My "Going Out" Child Kit......

Yesterday, I went out to begin my Christmas shopping. I like to complete my shopping in what I call 3 rounds to keep things organized and less stressful for me. Which is as follows:

1st Round-Extended family & Pollyannas
2nd Round-Daughter
3rd Round-Husband

During these times, I have my 3 year old daughter with me. As we moms know, running errands, especially 4 hour long ones, can be even more draining if we have a crying or whiny child to care for as well.

To prevent against that, I always have a child kit. What is that you say, just a few things I have in a bag that I put in the back seat of the car in case my daughter starts to become restless or bored.

My kit contains the following:
1. 1 pull-up, pants, and a few wipes-in case of an accident
2. Child Had Sanitizer wipes
3. Pen and paper for drawing
4. Pre-K activity book-she loves to do the activities in this book
5. 1 reading book-she loves to read
6. 1 juice & snack- in case we are stuck in traffic or in a store; this would hold her over until we got something to eat.
7. Her favorite CD- currently its the Imagination movers.

This kit has helped me many times and therefore making my shopping trips more pleasant and easier.

Do you carry a child kit with you? If so, what items do you pack?

Our Trip to Europe-Pictures....

I had a little time on my hands this evening and as I was going through some pictures on our camera, I came across some pictures of my family and I in Europe.

Really no description needed; except that we went to London and Romania, stayed for a month, and it was a good, educational experience. Enjoy!

Ever Heard of The Expression...............

................Christmas in July???

Well, even though its August...I have started planning for Christmas. I love everything about the day; the meaning, celebrating my Lord and Savior Jesus, giving to others, the lights, music, food, and just being with family.

With that said, we all know that Christmas is one of the most expensive times of the year with gifts, food, travel, electricity (Christmas trees & lights), heating costs, etc. Since I can't predict what most will costs, I can start the budget process for our gifts.

Since my entire family is large..very LARGE...we have started doing Pollyanna's; that way no one would be burdened with trying to buy a present for everyone. Also, my husband and I wanted to give a gift to my sisters as well.

Furthermore, I have started my wish list for my husband...LOL..better early than never!
I also created budgets for each of us with the gifts we would like:

$70.00 for our daughter
Doll
Stroller
Educational toy-Jumpstart Game
Book
Misc Toy

$125.00 for Mommy
The Mummy DVD (1st movie)
Pajamaas-Purple or Blue
Wawa Gift Card-$20
$25 Cash
1 nice smelling Candle
Comfy Slippers

$200.00 for Daddy
Surprise!

This is our start to a more frugal Christmas. You wouldn't believe how much we used to spend on each other in the past; but we wanted to spend less money and try to give gifts that are less expensive but really special!

We also have started 3 new traditions within our household to do during the Christmas holiday.......

.....They are:
1. Put on our coats and walk around our neighborhood to view all the pretty Christmas lights.

2. Give/Send a donation box to a shelter or organization that helps those who are less fortunate.

3. Bake cookies, then shut out all our lights except for the Christmas tree and watch a traditional Christmas cartoon (while eating our freshly baked Christmas cookies!)

I can't wait for Christmas!

Until Next Time,
Peace Be Unto You!

A New & Fresh Start!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Sometimes when life just bites you on the arms, you have to bite life back. I haven't been posting as much as I'l like to but that has changed.

I decided to start fresh..with a new template, colors, and wording. Its also a chocolate theme, which I absolutely love. Besides, I miss chatting with all my blogging ladies.

On a much, much happier note...I am preparing to go on vacation next week and am so excitied. It'll be nice to just get away.

Also...my daughter will be turning 3 next month...on September 11th..I know right?! But we believe that GOD had turned a day of sadness into a blessing for us through our daughter. We are still trying to figure if we should give her a nice birthday party with all the trimmings..or take her and her 3 other girl cousins (ages 2, 3, 4) somewhere where they will tire themselves out and then go to bed when they get home..(our daughter LOVES to run, jump, play). Any suggestions??

As for gifts, we have 2 in mind...a magic doodle board & tricycle. She already has a brand new barbie bike that her grandpa bought for her with all the trimmings..but it's a little too advanced for her and it has training wheels!

We still have some time...so we'll see.

Until next time,
Peace Be Unto You.............

This Is What Happens When.......(w/pic)

......you leave a 2 almost 3 year old in her room for a little while.....



...Yes, my baby is "PROUD" of her work.....LOL...

Books, toys, clothes, pillow, sheets...everything pulled out..LOL

Just Us Girls Tonight!

Yep...my husband is going out to a business dinner with some of his co-workers (company paid) at a very nice restaurant. He wont be home until late, probably not until our daughter is in bed; but I have a fun night planned for my daughter and me.

We ventured out to Old Navy because I had an 30% off coupon and was able to get a shirt, pants, and 2 pairs of socks for our daughter for just $8.75! Amazing, huh?! I then went to a store called Plato's Closet; it's like an upscale thrift store that sells a lot of famous designers like Prada, Guess, etc. I found a pair of really cute brown shoes for just $10.00!

After that we went to the market to grab some groceries. I didn't want to order takeout because it can get really tiring and it doesn't make you full; it's just a temporary fill. We wanted something tasty and healthy. We are having a chicken salad for dinner..yum! Also, I was going to rent a movie from the redbox they have, but red box didn't have any movies my daughter or myself would want to watch, so I just passed on the idea. Maybe, we'll just color or make something from construction paper...lol

We'll that's what I have planned for us girls this evening. I hope you all have a great evening as well!

Instead of ordering takeout, I went to the

A New Way To Bring In Some Funds

With so many people losing jobs or seeing a decrease in their pay, more and more thrift stores/consignment shops are seeing an increase in shoppers and as a result their sales. Since we have so many of our daughter's clothes, shoes, etc. just taking up space and collecting dust, I'd thought I would give the whole consignment sale a shot.

I was fortunate to find a church in my neck of the woods that is having one. I had to register a few weeks ago and they sent me tags, an inventory sheet, and other registration materials. The sale starts this Friday and Saturday. It actually was kinda fun being able to price items and writing up an inventory sheet, but it's a lot of work.

Being that this is my first time selling clothes through a consignment, I wanted to start small. I will be selling some of her baby clothes such as shirts, skirts, dresses, shoes, onesies, etc. I have to say that it was bittersweet going through the her old clothing. I was thinking, "gosh, my baby is growing up so fast"! I remember someone telling me when I first had her to cherish these times because they grow up fast, and boy was that person right. I can remember when she was born, exactly! Now, she's going to be 3 years old in a couple months! Man, time sure does go by fast!

The only thing I DON'T like about consignment sales is that you only get 50% profit of your items that's sold. I kept that in mind as I was pricing the items because I do want to make some kind of profit on those things, but not over charge at the same time.

I guess we'll see how my first experience goes. I will drop off my things on Friday evening and whatever doesn't sale, I will pick up Saturday evening. To be honest, I'm hoping not to pick up anything because that means all my items sold!

I'll let you all know how it turns out. Wish us luck!

Enjoy your evening!

Laughter, Fun, Headache = Quality Family Time Together!

What a weekend I had. Hubby is changing our daughter while I'm writing this. Before I started though, I had to use the restroom and who do you think was banging on the door, whining and crying for me?! Just guess! Yep...you got it, my daughter. But I'll open the door and then she goes on about her business. What is with that. I can't have 3 min of private time in the bathroom before I'm become the HUNTED..LOL. At least I can say thank God for door locks...LOL.

Moving on.....We had some family over for dinner to thank them for their help with helping us move. They babysat, painted, help remove wallpaper, move t.v.'s, etc; so we wanted to have them over for dinner to show our love.

I served Chicken Breast and Shrimp Kabobs with yellow, orange, and red peppers; Tomato and Basil Rice Pilaf, and a garden salad (my hubby is a healthy eater...I'm slowly coming around..lol). We also had a nice fruit tray for them and for dessert...Chocalate cake, strawberry cake, and Ice Cream...it was soooo good!

When we were done we talked for a little while and then it was game time! We usually play board games but my hubby bought a WII and we played Guitar Hero and Tennis for 2 hours! Yes, everyone from the young to old. It was so funny watching my mom trying to play tennis with a blanket tied to her back (she gets cold often; very often..lol) or my dad playing tennis and on the first try beat all of us. Yes, we were shocked! LOL

Everyone left around 9:30pm so we could prepare for church the next day; and with day lights savings time, losing an hour would make things harder to prepare for. Even setting my clock right, I still woke up late...I somehow manage to always mixup the daylight savings times every year.

I did go with my hubby to Best Buy like I mentioned in another post and I really tried not to complain; really!LOL. I was quiet for almost 30min...LOL....Then I started the "honey, how long is this process going to be?"...LOL...

We'll that pretty much sum my weekend up. I hope you all had a nice one as well!

Enjoy the rest of your evening!

What In The Name of Pete is going on here for Pete's sake!

That line is from Pete on Mickey Mouse Clubhouse;

I may never understand my child.

She begs me for Grapes, so what did I, a nice mommy do? I gave her some nice, cold grapes in a little bowl so she can eat them. Well, I guess she didn't plan on eating them because she threw them on the floor and at the cabinets in the kitchen. Maybe the grapes make good sling shots or little cannon balls, who knows..lol.

Or when she only writes on our T.V. with her crayons, not hers, but ours!

Or unrolls all the toilet tissue from the rolls. Yes, she figured how to take it off the toilet roll holder we have nailed on the wall...lol

I guess if I knew the answer to why children do these things, then having world peace wouldn't be some far fetched idea. LOL

What are some crazy things the kiddos in your life do? I would love to hear them.

Gotta loves the kiddies!

Have a great day!

Thinking of taking on another bill/expense.....

Update: We will NOT be enrolling her in the class. We found another group that is free and they are also in a great neighborhood. Free sounds a whole lot better than $71...LOL!

....well maybe. I am a stickler for trying to save anyway I can; my husband actually calls me a cheapskate sometimes...lol.

Anyhoo.....My husband and I have talked about different teaching methods for our only child. Since I stay home with her, I do play and read to her; we count, say our ABC's, say sentences, and other things....but after a while..she gets bored with me. How can I blame her. Children feel better and more free when around other children their age and they even learn more. And with the weather being so cold, we cannot go to the park until the weather gets warmer.

We decided that a play group or class would be a great option. This is NOT a daycare!
Rather, it's with a place/company called Gymboree ( the same company with the children's clothing store).

After thinking over it we found a couple of pros and cons.............

Pros:
~ Allows daughter interaction with other children
~Meet once a week
~Held in a church located in a GREAT neighborhood only 7min away.
~Time will be on Fridays; 11:30am-12:15pm (so NO driving in Friday rush hour traffic!)
~If we miss a class, we can reschedule for another class
~They have play gyms where she can play anytime or day FREE of charge since she attends class

Now the Cons:
~$71.00 a month; so that $17.75 a week for one 45 min class.
~Don't want her picking up bad habits from other children!
~To sign her up for more than 1 class at a time is another $78, but they'll give you a discount
~They bill your credit card automatically each month; unless you give them a written notice 2 weeks before hand.
~$35.00 initial registration fee

So..after going over both the good and the bad; we figure that it would be worth it to enroll her in a class, at least for a month and I love that it's just 1 class per week, which will allow me to teach her other things and take her to educational places.

I also LOVE that fact that parents can be in the class too but NOT participate!

I like being present but not involved, so my baby can learn to play and resolve conflict with children her own age by herself. But if she needs me or something happens, mommy is there to come to the rescue!

With this extra expense/bill, I would need to tweak my budget sheet a little but not too much. Besides, we don't mind paying for something if it will be useful, but that's with anything you pay for!

BUT First, they have a FREE Class pass for us to see if it's something good for our daughter. We'll try it FREE first and take it from there!

Any tips/advice/suggestions are welcomed!

My Baby Is Finally Taking A Nap!!!!

Can I get an AMEN!!!!!

Especially since I'm sick....can I get a double AMEN!!!

And...my hubby can't wait to get home from work so I can get even more rest......can I get a Hallelujah!!!