Kids School Clothes Shopping

I know Back to School shopping sounds like a cuss word right now in the middle of July, but the best deals on basics are happening NOW or soon!

I have to do some prep before it's time to get to business.
 This is how we prep

~First we try on EVERYTHING! It takes a lot of time but sometimes they have little leg growth spurts we might not notice and I don't want to find out jeans are too short after we just miss a big sale.
~See what we have left, compare it to this (new) list, plan for what we need, then

~Decide on a budget.. and STICK to it! (that is the hard part for me)
Because I have overbought so much in the past, I only have to budget for jeans for all the kids, socks and a few other random things, plus a coat for 1 or 2 and leaving a little bit extra for something they might just really like that isn't on the list. I remember Back to School shopping was so fun as a kid, I want to keep it fun  but reasonable too.



Over the weekend we worked on this along with another daunting task!
We are finally officially moving the boys in together! Bunk bed on the way and whole do over is coming soon!

Can't wait to share all the progress we have made in simplifying, organizing and getting these boys settled in together! Just a few days away.

Once the shopping budget is set I will be watching the sales and ads and deciding what are we going to do with a whole empty room?!  I'm voting for a craft room (we will see how that goes over with the Mr.)

Continue Reading ...

Simplifying~Closet Organization

I said I was going to simplify some things around here, some of them will be more drastic than others, and I am sure our "drastic" is probably nothing compared to others but for us there are some big changes.

Our closet is THE worst, I am a sucker for a cute top, and for a deal. This leads to lots of excess. I'm working on getting better, cause I realize a "deal" on something I don't need is NOT a deal. Hoping to get a little back at the consignment store. I've got a bag with about 20 things in it ready to go to the consignment shop. It's not as much as I was hoping for but it makes a dent.

In going through my clothes I realized I was keeping stuff that was too big, that is cute but I haven't worn in ages, or at all.  I got hubby to try and help me, hoping he would be a voice of reason.. he wasn't... soo I am using the backwards hanger method for everything that is left. Once I wear something I will hang it back up the wrong way. Any tank top that wasn't worn all summer has got to go!

I better start wearing some tank tops!!

I think dresses will be my issue, and things have changed, I work out of the house now, and tank top style dresses just aren't gonna work in the summer like they would if I was home.
So I know some of those will not get worn this summer and I will have a hard time parting with them! Unless I wear them every weekend when I am not at work.

Next up is the kids stuff! Already working on a more realistic list of what they need for clothes and hoping I can stick to it!  Why is it so hard?! Girl stuff is especially hard for me.

Do you have a go to list of what you keep on hand for your littles?

Continue Reading ...

My fave products for fast mornings



When I shared how June went, I said I was getting up a little earlier than before. Only 15 minutes but it makes a difference! Now I didn't want to lose that 15 minutes of sleep just to spend it on getting ready.  I shared a simple morning routine here, but honestly that was feeling like too much time too, so I just really limited it to my few favorites. Especially for Summer! I like a very natural, but better look that is less then 5 minutes to do and simple every time.

I cannot get over this clinique moisturizer, it comes in a few versions, but it's the even better series, it's expensive but a little goes a long way. I appreciate the sunscreen in it, especially now when it's so hot and sunny. It absorbs fast and doesn't feel greasy at all.

If I have time and feel like I need a little face coverage, which honeslty is not often, I prefer a bare face to a face full of makeup on most people. But I do keep some Bare Minerals around for a bad day.

I use this clear mascara on my eyebrows everyday, they can get out of control and this helps them behave a little.

Eye shadow, just 1 color, nuetral but covers well, I know it looks really pink here but it goes on sheer and just a little shimmer. I love the E.L.F. brand, comes in other colors too. If I am short on time I just use my ring finger and spread it around real good otherwise I use a concealer brush. I love that once it sets it stays, no creasing and no extra powder to clean up.

Eye Liner.. SO didn't think this would make the cut but I really love how easy this goes on, stays on and inexpensive enough to use it everyday, I can only do liquid eyeliner, something about the pencil or crayon style just does not work for me, I like a super thin like that is barely noticeable. This E.L.F. one has a tiny felt tip on it that works amazing for me.

Mascara, I feel like it finishes off a basic look. I prefer this one because it doesn't make my eye lashes feel crunchy, they still feel soft and flexible and not flaky, and its not chunky AT ALL. And it's been discontinued, I am not sure which ones to check out now.. any recommendations?

Perfume, makes me feel ready to go, so silly but it does.

And thanks to this dry shampoo mornings have been SO much easier!! I didn't think dry shampoo would ever work for me, but I am loving this, my hair feels fuller and looks better on days I use it vs. days I wash/dry/style. I have tried 3 of the Batiste ones now and loved 2 of the 3, the one for Brown hair with a little tint I did not like at all, took it back and swapped for the cherry one. The coloring in the brown one made my head kinda itchy I think.

And once in a while I will use this lip liner, same color I have used for 15 years probably and I am loving the lip butter by Nivea right not, it's in my purse but I don't like a real heavy line, just a tiny bit that blends in well with the lip butter.

I got rid of SO much that was I was keeping for no good reason. I love that since I got strict with myself it all fits in the medium size of these soo charming makeup bags!

 I was telling myself I needed to keep some for special occasions and all that but even if we are going out or something, I always end up with the same basic, tried and true look so I made some room and feel way better about it. Especially because in the grand scheme of things, makeup is cheap. If I really needed something I can get it.

If you use instagram, check out the hash tag #igotdressedtoday or #ootd, those are my 2 favorite. I haven't been doing it much lately but I love to see what other people are wearing, how they are styling their hair, all that stuff. The only problem I have with it is that I feel like a total dweeb taking my own picture.




Continue Reading ...

Finally changing decorations around here!

It's been the same since I took Valentine stuff down the day after Valentines Day.  Very plain, but I like that sometimes. Been too busy and it just hasn't been a priority, but now that routines are getting closer to established I found a little time.  I wasn't going to but then I got the bins full of Birthday Stuff I have been collecting for years and the 4th of July bin was in front of them so it was already out! 

 Guess it was meant to be!

I can see that I need some updating to do, but finding time to do NEW stuff will be trickier.

I am not sharing everything. I've shared our 4th of July stuff the last few years, here, and here. So if you want to see some other stuff check them out. I am just sharing my favorites this time around!

I am still loving our Good Morning basket! 

Just added a new runner and some patriotic cuteness. Although I see the MnM's are already gone.

I love that Baseball is America's favorite past time, I think this is something I won't be changing, it's simple, inexpensive and I just love it.

 I made this little star on some burlap with little buttons, and the picture of my grandparents and a couple of their kids. We love keeping older pictures around too, not just the new fancy kind.

the container of cherries is one of my favorites, and my kids helped with the bucket of flags ;)

 Mini apple pie, it's a candle but I just cut the wicks and it smells delish!
I use the old grater for a candle holder, there is a little tea light in there and the star looks cute at night.

Outside eating stuff, straws, extra silverware, napkins and it's all cute! 

We eat outside a lot more once school is out.

Plain wreath, just a few little stars but the old fashioned bike is my favorite thing on the wreath.

And just to keep it real, while I am taking pictures of this fun stuff, I have a pile of ugly stuff I SHOULD be dealing with! Yup.. bills, and forms! Who knew football started in June?! Soccer and after school activities for next year all need to be dealt with right now. Where's the coffee?

I am thinking I should have added the pledge of allegiance banner I made to this stuff too, but I really like it for Back to School too. Life's tough decisions right? 

Continue Reading ...

I'm kinda figuring this thing out!

This being gone all day AND keeping the house clean (not spotless) while not spending all weekend doing it. Weekends are for family stuff and being outside, I can't get on board with cleaning all weekend.

These are the little things I have been doing to get stuff done without designating a chunk of time to them!

The kitchen was/is my Monday chore. Not spending an hour doing it but while I am making dinner, or prepping dinner, waiting for coffee I try to spend every down minute doing something. I haven't deep cleaned the kitchen in weeks but there is nothing growing anything so it's good enough.
I am still using my Scheduled Cleaning but I don't get to it all.
Still a good guide for the few minutes I do have time!

Love this!

And I am in NO way saying I have gone from being a stay at home (or never home) mom to being a working out of the home mom pro in just a few weeks. BUT I do think the same organization that made things flow well before can work for the few hours I am home now.
Keeping our home orderly IS important to us, and home cooked meals are just as important to keep our kids healthy, and our budget healthy!

Speaking of budget, I haven't figured out how this is all going to work, there are obviously new expenses with me working, needed a couple things to wear, and gas is a bit more and daycare will be THE biggest adjustment. But I think since I started 2 1/2 weeks ago I have only been to Target 2 3 times, that will be a change in the right direction. My lunch hour is not nearly long enough to browse Target properly!

So right now, even though I may be working out of the home and it wasn't our ideal situation. I am going to do my best to embrace every single part of it! I don't want it to sound like I am complaining, I feel SO blessed to be given such an amazing opportunity.

And I know that what I will have to share coming up may not apply to everyone, but I hope to be sharing my NEW daily checklist, same checklist, just has different stuff on it. And that I will have some fun 4th of July stuff going on, hoping I still have a good hold (or better even) on time than I do now.
Some time management tips, how I am keeping my sanity and spend quality time with the fam.

Continue Reading ...

How we wrangle everything (right now)

With Baseball in full swing when I started I KNEW we would have to have everything prepped, together and where it was supposed to be. Even though it's May it still is super cold some evenings, so we go to the game in shorts and need sweatshirts and blankets by the 5th inning!

I grabbed these big baskets at Target (of course, right?) last year for our garage, thought they would be a good size to help keep that stuff organized, they weren't so we had 5 or 6 in our garage. They needed to be used for something and I think having a "Baseball Basket" was a necessity.

So in this thing

 I have

~A blanket

~Snacks that won't melt because the concession stand does not have anything I would want my kids to have after dinner but before bed, trust me I have spent hours in there selling corn nuts and sno-cones to little freezing kids.

~A Sweatshirt for everyone

~Couple of water bottles

And even though Baseball only lasts a few months, we have swimming lessons that will start soon too! Good thing I have more baskets! Sure we will need to have  

~Towels

~Snacks

~Extra hair tie for the girl

~More snacks (cause they are always STARVING after swimming)
~Sunscreen


How do you keep everything together, or ready on busy days? I am sure that with only 2 weeks as a working mom I have barely scratched the surface on things I need to wrangle and keep packed, and finding the easiest way to do that is my goal! Using something we already had was a solution for now, but if there is a better long term one I am all ears!



Continue Reading ...

Today is my 1st day!

And I am so nervous!

But I think the prepping I did last week and last night has things going as well as I can hope!

Here is our meal plan for the next 2 weeks (not weekends)

Monday/Today~Chicken, veggies and sauce in the crock pot, rice made yesterday

Tuesday~Tacos

Wednesday~Pork Roast.

Thursday~Stroganoff, everything is done ahead of time, just putting it all together

Friday~Chicken quesadillas
Monday~Baked Potatoes & stuff
Tuesday~BBQ Pork Sandwhiches
Wednesday~Chicken Tortilla Soup
Thursday~Little Pizzas (made on english muffins or smooshed canned biscuits)

 Friday~Crock Pot Lasagna

We have T-Ball/Baseball x4 and Concession Stand Shifts

So my favorite days at the gym probably won't happen this week, I need to ease into this new routine and not jump right in full force to everything. Just making it to work on time and getting everyone fed and out the door is my goal for the first week.

I'm off to work on my Monday chores before everyone else gets up. Happy Monday!



Continue Reading ...

April was full of changes

If you "like" my page on Facebook then you know starting next week everything here will be crazy, and different! I am joining the working outside the home world FULL TIME. And I left my night job, giving myself 1 week in between end of that and start of a new one.
I haven't done this in over 7 years and never the same schedule as the Mr.
I never thought I would go back to work full time, but the company hubby works for has been making some major changes and one of them was eliminating positions, his happened to be one of those so as of mid July he doesn't have a job. 
I thought I would be way more upset and stressed out about it but really I am just excited for him to get to spend some time with the kids over the summer and to start a new adventure doing whatever he finds that sounds interesting. Not the end of the world like I had imagined it being.

But the logistics of how our Monday-Fridays are going to work is where I am a little nervous!
I have my usual cleaning schedule but I won't BE HERE to do it! I am going to try to stick with it but do the majority in the mornings, and really try to get the kids to help with what they can.
Some of it is easier lately, eliminating some clutter, and I guess things won't get as dirty if we aren't here all day right? Please tell me that is true!
And my Daily Schedule will be a thing of the past. It will for sure need a make over. I'm trying out a new one this week to give me a start.
I have this week to prep for all the new changes. Here is what I need to do
~Get the house SUPER clean. Hope that makes it easier to keep a little clean as we all adjust.
~Get in a new Daily Routine/Schedule
~Meal Plan, crock pot will be my new best friend
~Work on bags, we will need a babysitter bag, T-ball bag, baseball bag and lunch for everyone. I see some new checklists in my future!
~Lots of fun things in the evenings before it gets too crazy.
~Plan my outfits for the week, I don't want to be late because I can't decide what to wear! Business casual is new to me, I've been in Mommy Casual mode for so long!
~Plan my snacks and my activity during the day, I haven't had a desk job in 7 years but last time I gained easily 15 lbs the first couple months. I am 8 tiny pounds away from my goal weight (but not all my fitness goals) and I don't want to undo everything.

I keep finding myself saying "this is going to be so hard" and I need a big fat reminder of this!

Because I can, and I know this change won't be forever, things will change again in less than 2 months when the kids are out of school and there is no baseball to plan for. Then it will be swimming lessons and horse riding and I don't want to wish any of these stressful but important days away. So I am embracing that stuff is not going to go by MY plan but it will go, some days things won't be perfect, some days they won't even resemble good and those are the days I won't remember in 3 months anyway! 

And April has some good things too like
~I barely had coffee at all, and when I did it was with a gift card or groupon. I am *hoping* I will not be tempted at 730 in the morning on the way to work EVERYDAY! To help with the temping
I am making my protein shakes a priority again! What is your fave shake recipe? I love my vanilla protein mix, frozen peaches, ice and peach Greek yogurt.. but in the morning I need coffee! Same vanilla protein mix, coffee, non fat milk and ice!

~We paid off $2800 off of our debt, and have almost 1 more card to cut up! I feel really optimistic right now about getting out of debt, if ever we needed a push to do this, hubby losing his job was the THING. Yes I got a job fairly easily, but that wasn't guaranteed and then what would have happened?

~I quit my night job, it was fun enough and helped a little but I was grumpy and over tired, I was not meant to be a parent with 3 hours of sleep.

~The sun is shining, our few little fruit plants look amazing (compared to last year) and our kids are happy, healthy and willing to go with the flow of life. That is enough for me right now.


So that's what's happened/happening here. I should have my new schedule for life as a working mama after a couple weeks, maybe those of you that thought I was a nutter for planning my at home day can relate more to one with 9 hours away from the house :)
And I am sure I will have a whole new catagory :Crock Pot Disasters haha.. give me a week and there should be 2 or more!



 

Continue Reading ...