Struggle

I know, I know, it's been forever! I'll admit, going from one child to two was a bit of a challenge for me. Add to that moving twice and a husband starting a graduate program, and I let a few things slide. This blog was obviously one of them. During that time I've also been struggling with what I want this blog to be. I feel like it started going in a direction I wasn't too sure I wanted it to go. Finances. While finances are definitely a huge part of family relationships, they are not the only part. I want this blog to be about all things that strengthen our families. So I am still on a search of how to adequately do that while devoting the time to my family they need. I'm not making any promises, but hopefully there will be more frequent posts from here on out. Perhaps a blog makeover as well. Slowly but surely I'm hoping to get this back to where I envisioned it going in the first place.

For tonight, here's a quote for you that I've been pondering lately. It comes from a book that I would highly recommend, As A Man Thinketh. It is by James Allen and not a long book. But, it is so full of thought provoking insight into life that it takes me longer to read than other books of it's length.

"A noble and Godlike character is not a thing of favor or chance, but is the natural result of continued effort in right thinking, the effect of long-cherished association with Godlike thoughts."

It is true that our thoughts determine our character and our actions. I love this idea also because it serves as a reminder that anything worth achieving takes effort, sometimes more effort than we may feel we posses, and consistency. It applies to all good things, but I've been thinking about it lately in relation to motherhood.

I loved school and would love to go on and get an advanced degree. I would love to get a job where I feel like I'm contributing to society. There is something so exhilarating about achieving measurable goals. There is something so attractive to me about those kinds of goals. But, I am a mother. I was taught, and do believe, that a mother is necessary in the home. There are many women who juggle school (I've done it), or work while raising children. Some do it out of necessity. As much as I would like to be one of those women, I cannot. I personally cannot do those things and be the mother I need to be to my children.

And for that reason motherhood has been, at times, a struggle for me. I'm sure I'm not the first :) Sometimes I find it hard to feel fulfilled or to feel like I'm achieving goals. Motherhood requires the development of 'a noble and Godlike character' which can appear a daunting task. However, this thought (and all of those in the book) remind me that my thoughts, determine my happiness. No matter what my stage in life, single, married, student, working, retired, aunt, mother, or any combination, I determine my own happiness through the way in which I think about life because the way I think about life is the way I will live my life.

I loved this book and I'm pretty sure you will too. If you've read it let me know what you thought, if you haven't, I would highly recommend getting it because it's one of those that you may want to read over and over.

Another Freebie

I love anything free, of course, but especially something like, The Essential Baker: The Comprehensive Guide to Baking with Chocolate, Fruit, Nuts, Spices, and Other Ingredients. Yum, it looks delicious and I hope to win it, but I thought I would give you all the opportunity as well :)

Go here to see the details of the giveaway and be sure to check out their website as well. In their own words, they are,

"two friends (a linguist and a photographer) living, working, and more importantly, eating and cooking. This blog will be dedicated to our experiments, successful and otherwise, cooking and baking anything from appetizers to desserts and everything in between. Look here for a plethora of delicious recipes! They are easy to make and really yummy!"

And it's true, they really are easy and yummy! So check it out and good luck. If you win I would love to hear about it!

Udder Covers

Udder Covers is doing another promotional deal. Go here and click on the pictures to shop, then enter the promo code: onefree

I guess it is boy season because there is only pink left in stock!

Another Reason to Love Target

*Image courtesy of: http://www.nisk.k12.ny.us/va/images/target_logo.jpg

As we learned from this post, couponing is most beneficial when you can double or even triple coupons. Where we live most grocery stores do not do double coupons. It is very sad, but I've come to accept it and to realize that I just have to look that much harder for deals. Thanks to another coupon website, I discovered that Target does it's own set of coupons and will accept manufacturer's coupons in addition to the Target coupons. As if I need another reason to go to Target... but this is a big one. I'm just starting to get back into the swing of couponing and grocery shopping again since we had our baby. Well, the other night we got 2 boxes of Ritz crackers and 2 bottles of Kraft salad dressings at Target for $2. We were planning on getting more things (since it was the last day we could use the Target coupons), however we had a tired toddler and a hungry newborn, which was definitely not a good combination!

If you go to the Coupons link and the Target coupons link (both posted on the right side of this page) you can see which coupons both sites are offering and then you too will have another reason to go to Target.

Looking Spiffy

(Image courtesy: http://stanthonysf.files.wordpress.com/2008/05/clothes.jpg)

In going through my closet to see what I should keep or discard I realized, once again, I am a very sentimental person. I have a hard time getting rid of things, even clothes, that have a history. I had to accept the fact, with some of the pieces, that they would never be worn again and should therefore be tossed. But, for those harder to toss pieces here are a few ideas for holding onto them just a little bit longer.

This gives some suggestions for reviving the look of worn clothing. There were several good ones, such as changing the length of shirt sleeves or skirt lengths for more modern looks, and having shoes dyed to their original color (or I would suggest a different color too if the current one no longer goes with anything in your wardrobe). Something that I have loved owning is a fabric shaver. I had never heard of such a thing until my dad bought one for us and said it was a must have for every closet. I dare say that he is correct. It certainly revives the look of sweaters that look past their prime due to fuzz.

This article deals strictly with tailoring clothes to get more wear out of them. I liked several of the ideas. Cropping jackets, extending skirts, shortening cardigan sleeves (while using the original cuff) and changing the collar of blouses are just a few that I thought I might actually do.

Another idea (that comes from my sister) for hanging onto the memories without hanging onto the clothing is to cut up the clothes and make a quilt. For a year and a half I served a mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I will likely not wear those clothes again, but just seeing them brings back so many memories of amazing people and experiences. No matter what the period of life the clothes come from, making a quilt seems like a great way to preserve the clothes (and relive the memories) without taking up space in the closet.

I think the key is to be creative and think outside the box. If you really love an article of clothing and want to hang on to it, or if you're feeling the need to pinch your pennies but want a new look, then try to look at your clothes differently and you might be surprise at what comes forth!

Donate, Ditch, or Sell

(This picture was taken when we broke down while moving across the country - we had a 16 month old and had to wait 6 hours. Lots of fun!)

We have moved a lot in our married life (8 times to be exact) and moved most recently 3 weeks ago. We have been pretty good about not taking junk with us whenever we move but lately we have had the overwhelming urge to simplify our lives by living with only the things we need. So when I read what Sally Allen, owner of A Place for Everything (an organizing service in Golden, Colorado) said in this article, "Chances are, you use only 20 percent of your stuff regularly." it really got me thinking. We decided to test her statement and we have not unpacked all of our boxes in an effort to see what else we can live without. So far, we haven't missed anything. In August our plan is to go through the unpacked boxes and to donate, ditch or sell whatever we don't need and to put in storage those things that will come in handy later in life.

This article helped me feel better about making decisions for what to donate, toss, or try to sell. One thing I learned was that you can email thecdexchange a list of the CD's and DVD's you are trying to part with and they will email back what price (or in store credit) they are willing to offer you. Then you mail them the merchandise and they mail you a check. The whole process is safe (they have Better Business Bureau approval), quick, and easy.

This article was especially useful in recognizing how to organize your existing space, to get rid of clutter, and how to decide what should be tossed.

I thought Vicki Norris (president of Restoring Order, organizing company in Portland Oregon) gave sound advice in the article when she said, "Walk through your house with a pen and a notebook, writing down the activities that take place in each room and the items associated with those activities. "Then 'purpose' your space." I love the idea of each room having a purpose or a theme (or multiple which seems more likely with kids). I think that would help me a lot even in the buying process. If it doesn't fit into a room, it seems less likely I would buy it.

My goal is to someday have a house where everything has a purpose and a place. Hopefully I can teach my kids the same principle for their bedrooms - wish me luck!

New

We've been otherwise detained moving into a new house and having a baby. Good times! This coming week should find new posts. Probably with an organization/decluttering theme. It's good to be back and we'll see you soon!