New Year Blessings!!

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Goal Setting Sunday

Finished all my sewing last week in time for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day :) The only thing I did not get done, because we had to go shopping late Christmas Eve, was to make Santa some cookies. But, that worked out because our neighbor blessed us with some wonderful treats early that day and they were perfect for Santa! He had a small plate full of treats to enjoy that night!

This week's goal is to get some deep cleaning done. Im not exactly sure why it happens, but in the main bathroom, the baseboards get very dusty-then, of course, with showers and baths, the steam turns the dust into dirt-ewww! So, I plan to make that my first task. Not a big one, and they are not totally disgusting, but I want them done :) Another chore will be to go around and clean all the windows and the frames around those windows. They really sweat in this cold weather, so they need to be wiped down. This is something I was doing once a week, but with Christmas coming, they got put behind. So, I need to really get in and wipe each one down nicely.
I also want to wash my mini blinds-this will be the last thing I do, but this week we have a couple days where the weather will be sort of warm. So, I am hoping to get out the hose and spray the blinds down and let them dry outside. They were dusty--actually-filthy--when we moved in and I have tried everything else to get them clean. I believe the people before us smoked in the house, I can sometimes smell old smoke in the closets-ugh! They smell awful and that is another thing I need to do-figure out some way to make my closets smell better-lol!. Anyway, I think the residue on the blinds are from not only dust, but cigarrette smoke :( I have tried cleaning them, but I think they just need a good outside scrub and spray! We have long vertical blinds hanging over our sliding glass door, which I was able to easily wipe down with rubbing alcohol, but it didn't work as easily with the mini blinds....I will try to post a before and after pic of these :)

Have a great week everyone!! Be blessed and enjoy the rest between now and New Years!

Reasors and Food Pyramid Sales

I thought I might start listing some good deals I find at Reasor's and Food Pyramid. These are two local stores around the Tulsa area. Of course, these stores are in other areas as well, but these ads will reflect the sales within my area :)
Right now, Reasors has a small ad due to Christmas. I believe their new ad comes out on the 31st. The best deal they have this week is Best Choice chunk cheese, assorted varieties-8 oz, 2/$3. I usually buy the 2lb bag of shredded at Walmart for a bit over $7. It is the best deal I can find without a sale in either shredded or chunk cheeses. But, when there is a sale, like above, I buy it instead ;)

Food Pyramid has a lot going on it seems:
Ground Chuck-$1.59/lb
Hiland sour cream or dips-$.69 for 8oz
Fresh Avocado-$.39 each
Chex Mix or Bugles-7.5-8.75 oz -2/$3 (could save more with a coupon-double coupons up to 50 cents)
Ole South Roll Sausage or Links- $.79 6.4 oz-16 oz
Fresh Baked French Bread-$.69 each--we love to use these for subs :)

And of course, there are other sales :0) These are just things that caught my eye and I know are good prices for these ads. Here is a link to Reasors http://www.reasors.com/ and a link to Food Pyramid http://www.mypyramidonline.com/ads.php

Picture of Jess...

With Jess :) Here is that shirt, on Jess, that I made and forgot to take a pic of before wrapping it. I had some happy little (and big) girls on Christmas over their American Girl items I made for them and that made me happy :) Katy was happy how well the cape fit Felicity. That made me feel good since I didn't really think at her age, she would get too excited over something like that anymore-lol!

The pants I made Josh worked out great! I had to make them using some other jammie pants since the pattern I had was too small for him. I went on a wing and a prayer with those but they turned out terrific! I thought they would be too big, but they are almost perfect, with a little growing room! YAY! I was unable to find him a shirt at Walmart when I went on Christmas Eve-could not believe I could not find a single long sleeved t-shirt or sweatshirt in his size--ugh! I will look after the Christmas crazies are over :)
Hope everyone had a blessed Christmas!

Rayovac Coupons

A couple weeks ago, I listed a link for what I thought was a great deal on Rayovac batteries...ugh! I guess the coupon changed from what the original posters had. They were able to get free packs of batteries...if you go to Walmart, or even Target, from what I have seen, the deals are not that great :( The Rayovacs that are about 94 cents at my Walmart are not alkaline, which is what you need to buy in order to use that coupon. And, at Target, in teh $1 Spot, they do have the alkaline batteries, but in 2 packs for AA or AAA and you have to buy 4 packs in order to use these :/

Of course, you can always buy a 4 pk of alkalines and still save a nice buck-and I think-'think'- these might last longer than the 94 cent ones, but I have never tested it, so don't count on that to be true-lol!

Sorry about the misinformation :( I was pretty bummed myself-I love a great deal and love passing them along, sorry this one didn't work out!

Done with sewing--I hope!

I finished the pajama pants for Josh yesterday afternoon. I didn't have enough material for a shirt, but hope to find a nice black or red long sleeved t-shirt as a substitute--plus, I think it will feel nicer under his robe made of fleece he got last month....

And, here is Levi's stocking :) Not very "Christmas-y" but, since he loves anything that has to do with cars, he is going to love it!

Have a blessed day today and have a very blessed Christmas Everyone!!

Bad Blogger! Bad!!

I know I promised a pic of the AG shirt I made, but I wrapped it-lol! I will post a pic, perhaps with the intended doll wearing it (and the hopefully happy little girl holding the doll ;)

Caring Bridge

I received an email about this little girl this morning: Hannah
She is a very sick little girl and is asking for cards for Christmas. Read under Our Story and look through her dad's journal. I am sure you can find more info on her through a websearch, but this has been verified through Snopes.com as well. Please, if you can, it doesn't take much, send her a quick Christmas Card.
In her journal is where you can find one address listed by her dad.

Goal Setting Sunday

As I have shown all week long, I have been working feverishly on my sewing projects. Yesterday, I sat down to make that AG shirt--I modified a pattern that was originally for an AG coat-instead of cutting two separate pieces, I just put the edge of the pattern on a fold, as you would do for any regular pull on shirt, and cut it out. Guess what? It wouldn't go over the doll's head when I tried it. Thankfully, I had not sewn the whole thing or I would have been upset. But, I had attached the hood-sort of making a hoodie shirt. SO, I snipped a bit in the front, down the center, adjusted the hood a bit in the front and sewed that all up. Well, that made the front of the shirt low cut....Jess, the American girl would not like cold air on her chest in the winter, so I had to fix that! A bit of ribbon and ...voila!




I will post a pic later on since it is still dark here and our old doggie is in the playroom keeping warm and I don't feel like battling her-she may be old, but sure is strong and even more head strong-lol!
 
My goal this week is pretty much the same as last week's. I still need to sew a stocking and perhaps a nightgown for one of my kids. I also have to prepare for Christmas dinner, as well as still do some Christmas shopping and it looks like most of this will all be done on Christmas Eve-not to mention wrapping gifts. So pray for me for strength and peace to get through this week. It's all pretty much up to me, so Im freaking out a bit-lol!

More American Girl items done :)

Just wanted to share what I did this morning-ohhh-it's after 1 now, so I guess this morning and part of the afternoon-lol! I did start the dishwasher and helped kids with school work, so I wasn't sewing ALL morning :)
This is Felicity's cape. I think it turned out wonderfully! After I took this pic, I added an embroidered trim around the edges and it really makes the cape much nicer!

Kaya is modeling :)

Here is Kaya again-though not the Kaya who is to receive the actual winter coat and mittens--it HAS to be a surprise!

There is a bit a variation in the material, but I figure it adds to the 'reality' of what would have been really worn in Kaya's time-they would have not have perfection in their furs :) Stretching it a bit? Yea, probably :P

But, Im proud of myself-since we could not afford AG clothes this year, this was the next best choice and I think I did pretty well-no, they are not perfect, but my girls will be happy I think. I still have to make a shirt for the jeans, which I am going to cut out now-I think. My back is hurting, so it might wait for later :0 Have a blessed day everyone!

American Girl creation pics

Oh yea-got the camera to work!! So, I took a couple pics of what I have done so far. I made some mittens for Kaya yesterday and got started on a wrap (though the 'rabbit' I am using may not have enough fur for me-hey! It's a stuffed play rabbit-not real. but I figured it Kaya has a 'rabbit' fur wrap, I should stay as close to the original as possible ;)
So, here are the mittens and the jeans I made the other day. Im still trying to decide on the shirt for the jeans-or the material I want to use, I should say. Oh, and I forgot to get the pajamas, but will add a pic of those next time. I must say, if I make another pair of mittens, I will add some 'fur' to the mittens on the ends before sewing the two mitten sides together. I was too lazy and have too much sewing to get done to do that now-plus, I don't think I have enough bunny 'fur' to do it :)

Stupid batteries--and American Girl Clothes

Ugh! I went to take a pic of some Am. Girl jeans I made the other day and my camera won't work due to those rechargeable batteries not working :( :::grumble grumble:::  I am thinking I need to ask Santa for some new ones...

Anyway, I finished the nightgown for the Am. Girl and went ahead and made jeans. I recycled some old panties (they were clean) to use for the elastic in the doll jean's waistband-it worked amazingly! I used the elastic from one of the legs, but I imagine the waist elastic would work just as well! I need to make a shirt and I think Jess, the Am. Girl will be happy and stylin' for atleast a little while!

Now, I need to figure out an outfit to make for Kaya-he is tired of her same ol' dress. She needs a new one. I don't have a pattern for this-perhaps I can use the dress she has on as a pattern, but then I need to find material for it. I don't have any good material that looks like something Kaya would wear...and time is closing in on me before Christmas! I also have to make a stocking for the child who's name I drew on the 1st day of Advent...ok, Im stressing out a bit :)

Swagbucks-search & win

I have been using Swagbucks a few months now. It did not take me long to build up points to redeem for prizes. I use it often to search for things online-no, not every time I need something, but for most searches. I have been able to get 3 $5 gift cards to Amazon.com. Two of those I used to download a cd my girls want for Christmas. The other is waiting to be spent :) Of course, you can let these points just add on up, which is what my plan for the coming year will be. I will save the points here and the money I get in my PayPal account for Christmas next year. Im hoping it will be quite a bit. I think that along with places like Ebates.com, I can get some pretty good deals and perhaps earn cash back at the same time ;) Anyway, check it out. I do get points along with you when you sign up under my name, but, when you invite folks to join under your referral number, you get their points :) So, it keeps on giving ;)

Goal Setting Saturday-umm-let's change this to Sunday :P

I enjoyed a week of no goals! It was lovely! We did school work, but we spent three of those days making cookies :) FUN!! Well, we did not spend all day making cookies-no way-my waistline would not handle that! But, we made a different batch each of the three days and one batch was for a Christmas party on Friday. I still did my regular chores and my kids have been pretty good at keeping my kitchen clean for some reason-perhaps one of those kids drew my name at the start of Advent?

Im going to change this to Goal Setting Sunday-why, you ask? Oh, I know it's obvious :) I seem to get my goals done by Saturday and set a new one on Sunday. Mostly due to the fact that dh is off Sundays and Mondays, so I try to be sure most of my work is done by Saturday so I can spend his days off pretty much chore free (other than dishes or a load of laundry that magically appeared on my laundry room floor ;)

This week is to finish that silly little Am. Girl nightgown and perhaps find enough material to make Jess a nightgown for Christmas Eve. I also need to find some material to make Levi a stocking-I drew his name and he only has his small baby stocking. He loves it, but I would like to make him one a bit bigger that he can treasure ;) I hope to find some car material and use some extra flannel I have -car material for the top of the stocking and the flannel for the bottom, foot part.

So pray it stays warm enough in the playroom so I can do this. For some reason, it doesn't heat well in there, and that is fine, except when you need good blood flow in your hands for sewing-lol!

Goal Setting Saturday

Well, I met one goal this week-almost. We have been fighting a nasty virus here-started before Thanksgiving with one of my kids and has gradually hit each of us. Im still feeling full of snot in my head-lol-and it is not fun!

But, I did get to work on one gift for one of my kids-I was able to get most of a nightgown for an American Girl. I will post a pic as soon as I can wrestle my rechargeable batteries from my hubby who is using them in his flashlight :) Did I mention I found the batteries, after thinking they had been thrown away? Yup :) Then, DH took them -oh sigh-

I think this week I am going to take it easy-perhaps work on more sewing, but I need to just heal from this cold and not worry about sewing, cleaning, etc... we will do school work and the everyday chores. Hopefully I will be back to a new challange next week :)

Some great deals with printable coupons

You can always count on some amazing bloggers to give great deals online-and also, to share deals with coupons. Right now, you can save $1 on Ray-O-Vac batteries-which means free or almost free. I believe these are about 94 cents at Walmart, though I have heard they are also $1 at Target in their $1 section :)
Get Your Rayovac Coupon here

Next really terrific deal are some Goody Ouchless coupons-save $2 on one packet. At my Walmart, these are about $2.12 or more. I bought 2 packs of the cheapest and paid 12 cents per pack. You can use these as stocking stuffers. Or if you know of a place taking donations-how great would these be for teens?! And for only 12 cents-you can beat that :)
Goody Coupon

Arby's Extras-yes, go to this site-Arby's Extras -Join up and get a coupon for a free minty shake-yum! Im going to get dh to sign up so we  have a quick date night sometime soon ;)

Johnsons Buddies Soaps-Use this coupon-Here- to print off $3 off 3 items...then use it to buy some Buddies Soaps which are right around $1 each. You can get them for free-or almost ;) Another neat little stocking stuffer for the lil ones or perhaps a good donation to a food pantry that might even hand out personal care items!

Check out the blogs on the right to find other great coupon offers.

Advent Ideas

Every year, we celebrate Advent. This year, it started yesterday, November 30th. We celebrate this a couple of different ways. The big one is our Advent Chain made from paper strips. On each strip is a different activity for the day-for instance, yesterday's activity (and this is always our 1st activity) was to put up the Christmas Tree and draw family names. The other way we celebrate Advent is "What God Wants For Christmas"-a neat interactive nativity-very sweet and really puts meaning into this busy time of year when we might otherwise forget what the ultimate gift is!
Here is a link to learn more about the game:
http://www2.familylife.com/wgwfc/

We also carry on a tradition I grew up with-every year my mom would buy me an Advent Calendar with chocolate inside. This is one tradition my kids and now, my hubby, look forward to every year! My husband is famous for saving up his chocolate and torturing the kids as he opens each one and eats them-of course, then he shares too, which is nice ;)

Here are some sites I like to visit to get ideas for our chain-the first one is more for adults with Christmas money saving ideas, recipes, etc..
Cindy's Porch: Advent Calendar

Promo From Home School in the Woods

http://www.dltk-holidays.com/xmas/advent.html

http://homeschooling.about.com/cs/unitssubjhol/a/advent125.htm

http://www.teachingmom.com/features/advent.html (this is from 2007-has not been updated, but you can still get some wonderful ideas and there are lots of links to many other sites with more ideas or activities :)

Have a blessed and wonderful time this year celebrating the birth of our Saviour!!