Happenings in this House

That's it folks :-)  Yep, it has been a busy week and the camera did not come out much.  Don't you just love our dog?  She needs two pillows for her head, apparently!!! 

So what has kept us busy?  My husband started his new job on Thursday - something we did not plan for at all.  We had thought he might start this coming Monday but when he went to orientation on Wednesday they wanted him to start training on Thursday.  He is working for S. Abraham and Sons - which delivers wholesale grocery items to gas stations and convenience stores.  So far he really is enjoying the work and has liked the people that are training him (which is a plus since you ride together for 10-14 hours!).  This is a job that starts early though - right now he is getting up by about 2:15 so that he can be ready to leave on route by 3:45.  The 50 minutes commute makes that a little rough but he just goes to bed early (so no one call us after 8:00!!! ha!) So far that is the one big adjustment.  We don't know yet what his "route" will be - but when he was hired he was told that he would be going to Chicago and into Wisconsin so he would be gone overnight.  Until he is done training we really won't know what he will normally have to do - but for now, we are getting used to a new "normal" which includes him being home on the weekends. 

I hope each of you had a wonderful week too :-)  We have some fun things planned this next week so there should be more pictures!

Creative Memory Spotlight! (And the winner announced!!)

Lets take care of business first!  The winner of teh great scrapbooking packet is:

The person who made the 8th comment is : Boxingchris - who said:

"This would be an awesome win! I would use it to to scrap book our fun with my niece and nephew coming to visit from CA for 2 weeks this summer!"

So - I just need to know where to send this wonderful giveaway :-)  Let me know within the next 48 hours otherwise . . . I'll pick a new winner on Monday. 

And, for those of you that would like to shop  . ..

Mother's day is coming up quickly so I wanted to share a couple of ideas that you can put together for your mother or have your kids do for grandma! 


First, Simply Said Mom Book - She's given you the best gifts ever; life, faith, security, wisdom... It's time to give back and tell her how you feel.

Make it simple. Make it matter. A Simply Said Book is a fantastically quick way to share your hopes, sentiments and memories with someone you love. We give you the format to fill in the blanks with your photos and feelings to create a unique tribute. Its love and honor in under an hour.

This book retails for $15.00


Another version of this book comes from Nancy O'dell - Help a child give a gift Mom will love forever. Simple, insightful questions open up adorable possibilities. "What does your Mommy do while you are at school?" Let's all find out.

Make it simple. Make it matter. A Simply Said Book is a fantastically quick way to share your hopes, sentiments and memories with someone you love. We give you the format to fill in the blanks with your photos and feelings to create a unique tribute. Its love and honor in under an hour.

This book retails for $17.00. 

Aren't these great?  Make sure and get yours ordered soon so you have time to get it created before Mother's day.  These would also make a very creative Birthday Gift or even a Christmas Gift. 

To see these items and others - just check out my Website!

I greatly appreciate any orders that you send my way - so please pass this on to all of your friends, family and co-workers!

Show us your life Fridays - What are you Reading!

Over at Kelly's Korner, Kelly is hosting her weekly "Show us your Life" Friday post!  I haven't been doing these for various reasons ( or I just forget) but the topic of today is about what you are reading!  I love to read so of course I want to share.  I'm actually not reading as many books at once as I usually do - I often have up to 5 books going at a time (different books for different times of the day!!) but have wrapped a few up recently.  I'll share those and what I'm picking up next to read too.

So, first, I've shared a lot about this book lately including Wednesday Devotionals (catch up here!) - The Power of  a Positive Mom is a really great book that is built a few basic principles of how to be "that positive mom".  I've already taken away some core ideas from just the first few chapters.  It isn't about being "Super mom" but just helping you be the best you can be. This is the book I am currently using for my Bible Study.  It has a section at the end of each chapter with some verses to read as well as a challenge that coincides with that lesson.

For "fun" I just finished reading Falconer's Quest by T Davis Bunn.  It is book 5, the final book in the series "Heirs of Acadia".  It is a really well written series that focus' first on the life of the Langston family before introducing John Falconer.  Their lives intertwine throughout the series even as new characters are introduced.  Falconer's journey from becoming a believer through his trials and griefs to learning of real forgiveness and acceptance is told in an exciting tale.  I enjoy the way T Davis Bunn writes and was not disappointed.  This is a series I've read several times and always enjoy it.

In trying to accomplish some reading goals this year, I also have books I'm reading each month.  Right now I'm in the middle of "Falling Forward" by Sandi Patty.  If you were to ask me why I picked this pick it would be for one reason - I'm a huge Sandi Patty fan and always have been even through her tough years.  This book addresses those struggles she had but in a way that shows others how to be warned and be wary of things in their own lives.  I'm impressed with her honesty and openness about her life as well as her teaching.  I tend to read this book right before bed when there aren't as many distractions around so I can really think about what she is teaching in her writing.

Since I just finished my "fun" series I decided to pick from my book goal stack and read "Duggars: 20 and counting".  I'm intrigued by this family and just want to learn more about them.  I enjoy their show and am always impressed by the fact that they don't hide the spiritual things from the camera - they pray, talk about God, and talk about their daily faith.  I also want to learn her secrets on how she is raising such great kids :-)  So, this will be what I read at lunch time now and when I just feel like kicking back for a little bit during the little boys nap time.

Finally, my "no brainer" book right now is another Davis Bunn book called "All through the Night".  I've read this one before as well and remember it being a very good read - it is another story based upon forgiveness. 

I'm looking forward to seeing what others post for this today - I'm always looking for new books to add to my "want to read" list!

Creative Memories Giveaway - It's almost over!

Just wanted to remind you that the giveaway for:

ends Friday night at midnight!!!!!


Click HERE to enter!!

Tator Tot Casserole

This is one of those super simple, kid friendly recipes.  A good friend of mine told me about it because it is his favorite recipe so I decided to try it.  Little did I know that this was one of those recipes that Darryl also loved.  I'll be honest, it isn't my favorite meal but both the boys love it also so how can I not make it? 

Ingredients:
2 pounds ground beef
1 can cream of chicken soup
8 slices of cheese (the kind that comes in the little wrappers for sandwiches . . .. )
1 bag of frozen Tatar tots

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Cook the ground beef and drain.  Mix in the cream of chicken soup.  Spread in the bottom of a greased 9 x 13 pan.  Lay the slices of cheese on top of the meat.  Cover with the bag of Tatar Tots.  Cook for about 25-30 minutes or until the Tatar Tots are browned and cooked through.  (I've found that sometimes I need to cook this longer; the Tatar tots seem to need a little longer to really brown.)

I often cut this recipe in half and make it in an 8x8 pan instead.  I find that it is more than enough to feed the four of us along with a vegetable and sometimes a salad.

Today I'm linking up over at:


and

Scentsy!!!

I always say that I'm the most unlucky person ever but . . .well .. recently I won the giveaway hosted by Jen over at Craftomaniac.  What did I win??? A $25.00 gift certificate for Scensty Products from
Jennifer Moffat.  I've heard about this product for several years but, as of yet, haven't been to a party or even tried anything out.  One of the bonus' of this product is that there is no flame - it is a flameless candle.  People that have talked about Scentsy always talk about the smell and how fantastic they all smell.  Well I picked up the following flavors:

I've already used "Sharp Dressed Man" and it smells exactly like that - I have it in my bathroom and it is perfect.  It reminds me of . . .my husband!  It isn't too woodsy or anything like that but smells clean.  In my kitchen I have Hazelnut Latte - and it is incredible.  I love that smell!  I haven't tried Coconut Lemongrass as of yet but I'm sure it is going to be just as good!!

I picked up to different Scentsy units.  First, I picked up the full size unit which I have in the bathroom. 

I only had the online catalog to look at and I was very happy when I opened the box and found this item to be even prettier than it looked online.  They are easy to "assemble" and easy to use.  It is probably bigger than what I need for the bathroom but it was part of a really good deal :-) 

I also picked up a "plug-in" warmer as well.

This little cute thing is plugged into an outlet in my kitchen.  It is THE perfect item for the kitchen without a doubt.  I love that I can switch out the flavor so easily and it lasts as long, if not longer, than those little packets you slide into the store bought plug-ins.  The only thing I would say is that you want to place this somewhere where little fingers (or big knees) won't hit it since it has the melted wax on top. 

I'm extremely happy with this product though and I will be putting a small amount in the budget to be able to pick up some more melts to use. 

If you like what you see, make sure and check out Jennifer's website!  She was wonderful to work with and I got my product less than one week after I placed my order so all around customer service is awesome!

Our Favorite Toys - a biased Review

I normally post about our Mommy School time on Thursdays but . . we haven't done a whole lot lately.  My printer is dying so I can't anything that needs to be "nice" and we've played outside some instead.  So, instead, I thought I would share a few of our favorite toys. 

1) Leapfrog Learn and Groove Musical Table - this was a toy that Josh received his first Christmas and it STILL gets use daily by both boys. The legs come off so even the tummy babies can enjoy it on the floor.  Once they are able to stand, it is great for the little ones to stand next to and play.  Each side has different sound effects making it very entertaining for all ages.  This toy is going on 2 full years of playtime with more in the future; it is a toy I would recommend anyone getting!  The little munchkin I babysit also LOVES this so I know it is a pretty universal toy :-)

2. Playskool Busy Basics Step Start Walk 'n Ride - This is a toy that we received as a shower gift and it has been another huge hit.  Josh didn't crawl until almost 10 months but, he would sit on this little car and ride it all over the place.  I had put it away once he was walking alot but took it back out for Nate.  Amazingly, Josh got right back on it and it is still one of his favorite toys.  Both boys love it and I can see it being a toy that is used for quite awhile longer.  I will say that we never used it as a "walker" - it seemed a little unstable and Josh kept tripping on it.  As a car, it is fantastic!



3) VTech Musical Bubbles Octopus - If you are looking for a bath toy - this is it!  It suctions to the bathroom wall and takes ordinary bubbles.  Turn the thing on and the bathtub fills with bubbles while the music plays.  Both of the boys love this thing!  One word of advice - make sure you put good batteries in it or the motor doesn't move enough to make bubbles.  (We thought it wasn't working well and THAN put new batteries in it - the bubbles came out in the zillions :-) )

4. B. Parum Pum Pum Drum - Yes, we love music.  This drum is fantastic and it comes with such adorable noise makers.  I love that the drum has a neck strap so the kids can carry it and play it at the same time.  There are enough instruments that the whole family can play together.

5. B. Meawsic Keyboard - Again, music is big in our home and this keyboard is just fun.  We got it for Josh to replace one I had picked up at a garage sale that had quit working.  This was the closest thing I could find and both boys absolutely love playing with it.  The little microphone is fun too :-)

6. The Sesame Street Letter Bus - This is a weird one to put on here because, really, this toy drove me nuts at first!!  BUT the reason I'm listing this here is because it will help teach your kids their letters and, well, it really is fun!

Do your kids have favorite toys?  I'm sure they do!  I could also list things like Thomas the Train, Matchbox cars, and car in general but . . .those are just normal :-)  . . .well, at least in this house full of boys!

Please note - these are my personal preferences; that's it.  No one is paying me to do this!! :-)