Motherload Giveaway!

NaptimeDiaries is doing an AWESOME Mother's Day Giveaway!
With 16 different prises there is something there for everyone.
You don't even HAVE to be a mother for this giveaway! (You can always enter to give it to your mother or as a fun thing for yourself.) There are tons of ways to snag extra entries to the giveaway such as Following the sponsor's blog, Liking them on Facebook or Twitter, Adding the shops as a Favorite, or even doing a blog post telling others about the give away (as I am doing now!)


Check out some of the beautiful prizes you can enter to win!:

18x24 oil on canvas landscape & figure painting by Kelly Bollman Art

you can commission it from a photograph or submit an idea

Super cute and unique Headband!

Who doesn't like receiving a personal card in the mail? And handmade cards to boot? 

I think that beats out bills ANY DAY!!!

Not all of us have the time to make them ourselves so why not win some to send!!

This is so super cute as well first of all...plus if you're like me and have to carry a diaper bag around all of the time the last thing you want is to have to carry a purse too. This would fit perfectly inside the diaper bag or easy to quick grab when running out of the house on a quick errand. 

This is just a snipit of prises that you could win!

Now mind you I haven't decided what I'm putting my entries in for just yet but thats just because there are so many to choose from!!!

(Please note all of the images are links to the creator's website)

Bumpy Beginnings....

Well today is day 3 of our new beginnings. I must confess it has not gone quite the way I had hoped and planned and it has been frustrating.


Sunday night Monkey was in bed and asleep by 10pm! YAY! That is our goal bed time for the baby. However, he was awake and wanted/needed to nurse at 4:30am Monday morning. I got up with him and fed him then put him back to bed. Within minutes of falling back to sleep, Husband's alarm went off for day one of new job. We got up, I made Dowe breakfast and packed him a lunch, watched a little tv together, and saw him off to work at 6:15am. We talked on the phone as he drove to work and then at 7am I went back to sleep. Bad choice number one. I then did not get up until 10:30am when my phone went off from a text and also from the baby being awake in the next room. 


Monkey and I lounged around and snuggled for a bit then got ready for the day. He took a good nap and then got to play with daddy in the evening. He did not go to bed at 10pm though. Dowe and I wanted to have a little time to spend alone snuggling and chatting about his first day in the new job so we put Monkey to bed early. Monkey acted really tired and seemed like he would go to bed when we put him down at 9pm which I was really excited for. Instead, Monkey and I were miserable. I was so paranoid that he would keep Dowe up that I couldn't relax so at 10pm Monkey and I got up and came downstairs. I let him play on the floor with his toys while I watched an episode of Dick Van Dyke on Netflix. 


We finally got to bed around Midnight and asleep by 12:30.
Tuesday Morning at 5am Hubby's alarm went off. He got up to shower and I told him when he was out of the shower to come wake me (giving me an extra half hour of sleep). I made him breakfast, finished packing his lunch that I had half packed the night before, then went back to bed after he left at 6:10am. Bad choice number two.We did not talk on his way into work as I wanted to go back to sleep for a couple of hours and then get up at 8am. Our goal get up time is 8am with the goal bed time being 12am for Dowe and I. It was after 11am after I crawled out of bed still exhausted. ugh. 


Dowe and I went out to celebrate the new job last night. My friend Kay watched Monkey for us and we went out to dinner. We both really enjoyed our meals, and as a mom it was fantastic to get to eat my food while it was still hot and not worrying about if my boys were all set or needed anything. To just sit there together the two of us and have enjoyable adult conversation, a good hot meal that frankly I didn't have to make, and getting all dressed up for a night out with my husband was WONDERFUL! Do not take this the wrong way. I LOVE to cook. I LOVE taking care of my boys and making sure all of their needs are met. I LOVE the way our son baby babbles to us and even the conversations my husband and I have at the dinner table that revolve around baby. And you get use to eating hot foods cold and cold foods warm and its ok. But its just nice to once in a while have it be just the two of us, to have someone else cook the meal, to get to talk about whatever we want, and to not have any worries...Its just nice. 


Bad Choice numbers Three and Four. I throughly enjoyed what I ordered however I have been regretting it all last night and so far today. It ended up being a little more spicy than I anticipated and it had raw onions on it which I didn't realize till I was almost done eating. I am allergic to raw onions....and it happened to be red onions which are the worst ones for me to have. I am itchy and still broke out today along with a nice stomach ache. *insert sad face here.* Also, Since hubby and I were celebrating we decided to have a drink together. We do not drink very often and do not have very much when we do. I am a total light weight. My husband and I are not too far off size wise (he is more muscular and has around 8 inches on me) and he can have more than double what I drink and still not have it affect him. I however drink a wine cooler that has hardly any alcohol in it and I feel it. (he teases me something awful for this.)  
Now I know you may freak out and say "But I thought you were a breastfeeding mom!" I am. I have also done extensive research into this and WOULD NOT drink at all if I thought it would at all affect our son. My Husband and I both feel that the way we do it is ok and so that is that. 
But I am afraid the spicy stuff I had plus all the sugar (between the drink I had and our dessert of Italian Ice Cream and slice of Cheese Cake) may have been a little too much for the baby...  We were up till 1am. 


Monkey, Dowe, and I all went to bed at 10pm Tuesday night. Monkey fell right to sleep when we put him down but Dowe and I were wired and so we enjoyed some lovely pillow talk about anything and everything. Then at 11:30pm the baby woke up. I waited a while hoping he would just fall back to sleep but he didn't. So we got up and were up till after 1am. 
Five AM the alarm went off, 8 hours later and I'm still up!! Up with Dowe, packed a lunch, made breakfast for him, and saw him off to work. We talked as he drove to work and I relaxed in the living room but I did not go back to bed. And since I have been up I have done a lot around here! Cleaned up the living room, dining room, and caught up on some of the dishes. YAY!!! *does a little happy dance*


Now I'm sure I'm going to totally crash tonight after we get home from small group with church family but thats alright! This may just be the boost I need to try to get us over to the new schedule. 


Also I had a meeting with my family pastor's Wife this morning. Which I think went REALLY well. We're both so excited about this Meals Ministry to get going. Actually its going to happen starting today/next week as we have a lovely family in our church having a baby within the next week more than likely.


Now I know this blog has been a long one but just one last thing and please bear with me.


My dad's Uncle committed suicide yesterday. I ask that you would be praying for the whole family as this is devastatingly shocking news. Now I honestly wasn't real close to him but the fact that he actually took his own life still felt like someone punched me in the stomach while stabbing me in the heart and twisting the knife all at the same time. I have no idea when the services will be but please keep everyone in prayer as its a big shock.

New Beginnings.

Tomorrow starts a whole world of new beginnings for my little family.


New Job for hubby! YAY! Yes, My love got the job! He is now Supervisor and starts in the morning with training. We're so super excited. I cannot tell you how honestly excited I was to be washing his work uniforms for the last time this weekend so we can turn them in tomorrow! (In fact I even stayed up a little later tonight just to finish drying and folding the ones to turn in so they will ALL leave the house at the same time tomorrow!) Yes he will have a uniform still but as silly as this is I like the new style/colors he gets with this promotion. Plus they wont be as hard to clean now. :)


New (more normal) Schedule for us. Both of my boys (Hubby and Monkey) were asleep in bed at 10pm. Seeing as Dowe is training on First Shift for a week or two before going back to second we have decided to try to get on a better schedule starting tonight/tomorrow.  I especially am looking forward to this and am interested to see how it goes.


New Budget. As I have said before we are taking the FPU class at our church and with Dowe's new job we have to redo our budget and I'm actually looking forward to it this time! :)


New Ministry outreach with my church. I am going to be the coordinator of a meals ministry for families who have just had a baby, lost a loved one, or are having serious health issues. 


New Goals. I have a whole list of new goals, some starting tomorrow and some starting in a few weeks when Dowe goes back to his shift. So here they are.....

• Get rid of things we do not need/want anymore. Yes this has been part of my Chaos Cleaning To Do's but with Dowe's new job we are seriously considering the fact that we will hopefully actually be able to get a place of our own fairly soon instead of renting much longer. I do not want to move things we do not need/want. 
• Read more books.    I am a book lover. Have been since I was little. However, since I have had Monkey I have not really had much time to read. I am hoping that I will be able to put him to bed at 10pm, and then spend that time from 10pm till around 11:30pm when Dowe will get home from work reading.
• Do More Crafts!    I am also a craft crazy! I love to crochet, knit, scrapbook, sew, even cut pictures out of magazines and do collages. You name it I probably like it or would at least try it! (Can also use time after baby goes to bed for this.)
• Be More Consistent with my alone time with God.  Though I have been doing better as of lately than I have ever been before, I still am not doing it every day like I need to. Something always seems to come up. :( I am hoping that I can get up a little before Monkey in the mornings, have breakfast and do my devotions.
• Spend more time out doors. As the weather is slowly but surely getting nicer I want to be out doors more.  Cleaning up the yard, cleaning out the flower bed, going for nice long walks with my boys, cooking out, whatever! I just want to get out there and get some fresh air! (this one really isn't too difficult to do but still.)
• Be more consistently doing Elimination Communication with Monkey. For more information on this look up the book "The Diaper Free Baby"
• Take  better care of myself so I can take better care of my boys.
• Look mad hot for my husband for our anniversary trip. This means being able to wear whatever Pre-Baby stuff I have that he would want to see me in for our little get away sometime this summer. (Possibly including a 2-Piece Swim Suit....GASP!)

Those are all of the ones I can think of right now but if I come up with any more I will let you know. :)
But for now I need to get myself to bed so I can also get on this new exciting schedule! :)
Good night world.

Peace

Often times I have more thoughts running around in my head than I can handle. 
Last night was no different. (In fact I hardly slept because of it) As you all know we've been praying hard about my husband's job and last night we were given some news on it.  We are no longer waiting.


Though it is not exactly what WE wanted, we know God has it all in His hands and that He knows what is best for us.


As my Husband told me that we are no longer waiting for answers but was unable to tell me what the answers are for a bit I began to wonder and get antsy for what those answers would be. I called my hubby out on it telling him "You suck for telling me that much and making me wait but I love you and respect your decision to wait." He didn't want to have to give me any sort of news (good or bad) over a text message or over the phone. The only thing he would tell me was that it "wasn't exactly what we wanted."  


And then, Peace. 
I just felt this overwhelmingly sense of peace. 
And as I talked to my friend Kay about what my husband had said and that we are no longer waiting but still don't have answers it was ok. I was ok. 
I know that He knows our hearts and our desires. However, He also knows what is best for us. The God of the Universe loves us so much and wants better for us. More than we could ever dream or imagine. So tonight I have peace in knowing that His plans and will is better than the dreams we have for ourselves.

Grocery Shopping.

So as I have said before Dowe and I are taking Dave Ramsey's Financial Peace University class at our church. We have really been enjoying the class and though we are not even half way through, it has been life changing. Dowe went to college, I did not. However, just from his years in college we have quite a bit of debt. Since starting this class we have paid off over $3,000 worth of debt! That is huge. We also know that we will have all of our debts (school loans and car loan) paid off in the next 5 years at most! This is also huge as our loans would have taken MUCH longer to pay off without the knowledge we have gained from this class.


But now down to what I REALLY want to blog about today.


Grocery Shopping!


UGH!!!! I HATE IT! 
Let me explain farther. I ENJOY the shopping part. Picking out things to make for my family. I love to cook and to try new things. However, I HATE the sick to my stomach feeling I get in the pit of my stomach EVERY TIME I get to the checkout line and I hear the BEEP-BEEP-BEEP as the items I have selected get rung in and I feel what little money my family and I have fly out of our hands.  I usually only go grocery shopping once every 6 weeks (at most) other than for a few little things here and there in between (mostly Milk.) But the main part of our grocery shopping I do in one trip and not very often. So this means I have one grocery cart piled high for more than a month's worth of dinners. 

Today was different. 
As Previously stated with taking the FPU class we are now on a budget. Cash in hand, I went grocery shopping with both boys in tow. Calculator in hand we stayed under budget and hopefully have enough food for 2 weeks. Today was the first time in the almost 2 years my hubby and I have been married that I DID NOT feel sick as our groceries were being rung up. 
I had to change my entire mindset today. I felt like I had nothing in my cart as I went up to the checkout.  I've gotten so use to shopping once for more than a month's worth of food that this was a really difficult shopping trip but it was actually pretty enjoyable. I'm really hoping I  actually have enough groceries in the house to last two weeks but haha we'll see! :) 




In the next two  weeks (before the next "major" shopping trip) I have a new goal! 
Thanks to a friend I heard about "Extreme Couponers" and though I do think that some of these people are excessive and potentially even slightly neglectful of their families, I do feel the need to learn some of their ways. Can you imagine?...Never having to pay for tooth paste, toilet paper, and other necessities again?!  NO we are NOT talking about stealing! These women and men have learned how to use the manufactures and store coupons to their advantage and sometimes even get PAID to take products out of the store!!! 
Just a few weeks ago my friend Kay and I were talking about coupons and where she clips them off the internet. I told her I really need to start doing that and I actually started looking at coupon tips on the internet. I started feeling like its not worth it and I wouldn't know where to start! After reading about these "Extreme Couponers" and saw video clips of TLC's new show, I started looking into it more. Now I do not plan to become EXTREME but I would like to be more fugal and wise with the money God has given my little family. I am so thankful for the income we have (even if it is small) and that my husband is will to and works so hard to provide so I can stay home with our son.

Change

How is it possible that one single word can mean so much and cause so many different emotions and reactions? new, different, unknown, anger, hurt, excited, scared, thrilled....Change.


I think that a lot of the time the word "Change" is a scary one.
More often than not we think of change as being bad. Things being new and changing are scary and we don't know how to handle what we feel we have no control over.
But change can also be good, welcomed, and needed regardless of control.


My little family and I have been experiencing some changes as of lately:


Monkey (our 10 month old son) experiences change every day of his life as he grows and gets ready to walk. He learns things so fast and surprises me everyday! I know this may sound dumb or like I am making it up but my son says over 15 words! The latest word: "Ti-ter" that would be how he says Tigger. Tigger has become the new favorite and he HAS to have him to sleep at nap time and bed time. :) We also know this is what he is saying because Monkey will point at and say "Ti-ter."




Dowe's (my Husband) Job: Change with a prayer request attached to it.  Dowe's Boss "J" is leaving the Factory. Dowe is currently at the highest position he can be without being part of the management team. Until just a week ago this wasn't a possibility as there are only a handful of management positions and once they're full, people tend to stay there for years. 
So the prayer request is that my husband would get this position if this is God's will. We have been praying about his job situation for quite some time as he is our source of income. We weren't sure if he should be looking for another job or if we should just wait. Currently, we feel the answer is wait. We are really trying hard to be patient and not get TOO excited. But it is difficult just waiting knowing it could be a couple more months of waiting. The Praise in this though is that the Factory Manager told Dowe, when he went in to talk to him about the job, he had already been thought of and was already being considered for the job. So that is very encouraging and exciting. 




Dowe and I have been taking the Dave Ramsey FPU class to help us get out of debt and become wiser with the money God has given us. This has caused us to make several changes in the ways we deal with and think about money. Including making a budget and trying our hardest to stick to it! We've just started the budget portion so I'm sure you will get updates on how it's going in the coming weeks/months. :) 
We're also starting to look at the possibility of buying our first home. This is all very exciting change but also a little challenging. 


Which brings me to a question for you all: What are some of your favorite money saving tips for grocery shopping as well as favorite inexpensive meals? I am working on trying to get my shopping list around and seem to be really struggling with it as of lately. So any help would be warmly welcomed!

Soak up the Son.

So yesterday was more or less a "wasted" day as far as working on things in the house 

I have those every so often....I think we all do. I hope I'm not alone at least.

Things have been slowly getting better around the house though. I have gotten the living room cleaned up and have been keeping up with it for the most part. I will confess I do have 2 loads of clean laundry partially folded the rest waiting to be folded in here but that is NOTHING compared to how it has been.

The dining room is slowly but surely getting a little better. My kitchen is in need of help right now along with the laundry room. But I am getting there. The bathroom seems to be the one room I have the easiest time keeping up with and almost always looks great. 

Monkey's bedroom really isn't too far from being where I would like it to be.  I think more than anything I need to hang some shelves so I can get his books out of boxes and where we could see them to pick new ones out to read instead of the same ones all of the time. 

I am finding it difficult not to decorate his room more than anything. He really doesn't do anything but sleep in his room at this point in time. It would be nice to be comfortable spending time sitting in there reading together.

  

I did reorganize his closet not long ago which has made my life so much better! I did cry slightly in putting away some of his little baby clothes. So hard to believe he is almost 10 months!

Hubby's and my bedroom is also getting really close to being done. We spent an evening together rearranging the furniture and though it has taken some getting use to, we both love it. We feel like there is more space in our bedroom and we both have night stands now instead of just me. We are really looking forward to and praying about getting our own house. But until God directs us to the right house we need to make this place something we can be comfortable in and be able to relax.

  

I enjoyed reading the book of James for my devotions this morning. 
James 1:27 really is my all time favorite verse. Look it up sometime :) 

Monkey and I went for a walk back a few weeks ago when it was actually warm out...you know before we got this last round of snow. It was sunny and comfortably in the 50's so how could we not go out and soak up some sun?! We left around 4pm and didn't arrive back home till 6pm! Walking the whole time. Ok, so I walked and Monkey took in the whole world around him. :) I only wish Hubby could have gone with us. 
I also must admit that it is really nice to be able to look out my window at 7:40pm and still see a little bit of daylight left! I think that is my least favorite part of winter with being a stay at home mommy....Little to no sun and too cold to take Monkey outside. 

Well I'm off to clean a little more around the house and then work for my parents :) 
Hope you were able to take some time out of your day to soak up the Son and some sun.