Sept 20th - 5 on Friday

The Good Life Blog 5 on Friday

I decided since I'm lacking inspiration for a good post I would do the 5 on Friday for the first time. My 5 on Friday will be 5 things from my week:

1. No School.......Due to storms my son had no school today. It threw me for a loop but he was able to stay at daycare all day. I'm grateful that he doesn't go to before/after care at school because they weren't open either due to power outage at the school. Now I need to take this as motivation to stock supplies in case this happens at our house!

2. Feeling congested.....Since I went on a field trip last Thursday at a State Park I have had a stuffy/runny nose and a cough. I am so ready to be done with it! I've tried sinus medicine, hot tea, running it off, and taking it easy but it doesn't seem to go away.

3. Boys Scouts..... My son joined as a Tiger and it is 6 times more expensive then the Girl Scouts. I hope he enjoys this for all the money we are spending. I'm looking forward to being part of this group but I still feel like an outsider at this point.

4.Favorite Pin of the week:

source: ZippyCart

I hate all the candy that can come with holidays, kicking it off is Halloween so why not reinvent healthy foods.

5.  Mother Daughter 5K

 

My daughter and I finish our first 5k together and it was my best time yet. We didn't win any age awards but my daughter was awesome for doing her first race and only having about 3-4 weeks to train.

Reading to the Older Child

Since my daughter could read on her own I have read to her less and less. Recently she has asked that I read to her again. She loves to read on her own, but it also gives us time to spend together. So I have been reading to each kid separately each night. I have been looking at Pinterest for ideas, and also discovered that Oprah has suggested books for kids.

I thought I would compile a list of books to read with my 10 year old in the future:

 

 

Fortunately, The Milk by Neil Gaiman

Flora & Ulysses by Kate DiCamillo

Sure Signs of Crazy by Karen Harrington

 

 

I'll Be There by Holly Sloan

The Teashop Girls by Laura Schaefer

Endangered by Eliot Schrefer

The Wednesday Wars by Gary Schmidt

mockingbird by Kathryn Erskine

One Crazy Summer by Rita Williams-Garcia

The Magician's Elephant by Kate DiCamillo

What If?

Sometimes life can be a little foggy.

Today was well visit check ups for my children. On the form there was a survey, they asked questions about the stress level of the household. How did I feel about parenting? What stress me out the most?  But when I was answering this questions, it was hard to answer them truthfully really. I do have my bad days, but I have some good weeks too. If I answered them one way, would I get a visit from D.H.S. or do they do anything at all?

There was recently a news story where a young mother had killed her young son and then killed herself. She was going through a divorce and had some mental health issues. Would someone who really needed help answer this questions truthfully? Having their children taken away would be devastating, so wouldn't they put on a brave front for anyone who they think would report their household as unstable. I know when I was using W.I.C., they also had a survey. They asked how many people in the household, am I married, how close do I live to family. At the time I was single and had no family in the area, and when they told me I rated low, it was scary. I felt good about where I was in life until it was rated, not that they seemed too concerned at the time either. I want to do more for those who feel alone and stressed, but I know it is hard for them to ask for help. I know I have times where I feel down, and at the moment it is hard to see good times ahead, yet they always come. I'm sure there are times when you have lifted someone's spirits without even knowing it. I always try to find the best in others because it is hard to know everything about someone, and they could be really hurting. It doesn't have to take a lot of effort, maybe just a smile or a listening ear to help another person who is hurting on the inside.

Gray skies are going to clear up.

Tame It Tuesday

I saw a Pin about folding your shirts vertically so you can see what is on the front plus adds more room. It took me about 15 minutes to organize this drawer while putting away laundry. Before I had the shirts folded like the stores do, but I would have to rummage under them to find the one I wanted. It also filled this drawer to maximum capacity  Now I have a little bit of room to work with and I might be able to get rid of some additional storage. I looked for the original Pin, but I didn't find any tutorials just pictures. Just search shirt folding.

I also moved the kids books from the basement to the living room. I have a few books I am going to give my best friends daughter, and some I'm selling to Half Price Books. I also am taking out the holiday books to store in a tub by themselves. The piles on the floor here are what my kids had in their rooms. The two on the left are what they took out of their rooms. I told my son to look on top of his dresser, and on his night stand. The two piles are the left are what I took out of his room after he was done. I think my project this weekend will be helping my son organize his room. On the list is:

getting rid of too small clothes

sorting out the boxes of toys

cleaning bed linens

a good sweeping and washing of the floors

Sorting Snacks

I'm going to the zoo today with my son and his class. We have been asked to chaperon a group of kids. As chaperons we will need to bring:

Snacks for our group

Band aids

Hand cleaning wipes

Antibacterial gel

A cell phone

Facial tissues

I bought a box of Cheese Nips and some snack bags. The box said 10 servings so I divided them into 10 snack bags. Now I will have enough snacks for ten kids or I can use any extras for the kids lunch. I then took the liner out of the box and put the snack bags back in the box. This will help keep them from being crushed during transport and easier to carry.

I also found that Walmart has two sections for wipes: one in the baby section for diaper wipes an then a baby section in the shampoo/personal care aisle. I was able to find a cheap brand for $.97/40 wipes in the later Aisle to keep cost down . Everything else I had on hand!

❤ Teachers

May 6-10 is Teacher Appreciation Week. My kids go to two different schools and there will be a lot of Teacher sucking up going on next week. I will post my Teacher appreciation gift this weekend since I haven't been to the store yet and I'm waiting for my allowance that I give myself on Friday.

So far here are the plans that my kids schools will be doing to appreciate their teachers:

• gift bags for each teacher
• decorating the teacher's lounge and making sure it is clean each day
• making smoothies
• large fruit salad placed in the teachers lounge and snacks and treats other days
• 15 min massages while a volunteer watches their class
• bringing the teach lunch 
• a card signed from all the kids to thank the teacher

If you need more inspiration, check my favorite spot Pinterest, search for Teacher gifts or Teacher appreciation. This was my favorite post because it was detailed for each day: Crazy for Crust

I also found a post for gifts if you have a male teacher.

In closing.......

THANK YOU TEACHERS!!

What a Day...

This was after putting all the clothes away, but we still had more to wash so it doesn't look like I did anything.

Yesterday there was no school due to Martin Luther King Jr.'s holiday.  I was able to get the laundry put away, and we sold another 20 boxes of Girl Scout cookies at my work and at my sister's work.  Not too bad.  I'm lucky these babies sell themselves because my daughter and I are not the best sales people.  I also went grocery shopping and the kids were able to play for about 3-4 hours outside today (crazy considering today we woke up to almost blizzard like conditions).  I even had time to search Pinterest and found this for Valentine's day:

i phone printable

This is perfect for my third grader because they have been using Apple i Pad this year to help review math and play other apps.


Valentine's day will be here before you know it.  Four weeks and counting down.

First Day of School

So one of these days I'm going to get more organized and stop stressing.  Today isn't going to be that day, but I thought I would have a blog post anyways.  Today was my daughters first day of school, but my son wont start for two more weeks.  Tonight we had the crispy southwest chicken wraps.  They were good and fairly easy to make.  I didn't put in the green onion, cilantro, pepper or lime, but I did put in homemade salsa my sister gave me.  I have also cleaned up the living room, and emptied and refilled the dishwasher today, along with some work in my basement room.  It has gotten out of control again and I really need it back in order.  Today I also spent $1.99 plus tax on a burger king happy meal.  I didn't realize that they are competing with the McDonald's in the areas for this deal on Wed and I think it also said on Sundays.  I need to think more about finding snacks for me and my kids, so I don't end up eating out all the time once I start my class on friday.  One healthy thing I did today was walk to my daughter's school and back.  It wasn't too bad even though it was a hot day.  My four year old thought it was pretty far, but we did make it on time before the bell rang.

Progress and Juice Diet

So this week has been busy, and I'm sure next week will be too.  It seems like a lot is going on next weekend in my town and I won't even be here.  Yesterday I went to Costco and stuck to the plan except I bought some apples since my sister requested them and I buy her food to watch my kids two days a week.  I ended up spending $45.94. Not too bad.  Next I went to the mall to get my wedding ring checked, and my daughter talked about how she had never had chocolate dipped strawberries.  We passed by Godiva and they had them in their display so I splurged and got them.  5 for $10 plus $.60 tax.  Ouch.  Next stop Target to get mouthwash and more cotton candy for the ugly cake which cost $4.76.  Not too bad.  After the fair we stopped and bought a juicer for $83.94 ( I'll explain this), and also my husband was sad that ice cream in our freezer melted so I bought sonic for $8.15.  If I wouldn't have really thought about this I would have said I spent about $80 to $100 today.

Total for Saturday: $153.39, yeah this is more of my typical weekend routine of spending money.  So my total spending for last week was $262.16.  Over $151.86 for the three weeks.  That is a lot and I'm not sure if I'll be able to make that up.

I might have to rethink my strategy.  They other day I watched Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead.  It was an Australian guy with an Australian juicer going around just drinking juice.  He lost weight and helped get himself  off medication.  He also had a few others try it and got them hooked on it too.  Now I like drinks so I thought "What an idea".  I'm not sure how it really works but I also found this website: Juicer Recipes.  The movie also has a Facebook page and a website to help you get started on juicing.  The whole problem is they said it cost $14 a day.  For us that could be times 2, plus I don't plan on putting my kids on this diet or giving them crap, easy food while we do it, so I'm not sure how  this will work out.  My plan for now is to start with food to help clear my skin, then do a two week detox, and then repeat again in 3 months.  I'm not sure what my husband plans to do, but he wants to lose weight.  If you don't want to invest in a juicer there is also this website: Green Monster Movement.

So I need a new plan.  I think this week I will just keep blogging about what I am spending.  It is my daughter's birthday so I want to buy her gifts and also it is my nephew's birthday and I still need to get him gifts.  I'm also still in need of 5 more window treatments and decorative hardware.  I think I will keep dwelling on these things till I buy them.  I have been doing well on my saving money on the side so I do feel good about that aspect of life.  Maybe by next week I'll have a good plan.

Anyone Can Shop Aldi

I couldn't resist snapping a shot of a Hummer in the Aldi's parking lot.

So I haven't posted for a few days but here is an update on what I've been spending.

Tuesday I went to the Party store to get table clothes for my daughters 4-H group and I ended up also buying the costume that my son has been wanting.  I ended up spending $24.84. My mom is making some curtains for my daughter's room, so I bought decorative curtain rods for $10.18.  I stopped at the gas station while we were out and I had a $.69 freezy drink and my daughter got an expensive shake for about $2.50, and our total was $3.23.  I also went to the grocery store and spent $10.20 on pork steak and 2 gallons of juice.  

Through out the work week I also spent another $4 at the vending machines.

Today I went to Aldi Foods:

12pk cherry cola $2.69 plus $.60 deposit

crescent rolls 2 @ $1.49 each or $2.98

skim milk $2.79

large eggs $1.19

trail mix 4 @ $.49 each or $1.96

taco mix $.39

baby carrots $1.19

meat stick $.89

ingredients to help make an ugly cake (pictures to follow Sunday):

starburst $2.25

werthers original $1.99

starlite mints $.99

chocolate frosting $1.29

Fudge brownie mix 2 @ $1.29 each or $2.58

Total with tax $25.73

Total for the week is $107.77.  Wow, more than I thought it would be when added.  I did have $39.30 in overage from the last two weeks so I would have $109.30 to spend this week if I add that in so I'm not over in these 3 weeks.  I still plan on going to Costco because I really need toilet paper, and I really hope they have the Kirkland frappuccino because they have been out for weeks.  I also need to buy Tampax and Always pads, and I hope I can resist everything else.  I would like to buy some cheerios and yogurt but I think I could get both of them cheaper.  Tomorrow will also be a busy day so I'm not sure how it will work, but I hope to keep the cost low there too.

Pottery Barn Remake

I've had my eye on one of these backpacks since we went to one of the National Geographic events at the store. My son loves superheros of any kinds (remember this post). The price for the small backpack is $39.50 and the measurements are 12" wide x 6" deep x 15" high. I have been waiting months for it to go on sale. I contemplated making a registry and then buying something small to get a coupon, but that doesn't seem to be very economical and I will end up with something I don't need to save some money.  So my second thought is to make my own Batman Backpack.  I can buy one at JCPenney's.

This one is on sale for $29.99, orginally $40.  It is 16¾x13x8½".   If I wait for another $10 off of $25 coupon or use a $10 reward coupon, it would be $19.99.  Or I could wait for an even better sale but I don't think these will go too low before school starts.  Amazon also has them for $22.99 if I can find something to make the shipping free.  I figure I could get a black or grey one.  Then I will go to ebay and purchase a patch.

It has to be at least 2" tall by 3-3/8" wide to cover the Jansport logo.  The one I found would be $3.50 with free shipping and be 3.5" x 2".  So the total if I can get the backpack for $19.99 would be $23.49.