Latest And Greatest: A Few Of My Favorite Things

Some days there is nothing quite like home and hearth.

When the breeze blows cold, the kids are tired/cranky and baby is teething, I find joy in the simplest pleasures.

Keeping life simple keeps me sane and happy. (I'm easy to please, aren't I?)

What are some of my new loves, you may ask?


Well, let me share just a few......

A quick search while recently at Walmart led me to the limited edition Better Homes and Gardens candle that exudes autumn:

Candied Caramel Pecan

When I can't be in the kitchen, at least my house smells like I have been.

Another Walmart score was a little something for my crusty, cracked spent-too-much-time-barefoot-this-summer feet:

Bare Foot lotion in Peppermint + Plum

With the first few applications I could already notice the difference. Smells good and greatly improved my feet--double hooray!

Another electronic device made it into our household just over a month ago. While I don't generally think myself a tech geek or find the need for the latest and greatest gadgets, when I laid my eyes upon this one I was hooked:

Samsung Galaxy tab

There I was at Sam's Club just checking them out and then I held it and tried using it. A phone call to hubby and we agreed that the price was right. Plus, we made it out wedding anniversary gift and my birthday gift, so we were covered.

Yes, I'm spoiled. And double yes, I love my tab!



When one buys their new electronic gizmo, there are oodles of new possibilities. I'd been familiar with Apple apps on my iPod, but very unfamiliar with Android apps.

At first gander, I really didn't like the Droid apps. A little more time at the Play Store and I discovered a few that I like to tinker on.

My new favorite CATHOLIC app would have to be


Laudate



Not only is it FREE, it has a plethora of all-things-Catholic on there. To add to the wonderful prayers that are right at your fingertips, there is the entire Catholic Catechism, Bible, Rosary and Liturgy of the Hours.

My favorite part would be the daily readings. If I can't read through them, I can listen to a podcast instead. I also enjoy the meditations that are also podcasts and from excerpts of Pope Benedict's writings.

How awesome is that?!

Well, there you have it. My newest edition of  favorite things in a nutshell.

How about you? What's rockin' your world? Have a favorite Android app you want to share?

Happy Weekend!!

Happy Ending

Because my husband is an amazing and generous man, he went and picked this up for me our family yesterday:




HOORAY!

After my freak out and doing some computer shopping over the weekend, I gave Reed permission to pick out a computer that was best for us (and to find a great deal). He did the research and shopping online and then found a few to compare and we chose from those three.

I'm so grateful that he did all the work and so excited to have a new laptop! Now we'll just need to get the files transferred.

I better stop playing around and get hopping. We've got our Little Flowers end of the year luncheon that we're hosting at our house today. It should be lots of fun!

Afterward, I can get back to playing.

Last Minute Gift!

Simple and Easy? CHECK.

Inexpensive and Fun? CHECK.

Kid-friendly? CHECK.

I've done gift mixes in the past and always enjoy giving them. The recipient even loves them too! I prepared these the other day within minutes. I happened to have the extra jars to swing it and used those this time. In the past I've even sewn up some super-beginner type gift bags for each mix in inexpensive Christmas fabric or scrap fabric I had at home. Be creative!

All finished up, including the tags with instructions:




Would you like to give it a try? Here are the recipes I used:

Apple Crisp Mix

Cinnamon Pancake Mix

M&M Cookie Mix

Friendship Brownie Mix


I found a whole sleigh full of jar mix recipes at Recipe Goldmine that would be fun to try!

Christmas Card Ready?

With the passing of Thanksgiving comes the thoughts and plans for Advent and Christmas. Although we've varied our Christmas card throughout the years between regular greeting cards and photo cards, I'm planning on going with a photo card this year.

My go-to place will be Shutterfly again. I love the ease of using their site and I enjoy the deals especially this time of year. Several years ago I began the tradition of making a photo calendar for hubby to hang up at work. I now do it every year and I think it's always his favorite gift! I've found so much versatility with doing my calendar at Shutterfly and I can find lots of ways to add my TONS of photos each year too. So much more fun to put his calendar together when I don't have to limit my photo number on each page. That calendar is jam-packed each year! Last year was the first time I tried a photo book for my parents as a gift. I compiled photos from throughout the year of time we had spent together and the places we had gone. What a great way to remember the highlights from the year and treasure them. The photo book was a big hit and I'll be creating another one this year again too. Photo books are perfect gifts and so much fun to create!

I couldn't believe all of the card designs on the Shutterfly site! It's hard to pick and choose, but I did single out a few favorites.

A few of my fav Christmas card designs:
Family Wall Red

Nativity Blessing

Diamond Flurries

But with so many to choose from, I don't know how I'll decide!

Of course, finding the perfect photo may be difficult, especially when you have ones like these for options:

Check out Shutterfly's great deals and more of their Christmas cards here. If you are looking for Holiday cards, you can check out this link to find your favorite. Give the perfect gift of a photo calendar like I do and get started with this link.

Are you a Blogger? There's even a 50 FREE card deal for you over here!

Happy Shopping!!

At Home Manicure

Who needs Oprah's Favorite Things when you've got bloggers who share their finds?! And let me add that ours are far less expensive than Oprah's any day.

I received the Seacret Dead Sea Manicure Set as a birthday gift and I LOVE it!!

As a mom with rare moments for doing a little something extra for myself nor with the assets to afford regular nail care, this product is wonderful. Not a high-maintenance mama, I've never cared to spend salon prices maintaining me. I have, however, enjoyed when my hands are silky smooth and nails look decent.

This product only takes minutes to use every couple of weeks and makes my nails look healthy and shiny, as if they were cared for in a salon. I quickly file and buff the tops of my nails and there are no more flaws or ridges. They seriously shine as if I had clear nail polish on them. And it lasts for weeks!!

Treat yourself or give your hubby numerous hints for this Christmas gift item! It's great for getting and for giving too!


**I'm sure you may be able to find this at some malls depending on your area, in addition to online. My friend found it at MOA for those of you who are local.

Ready For Art!

Having decided this year that we'd take on the Artistic Pursuits curriculum for both of our little students, I finally sat down with it and realized I needed a number of supplies for my budding artists.

Since we've done art class containing crafts, painting, drawing, etc. from numerous sources in the past, it's down to business this year. I'm looking forward to the lessons for the kids and was delighted when I also saw that Tracy is doing it this year as well. You know, she's artsy and talented and all, so I knew if it was good enough for her it would definitely be good enough for us too.

Although I'm sure I've mentioned it before, in case you've forgotten I live in a geographical oddity beautiful, out of the way landscape that simply does not allow for a quick run to an art supply store. A Google search for 'inexpensive art supplies' led me to Cheap Joe's Art Stuff and I found everything on my list with ease. Hooray! Although shipping was a little spendy, it was very much worth it since it saved me gas, running around and a lot of frustration.

Now I'm just waiting for it to arrive on my doorstep and we'll be all ready for class! Looking forward to seeing what my little Picasso and Monet produce this year.

Saucy In The Kitchen

I've shown you here in the past about my little kitchen cannery when the vegetables start coming in from the garden. I know that canning is becoming a lost art, but having grown up with a big garden back home and a family that canned rather than just froze our produce, I still appreciate it.

Yes, yes, it is A LOT of work. And yes, here in the Midwest that produce has a knack for coming in at exactly the hottest weeks at the end of summer. I find though that the payoff come winter is SO worth it. With a stocked canning cupboard our family faces another cold winter and we enjoy grabbing a jar of apple pie filling, applesauce, peaches, tomato soup, picante sauce, V-8 juice or spaghetti sauce.

You know what makes canning even more worth the hard work? The right equipment. The simplest gadget can make the process run so much smoother. A couple of years ago, we purchased a Sauce Master to use for running either tomatoes or apples through for mashing. What a lifesaver! It has been worth the $40 or so we spent on it. A little messy to clean up, but very easy to assemble, mount on your countertop and operate.



Although this information might be useless for most of you, I just had to pass it along in case you could find some use for it besides during canning time or perhaps a friend who may benefit from it. It would even be great for pureeing for making your own baby food too. It literally takes out only the bare minimum in waste and uses every possible part of the fruit/vegetable that is edible.



**Looking for a deal on the Sauce Master and live in the Midwest? Mills Fleet Farm has them on sale for $29.99 this week!!

Deal Of The Week

Do you drink SoBe Life Water? I've found that I really enjoy the treat of this drink and usually watch for it on sale. This week, I love it even more with the deal Target is giving on it.

Buy 10 bottles for $10 and receive a $5 Target gift card! So you only pay 50 cents a bottle! Now that's a deal.

I've also tried the Vitamin Water in the past, but have found that some of the flavors give me an instant headache due to their ingredients. Not with Life Water.

My fave flavors: Fuji Apple Pear, Yumberry Pomegranate, Agave Lemonade & Acai Fruit Punch.

We're Talking Apps

Although I am in no way a gadget junkie, I must admit that the iPod Touch I received for Christmas has got to be one of my favorite gifts EVER! Initially I thought it would be useful and fun for music or even the occasional check on random Internet browsing, but not any more.

There is a whole other world when you start checking out all of the applications that are available. Yes, some are just plain silly and a waste of time, but others are pure genius and useful in so many ways. While there are probably thousands out there, I mostly opt for the free ones. Let something be said for getting a freebie. Am I right ladies? So, I think to date I have only actually purchased one or two apps on my Touch. My money can really be used in so many other ways that I choose not to squander it in this area. That's just me.

Any way, my little gizmo has become a family too-often-used 'toy' tool that we all share. Since it is Mommy's for the most part, the children know that when they do ask for another app to be downloaded that they may be asked to discard several others they no longer use. Yup, we change apps about that often.

Of course, I enjoy checking on my facebook as well as Google wherever I am in our home from my Touch. Maybe it's too convenient? I've read from many bloggers of their favorite apps, so I thought I would pass on a few of mine as well: Tap Farm, Tap Jungle, Doodle Bowl, iMissal. My new favorite as of last week is MyNetDiary. It is so handy to keep track of my calories (not that I am really counting, but just becoming more aware of my intake), water consumption, exercise, my meds. and vitamins and a daily analysis. Again, this one is free and is very useful!

So, what are some of your favorite apps? Please leave a comment and share. I'd love to find even more fun ones out there!

Christmas Gift Deal For You!

Do you have a chef/cook on your Christmas list? Are you looking for some new recipes? Would you like to support an at-home, homeschooling mom?

I've got the gift for you!

A dear friend IRL and in blog world, Stacey, has used her culinary and creative talents to compile a cookbook. You won't want to miss it!

She has just put it up for sale on her blog through PayPal. And, because she is so generous and thrifty, she is offering a discount only until Sunday!

So, get yours now!! What are you waiting for??!!

Please take the opportunity to support Stacey's work and get a little Christmas shopping done too.

Oh, and might I say, I am especially fond of her SUPER EASY, make ahead and freezer friendly Breakfast Burritos and Sandwiches. Oh.so.yummy.

Thank you Stacey for sharing this with us! I cannot wait to get mine in the mail!

Remember, click on over here to get your copy (or two)!

Hi Lo: October 9th

HI's:

1. My grandpa turned 90 last weekend and a whole bunch of family helped him celebrate. We were able to join them and I had the chance to visit with some family members I haven't seen in awhile. So much fun! Papa looked like he had a lot of fun and still looked like a chipper spring chicken for sure.

2. Lily & Jonah had a check up at the dentist this week. NO cavities! Hooray! Both kids have strong, healthy teeth and the dentist was impressed.

3. The fall colors have emerged around here and I have been taking notice. We took a walk in them the other day, but I've had the chance to do some driving this week that has allowed me to see so many more. My eyes are simply delighted. Words cannot explain how abundant and vibrant they are. I'm hoping to take some more photos over the weekend to share with you.

4. After seeing several commercials lately for Nutella, I decided that we needed to add it to our pantry. It just sounded so darn good and I couldn't figure out why I hadn't ever tasted it before. While on a Target run, I found it for under $3. Not bad. I agree with the commercials, because seriously it IS as good as they claim. I just shouldn't have turned around the container to read the calories.

5. Today is my parents' 33rd wedding anniversary. Happy Anniversary Dad and Mom!! Love you!


LO's:

1. While the tree colors are striking, we've had some icky weather that proceeded them. It's been cold, windy and rainy here. A true Minnesota autumn. Not that bad and easy to accept when you focus on the tree colors and not the inevitable white flakes that will begin to fall in their own good time.

2. With the rain comes the mud. With mud comes kids in mud. A combination I absolutely despise. I refuse to wash their jackets one more time this week!


What were your Highs and Lows this week? Hopefully you are enjoying your autumn, wherever you are. Have a great weekend!

Have You Tried These?

Pumpkin Spice Hershey Kisses



Pumpkin Harvest & Fall Febreze




It's autumn and it's putting me in the mood for the warmth of indoors and the smells of the season. There's nothing like a good pumpkin scented candle, but when that's not available I just spray a little of the Febreze limited edition spray instead. Makes my house feel all warm and homey in a quick minute.

My latest find at the store were the Hershey Kisses. They bring the season inside your mouth with the taste of pumpkin and spice. It's like eating a piece of pumpkin pie, minus all of the calories. Unless, of course you eat half the bag, well then you may just be better off with the piece of pie. I am not a HUGE pumpkin pie girl, but even I enjoy these new candies!

And just so you know, the Hershey's are on SALE this week at Target (2/$5). Worth mentioning and worth trying!

Happy Autumn Everyone!

My Tastebuds Are Thanking Me!

Today, I am thankful for the new product I found in our local Walmart dairy department:

Coffee Flavored Yoplait Yogurt!

Yes, you read that right. COFFEE flavored YOGURT!

Apparently, this product is so new that the official Yoplait website doesn't even have it listed as a flavor yet. I'm not sure if this is a test run for the flavor, but I better find out how to let the company know I'm *loving* it!

Now I just need to figure out how to smuggle more into my home without a dear little boy spotting it. Mr. Coffee Hound that he is.

If you live in my area, I apologize in advance. By tomorrow evening you probably won't be able to find this product on the shelves in any store in the surrounding 25 miles.

Don't say I didn't warn you.

Thank you Yoplait!!

Go Green!

Look at what I found at TARGET this morning:

Reusable lunch bags.




It seems everyone is getting on the 'Go Green'/Reduce, Reuse, Recycle bandwagon and I do my best in whatever areas I can, although it be a rather small attempt in the grand scheme of things, I suppose.

Regardless, when I saw these cute bags I just couldn't pass them up! They will be perfect for snacks on-the-go and in our van.

Since I haven't been able to try and make Mommy Monkey's cute reusable bags just yet, I opted to give these a try for right now. They're reusable/recycled and I found them in all different sizes and for only $1.00 each. I'm not sure if TARGET's displays are all the same or run on the same schedule, but I found these right by the front door of the store in the 'Dollar Spot'.