My kids want a pool and with tax filing coming up soon, this would be the time to get one if we are going to get one. I was looking at a pentair pool but I just don't know. I've never owned a pool before. How much work are they (keeping in mind that we have several Maple trees in our backyard)?
Pool or vacation? A pool all summer long or a trip to the mountains for a week? Decisions, decisions...
We took our Christmas tree down. Honestly, I am ready for it to come down the day after Christmas but the kids wanted it left up longer. I think most people wait until after New Year's but not me, not this year. I want room in my living room to celebrate New Year's - dancing, playing Wii with the kids, etc. It's packed up awaiting next year. Yes!
Read more...Who camps? Can a 40-year-old woman who has never camped, who is afraid of spiders, who gets itchy when gnats are around, put on a backpack and go camping? Silly me actually brought the idea up with my husband a few weeks ago. No power? No problem - don't need a curling iron or hair spray. I do need an actual toilet though.
It's something we are going to try in the spring - right when spiders are waking up. Oh joy. Sometimes I need to learn to keep my mouth shut.
We have about 1-1/2 years left until my husband's legal relationship with his ex ends and boy are we ready! There will be a party and a bonfire (to burn all those years of documents/contact). I've thought about using document imaging software to save important papers, and we may still do that, but for most of it - huge bonfire in the backyard. HUGE!!!
Hopefully, she'll be able to see the flames in her state! Bring on July, 2013.
Lauren Klein Jewelry has some awesome promotions going on right now for the holidays on women's jewelry. There are SO many ways to save some money while buying some great jewelry for people on your Christmas list (or for yourself). I really like this bracelet below (I'm always drawn to black).
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| Fornash Milan Leather Chain Bracelet Bangle - $24.99 |
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| Grace Mantra Gold Dipped Heart Necklace |
My 6yo wants a Fijit for Christmas. The stores are either sold out or price gouging. I didn't think the silly little things were worth the $39 the stores were charging - I'm certainly not going to pay $80 or $90 for one!
I'm almost done Christmas shopping for my kids and it's only the first week of December.
Just thought I'd brag a bit:)
My house is a mess!!
With four kids in the house, cleaning is a never ending battle. The house can be sparkling clean but 30 minutes after the kids get home from school, it looks like a tornado went through here.
My fault I'm sure. I think I've been letting them get away with too much lately. They had regular chores until school started and now that we are running like chickens with our heads cut off to different extra-curricular activities, band concerts, sports practices everyday, etc., and giving them enough time to complete homework (homework always first), it's bedtime by the time we're done. When there is a free minute or two, I'm too tired to even think about nagging the kids.
I don't know how to fit it all in right now. I don't know how some people do it all - super clean house, meals on the table like clockwork, carpool here and there, remember this, remember that. Perhaps they have a durham house cleaning service. I just have me.
Four more school days until Thanksgiving break. Is it weird of me that I actually LIKE my four kids home from school, partly because I don't have to turn on that annoying alarm clock!?!?
Anyways, this recipe came into my in box yesterday and it looked really good (and very easy - easy enough for me to do!) so I thought I'd share -
I am patiently awaiting FedEx to come to my door today with my iPhone 4S and online shopping for an Otterbox Defender case for it (because I know it will get dropped - - several times). The Defender cases work so well. My case for my iPhone 3 is yellow and black and has protected it from so many falls (with no damage done!). I think I'm going for blue this next time!
I have had 75,000 visitors to this blog! That's pretty cool. My stepfamily blog does even better - double the visitors. I think people in blended families are looking for validation and support and it is nice to have somebody in the same situation as you are to feel like you're not alone in the massive struggles with stepchildren or an ex. Oh the struggles with exes...ugh!
My husband's ex-girlfriend is sending him bills for their adult stepchild's birth control! You would think after the first month or two of ignoring them, she'd stop. Apparently she hasn't taken the hint yet. Crazy!
I sometimes think about opening my own business. In college, I had to create a business plan on a business that would interest me. I chose a lingerie business to write a business plan about. I received an "A" on that business plan! Part of that may have been the male instructor but hey, an A is an A.
I couldn't take the risk now to open a business. Being married with kids, it's not just my risk anymore. If I did, I would probably have to look into business loans with bad credit because we barely hang on sometimes in this economy. Everybody is struggling so much! I sure hope things get better soon.
Yesterday, I accepted a coaching position with one of my daughter's squads for next year's football season. I will be the Varsity Coach for the 5th and 6th grade girls youth cheerleading. I will get giggles, attitude, enthusiasm, hugs, no shows, difficult parents, fun, stress, my time sucked away, pride, fundraisers up the wazoo...and no pay. I am so in trouble.
For the outdoor type person, I have a great idea. I didn't know these even existed. I know about Carhartt jackets (who doesn't) and Carhartt bibs but did you know they also have carhartt sweatshirts? These are great ideas for men (and women too) who like to work outside in the cold, hunting, ice fishing, snowmobiling! I would like one to wear to the stable. It's freezing in that barn!
Read more...What type of building is better for farm animals (horses mainly)? Our horses are stabled at a barn that is is cement (keeps it cooler in the summer which is nice), but I was wondering about wood or steel buildings as well. What's best for the horses? What is better cost-wise? What is easiest to maintain?
We have one year and seven months until my husband's child support is done. I have planning to do on FINALLY being able to get into a house that we can actually fit into in one year and seven months. Can't wait!!
What's on your Christmas list for mom? I have no clue yet, myself. My husband told me this morning that a friend of his was buying his wife a $400 flat iron for Christmas because it has some animal print on it that matches her curling iron. *falls over* I could never spend that much money on something like that - I tend to like the personalized gifts for mom. I saw this beautiful Celtic Knot Family Birthstone Necklace online at Personal Creations that I would love. I am all about the Celtic knots and my four kids so it's one idea.
Read more...An important food of the diet I've been using to rid myself of the excess has been berries. I use strawberries, raspberries, blackberries and blueberries at meals and grab a handful as a snack in between meals. I think it is the best fruit I've tried that benefits my health and weight loss. Great antioxidants!
Now if I were to cover them in chocolate like at berries.com, it wouldn't help my weight loss too much (though moderation is key) but I sure would love it! I'd get a little sweet with my antioxidants! Being a chocoholic, that sounds good to me!
I had to stand like a dork for my driver's license renewal today. It's so awkward - standing there while everybody else watches. I had some guy watching me and then he says as they are getting ready to snap the picture, "Isn't it fun?" Sha! Not!
So I will be 40 by Sunday. Ack! There is one thing I won't need to worry about personally every again - baby announcements. Beyond 40, it's time to raise the kids we have and get old, not create new little ones. I'll be 40 - so yes, that's on the downside of sliding towards old. Weeeeeee, here I go!!
Halloween is this month! Yippee! From here until January, I just LOVE the holidays, however, I could do without the cold, snow and ice that comes along with them!
Yesterday morning, I was 3.6 pounds away from my goal - then I messed up the day by picking up dinner (weekday evenings are run, run, run) and I'm sure that Steak 'n Cheese Subway sub was NOT on the diet plan. Probably should've bought the turkey sub instead.
Read more...I saw a commercial the other day for cleaning services for the home. Wow, wouldn't that be nice to have somebody come in and do all the toilet cleaning, dusting and mopping that I do not like doing! How do you find a reputable cleaning service? You can google terms like "house cleaning service cary nc" and find services in your area or you can ask around for word of mouth references.
As I get ready to mop our family room floor today of all the dog grime, I'll daydream about one day being able to afford to pay somebody to come in once a week to do all the nitty gritty I don't like doing. Surface cleaning? No problem. The down and dirty cleaning - ugh. I'd rather not.
I need to re-do my home improvement list. It seems like it's been forever since we've been able to afford to do any work in the house, due to the economy, that I've lost track of everything I wanted to get accomplished. As much as I'd like to set up the family room with a lg home theatre system, I think our house needs some curb appeal first. It has awful curb appeal - bad driveway, bad sidewalk, bad entry and door, bad landscaping. HGTV needs to come to my house, pulverize it into the ground and just start over for me. Wouldn't that be nice?
Read more...We made it through the spring and summer without any major tornado fears when others were just ravaged by storms. We were lucky. We live in a bi-level so our lower level is half underground and the safest place we have in the event we need to seek shelter. I wouldn't mind other options for storm shelters because we're not entirely underground but it is much better than what we had when we lived in a double-wide mobile home many years ago! Now those were scary times!
When we get a tornado warning, the kids grab their bike helmets (protect their noggins from flying debris) and our cell phones and we wait it out in the hallway of our lower level. They handle storms just fine.
Last week, I sliced my finger open on a serrated steak knife. Watching the blood gush sent my oldest daughter off yelping (hm, I should've been the one yelping since I was the one gushing blood). She had previously talked at one point about becoming a nurse. I'm not sure if this is a sign she won't be needing to buy any Cherokee scrubs to wear as a nurse or if it is just her age (she is only 14). Perhaps I shouldn't have squeezed it to make it gush harder to make her squeal. Bad mom.
Oh yeah - my finger has healed and my daughter forgot about it. She has had homecoming on the mind and a certain boy at the forefront since she spent an hour dancing with him at homecoming this past weekend.
I am going on four nights with little sleep and it's making me ornery (not to mention the headache that I could do without). I really don't want to be up in the a.m. hours watching David Letterman talk about celebrity weddings with the Kardashians. I'm not a big fan of television. I'd much rather read than watch television. Between my computer and my cell phone, I get all the news and information I need without the television.
I really hope I get a full night's sleep tonight. It is going to be a busy, busy weekend and I don't want to go into it ornery.
I am looking to rev up my work-at-home income. I was thinking about Travel Counselor Jobs. I know somebody who schedules travel for her clients right out of her house. How cool is that? I used to schedule travel for the company I used to work for and even printed the tickets right at my desk. I think I could learn to be a travel agent. Something to consider anyway;.
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We received a notice from our life insurance company that our life insurance is going up - about nine times higher per month than we've been paying for years! Like we are going to pay that! I contacted our insurance agent to find out what we could do but I am going to look for the best price on life insurance myself. Insurance going up that much is just ridiculous.
Pfft! Do they think I will start breaking down past 40? I don't think I will. I plan to meet 40 a lot healthier than my 30's!
I stink at golf. Even with private lessons at a private club with my own clubs, I was a complete failure. Did you know there is actual technology for golf? It's not just swing (miss), swing again, walk and look for your ball, swing (and miss), walk, etc.? If I had a garmin golf gps systems, maybe I would've done better? Eh, who am I kidding. I miss the ball - repeatedly. If I can't get the ball to go anywhere, a device telling me how many yards to the green isn't going to help me. However, it does look like it'd be a really good gift for a golfer for the upcoming holidays (yes, they are coming - - faster than you think)!
Read more...My daughter wants a tablet PC. I am usually pretty up on all the latest technology but I have to admit, I don't really know what these things are. I don't know if that means I am getting old? Probably. Maybe I'm afraid that if I looked into them, I'd want one myself. Probably.
I am going to research the Asus Eee Pad Transformer tablet. I think it's time for me to see what's what. Just because I'm turning 40, I don't have to act like I'm over the hill. Right?
I dropped my oldest off at the school today for freshman orientation. *falls over*
Here's to hoping the next four years will be easy! :D I can dream, right?
I am not usually a big fan of weight loss diets. I think it's a lot of starvation and that's not the way to a healthy body in my opinion. My sister recommended this book, The 17 Day Diet: A Doctor's Plan Designed for Rapid Results
This is one book I can personally recommend. I have thyroid disease and the weight just would not come off. This book helped take off the weight and it worked well enough that I've decided to set a second, and final, weight loss goal and get to my pre-pregnancy weight of my mid-20's. I will start working on this goal their first day back at school so next week - 17 Day Diet HERE I COME!
With this economy, has anybody attempted a FHA refinance to see about getting interest rates lowered? We were thinking about it but we are planning to move in two years (to our "forever home") so I think we are going to hold off and wait it out. If you're thinking about it, you might want to research the FHA loan requirements.
The last couple years sure have been a struggle financially. Wouldn't it be nice if the number of bills that came in the mail was contingent upon how much money you had coming in that week? Just dreaming...
I am thinking the economy isn't going to change much until some political changes are made and the wars wind down. I am hoping in two years, we'll be in a better position financially to get our "forever home" with great interest rates! Also, it sure would be nice to have my nephew home to settle down, perhaps get a Military VA Loan, a wife, and 2.2 kids...or just come home so his mom and grandmother can stop worrying about him.
We took our ten-year-old to a children's hospital today for some issues she has been having for about a year now. After the first nine months (of her doctor saying it is a virus), he referred to her the hospital. They want to do an upper endoscopy and a colonoscopy under general anesthetic. I wasn't expecting this right away. I thought they'd recommend diet restrictions (like milk in particular) but they went right to the invasive procedures. I wasn't happy about that.
Read more...School sports have started. I have three girls in cheerleading and my son playing soccer. I want to buy sports clothes in their school colors but buying them from the stands at the game is so expensive. I looked online to see about designing my own custom football jerseys and soccer jerseys in their school colors to wear on game days to school and found Custom Planet. This looks like a great place for teams or classes to order clothing in their school colors to show school spirit! You can make custom t-shirts, uniforms for basketball, baseball, football, as well as hats and more. They will help you with the graphic design or you can upload your own graphics. I fiddled around with it and had a lot of fun designing a t-shirt for juniors.
These would be a great idea for youth teams for an affordable jersey for sports that aren't sponsored by a school or for team members to wear outside of game day - showing team spirit!
I need some "mom" sports clothes in my kids' school colors to support my kids from the stands. I'm off to design and shop!
I bought a water purifier to purify our tap water for drinking. It's in pitcher form but I want one that is permanently attached to the sink itself. What do you prefer?
Thankfully, our city doesn't put fluoride in our water so I don't need to worry about removing that but my trust in government protecting my kids' health - not so much. I'd rather make sure I am doing everything I know to protect my family rather than depend on an organization that has special interests groups breathing down its neck to do it.
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| Look at R2D2 on top!! |
It's almost time to get back to work (working from home). I'm thinking another two weeks or so if things work out the way we are hoping and it'll be time to buckle down. It'll coincide with my four kids going back to school so that will work out great! This economy has just been awful for my husband's work but we're lucky he still has a job so I can't complain too much. Pretty soon, I'll have my jobs back too:)
Read more...Wow, this summer has just flown by. I can't believe school starts in three weeks. It's time to hemorrhage money for school supplies, school clothes, school fees, sport fees, and lunches again. I will do some online and some shopping in person. I like to use Amazon online -- trustworthy. For in person shopping, we'll be hitting Plato's Closet (first time - used clothing store I hear is great for teens), Forever 21, Hot Topic, JCPenney, and Wal-Mart. Let the shopping begin!
Read more...I'm not a huge Oprah fan but I know many are. Right now, you can get a one year subscription to O Magazine for only $9.00 at Amazon (shipping is free). Buy a subscription for you and one for a friend!
In three weeks, women everywhere will be opening up beautiful gifts from their significant other for Valentine's Day. Did you do your homework? Have you "hinted" enough? Will you be unwrapping what you want?
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| Lauren Klein Antiques Style Diamond Eternity Band |
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