Birthday Season is Approaching

In our family, everyone has a summer birthday. We use this to our advantage by just throwing one party for the kids. They are too young to really have their own friends and we always have family traveling to attend, so it's just easier on everyone. I LOVE to throw parties, but it's easy to let things get out of hand. We try to save money by having a joint party. We wouldn't be able to do as much if they each had their own party. I know the years of them wanting to have their party together are limited, so I want to take advantage while I can.

Here are some pictures from last year's soiree. The theme was Dr. Seuss.

Welcome! DIY Balloon Wreath

 

"Stop right here and take a look. Would you please sign my book?"

 

DIY Banner, Kites, and Pom poms

 

Drink Station

I covered a shoe box with wrapping paper, put a ribbon around it, and placed the cups on top. I also attached ribbon and a Dr Seuss cut out (from the cupcake toppers) to the glass straw holder and drink dispenser with double-sided tape.

 

Here is the spread...

I attached tissue paper pom poms to the chandelier, but didn't get a good picture of them.

I wanted all the food to go along with the theme, so I made signs for each item.

We had:

Cat in the Hat Kabobs (Strawberry and marshmallow kabobs with chocolate dipping sauce)

Truffula Tufts (Cheese puff balls)

Hop on Pop-corn (pretty self-explanatory)

Fish in the Pot (Goldfish in a tea pot)

Lorax cookies (Nutter Butters with an icing mustache and candy eyes)

Red and blue candy buffet

 

Here is a better picture of the cookies and one of my signs.

 

Smash cakes and Cupcakes with DIY cupcake toppers

 

DIY Highchair Tutu

 

I found some party hats on clearance at target and embellished them with pom poms and a "1" and "3". Then, I let the kids decorate them with foam stickers.

 

I made the Cat in the Hat's top hat out of toilet paper rolls and filled them with paper shreds, coloring pages, and crayons. I printed the coloring pages off of the PBS website.

 

 

The kids have decided that they want a Micky/Minnie Mouse party this year. I better start looking for ideas and working on my DIY projects now. Anyone have any suggestions?

Happy Mother's Day!

Happy Mother's Day to my mom, mother-in-law, grandmothers, sisters...this list is getting long...and all other mothers! Thank you for everything you do. I hope everyone had a very special day.

I wanted to share the outfit that I wore to church today. It was my first attempt at pattern mixing.

 

Blazer: Goodwill (United Colors of Benetton) $3.99

Top: Goodwill $3.99

Skirt: Goodwill (Mossimo- still had original tags) $3.99

Belt: Francesca's Collection (clearance) $2.50

Shoes: Shoe Carnival $20 (last year)

Bracelets: Gadzooks $? (these are super old, prob like 8 years, those stores aren't even around anymore)

Total: $34.47

 

 

A new favorite store

Now that I am feeling like myself again, I decided to check out a new thrift store. It's actually pretty close to my house. I drive by it all the time and I would always think to myself, "I should stop in there some time." I'm glad I finally did. Most things in the store are only $1. I love being able to go into a store and pick out whatever I want and not have to worry about the price.

So here are my goodies...

Please excuse these pictures. Maybe I can eventually invest in a dress form so I won't have to hang the items on the back of my closet door to show you :)

No Boundaries dress

$2

Just needs a belt

 

J. Crew button up

$1

 

J. Crew shorts

$1

I think I will shorten them.

Charlotte Rouse top

$1

Yes, those are giraffs :)

Vintage Sauci California blouse

$1

 

Vintage Nicola blouse

$1

This is a project piece. I'm not sure if I can make it work. We will see.

Vintage Chaus skirt

$1

Another project piece. I was thinking of shortening it at first, but I really like the horse pattern and I don't want to cut that off. My mother-in-law suggested making it into a dress. I might have to test out my sewing skills.

Vintage Emeraude scarf

$1

I love this!

 

Ann Taylor braided belt

$1

I've been looking for a gold belt for a while.

Vintage belt

$1

I love this too! The metal is a little discolored in some places, but it doesn't bother me.

Anne Michelle stilletos

$1

 

I like to share the love when I'm shopping, so I found this cardigen for my mom.

$1

 

And for the little ones...

Rosalina Collections bishop dress

$1

 

Strasburg dress

$1

 

Mud Pie pants

$1

 

Children's Place grey corduroy pants

$1

 

Stride Rite patent leather shoes

$1

 

So, I got 3 dresses, 5 tops, 4 bottoms, 1 scarf, 2 belts, and 2 pairs of shoes for $18.

You can't beat that!

 

I also took a little trip out to the Goodwill in Southern Pines.

My goodies include...

 

INC International Concepts blazer

$4.59

 

George blouse

$3.39

 

American Eagle button up

$3.39

 

No Bountaries top

$3.39

 

H&M skirt

$3.39

 

Vintage belt

$1.39

 

Braided belt

$1.39

 

Peep-toe wedges

$3.39

 

Xhilaration sandals

$3.39

 

I never buy t-shirts, but this one I could not resist.

$1.19

 

That's it for this shopping trip. Do you have any suggestions for my 2 project peices? I think they have potential.

Giving thanks in all circumstances...

I usually try to keep things positive and not get too personal, but I felt led to share this...

You've probably noticed that the past month and a half or so I have not been posting much. What you probably did not know was that I was just too tired due to being pregnant. As of this past Fri, I was 11 weeks and very excited to be almost through the first trimester.

On Sat, I noticed that there might be a problem. I called the advice nurse just to be on the safe side. She did not seem concerned, and just said to monitor it. It continued through the weekend, so I called the advice nurse again on Sun and was told to call Mon morning to make an appointment.

I went in for my appointment on Mon morning. I didn't want to be a "Debbie Downer", but I was expecting the worst and hoping for the best. I have been pregnant twice before and I knew this was not normal. I spent most of the day going back and forth between my doctor's office and the hospital for exams, blood work, ultrasounds, and a rhogam shot due to my blood type. When I was finally done, my doctor had informed me that it was more than likely a miscarriage, but they wanted to do more blood work and possibly another ultrasound in 48 hours to make sure. She told me some things to watch out for and that I should go straight to the ER should any of them occur.

When I finally got home from that long and awful day, I just wanted to rest. I had decided that even though I was sad, I was not going to sit around and feel sorry for myself. That would not help; it would not change the outcome and it would not make me feel better. I know that God has a plan for my family and He does not make mistakes. I truly believe that each person is placed on the earth at a specific time for a specific purpose.

"For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart."

Jeremiah 29:11-13 NIV

Around 9:00 on Mon night, things drastically changed and I knew I needed to head straight to the ER. I'm sure this kind of thing is very routine, but I have never had any kind of real emergency and I was very scared. I found comfort in the fact that no matter what I am going through, God is with me. My hope and strength are in Him. "I will never leave you nor forsake you." Hebrews 13:5 ESV

I was, indeed, having a miscarriage, but I think my trip to the ER was actually a blessing in disguise because my body naturally went through the process very quickly (hence the trip to the ER). I am very thankful for good medical care and that I did not end up needing a D&C. I am also thankful that it did not drag on because sometimes the process can take a while.

 

I have always wanted to have a pretty large family. My parents have four children and growing up I always thought it was so fun to have sisters and a brother to play with. When all of this was going on, however, I was feeling very discouraged. I was thinking, if I might have to go through this again, maybe I don't want to have any more children after all. I am thankful for the two precious children that I already have. Now that a few days have passed, I am starting to warm up to the idea of trying again, but I will probably want to wait a little while. We will just have to pray about it and trust in God's plan for our family.

Through this whole process, all I could do was trust in God. I know that He is in control and that everything happens for a reason, even if I never know the reason. It could be that I get the opportunity to minister to someone else who is going through the same thing. It could be that God will bless us with another baby and that pregnancy would have conflicted with this one. It could be that we will never have another baby, but God blesses us through other opportunities to serve. We may never know; we just have to trust in God and His will for us.

"Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you." 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 ESV

"Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid." John 14:27 ESV

 

Thank you, Leah and family, for the pretty flowers!

 

 

Fun at the Strawberry Farm

Today, we took a little trip to Sanford, NC to pick strawberries at Gross Farms. The kids had such a blast and I have to admit, I was pretty excited to go too. We just love strawberries. We will definitely go back.

Spring Cleaning

The past two weeks, I have been trying to implement a new cleaning schedule. I recently read this blog where she posted about her cleaning schedule and I thought I could use some of her suggestions. You can check it out here

My old schedule was really a lack of one. I would just do whatever chores seemed the most critical for that day and other things that were a little less obvious, like dusting light fixtures, were neglected.

 

 

So here is the new schedule:

Daily/As-Needed

• Vacuum
• Sweep
• Dishes
• Put away clothes
• Put away toys
• De-clutter
• Wipe counters/stove/table
• Laundry
• Make beds
• Take out trash

Monday- Kitchen and Dining Room

• Shine counter tops
• Sweep/mop
• Wipe walls/cabinets
• Baseboards
• Vacuum dining room rug
• Dust (include blinds and light fixtures)
• Clean refrigerator and microwave inside and out
• Clean outside of stove and dishwasher
• Wipe doors/walls/outlet covers
• Clean trash can (Blah!)

Tuesday- Formal Living Room, Family Room, and Hallway

• Vacuum
• Dust (include blinds and light fixtures)
• Vacuum furniture
• Baseboards
• Wipe doors/walls/outlet covers
• Clean glass tables/mirrors

Wednesday- Bathrooms (2 1/2 bathrooms)

• Sanitize toilet, sink, bathtub, shower
• Clean mirror/glass
• baseboards
• Wipe doors/walls/outlet covers
• Sweep
• Mop
• Wash bath mats/towels
• Dust (include light fixtures)

Thursday- Bedrooms (4 bedrooms)

• Vacuum
• Dust (include blinds and light fixtures)
• Baseboards
• Wash linens
• Wipe doors/walls/outlet covers

Friday- Errands

We live at least 30-40 minutes from just about everything, so when I "go to town" I try to make it worth the trip. It doesn't always work out for me to only go once a week, but I try to limit my trips in order to save time and money on gas.

Saturday- Catch-up/Projects

Usually, we try to have a fun family outing on Saturdays, but I also try to catch up on chores that I didn't finish during the week. Sometimes, I also have a special project to work on.

Sunday- No chores (the Lord's Day)

I can't say that my new cleaning routine has been a complete success, but I'm hoping that once I get use to it, keeping my house clean will be a breeze.

Happy Easter!

I hope everyone had a Happy Easter! I feel so blessed and thankful to be able to celebrate the Resurrection of our Savior, Jesus Christ with my family.

You might remember me posting before about my search for Easter outfits for my family with a $25 budget per person. Well, I didn't do so well. I totally blew my budget on my daughter's outfit,  but she did look pretty cute if I do say so myself :)

I found this bishop dress at a little shop in the market while we were in Charleston. It was originally $54, but she had it market 40% off, so it ended up being $32.40. The cardigan in the picture is not the one she ended up wearing, I just forgot to take another picture. I got the one she wore at a consignment sale for $2. The shoes came from the same sale and were also $2. The bow is old (I got it at Walmart for $1, but I am not including it in my budget since she has worn it so many times). The lacy socks came from Belk. They came in a pack of 2 and were on sale for $5.24 (we will just call it $2.62 for the one pair). So the total cost was $39.02 (definitely over my budget).

 

 

For my son, I purchased most of his outfit at Target. The vest was $12, pants were $10, and tie was $5. I used a Ralph Lauren Polo oxford that he already had (I bought it at a consignment store for around $5, but I'm not including it in the budget since it is old). He wore some boat shoes that I bought used from a facebook group (they were $4, but I'm not including them in my budget either because I bought them about a year ago). The total cost for his outfit was $27.

 

My husband and I decided to just wear outfits that we already had since I had gone over my budget for the kids. The total cost for the family was $66.02, so overall, I stayed well within my $100 budget for the family.

 

On Saturday, we went to an Easter celebration at church. It was so much fun for the whole family. They had food and games and enough Easter eggs that we'll probably be eating the candy for the next year. I wanted my kids to have outfits to fit the theme, so I made a pillowcase dress for my daughter out of a vintage, hand embroidered pillow case I got at a moving sale for $.50. Different ribbon probably would have looked better for the top, but I wanted to use what I already had.

 

I made an applique t-shirt for my son out of a shirt and fabric I already had.

 

I hope everyone enjoyed their weekend!

"For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. For one will scarcely die for a righteous person- though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die- but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God."

Romans 5:6-9