SMART Habit Saturday

This week I did pretty good on most of my goals. Reading my scriptures is definitely a habit now. I'm also doing good brushing my teeth and doing my crunches and taking my vitamins. It's turned into a bit of a nightly routine. Almost everyday I've not got on the computer within an hour of getting home from work. I kinda revised that a bit to include an hour after we get home from church, or on days I don't work it will be an hour after Hubby gets home. Cleaning is still a work in progress, about 1/2 the days I got my 1/2hr in. I guess it's been a little harder this week since Toddler isn't home to clean up after lol! And my bedtime still isn't going well, but I'm going to keep working on it.

Here's my Joe's Goals for the week:


This week I'm not setting a new goal. I want to take the week to work on getting my current goals set better, especially bedtime and cleaning. Plus I'll need to get used to doing Toddler's bedtime routine again since he'll be home. I am going to revise my 50 crunches to 100 because 50's getting easy.

So here's a recap of all my goals:
#1- Clean 1/2hr a day
#2- Keep up with dishes
#3- Brush teeth once a day
#4- Read scriptures daily
#5- Toddler bedtime routine
#6- Bedtime 11:30pm
#7- 100 crunches a day
#8- Take vitamins every day
#9- No computer for 1hr after work, church, or Hubby gets home from work

You can join SHS by going the The Lazy Organizer and jumping right in!

Saturday Saying

"Out of clutter, find simplicity. From discord, find harmony. In the middle of difficulty, lies opportunity."
-Albert Einstein

I thought Laura of Organizing Junkie might like this quote :) Next week starts a new 30 day organization challenge, and I'm so excited to get started! I might print out this quote (if I can get the dang printer to work) and tape it up where I'm going to organize to inspire me :)

Friday's Feast

Appetizer
What are you proud of?
-My little boys and hubby. I love them so much

Soup
What is the best thing you’ve ever won as a prize?
-Well, I didn't win it myself but Hubby did- $10,000

Salad
Name something you do that is a waste of time.
-I spend too much time on the computer doing stuff that's not important

Main Course
In what year of your life did you change the most?
-When I was 20. I'd just gotten married and then I had Toddler about 15 months later.

Dessert
Where is a place you consider to be very tranquil?
-Lying in a hammock overlooking the ocean in hot, sunny Cancun with NO kids!

Friday's Feast homepage has a new look, go check it out!

Win A Dyson Vacuum!!!

OK, admittedly I hate cleaning, and vacuuming goes on the list of things that rarely gets done unless Hubby does it. But man, if I had a Dyson! That is like the Mercedes of vacuums! They just came out with a new thin version, the Dyson Slim, and you can win one! Just go to 5 Minutes for Mom and link up, then post about it on your blog. I would so love to win this, I've heard only good things about Dyson.

Four Things MEME

Wow, it's been a while since I was tagged for a MEME! Barb at Skittle's Place tagged me for this one.

LIST FOUR SENTENCES YOU'VE NEVER SAID BEFORE:

1. No, I don't want anything sugary.
2. We should have our internet turned off.
3. I got plenty of sleep last night. (OK maybe I've said it, but it's been a looooong time!)
4. I'd LOVE to take over that giant project for you!

LIST FOUR SONG TITLES THAT DESCRIBE HOW YOU'VE FELT THIS WEEK:

1. "Who needs sleep?"- Barenaked Ladies
2. "Moments"- Emerson Drive
3. "In My Daughter's Eyes"- Martina McBride (Except of course I have sons lol)
4. "Anyway"- Martina McBride (yes, I like Martina lol)

IMAGINE YOU'RE HAVING THE IDEAL PERFECT DAY. WHAT FOUR THINGS WOULD YOU BE DOING?

1. Waking up rested no earlier than noon.
2. Hot breakfast all ready for me.
3. Going to the park and letting the boys play while I soak in the warm sun.
4. Have a dinner/game night with friends.

MAKE UP FOUR CREATIVE NAMES FOR A NEW ROCK BAND:

1. Slipping Down the Slide of Life
2. Squirrel In My Pants
3. We Rock
4. Monkeys On A Bus

CONGRATULATIONS! YOU GET TO GO BACK IN TIME AND ENSURE THAT FOUR SONGS WERE NEVER WRITTEN, THUS SPARING HUMANITY FROM EVER HAVING TO HEAR THEM. WHAT FOUR SONGS WOULD GET THE AXE?

1. "Barbie Girl"- Aqua
2. "Ice Ice Baby"- Vanilla Ice
3. "Sorry 2004"- Ruben Stoddard
4. "Who Let The Dogs Out"- Baha Men

I TAG:
CrAzY Working Mom
Dawn
Michelle

Daddy's Little Helper

I love seeing Toddler want to do things with his Daddy. It just tugs at my heart. And watching Hubby with the boys makes me love him more all the time. He's such a good Daddy, and he is a great help taking care of the boys.

Our car had been getting pretty dirty all winter, so last Sunday Hubby spent the day washing it. Toddler just had to go out to help. I gave him a rag and sent him to Daddy. He kept coming back in, but a few minutes later would want to go help Daddy again. It was so sweet seeing him try to do what Daddy was doing.

Sidenote

I need to get up and clean or something lol. I should go unload the dishwasher and clean up the living room. Just one problem: I have the cutest little boy asleep in my lap and I'm afraid if I move it'll break the spell and he'll turn into fussy teething Baby again.

Thankful Thursday

Today I am thankful for:

1) $$$ to pay off credit cards

2) Dishwasher- cuz some days I just don't feel like handwashing

3) Yummy cereal (sorry Dawn!)

4) Chiropractors, I wish I could go more

5) Paid blogging

We got some $$$ Hubby won, and so soon our credit cards are going to be all paid off! YAY! And I got to go to a chiropractor this week cuz my back has been hurting so much, and it was wonderful :) I know some people don't like paid blogging and I do a lot of ads, but I am so thankful for it. It has really helped us. I make at least as much with it as I do at my part-time job, and it has helped us pay bills off.

Works-For-Me Wednesday: Laundry Sorting

My Works For Me Wednesday tip is an easy one. I couldn't think of anything profound or exhilarating off the top of my head so you get an old fall-back you've probably heard a thousand times lol. And another warning, I just woke up from a nap and am a little groggy, so I might babble on a bit lol.

I've never liked sorting laundry. In fact I've never liked much about doing laundry, and sorting fell in the list of thing I hate about it, right after folding, which I truly hate. It's just so gross to paw through dirty smelly clothes to put them in piles. I remember doing it as a kid in a house of at least 11 people at all times. We had the biggest laundry pile you have ever seen! So weekly we'd get all the laundry into the living room and sit around making piles all over the floor- whites, lights, blues, reds, darks, towels, sheets, underthings, etc. It was a mess! How was an 8-yr old supposed to remember what went in what pile?!

So I eventually banned sorting from my laundry routine...until the wonderful day I found the nice 3-section laundry hamper at WalMart. Along with my love of containers and organizing things comes the love of items with sections, I just had to have it. So sorting re-entered my life. Towels in one section, whites and lights in another, and colors in the last! So easy! And I didn't have to go through piles of laundry to sort it before washing, just through the dirty clothes in the right section when I was done with them. And I realized having them sorted into 3 sections works just as well as the 7+ different piles my family used to do. And it makes laundry easier, I can tell when it's about time to do a load, or how many loads I have, at just a glance. And another tip I found on WFMW is to use mesh lingerie bags for socks, which I have now started too. I pin it to the side of the hamper and when I do a load of whites I throw it in the wash with them.

I still haven't figured how to make folding and putting away my clothes any easier for myself, but at least getting the laundry clean is not a hassle!

Go to Rocks In My Dryer to join in WFMW and read more great hints!

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas...

Why oh why is it snowing today?!? Yesterday was perfect, sunny, warm, just beautiful. And today, what do I wake up to? SNOW!!! I HATE snow! I want my warm weather back so I can get out and enjoy it!

Tackle-It Tuesday

Today I decided to tackle something Hubby has been dying for me to do for a long time. The top of our entertainment center. It is constantly being used as a catch-all for everything we bring in the house- bills, important papers, keys, kid stuff, etc. It gets so cluttered. And it's usually even messier than it was today, but we've been trying to clean it up. So today I took everything that didn't go there off, and put it away, wiped the top off, rearranged what was left, and it looks much better!

Before:
After:

Isn't that so much better?! I'm pretty proud of myself :)

You can join in Tackle-It Tuesday by going to 5 Minutes for Mom.

Tuesday To-Do

Here's my to do list for today:

* Do dishes

* Fold laundry

* Go to bank to deposit $$$

* Schedule a chiropractor appointment

* Keep Baby happy

* Pick up toys

* Work at 5

Don't really have much to do today. I really need to call the chiropractor and get in soon, since my back is hurting so bad and we have a little money so I can go. Then I just have a little cleaning to do. I might try to take a nap with Baby.

Monday Madness

I need to do a few loads of laundry and unload the dishwasher. Then I have to go to the bank and the library. My back is really hurting so I'm going to try lay down for a bit too. Baby is being good so far. I work at 5 tonight.

New Parenting Blogroll Thingy

I got tagged by Are We There Yet? to join in this new blogroll idea. It sounded like fun so I decided to do it! You just pass on the list and add on 5 of your favorite parenting/mommy/daddy blogs. And check out my other favorite blogs in my sidebar too, cuz if I could add more than 5 to this I would!

Here are the rules:

1. Write a short paragraph at the beginning of your post and link back to the blog that put you on the list in the paragraph. This isn’t a suggestion. You need to break up the duplicate content string. Someone took the time to add you so the least you can do is give them an extra linkback.
2. Copy the list of originals below COMPLETELY and add it to your blog. If you would like a different keyword for your blog then change it when you do your post and it should pass to most blogs with that keyword.
3. Take the adds from the blog that added you and place them in the “Originals” list.
4. Add up to 5 new parenting or (Mommy/Daddy) blogs to the list in the “My Adds” section.

My adds:

5 Minutes for Mom
Crazy Working Mom
Antique Mommy
Rocks in My Dryer
Don't Try This at Home



The originals:

A Work of Art: Raising Our Exceptional Son
Ever After … My Way
Adventures In The 100 Acre Wood
Adoption and Fire
Lala Girl
The Bookworm Broadcast
Parenting Sites 411
Cass Knits
Geni Desu Yo
No Average Mom
Notes From The Trenches
Busy Mom.net
Groovy Mom
Coffee Time
My Thoughts, Ideas, and Ramblings
Toil
My Single Mom Life
Tips From The Money Goddess
Army Mom: New Jersey
Melissa’s Place
Three Sons and a Princess
Moot Thoughts and Musings
A family runs through it
Uglyhead
Parenting Toddlers
An Island Life
arewethereyetmom.com
HeartSongs
Kitchen Ramblings from a fairly odd Tofu mom
My Splatter Painted Life
The Adventures of Fantastagirl
Where the Green Grass Grows
Desert SongBird
Blah, blah, blogging
Mom of ‘Lil Angels
A bit of Me

SMART Habit Saturday

Well, some of my goals are going better than others. I took my vitamins every day and read my scriptures every day too. Then I brushed my teeth all but one day. And I cleaned, did dishes, and did my crunches at least 1/2 the time. My Toddler is gone until next Saturday so I can't do his routine for now. Plus I usually brushed my teeth with him during his routine so it's been harder to remember lol. Hopefully he won't forget his routine while he's gone! And obviously my 11pm bedtime is not working at all since I didn't do it one single night. I'm going to move it a little to 11:30 and if I can get that down, then I'll move it back to 11.

Here's my Joe's Goals:

My new goal for this week is to spend more time with Hubby when I get off work instead of heading straight to the computer. So I'll say no computer for 1 hr after work. I don't get to see him much during the day so I should spend more time with him when he is here.

Goals:
#1- Clean 1/2hr a day
#2- Keep up with dishes
#3- Brush teeth once a day
#4- Read scriptures daily
#5- Toddler bedtime routine
#6- Bedtime 11:30pm
#7- 50 crunches a day
#8- Take vitamins every day
#9- No computer for 1hr after work

Go to The Lazy Organizer to join in SHS!

Saturday Saying

"Perhaps the most valuable result of all education is the ability to make yourself do the thing you have to do, when it ought to be done, whether you like it or not."
- Thomas Huxley

This quote got me thinking this morning. I know there are many things I don't want to do that I still make myself do. Like work. I definitely don't want to have a job, but I know it's needed right now, and I've learned sometimes you need to suck it up and do what needs done.

Sidenote

My house hasn't stayed clean like this in a long time. It really is amazing how much mess Toddler can make. It's so odd not having to keep picking up after him. And I actually have time to do things like make bread! Which I'm going to go do right now while baby naps.

Friday's Feast

Appetizer: Who is your favorite news anchor/reporter? Why?
- I don't watch much news, but I'll go with Glenn Beck. He puts a fun spin on current events.

Soup: Name 3 foods that are currently in your freezer.
- Ice cream, ground beef, leftover turkey.

Salad: If you were to have the opportunity to name a new town or city, what would you call it?
- Hm, maybe Heaven? I'd love to say I lived in Heaven lol. After all, there is a Hell, Michigan.

Main Course: What will most likely be the next book you read?
- I'm in the middle of "Ships of Merior" by Janny Wurts, after I finish I will be reading the next one in the series "Warhost of Vastmark" (at least I think that one's next)

Dessert: What's the first thing you notice about the opposite gender?
- Probably how they are built, tall and skinny, thick and muscled, etc.

That was a fun one today! Want to join in FF? Go to the FF homepage.

Friday Favorites

My favorite ways to relax:

1) Massage

2) Hot bath

3) Curl up with a good book

4) Hot chocolate

5) A good movie

Last weekend I got a massage, but I came away more sore than I went in! I can't believe how that tiny little skinny woman could massage so hard! I also got a manicure and pedicure, but the manicure wasn't very good, my nails look horrible, the paints all chipped and uneven. The ladies at the salon were so nice, but I don't think I'll be going back there.

Hubby's thumb

My husband would like to thank you all who wished him well. His thumb is healing great! The skin is pretty much all grown back and it doesn't hurt as much. He doesn't have to have it wrapped up as much now too, so he can start exercising it to get it's strength back. Which also means he can help around the house more lol ;)

Please hang up and try again

We occasionally get calls for the wrong number, like most people do once in a while. But probably half of the wrong number calls we get are for Walgreens. For a long time I didn't realize why everyone was calling us to reach Walgreens, until I finally looked up their number and it has the same numbers as ours, but 2 are switched. Anyway, one day I got one such call and this is how it went:

Me: Hello?

Them: Um, hi? Who is this?

Me: (thinking, shouldn't you know, you called me?) This is Kara.

Them: Is this Walgreens?

Me: (with Veggietales blaring loudly in the background and Baby screaming in my lap) No, this is the ****** house.

Them. (obviously not understanding) Oh. Well, I'm trying to call Walgreens.

Me: Well, this is the ****** residence, sorry.

Them: So, this isn't Walgreens?

Me: (getting a bit annoyed) No.

Them: Oh. Okay. click

Seriously, the conversation went on about 3 minutes while I'm trying to calm screaming Baby. The guy was totally thick-headed lol.

Thankful Thursday

Today I am thankful for:

1) I get to be Toddler-free until Next Saturday

2) My house is going to stay cleaner for over a week

3) It's easier to go places with only one kid lol

4) I don't have to watch Cars, Incredibles, Shrek, Veggietales, or the dreaded Once Upona Potty show for over a week!

5) My cute Toddler who I know I will miss tons by the time I see him again :)

Today I am cleaning house, and being so grateful that it will stay clean until Toddler is home! Baby is being good and I'm just enjoying being able to do things easier.

Works-For-Me Wednesday: Week at Grandma's

Yesterday my family called up and told me they would like to come kidnap my Toddler for a week. My response? "Yes, please take him, I need a break!" "Sure! That's fine with me!" They live 3 hrs away so we don't get to see them as much as we'd like, so occasionally they will take him for a week. Of course I will miss my little guy, but I know he will have a great time with my family, and I get a week of a clean house, better sleep, and easier to go places. That works for me!

Check out WFMW at Rocks In My Dryer for more great ideas!

Tackle-It Tuesday

This is my first time joining in Tackle-It Tuesday, hosted by 5 Minutes for Mom. Today I tackled my boxes of baby clothes. I started out with a big pile of clothes, bibs, socks, etc and later brought in 2 boxes of blankets too (not shown in pic). I'd freecycled a bunch of 0-3 and 3-6 month clothes about 6 months ago, but I still had way too many. By the time I finished with those, all my 0-3 and 3-6 month clothes fit in the box that had held just the 0-3 month clothes. Didn't have much 9-24 month stuff to sort since Baby is in 9-12 month and Toddler is in 18-24 month stuff (and I went through their dresser yesterday and purged too). Sorting out the older clothes was easy cuz it was almost all hand-downs that I didn't want anyway lol. The blankets I got rid of at least half. I put everything I am freecycling into the largest box, and had to sit on it to get it to close, it was packed! I hope someone else can find a use for them. I somehow had 3 empty boxes when I was done, and now I have more room in the boys closet too.

Here's what I started out with, not including the 2 big boxes of blankets.

Here's what I ended up keeping:

And the freecycle box:

It took about 1.5 hrs with Baby climbing all over me and Toddler wanting things, but I'm glad it's done!

Tuesday To-Do

My to-do's for today:

* Go through baby clothes and get rid of a bunch, we have way too many and most never got worn.

* Wash all bedding, especially Toddler's.

* Go to park if I can get Toddler to nap.

* Work at 5.

Not really much to do. I'm pretty much caught up on laundry, dishes are done, the boys haven't trashed the house too bad, no errands that absolutely need done. So I'm going to get out all the boxes of baby clothes and go through them and only keep what we actually used. I plan to get rid of at least 1/2 and probably freecycle it.

Katchy Kids Dancewear Contest

Janice at 5 Minutes for Mom posted about this great contest. Katchy Kids Dancewear is adorable quality dancewear by a work-at-home mom. They are holding a contest to win one of their adorable skirts. Of course I don't have a little girl to dress up, but my good friend Michelle does ;) Go enter the contest, and check out Katchy Kids Dancewear to see what other great things you can find!

Monday Madness

Today looks like it's shaping up to be a good day. Don't have much to do, don't work today, and the weather is beautiful! Clear and sunny. I'll probably take the boys to the park after naptime. I need to mail a few bills off, get something from the store if I can remember what I needed to get lol, and finish laundry (almost done!). Oh yeah, I have to pick up a prescription at the store, glad I remembered :) I feel like doing something creative, or organizing something too, but I haven't decided what yet. I might work on purging stuff from the boys dresser so I don't have to keep smooshing clothes in. They don't wear most of the stuff in there anyway. Well, I hear them downstairs making a mess so I better go. Have a wonderful week!

SMART Habit Saturday

I didn't do as well this last week, but still ok. I was only in bed by 11 once. I really need to work harder on that. Some days I work later and it can't be avoided, but most days I just stay up too late online. And I only cleaned 1/2 hr on 2 days, that's not good. I'm getting better at doing my crunches, and I did pretty good with everything else. I only missed brushing my teeth once, and Toddler's bedtime routine is going great, he even wants me to do it at naptime! Reading my scriptures is going very well, I've read every day since I started that habit. And dishes get done most days. Here's my Joe's Goals:


My new goal is going to be to take my vitamins daily. I don't eat as healthy as I should so I really need to take vitamins. I think I've been so tired lately because I'm not getting enough nutrients in my diet.

Goals:
#1- Clean 1/2hr a day
#2- Do dishes daily
#3- Brush teeth once a day
#4- Read scriptures daily
#5- Toddler bedtime routine
#6- In bed by 11pm
#7- 50 crunches a day
#8- Take vitamins daily

Check out The Lazy Organizer to join in SHS! And remember, everyone who participates for 2 weeks in a row by the end of March get entered into a drawing to win some of Lara's great organizing bags!

Friday's Feast

Appetizer
Name two things that made you smile this week.
Going to the park with my boys, getting a massage (well, it won't happen until tomorrow, but I'm already smiling in anticipation!)

Soup
Fill in the blank: Don't you hate it when ________?
the whole day just seems to be going wrong

Salad
When you can't go to sleep, what is your personal remedy to help yourself drift into Lullabyland?
I make up fiction stories in my head. I just add on to it everynight that I can't sleep.

Main Course
What is something about which you've always wondered but have not yet found a good answer?
How some people can just seem inherently evil and do horrible monstrous things. Don't they have a conscience?

Dessert
What is your favorite pasta dish?
Chicken Alfredo I think.

Go to the Friday's Feast HQ to join in!

Organizing Challenge Round 2!

I'm so excited! Laura at Organizing Junkie is going to be doing another 30-Day Organization Challenge! I really enjoyed participating in the last one and am excited to get organizing again. The challenge starts April 3rd. I already have a few ideas of what I might work on. If you missed the last challenge that's ok, just jump in now! And there will be prizes! So if you've been waiting for a push to do some Spring cleaning, this can help get you motivated.

Yummy Pie Recipe

OK, here's the recipe for the delicious cheesecake-y pie I made yesterday:

1 graham cracker crust (I always use pre-made ones, I suck at crusts)
1 can condensed milk
1/3 cup lemon juice
1/2 tsp almond extract
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 cup whipped cream
Fruit filling

Mix condensed milk, lemon juice, almond and vanilla until thick. Add 1/2 cup of whipped cream (not store-bought pre-made whipped cream, the kind you whip yourself) and stir together. Pour into pie crust. Refrigerate a few hours. Top with favorite fruity filling (I used some raspberry/huckleberry mixed MIL gave me, it is soooo good!) and serve!

This recipe is so easy (I already have it memorized after making it just once) and just to die for.

I feel the urge...the urge to splurge

I absolutely love a good sale. I pretend not to because I don't like spending money we don't have, but in reality those "Clearance!" "Sale!" "Great Deal!" and "50% Off!" signs get my heart pounding. When I opened the Smith's ad yesterday and saw they were having a big sale on cases of food I about jumped in the car and raced down there. Instead I played it cool. Later, when we were out at WalMart getting diapers, Hubby wanted to go see if they had any good deals on soda. I nonchalantly suggested, "Smith's has some kind of sale where you can get 4 12packs for $9. They are having a big sale for cases of stuff." So that led to heading over there to just "check it out". Well, it was even better than I imagined! If there's anything I like more than office supplies and little miniature products (like those little travel sized bathroom stuff lol), it's big cases of products on sale, and they were everywhere! Bags of sugar, cans of chili, boxes of macaroni and cheese! Beautiful piles of stacked boxes as far as the eye could see! And even better, it was stuff we actually need and use! Too often sales are only on stuff we never buy, but this time we hit the grocery jackpot. We left with $210 worth of stuff for...ready for it?...get this...$98!!! We saved over 50%! My spending urge has been satisfied for the time being.

Thankful Thursday

I am thankful for:

1) Warmer weather

2) Good sales

3) Chocolate chip cookies

4) Delicious pie :D

5) The park

This weather has been so nice! It's mid-50s, so still a bit chilly, but much warmer than it was just a few weeks ago. We've gone to the park a few times, which Toddler loves. It's nice to be able to get out of the house to do stuff more. And that pie I made yesterday is sooooo yummy! It's like a cheesecake-type pie with fruit topping, mmmm. And so easy too :D

Whew! It IS a better day!

Well, I have to say today has been a much better day than yesterday! We drove to the dealership we bought the van at so they could fix a part. It's a 45 minute drive, Baby slept the whole way there and back, and I made a fool of myself entertained Toddler by singing songs from VeggieTales and other shows he likes. It took about 15 mins to fix the part, then we drove the 45 mins back. When we got home Toddler napped and Baby and I blogged. OK, I blogged and Baby bounced around in my lap pulling my hair and laughing at my pain. The rest of the day Toddler and Baby have played together and watched some videos, while I cleaned up and finally made that pie I've been meaning to get to for 2 weeks. Looking forward to eating that after dinner :D That reminds me, I need to figure out something yummy for dinner. Anyway, it's been a good day, and maybe when Hubby gets home from work we can go to the park or for a walk.

Works-For-Me Wednesday: Playing Outside

Yesterday was a pretty stressful day for me. My back is causing me lots of pain, Baby is teething and not at all happy about it, Toddler was acting like a typical 2-year old, and other minor things. It all added up to me wanting to cry by the time I went to work.

But there was a bright spot in the day. The weather was mid-50s, warmer than it's been in a long time. So after running a few errands I decided to stop at the park and let Toddler play for a bit. It was literally a breath of fresh air. He got to run off some energy before naptime and enjoy a 1/2hr of me not being frustrated with him. Baby seemed to like watching him play, and got to swing a little for the first time. It would've been nice to stay longer if it wasn't naptime (which I also needed lol). That simple 1/2hr helped me recharge a bit and enjoy the beautiful day.

So, what works for me is to relax, get out in the fresh air, and forget about your worries, even for just a short time. Let your inner-child out to play for a bit.

Check out Shannon at Rocks In My Dryer for more great WFMW tips!

Sidenote

Some days I just cannot make Baby happy. He hasn't want me to put him down all day. I need a break! Plus my neck is out and giving me a major headache. I did get a 1/2 hr nap earlier, but that's not enough. Calgon take me away!

Tuesday To-Do

Today I need to:

* Get the boys and myself dressed

* Go to the bank to deposit some checks before other checks clear

* Unload dishwasher

* Do a little laundry

* Vacuum and try to clean the chocolate out of my carpet

* Work at 5

And as always I want to try to take a nap. Baby did not want to sleep last night. He was up from 2:30-4 wanting to play. Hubby finally left and slept on the couch, lucky. Too bad the kids don't understand the concept of "sleeping in". As soon as it's light out they want to be up. Toddler comes in and goes "Mommy awake? Get up Mommy! Get up!" And of course that wakes up Baby and he goes "Baby awake? Hi Baby!" While cute, it doesn't help me be any less tired lol.

First Place!

Critique My Blog has started a contest called Monetized Mondays, where you enter your blog and he picks the ones that make best use of monetizing elements on their blog, such as paid blogging, adsense, etc. The 1st place winner each Monday gets put in a drawing he will do on Memorial Day for a blogging book and $50 gift card. This week I got 1st place! Pretty cool! Go check it out and enter yourself in his new contest!

Monday Madness

Man, I'm tired! I have been super exhausted lately, and the time change just made it worse! It's so hard to pull myself out of bed in the morning. Today I don't have much to do, just follow the boys around cleaning up their messes. Then I work at 5. I might get a nap, I hope.

SMART Habit Saturday

Another week has come and gone. I did pretty good on most of my goals. Brushing my teeth and reading my scriptures are getting done every day. Dishes get done most days. And I'm actually enjoying having a bedtime routine for toddler. I'm still having trouble with cleaning 1/2 hr a day, I have to force myself to do it. And getting to be by 11pm is still hard, especially on days like yesterday when I didn't even get home from work until after 11. But I'm still working on it and it's going pretty good :) Sunday I didn't get much done, but we were gone most of the day, so that's why. Here's my Joe's Goals for the last week:
See, not too shabby!

My new goal for this week is to do crunches. I want to firm up my belly, I've lost a lot of muscle tone from having 2 kids and not exercising. So 50 crunches a day is what I'll start out with.

Goals:
#1- Clean 1/2hr a day
#2- Dishes every day
#3- Brush teeth once a day
#4- Read scriptures every day
#5- Toddler bedtime routine
#6- In bed by 11pm
#7- 50 crunches a day

Want to join in? Just check out SHS at The Lazy Organizer!

The party is coming to an end...

Thanks to all of you who stopped by the party to visit! It was nice to "meet" you and I tried to get to all of you that stopped by. If you haven't yet, make sure you signed the linky at 5 Minutes For Mom to be entered into a drawing for lots of cool prizes! Thanks to Janice and Susan for hosting the party and getting us all out there to meet each other! It was a lot of fun. I just made a fresh batch of cookies for you late-comers, and I have popcorn and root beer too, so it's not too late to stop in and say hi!

One of the blogs I found that I really enjoyed is called Oh Amanda. Not only is her layout really fun and cute, but so are her posts! She writes about being a mom to her cute little girl, and her life. Check it out!

Backseat Driver

Ever since we bought our minivan I've aquired new help driving. Toddler can now see out the front window as we drive along. He loves to point things out "Tree Mommy!" "Big truck, vrooom!" "Train, train, train! Choo-choo!" and of course he repeats everything until I say it back, "Yes, that is a big truck!" "Yep, the train says choo-choo!" and so on. He also likes to squeel "wheeeeee!" as we go down hills, like a rollercoaster. And now he has started giving directions. "Turn it 'round! (the wheel) Turn it! 'Round Mommy! Go down! Watch out cars, watch out! Wheee! Turn it 'round Mommy!" I particularly love the "Watch out cars!" that he yells at all the cars we pass, as if I'm a threat to them lol. Driving anywhere is much more exciting these days :D

Friday's Feast

Appetizer: What is your usual bedtime? Do you like that, or would you rather it be different?
- I try to be in bed by 11pm. I could use more sleep but it's hard to get to bed earlier than that most days.

Soup: When it comes to advice, do you give more or receive more?
- Probably about equal amounts of both.

Salad: Describe a memorable meal you've had.
- There are many, usually at holidays, I love Thanksgiving dinner.

Main Course: Name a work of fiction that affected the way you think about something.
- "Brave New World" "Ender's Game"

Dessert: What is your favorite type of fruit juice?
I love fresh pineapple juice

Check out the Friday's Feast homepage to join in!

Belly pics

Adventures in Babywearing is tagging people to post pictures of themselves pregnant (foster/adoptive parents are also welcome to show pics with their kids!) so i decided to jump in with a few of mine.

I don't have any of me pregnant with Toddler on this computer right now, so here's some when I was pregnant with Baby.

A few days before I had him, isn't this sweet?

The day I had him, before leaving for the hospital


I loved being pregnant and having that big ol' belly.

Thankful Thursday

Today I am thankful for:

1) A day off work

2) Our digital camera

3) Naps, not that I get many myself, but when my kids do it helps

4) Hershey bars

5) Hubby's thumb is healing well

I'm so glad I don't work today. I am just so tired. I really hope the boys nap at the same time today so that I can try to get a nap as well, I need it. I just need to remember to turn the phone off, Hubby always manages to call as soon as I get to sleep lol.

Broken Glass

I used to like writing poetry in high school. Looking back on it, it's probably not that good lol, but I liked putting my feelings down in symbolic words. This is a poem I wrote, probably when I was around 16, during a minor depression I went through, I was almost suicidal so it's kind of dark. Luckily I never feel suicidal anymore, I have too much to live for. :)

Broken Glass

What is there for us but pain;
dreams broken and unfulfilled?
Tears for loss or tears for joy
we all cry.

Confusion and shadows surrounding us,
filling us with broken glass,
cutting our souls unmercifully until
we all die.

Disappointment snaps at us from all sides
tearing at our hopes, we bleed;
life pouring from our bloodshot eyes.
Ashes to ashes.

Will they remember your sadness,
your despair of beauty and love?
Flowers bloom over untended graves
and they forget.

Works-For-Me Wednesday: Kitchen Edition!

Today's WFMW is a special kitchen edition! Time to share your cooking, cleaning, recipe, etc tips!

Well, as you all know, I'm not much for cooking and cleaning. But I do have a few random tips to share that work for me:

- Washing Dishes: Lately I've been washing dishes throughout the day instead of letting them pile up and taking forever to do them later. It really just takes a few seconds to wash that dish you just used. If I have a few minutes while waiting for something to cook I use it to put away clean dishes or wash the few dishes in the sink. Helps keep my sink clean and my dishes have been staying done!

- Quick easy recipe: 1 box stuffing mix, 1 cup water, 1-2 cups chopped/shredded turkey or chicken, 1 small can cream of whatever soup, shredded cheese. Stir together stuffing mix and 1 cup hot water. Place 1/2 of mixture in bottom of casserole dish, set aside the rest. Mix chicken/turkey with cream of something soup (I prefer cream of chicken, but they all work the same really). Put that mixture on stuffing layer in pan. Put on the rest of the stuffing. Top with shredded cheese. Bake at 350* for 30 minutes. Takes less than 5 minutes to prepare and pretty yummy.

- Freezing meats: We buy ground beef in bulk, separate into meal-size increments (a bit less than a pound usually), and freeze in ziplock baggies. Perfect to grab one for hamburger helper and stuff. Also, when we cook a turkey or chicken, we take the leftovers (usually a lot since we're a small family) and put them in small ziplock baggies to freeze too. Easy to get one out to mix with veggies, pasta, casseroles (see above), etc.

- Stove burners: I really hate scrubbing stove burners when they have all that caked on burnt food and stuff. So we cover them with tin foil. Then when they get really dirty, just tear off the tin foil and recover. No more scrubbing. I actually need to do this today.

Well, that's what works for me! Check out Shannon at Rocks In My Dryer for more great WFMW kitchen tips!

Tuesday To-Do

Not too much to do today:

* Clean up office, it's full of garbage and junk

* Clean up toys

* Make bed

* Make a pie I keep forgetting about

* Enrichment night at 6:30

Really, it shouldn't be a very busy day. The kids are being good downstairs watching Baby Mozart and strewing blocks around the living room for me to step on later. I need to go change laundry around too I guess :) Have a wonderful day!

I've been critiqued!

Critique My Blog has done a little critique on me :) Check it out and you can get critiqued too! Just send them a link to your site, link back to them, and you will get a cool little critique of your blog, which means more exposure and that's a good thing :)

Sidenote

Things that make my heart melt:
* When I tell Toddler he's cute and his reply is, "Yeah, I cute!"
* Toddler sharing his blocks with Baby
* "I lub you Mommy"
* Hubby cooking dinner :D

Tips from the trenches

Here's a few lazy tips for a busy mom who likes to procrastinate. Some are practical, some are just plain lazy lol:

- Getting dressed. If you are running late and still need to get a shirt on, throw on a bulky sweater, this way you don't need a bra or coat, saves time getting dressed! (And yes, I did this just this morning lol)

- Laundry. Need to do laundry but have a bunch of different small loads (colors, whites, towels, etc) and don't want to waste water and time on doing a bunch of small loads? Throw it all in together and wash on cold so nothing bleeds or fades.

- Diaper bags. Always pack more diapers and clothes than you think you'll need, because if you don't, it's a sure thing you will wish you had. Even if you are just running to the store.

- Cleanliness. Haven't had a chance to shower, but have to go to the store? Grab a baby wipe and quickly wash your face and hands. Put hair in ponytail and put on baseball hat to cover greasiness. (Also works for kids, do a quick baby wipe wipe-down, if they have short hair you can even quickly 'wash' their hair with it).

- Cleaning up. Laundry baskets and totes are your friends. If your living room is messy and people are coming over, quickly gather all the clutter into a laundry basket and hide it in a different room until they leave and you can put it away. For easy toy cleanup keep everything in totes or baskets, also makes it easier for young kids to help.

- Dishes. Almost anything can go in the dishwasher, don't bother scrubbing or rinsing. If it doesn't get clean the first time just keep running it until it does> (OK, not really the best tip, but I still do it lol)

- Vacuuming. If you have pets, that's a bonus since they will clean up most anything off the floor, then you just have to quickly go over the rest. Don't bother doing the edges and corners every time, just get the main traffic areas.

- Carpet stains. If it won't come out cover it up. Rugs, furniture, toys, etc.

- Cream of mushroom soup. Can be added to almost anything for a quick meal, seriously. It's like the jack-of-all-trades for food. Just add it to pasta and veggies, or meat and veggies and voila, quick easy casserole.

- Duct tape. Is there anything it can't do?!

Well, that's all I can think of right now! Feel free to share your lazy tips!

Monday Madness

Today we've already gotten off to a busy start. We had to run a few errands. So I threw on some clothes, got the kids changed, fed, and dressed, loaded me, the boys, the diaper bag, and library materials into the car and got out of the house before 9:20am. Now considering most days I'm not even dressed by 9am, that's a big thing for me. And yes, there was much grumbling and muttering under my breath at stupidpeoplewhoneedtogetthingsearlyinthemorningandmakeuswithkidsandnot-
enoughsleepdrivearoundtownfornogoodreasonblahblahmumblegrumble. First we headed to the carpet cleaner place to drop off the carpet cleaner we rented over the weekend (and my carpets definitely look so much better! thanks Hubby!), then it was off to the library to drop off a few movies and books and let Toddler pick out a handful more. Then we stopped at the bank to put in some money, and headed home. I do need to go to the store for diapers, but since I'm not sure how much money we have available for that right now it'll have to wait. Now I need to make the bed, do a few dishes, and hopefully catch a nap. I work at 5, but only a few hours today. I'm still sick and sniffling, it's time to take some more medicine.

Saturday Saying

"Though we travel the world over to find the beautiful, we must carry it with us, or we find it not."
- Ralph Waldo Emerson

I thought this quote was pretty profound. Basically I believe it's saying that we cannot find beauty in anything if we do not have beauty in our hearts. How can we enjoy life if our hearts are filled with hate, envy, or greed? Beauty is not just what we see, but what we feel.

SMART Habit Saturday

Well, this last week I did sooo much better! I did most of my goals almost every day! I read my scriptures every single day this week, it's quickly becoming a habit. I also brushed my teeth almost every day, and twice some day, also becoming a habit. It's still hard for me to do my 1/2hr of cleaning a day, but dishes are getting easier to do. It's been harder to start doing my Toddler's bedtime routine, the week got off to a rough and busy start, but it's going pretty well now. Here is my Joe's Goals so you can see how much better I did this week.



My new goal this week is going to be getting to bed earlier. Since my work schedule varies and some nights I'm not off until 10 or later, my goal for now is going to be 11pm.

Goals:
#1- Clean 1/2hr a day
#2- Keep up with dishes daily
#3- Brush teeth once a day
#4- Read scriptures daily
#5- Toddler bedtime routine
#6- In bed by 11pm

Check out The Lazy Organizer to learn how you can get involved in SHS!

IT'S PARTY TIME!!!

The time has finally come! Welcome to The Ultimate Blog Party! This is a chance to get out and mingle with fellow bloggers, win some prizes, and just have fun! If you don't know what I'm talking about, check out the info at 5minutesformom here, here, and here. The point is for everyone to get to know each other a bit better and have some fun. So I'll tell you a bit about me and you can leave me a comment to learn more about you or whatever!

My name's Kara. I'm 23, married, with 2 kids. Hubby is Nate (hi honey!) and my boys go by Toddler and Baby on here. For some reason I haven't shared their names on here, not really sure why, maybe some day. I love being a mommy. It's so wonderful. And of course I have the 2 cutest kids ever so that makes it even better. I love hearing Toddler's "I wub you Mommy" and having Baby fall asleep cuddled on my chest. Right now they are playing cars together, so sweet. Nate is my wonderful hubby. He is very helpful and I'm so glad I married him, he's also a wonderful daddy.

Here's a few random things about me: I love reading, I work part-time at a fast food place, I crochet, I absolutely hate housework, I have Psoriasis, I used to dance, and overall I love my life.

So go ahead, ask me questions, comment, let me know a little about you, and I brought popcorn, cookies, and music so let's get this party started!

Sick again!

Ugh, I really really really HATE winter! I am sick with a cold again! I feel like I've been sick forever. I cannot wait for warmer weather to get here. I just feel miserable today. And I had to work and it was busy, but I just wanted to leave cuz my head is pounding and my back is killing me. I'm going to take a nice hot bath and go to bed and let Hubby get Toddler to bed.

Friday's Feast

Appetizer
What does the color pink make you think of?
Oddly, the first thing that popped into my mind was pepto-bismol lol. But mostly it reminds me of candy or girly stuff.

Soup
Name something you thought you had lost, but later found.
My sanity? Wait...nope, that's still missing. Seriously, there's probably a million things that fit this, ever since having kids my memory is shot.

Salad
In 3 words, describe this past week.
Exhausting, normal, minivan

Main Course
What are you obsessed with?
Do you have to ask? Obviously this blog lol.

Dessert
What kind of perfume or cologne do you like to wear?
I rarely wear any scent (unless you count spit-up and dirty diapers lol). But if I do wear anything it's usually something subtle and light.

Check out the Friday's Feast homepage to join in!

Friday Favorites

Hm, I'm starting to run out of ideas for favorites lol. If you have any suggestions feel free to post them!

Today I will do my favorite book genres:

1) Fantasy

2) Historical Fiction

3) LDS Romance

4) Adventure

5) Any mixture of the above :D

I love to read, I can read a good 300 page book in 2 days if I'm into it and not too busy. I'm currently re-reading a fantasy series I read at least 5 years ago. It's "The War of Light and Shadow" series by Janny Wurts. I'm in the middle of the first book "Curse of the Mistwraith".

Sidenote

I'm so excited we will most likely get our tax return back tomorrow! It's enough to pay off most of one of our cards. Plus Hubby's next check is going to be much bigger than normal, so we can pay off even more and get one card all paid off! Getting out of debt is much better than getting into it lol.

Thankful Thursday

Today I am thankful for:

1) Feet, to get where I'm going

2) Hands, to tickle and hug my little boys

3) Eyes, to see the beauty all around

4) Ears, to hear "I wub you Mommy"

5) Lips, to give sweet kisses

I am thankful for my body, that it is relatively healthy, and fully functioning. I can't imagine not being able to see or hear my little boys, or hug and kiss my Hubby. I might complain about my psoriasis from time to time, get annoyed at arthritic joints, or wish the fat off my backside, but I really don't have much to complain about, it all works and I am grateful.