talented women

I have been blessed to be surrounded by some many talented women in my life- here are some things that they have created.

This receiving blanket and burp cloth were made by my aunt. I love the mitered edges and the rick-rack

Then this is my mom’s glory! She is SO amazing and I wish I was as talented as she is in sewing. Isn’t this blanket just stunning?

This is such a good show of the quilting… hearts in a paisley pattern… love it!

These were some simple gauzy blankets that I threw together that will be great for this summer. They were easy to make… just some satin ribbon sewn around the edges to finish them off. I love the white one that is eyelet.

This is another one of my mom’s doings. Don’t you LOVE the fabric and it feels so amazing! I love good fabric!

I love the decorative stitching…

This is my hubby’s favorite set… again from my mom.

My mom was thinking smart and made me some mitered edge blankets that are only one sided. These will help with swaddling in the heat.

This photo shows the back side of the white blanket. So classy and beautifully sewn.

Then this beauty is something I CANNOT wait to get little miss B into. My good friend Anna made it after I sent some photos over to her. She has an etsy shop here if you are interested….

Then little miss A got a package from Mima (my mom) this past week with a whole bunch of items for her baby- this flannel blanket she even quilted… so cute!

Then another mitered blanket… I just had to share photos of it because I LOVE the dancers. I want something out of it… pj bottoms would be fantastic!

Then she sent over this genius play wipes case with wipes! A is always using real wipes and so this is the perfect solution to her wiping everyone’s bum… even her kitty’s and trying to do ours… that always catches us off guard!

my christmas wish list

Usually I have my list done and am stalking people for their list. But this year, I am the one behind. Then things are simple this year. I am noticing that I feel that as long as my family is taken care of, I am happy. (oo… sounding like my mom… but I FINALLY understand what she felt!) Here are some of the things on my list…

Cute headbands and hair clips from Forever 21

- Frilly, feathery, beaded, rhinestoned- the more outrageous you think they are for you, the better for me

Simplified Hymn Book

Cheetos that are just for me (um Prego craving?)

Remote for my camera

Brother Innov-is 40 Sewing machine (around $400 new)

this thing has AMAZING ratings on consumer reports

Jewelry

- Chunky, sparkly, fun, big

Some other things that would be nice- a massage, some really nice makeup to cover my prego acne laden face, my hair to be fixed (another story), laser hair removal, my bedding to be finished, a vacation, energy, and patience.

What is on your list? Maybe you could spark my mind of something that I would love to have-

woot off

For those who haven’t ventured to these websites… today is the day for you!

Usually there is only one deal a day but today is a woot off! This means that they will continue to post products until it is gone and then post a new one. The kids.woot has some GREAT Christmas gift ideas. You just have to keep checking back! Be quick too about purchasing!

http://kids.woot.com/

http://www.woot.com/

http://shirt.woot.com/

http://wine.woot.com/

http://deals.woot.com/sellout

financial food for thought no.4

Grocery shopping helps

Did you know the average American spends $5.00 for every minute they are in a grocery store? Did you know that 2 out of 3 items in your cart are impulse buys?

I watched a movie in my cooking class a while back that really inspired me to not go to the grocery store hungry!… and with kids. It made me sick thinking that I spent that much on things that we really could do without. So I am trying to do things differently now. Here are some tips that I gleaned from the class

• Make a weekly shopping plan- take ONLY the amount of money you will spend on one week’s worth
• Check newspaper ads – buy staple items on sale and stock up
• check your inventory- LOOK in your fridge before you go to the store. I cannot tell you how many times I have come home and realized I already had what I bought.
• Kids- shop when they are rested, when the store is less crowded, let them add one item to the cart – in my opinion, don’t go with your child if you can manage it. You need to pay attention to prices and labels. You can’t do that AND keep a kid in the cart (or 2 for that matter).
• Coupons- use the for food WHEN the price is right
• Know the store layout – it will help you make your list in order that you go through the store. this  will save you time and money
• Be aware of marketing techniques- end of aisle displays aren’t always good deals
• EAT BEFORE YOU SHOP!!!
• Limit convenience foods- they are ALWAYS higher prices
• Read the labels
• Ingredients- are always listed largest quantity to smallest… watch that sugar!
• Check dates for freshness- you don’t even want to know about expired meat being repackaged! YUCK!
• Eat meat less often- use beans and lentils if you can
• Choose brown or enriched rice… they are healthier for you
• Plan meals around specials
• Make a LIST!!!
• Know your prices- why you shouldn’t take your kids shopping
• Be sure to check the scanner for pricing errors – check your receipts before you leave the store
• Use unit pricing
• Try store brands – they may taste better than you expect
• Buy fruit and veggies in season
• Start a garden at home

Hope these tips help you in your next shopping experience!!!

bountiful baskets

My mom introduced me to bountiful baskets this past week. I tried it and it is the BEST thing I have ever done!!!

Bountiful Baskets is a co-op that a whole bunch of people pool their money to get a great deal on produce. It is 15.00 for a LARGE bundle of food – 50% veggies and 50% fruit – or 6 fruits and 6 veggies. This is a volunteer organization so on your first time you pay a 3.00 fee on top of the cost of food, to have them purchase you a basket to sort the produce. I was a little skeptical about this, but I am so overjoyed at the results!

For $15.00 I got around:

• 10 pears
• 10 apples
• 2 lbs grapes
• pineapple
• blackberries
• 10 bananas
• head of romaine lettuce
• 5 tomatoes
• bag of fresh green beans
• 12 sweet potatoes
• 2 cucumbers
• 1 yellow squash

Amazing huh? It is almost enough produce to last us 2 weeks and I usually spend $25.00 on produce every 2 weeks. Everything is fresh and healthy.

 

They have places in Colorado, Oregon, Idaho, Utah, Montana, Washington, Wyoming, Nevada, Arizona & Texas that do this. Their website is kind of hard to understand, but this is what you will do:

• Go on to their site at bountifulbaskets.org
• You can click on Locations to see if one is offered close to you
• You can click on Current Offerings to see what they are offering for the week
• I love the idea of bread baskets and Mexican baskets that offer tomatoes, chilies, onions and such.
• Today they don’t have any offerings because they had one this morning. I would check back next Monday. That is about when I did mine.
• When there is an offering you just make an account and purchase. Then when you go, make sure you take your own box/laundry basket to bring your food home in.

busy

I have been so busy today! First, I need to tell you about our morning adventure – which really turned into an all day one! We purchased and returned, purchased and returned. I just wanted to find the best things!!! Which led me outside of Kohl's to TJ Maxx and Ross. My three favorite stores today… it was nice. We only had to do four bags of fruit snacks because A was very behaved today. For that I am grateful!

Without further ado, our final purchases

• These towels in Iguana and Glacier Bay

• One of the greatest new finds for our family! This is SO much better than the board game~

• And I caved… this is for Christmas. I just couldn’t pass it up because I had something like this growing up and I have the fondest memories of it – I thought it was the coolest thing

 

For the other purchases, you will just have to wait because my creative side got the best of me. I couldn’t find the bedding set I wanted, so I am going to make it! Yes, I’m awesome!

this morning

Once we finish up a breakfast of Marshmallow Mateys, A and I will be off on a morning adventure. My mom was so sweet as to send us $40.00 in Kohl’s cash which I can spend starting today. What is lucky about today is that I also have a 30% off coupon that expires today. So the overlap brings me about $55.00 to spend at Kohl's.

I have a whole list of possibilities of what we would best like to spend our money on. I spent hours online the other night scouting things out. My finds include:

boots that I am obsessed with

a projector for my hubby for Christmas

the beginnings of a bedding set

some absolutely yummy waffle weave bath towels and curtain and rug

or a cool Christmas present for A

What would you choose for me? What would you buy yourself?

Happy Shopping! I will let you know what goes down!