone on my sidebar over there is a rockin girl blogger but I only have to nominate 5, and this post is already really long!

The day the world changed

September 11, 2001 started similar to most of my days. I was a new mom, and had just started working again, this time from home, and had gotten into some kind of a routine. I would get up, check my e-mail and sort through my PO's to prioritize my day. Miss B would wake up hungry and I would get her up and nurse her while watching the local news. This morning, Miss B slept a little longer than normal, so I decided to go check my pregnancy turned new moms internet message board. The top comment said "NOW THEY ARE SAYING IT MIGHT BE TERRORISTS!!!??" huh? under that, "OMG- a second plane just hit the second tower!" then a quick skim down the page filled me in enough to totally comfuse me- one woman could see smoke from her apartment windows, everyone had their eyes glued to the news and was reporting every new detail or suggestion... I quickly called Sam over and started telling him what they were saying as if for him to verify it couldn't be true, it had to be a joke? We went and turned on the TV and there were the smoking towers- we had missed seeing the second one hit by minutes but they were replaying it in slow motion and speculating. The day went on, and you all know the rest... Sam eventually had to go to work, I held Miss B tighter and cried a lot that day, and was thankful to have her company. I couldn't turn my TV off. I was afraid I would miss something. I saw the smoke at the Pentagon. I saw them clear the airspace grid. I remember getting a call that was work related and it was offensive that someone could be thinking about making money on a day like this. The most vivid image of the day was a man running away from the clouds of dust, carrying a small baby and pulling some cloth over it's face- a baby the same age as mine was at the time.

My intuitive mother in law said she woke up that morning and looked at her blank, turned off television, and thought, today the world is going to change. And then she laughed at the seemingly silly thought. But in many ways it did, at least, the world as we saw it changed. On September 10th, 2001 we never would have considered ourselves naive, but we were. We didn't think that the problems in the world around us could touch us (if we were even aware of them) And then suddenly they did.

Suddenly we had to worry about things we never thought about. For years I had nightmares of planes dropping out of the sky. I couldn't see a low flying plane without my stomach dropping. I was afraid of my mail- remember the anthrax threats? I would immediately go through my mail and pull out what I needed and toss the rest, and then quickly wash my hands. One day Miss B found a catalog and was joyfully ripping through the pages and trying to fit it in her mouth and I was stressed about it for days. It could have touched something, that touched something, that was tained with anthrax! I know I worry too much, and watching the news is no help, but if I didn't watch it one day, I was afraid something like this would happen again, and I wouldn't know! (would it matter?)

So today I remember how 9-11 affected me, but more importantly, the innocent people, who were just doing their job, the families who kissed their fathers and mothers, husbands, wives and brothers good-bye that morning expecting to see them later that day. I remember the fire fighters who had to go into those burning buildings, and didn't get to come back out. Remember them and their families in your prayers today! Remember the military and their families whose life courses were altered on that day as well! Pray for our country, pray for the leaders of our country, and pray for the leaders around the world.

Fire in my eye!

Product Warning: Do not buy this stuff! (or pay special attention to the instructions if you do!) I have worn contacts for over 16 years now and never had a problem with any contact solution- they are all pretty much the same to me- if they say "No Rub" I just pour it in the little contacts case, and drop my contacts in overnight with no problem. I got this new brand recently because there was a free rebate with it and I never pass up free of course. Late last night, I was tired, getting ready for bed in the dark, I opened the new package and took out my contacts and got them soaking and fell into bed. This morning when I went to put them back in my eyes, FIRE! It hurt so bad! I quickly slid it back out and rinsed my eye for 5 minutes and then read the package- I had followed all the instructions, except I had used my own case and not theirs, so I called the 800 number and they informed me I had to use their special lens case to neutralize the hydrogen peroxide! So I went back and started looking for their special case, and realized I don't think my package had one. I looked all over the bathroom and in the trash and couldn't find anything like that. ANYWAYS, maybe it is a good product if you follow the instructions, and use THEIR case, but I wouldn't risk it. I can't be the first person who has done this, I hate to bash a product, but I don't want anyone else to do that!

Technical Difficulties!

Sorry to anyone who had to witness my header monstrously huge tonight! I couldn't figure out how small to shrink it, and Sarah needed accompaniment to a late movie (Nanny Diaries) so I had to rush out. Thankfully, it is now fixed, and easier on the eyes. Don't you love Glitz stuff? See more HERE or ask your local scrapbook store if they carry it.

Another 1st day of School

Miss G has finally started preschool! She was so excited and had a great time. The only disappointment to her was how short it was- she wanted to go to school as long as her big sister does! She has a friend and her cousin Brycen in her class which is fun.

'Tis better to have loved...

Here's my top 5 tragic (or at least sad) love story movies:

1. Titanic

2. Romeo & Juliet

3. Tristan & Isolde

4. Moulin Rouge

5. Becoming Jane

Those are actually the only ones I can even think of- but they are all good- any others? I just watched Tristan & Isolde for the first time this week and I liked it. It got me thinking about why we like movies (or TV shows) that make us feel emotional pain!

When it comes to movies, give me a romantic comedy with a happy ending, and I'll be happy almost every time. Ginger said, if you get to choose how it ends, why shouldn't it be happy? (I agree!)

Of course, in real life there are many more unhappy endings, even a lot of tragic endings to romances. The ending in a movie, might be when the couple finally gets together, when they get married, or when they make it through a particular challenge in their life or relationship. In real life, we go through a lot of things before we really get to the ending, and relationships that had happy moments, can end bad at any time due to life circumstances, or bad decisions by one or both people. To get to the happy ending in real life, you have to keep going through those times that look like potential bad endings. Most people fall in love (to some level anyways) more than once in their life, so that means there are a lot more unhappy endings than happy ones, so it really must be better to have loved and lost, than never to have loved at all!

I think I can do this!

Isn't that adorable? You can get the pattern from Keepsake Quilting by clicking on the picture, or you can figure out your own pattern, and I don't think it would be too hard. It looks like you just chop off the bottom of a onesie, and sew a big piece around the bottom with a drawstring. I tried to make one of those sleep sack things when Emma was a baby but I had too much trouble with the zipper so it sits unfinished in my sewing drawer- I love that this doesn't need a zipper!

Inspiration

These are so cute! They sell these cute label stickers to wrap around those Hershey's Mini's. Click on the picture to find out more about them. I wonder if you could buy printable labels that size and make your own? Hmmmm...

Make your own "rotisserie" chicken

I don't like to eat chicken on the bone. And I usually only get boneless skinless chicken breasts for cooking because there is minimal touching raw meat involved, but I tried one of those deli rotisserie chickens once and my family just LOVED it. For $5-$7 they are great when it's dinner time, and you have no dinner, and the only other option is stopping by McD's, but I discovered it's REALLY easy and cheap to cook your own chickens. (Ok, maybe I'm the last to figure this out, but if not, keep reading!) You can get those little 5lb chickens for $.57 a pound when they go on sale. You take your chicken, and scoop the "stuff" out of the inside and throw it away. (sorry if that's common knowledge, my mom had to tell me that part) Then rinse the chicken off and stick it in a big bowl. Sprinkle seasoning all over it- I use 1 1/2 TB Season-All, with 2tsp rosemary, and 3 tsp thyme leaves. Get the Reynolds Oven Bags- throw in 2 TB flour and shake it up, then put your seasoned chicken in there and tie the bag shut. Place it in a casserole dish, and cook it! For 5lbs I do 80-90 minutes at 350. (For other cooking options, click HERE.) It's the easiest, cheapest meal and my family loves it. If I pull the meat off the bones before I put it on my plate I can eat it just fine and it is good. We usually have plenty left over for one of those many recipes that call for "chopped cooked chicken" too.

In other food news, do you know what trans fat is? I know it's the bad fat of course, but today I realized it is shortening! I have a lot of tubs of trans fat in my food storage- partially hydrogenated oil. Gross!

I love my Mary Engelbreit daily calendar!

If you can't read it, the quote of the day (yesterday) is "It takes a mighty good husband to be better than none."
Sam is.

Birthdays are confusing when you're 2

We had a family party, which means 14 kids no older than 6, so it was a little crazy but Miss E seemed happy. She was singing "Happy Birthday" all morning, and begging for cupcakes all afternoon but I'm not sure she knew what was happening at her party. I think she's getting her 2 year old molars because I couldn't get any pictures with smiles, and in half of them she has her fingers in her mouth. My favorite part was when she opened this dress from Grandma Mimi and immediately started trying to take off her clothes to put it on! And only 2 short years ago, she was this tiny. (snif*snif*)

Printing on transparencies

I've been wanting to try this for a while now and I finally did it for Miss E's birthday invitations. You can buy inkjet printable transparency sheets that have a rough side to hold the ink better. I learned to reverse the image before printing it so you can have the smooth side on top. I printed the front of her invitation on it and then stuck it to the front of a white carstock card with double stick tape. The tape does show through a little, there are probably better adhesives but it didn't really bother me for these. It's fun and I think it looks pretty!

It's not over!

I finally finished Eclipse the other night! It was good but I still think Twilight was the best. I thought Eclipse was the end but I am so excited to know there is going to be another one! I can't wait! And I'm dying for her to finish Twilight from Edward's perspective(Midnight Sun!) Eclipse hit #1 on the Best Sellers list- how exciting! Now I need to get back into the Harry Potters- thanks to all of you who told me to read them, I'm on the 3rd one and I really love them! And I haven't read books since high school.

Candy Training

Miss E is "candy trained!" Which is very close to potty trained, in that whenever she wants a piece of candy, she goes potty! It might be twice a day, or it might be 15 times a day. I was bragging on her the other day because we had only changed the pull up once all day because she was doing so well, but the next day she only actually used the potty twice! So, I don't know. She's still a baby to me so I don't know if she's really ready, but she could be...

Back to School

First day of 1st grade- first day to be gone ALL DAY at school! So is she scared?

"I'm not scared mom, because i have my best friend with me, and his name is "Backpack!"

Ok then... Well how are little sisters doing without her here?
For the most part, just fine.

Sweet Birthday Pocket Tutorial

I have to give credit to Leslie who teaches Love Notes for this great idea. And thank Sam for his photography skills! I think these would make really cute shower favors, or teacher gifts too.

Ok- first step, get a 6x6 inch square of carstock, turn it over (to the side that will go inside the pocket) and put double stick tape down the right hand side and along the bottom.

Next, place your candy bar (the Hershey's with Almonds are nice and flat and a perfect fit for the 6x6 size and much yummier than just plain chocolate if you ask me) Then fold the right side over the left so the tape holds it together. Pull out the candy bar and press the bottom flat so it sticks together. Run the bottom half inch or so through a paper crimper to give it that fun professional look. (these are sold at Joanns or Michael's for around $10- save your Sunday coupon!)

Then load the top half way into a circle punch and punch out a half circle through the front and back. (I used 1 1/4")

Slide in the candy bar and attach a little tag to the top of the candy bar wrapper with a mini safety pin, and tie on a little ribbon.

Then you can decorate the pocket however you like, or leave it plain. I used a 2 1/2" scalloped circle cut with the Mini Monogram's Cricut cartridge, stuck a flower on the side with a brad, and then wrapped it around the side of the pocket attached with double stick tape.

I hope that gives you the info you need! Let me know if you have any questions and if you make some, post a link to the picture- I'd love to see what you come up with!

What is up

We got the devastating news that some friends (Robby & Melanie) lost their new baby to SIDS- my heart has just been breaking for them and it's been hard to really think about blogging. My thoughts haven't been far from them since. I don't know how people go on after things like this, but I know they do somehow. I find some comfort in the knowledge that they will see their precious son again, and because they have been sealed together for eternity in the Lord's temple, they will have the opportunity to be a family forever.

One of my best friends (Shauna) said goodbye to her husband for the next 7 months as he was deployed to Iraq. I don't know how these families do it either- you are amazing!

Now for the least of my sorrows, Miss E dropped my camera and it is not working now. I will see if I can borrow one to get pictures and do a little tutorial of those candy bar wrappers for those who were interrested- I loved the idea of making some Halloween ones!

We went to a Jimmy Eat World concert and it was amazing! Really, their music is powerful to me and it was a great experience- they are so talented and fun to watch, and the best part is I was able to stay sitting down for most of the show! (if that isn't proof I'm getting old, I don't know what is!) Is that music still called Emo? Because it makes me quite emotional- I think I felt the full range there, it was that good.

I was released from working with the Young Women at church and will now be working with the primary children- I am really excited about this but I will miss the young women I had gotten to know and love. No more girls camp!

Sorry for the lack of illustration in this post, I don't have a camera you know.

Sweet Birthday Candy Bar Pocket

When your Young Women's budget is spent, I think these are a really cute thing to give for birthdays! We made the one on the left in the Love Notes class at the scrapbook store a while ago, and I tried to recreate it with things I could find now!