sounds like fun

So Isaac is starting to vocalize a lot more of his thoughts. It is really funny to hear. Yesterday Dan was browning some meat in a pan. I was nursing Levi. Isaac came into the living room to tattle on his dad.

Isaac: Mom, Daddy won't let me touch the handle of the pan...
Me: That's because it is hot. Daddy loves you and he doesn't want it to burn you, that would hurt.
Isaac: Well...that's ok. Hurt is only for a minute. Then things stop hurting. So if it hurts it will only be a minute. Hurt is ok.

Here I am thinking 1) How profound of a little guy. Then he adds.

So, I still want to touch the pan cuz it will only hurt for a minute and it sounds like fun.

2) Ok, you are just a boy, and for the rest of my life I will be trying to keep you from doing things that could hurt you, but you will try them anyway because, well, it sounds like fun.

I'm dreaming of a cheap Christmas...

Chistmas time is upon us. I love Christmas! I love the smells, the lights, the food, the music, the decorating. I love all the festive stuff. I love seeing family that we don't get to see often. I love hearing my kids talk about baby Jesus. It is so cool to hear them learn about our savior and know it is being hidden in their little hearts. LOVE IT.

I also, love the gifts. I love finding presents for people that i know they will enjoy. I love finding a great deal on these presents... This year is no exception. We will be trying to spend even less this year because we have put most of our extra cash into getting our home ready to sell.

Dan and I will be making a list of who we have to buy for and setting our budget accordingly. I have been buying for my kids throughout the year so hopefully I will be done with all their gifts very soon.

A few highlights I have seen working are the toy coupons on coupons.com. One of my favorites is the $5 off Mr. Potato Head Spud bud. At Target they have a Santa Spud for $5.99. (I found him by stocking stuffers) After coupon he is only $0.99!!! I was able to print 2 coupons from each computer we have and so I bought four.

I'm keeping an eye out for any other great deals on toys. They ball popper was marked down at our Target to $17. With $5 coupon it was only $12. This is a really fun toy that my kids LOVE.

Have you found any awesome deals we shouldn't pass up? Keep me posted and I will let you know if I find anything worth doing a happy dance for.

A month of chaos

First off, here is an updated picture of my boys. Aren't they cute in their Purdue gear. I love them!

Ok, so I haven't been on in forever it feels like. When I last posted Isaac had just come down with a tummy issue. Well, the issue lasted over 3 weeks then turned into seeing a specialist and a whole slew of other things that made my life feel upside down. Combine that with the fact that Dan has been working crazy hours and you have a very flustered me. My house is not in good shape, my coupons are a train wreck, and I have just altogether been unorganized and all over the place.

So, now I'm back to life. We are pretty sure everything is ok with Isaac. Praise the Lord. Now, I need to get my house back in order and some organization back in the works. With all that is going on right now that could be a major thing. So, I'm trying not to get overwhelmed. I'm trying to take things one at a time.

We leave for FL on Monday to visit a few of our friends for Thanksgiving. I'm so excited. On the way down I hope to get my coupons clipped and sorted, Christmas cards ready, and spend some time with Dan talking about Christmas budget and upcoming financial goals. I love road trips because it gives me time to just talk to my hubby. I LOVE to talk to my hubby.

So, that is where I have been for a month. I hope I am back now...we'll see what happens.

Project one : Defrost and organize freezer

I decided it would be as good a time as ever to defrost my freezer. It was long over due, and I needed to find something on the bottom. So I pulled everything out.

 

 

It was in serious need of being defrosted. So I boiled water and poured it down the sides. It went pretty quickly. Then I took inventory. It's always good to see what you have. I realized I have a lot of baking chips… I tried to organize it so like items were together and items I access often were easy to get to.

 

I found that I had a pretty good stash in my freezer. I shouldn't need meat for awhile. My goal now that I know what is in there is to make and freeze some meals. It felt good to accomplish a project. We'll see how the rest of the week goes. I have big plans, but I may not have all the energy.

What a week

This week is going to be interesting. Dan is taking his PE (professional engineer) test this week so he will be gone all week studying. He will be home for about an hour a day to help tuck the boys in and get things ready for the next day.

We are also sick here. Isaac has had a yucky bug for over 2 weeks now. I took him to the ER yesterday (he ended up being fine). But I picked something up there. Asher is a little cranky and I think we all getting cabin fever.

So to keep myself busy I have a plan to take on a project a day. I will try posting to let you all know how I'm doing. If nothing else just for me to feel connected to the outside world.

Visit from AZ

My grandparents made a long drive to the midwest from AZ just a few weeks ago. They stopped by to see us which was a lot of fun. Grandpa and Max bonded, Bayley tried to make sure he got attention also. It was so nice to see them.

Yummy new cookie recipe

So, this doesn't help my diet, but I love love to bake. I found this recipe and it is delicious. It is for Cranberry oatmeal cookies. I subbed out the raisins and cranberries for Crasins, and it worked, but I would like to try it according to the recipe next time. I love white chocolate so this was pretty much amazing. Hope you enjoy.