Contentment

I admit this is an area where I sometimes struggle. I don't know why. When I stop and really think about it I have a great life. I have a husband that adores me and I adore him, my dream of becoming a mama came true. I am able to stay home and care for my family. I have a home, plenty of food, really anything I need.

It is hard living a world of more, more, more. You see the "Jones Family" with their huge house, brand new cars, taking wonderful vacations and then discontentment seeps in. It creep in last week and I really dislike it when that happens.

Luckily when I have this feeling it doesn't last long. Chuck and I talked about it this weekend and that really helped.

This is the verse that I have been thinking about:

Not that I speak from want, for I have learned to be content in whatever circumstances I am. ~Philippians 4:11

I also read:

A happy heart makes the face cheerful, but heartache crushes the spirit. ~Proverbs 15:13

So as a new week begins that is how a plan to begin, with a happy heart!

Deals

Yesterday I did a little bargain shopping. Can you guess how much I paid for all of this?


Meijer has some fantastic things for a dollar and lots of Lysol products 1/2 off. I used coupons for everything pictured and my grand total was $0.98! I paid $0.29 for each of the Lysol products. Everything else was FREE. Got to love that!

Bubbles, Bubbles Everywhere!

We finally had a day warm enough to spend a little bit of time outside. Yay! We went for a wagon ride this afternoon. Then after dinner we went out to play with Megan's new bubble machine.

She loved it and would crack up when the bubbles popped.

Her bubble machine is awesome! It is battery operated and has bubble wands that twirl in a circle with air to push them out. If your little one loves bubbles I highly recommend this. I am hoping for warmer days full of giggles!

Weekend in Review

Saturday we took Megan to her first Easter egg hunt. It was a fantastic program! They started out showing Veggie Tales to wrangle all of the kids in the sanctuary. Megan wasn't sure what to think with Veggie Tales showing on two screens. She keep looking back and forth. It was very funny. Then there was a skit to show the children the meaning of Easter.

She wasn't really sure what to do once the egg hunt began. She saw an egg, sat down and thought she was just suppose to play with it.


With lots of help she was able to fill her basket.


Here she is checking out the goodies in her Easter bucket. She received a stuffed bunny, two books; Peter Rabbit and Bible stories. There was the traditional chocolate bunny and eggs filled with goodies.


By the time Megan hunted eggs at my parents she knew what she was doing.


Our last stop of the day was with Chuck's family. Megan had lots of cousins to play with. Total chaos, but always fun.

Hope that everyone had an enjoyable Easter!

Coloring Eggs

Megan and I joined my nieces at my parents for an afternoon of egg coloring.



No kit needed for my version of egg coloring! All you need is hard boiled eggs, vinegar and food coloring. You combine 1/2 cup of vinegar with food coloring. If you want to make a design on your egg draw it with a white crayon. The color won't stick to the crayon. Dip your eggs and have fun! The girls had a blast.

This is a busy weekend for us, as I am sure it is for all of you. Tonight we will be joining Chuck's dad and family for an early Easter dinner. Saturday we will take Megan to the Easter egg hunt at church. I am very excited to see how much fun she will have. Then I will spend the evening getting my dishes ready to take to Easter dinner.

Sunday we will attend the early service at church then join my parents for dinner at noon. We will spend a couple of hours there before heading to Chuck's moms. A busy weekend, but one that I always enjoy!

Wishing everyone a Happy Easter!

Welcome Spring!

Looking forward to seeing some of these very soon!


Although I really like fall I must admit that Spring is my favorite season. I love seeing everything renewed and ready to begin their new life. I enjoy watching everything turn green again, the flowers poking their sleeping heads out of the ground. The feel of warm sunshine and the smell of clean, fresh air when I have my windows open. This season makes me feel alive and ready for anything. Welcome Spring!

Spring Clean: Laundry Area

I am way off of my spring clean schedule, but I am working on getting it all done. I worked on my laundry area. My laundry area is in the garage.


Here is what I did:

*Wiped out the cabinets and made sure they were in order.
*Wiped down the outside of the cabinets.
*Wiped down the washer and dryer.
*Cleaned out the sink.
*Dusted all of the decor.
*Moved everything to sweep and mop.
*Removed any garage item that had made its way into the laundry area.

The only thing that I was not able to do is empty the recycling. It was pouring and decided that it could wait for a dry day.

Be sure to visit Monica at The Homespun Heart for more spring cleaning inspiration.

My Helper

I have been doing laundry and trying to sort out Megan's clothes. I have clothes that are too small along with all the hand me downs I receive from my sister. What a blessing that is! As fast I could fold and load the clothes into the container my "helper" was unfolding them and taking them out.

I finally gave up and decided we would just have a little fun. Good thing she is so cute!

Spring Cleaning: Kitchen

Boy did I fall off of the spring clean wagon! My goal is to get it finished this week. Over the weekend I was able to get to the kitchen.

Here are the before pictures:



And the after:


Here is what I did:

*Polished dinning table and chairs.
*Dusted the shelves and knicknacks
*Wiped down the counters and everything on the counter.
*Cleaned the front of all of the appliances.
*Cleaned the inside of the microwave.
*Hubby cleaned the top of the refrigerator. Thanks dear!
*Straightened up the pantry.
*Sweep and mopped the floor.
*Went through my never ending pile and put everything where it belongs!

There are other things I would have liked to do, but nap time was ending. I am happy with all I got accomplished.

For some great spring cleaning inspiration be sure to visit Monica at The Homespun Heart!

Cuddle Bug

Not the most flattering picture, but it is such a meaningful shot. Most of you know that Megan spent the first 9 months of her life as an orphan. As a small baby she was not cuddled, rocked and loved the way a Mama loves her baby. Megan has always liked to be held as long as she was in an upright position. When I would try to hold her in this position she would resist and try to get upright. She recently started putting herself in this position. She loves it when I hold her like this and sing to her. Which is saying a lot since I can't carry a tune!

Another thing that Megan has done recently is ask for a hug. Chuck came home from work and gave me a hug and kiss. We have the same routine each day when he comes home. Megan came up to us and said "hug". She has always been pretty affectionate. She gives kisses and when we say hug she will happily comply, but this was the first time she asked for a hug!

It might seem small, but considering Megan's beginning these are major things to us.

Spring Cleaning: Megan's Room

I worked on cleaning Megan's room on Friday. Here are the before pictures.

The inside of her closet. I am very embarrassed for you to see this! I spent most of my time cleaning out the closet, it was way out of control.

Here are the after photos:


This is what I did:

Cleaned out closet (put away clothes that don't fit, dusted, straightened and vaccumed)
Dusted entire roon
Moved furniture and vaccummed
Dusted Blinds
Sorted and purged toys
Cleaned inside of windows

I did not have to wash the bedding. It had already been washed twice last week. All I am going to say is diaper leak. Ugh! The outside of the windows will wait until there is warmer weather.

Check out Monica for more Spring Cleaning inspiration!

Tortilla Bowls

One of my favorite things to eat is salad. I love lettuce! To spice up a dinner of taco salad I tried making tortilla bowls.


They were so easy! I sprayed a metal mixing bowl with cooking spray. Inserted the tortilla in order for it to take on the desired bowl shape. I baked at 400 degrees for 20 minutes. I found that the edges cooked much faster then the bottom of the bowl. In the future I think that once the shape is set after baking for a few minutes I will transfer it to a cookie sheet. I think this would help it to bake more evenly.

This is what dinner looked like.

I admit that I ate very little of the bowl. Just because I am such a lettuce lover, but I loved the presentation!

Spring Cleaning: Schedule

I joined Monica in her Spring Cleaning last year. I found it to be a great motivator to actually get things done. She is hosting it again this year. She is offering an entry for a wonderful prize package for each room that is cleaned.

Here is my schedule:

Megan's Room - March 7

Master Bedroom - March 10

Bathroom - March 13

Kitchen - March 15

Living Room - March 17

Laundry Area - March 18

Office/Spare Room - March 20

If time and weather permit we are going to try to spring clean the garage and back porch.

A huge thanks to Monica for the motivation and encouragement to get this task complete. Happy cleaning everyone!

Winter Wonderland

We had freezing rain on Tuesday night. On Wednesday morning we woke up to a frozen winter wonderland. I had no plans to leave the house so I really didn't pay much attention to it. That is until Wednesday afternoon. I looked out the kitchen window and caught how wonderful the ice covered things looked with the sun shining on it. This is one of the pine trees that run along one side of our property line.

This is my clematis that was so beautiful growing up it's screen door trellis last summer.

This site gave me hope that Spring is just around the corner. These are daffodils that are planted in the bed in front of the screen door trellis.

So beautiful that it caused me to take a moment out of my busy day and remember how amazing God is!

Rice Krispie Kiss

Did anyone else see the wonderful Rice Krispie treats that Mrs. Wilt made for Valentine's Day? If you missed it they were super cute!

I made Rice Krispie Treats this weekend and decided to make a kiss for my special guy.


Oh and if you can't find the original post for this idea here is how they were made. Put you treats into a greased funnel. Once removed you may have to reshape into the kiss shape. I don't have a funnel so I put mine inside of a measuring cup to make the basic shape and then made the cone shape by hand. That might be why mine didn't turn out quite as professional looking as Mrs. Wilt's, but that is okay. It is the thought that counts, right?

Daddy Fix-It

Saturday afternoon Chuck opened his Fix-It Shop. The CD player stopped working the other day. No CD would play and it would not open to release them. Chuck with his little helper took it apart to remove the stuck CD. Now it works great.

Next in the shop was the vaccum. Somehow I ran over the cord and the outside of the insulation on the cord was torn. My father-in-law got a good laugh out of this. He couldn't figure out how this had happened. Am I the only one who has ever run over the cord and done this? Thank goodness it didn't cut through those important wires, so a little electricial tape and it is as good as new.

I just love having a handy man around the house!