Diapers and Deals!

I came across something I wanted to share.

I have always wanted to be one of those people that I stand behind in line at the store and they are getting 10 boxes of cereal, 5 tubes of tooth paste, 8 sticks of deodorant and 10 bags of pasta. They hand the clerk their coupons and show some price match deals and the grand total comes up to $3.21. This has happened to me a lot and I have to hold back from asking the lady if I can take her clipboard/folder thing she has in her hand for a second and go make copies of it so that I can do that too!

I have been taught how it can be done and for a second I almost tried it, but then it became too much work and I gave up about ten minutes later.

Here's the thing though, I really really love a good deal. I can't pass them up! Like this year on black Friday I ended up buying more than a few things that probably weren't necessary just because they were "the last one left."

So for the last 6 months I have been getting my diapers from Amazon.com. Maybe everyone already knows about this secret, but I didn't. Basically all you have to do is become a subscribe and save member(free) which saves you 15% and then become a Amazon mom member(free) which gives you an additional 15% off.

So here are the numbers,

Before I was buying my diapers from

Costco-a box of 176 for 49.99(plus tax) which makes each diaper .28

or Walmart- box of 120 for 35.00(plus tax) or .29 each

but now

I get my box of 120 for $22.63(includes tax!) which makes them .18 per diaper!! I am saving over $12 per box.

And the best part is they are shipped directly to your front door step whenever you want. Like for example today I am running low on diapers and my shipment isn't due to be sent out for another week. So I logged onto my Amazon account and clicked, send now. They also have a variety of brands so you can choose the diaper of your choice for your little one. And you can cancel or change diaper sizes at any time.

Easy peasy if you ask me. So take it or leave it but I sure am enjoying feeling like I am getting a deal on something that I am going to have to buy no matter what. Lets hope for not much longer because I am buying Brylee a potty this weekend, wish me luck!

Crafty Crafter

I have got bitten by something. I haven't quite figured out what it is, but here are the symptoms; strong urge to sew, find and cook new recipes, go to the craft stores and find projects to do, and clean out closets and drawers that haven't seen the light of day for a year. I even did some salsa canning with the tomatoes out of our garden for the first time this summer.

Am I becoming domesticated?? I have know idea why it has taken this long to hit. I have been married for almost 3 years now and have never had these urges, ever.

When I met Jay I had been living the single live of a college girl for years. I moved out on my own at the age of 21 which was at the time really "old" to still be living at home. Now I look back and think how smart I must have been to "freeload" as my dad called it, off of my parents for that long! Not that the freeloading stopped there but moving out did bring on many more responsibilities than I had ever known at the time.

So back then I knew how to cook ramen, mac n cheese, fish sticks and maybe some rice a roni on a good day. I had to learn how to do laundry a few years before but I made it a good portion of my life not knowing how to do laundry. My dad got to learn that lesson back when I lived with him around the age of 18 and neither of us knew how to do laundry so I gave it a whirl and turned every one of his lovely white garments PINK.

To say the least, I have come a very long way. I certainly know how to do laundry and I can cook a full homemade meal and it even tastes good. I do bake some, but in all honesty my husband is the true baker in our house and he actually enjoys doing it, so of course I let him cook on every occasion possible. Just because I said I can cook and do laundry doesn't mean that I have to lllllllove doing it.

So I acted on some of these urges and here are some of my little projects. Just keep in mind that this is a first for me so they are not at the super crafter status, but you have got to start somewhere, right?

So I had this wall that has been blank for as long as I have lived here. Its the kind of wall that is too big to put something small on it, but too small to put something big on it. Does that even make sense, no it doesn't but it was my excuse to leave it blank for this long. This was such an easy and cheap project. Only tools needed: Scrapbook paper, a back to stick it on(wood, cardboard, canvas, or foam board would work) mod podge/brush to apply, I used some old vinyl lettering that I found in one of the drawers I cleaned out. I also used some brown paint to paint the edges just to add a little effect. Simple, easy, cheap and pretty darn cute if I do say so myself.

This one is using the same techniques as above, just added some ribbon for a different look. This one was kind of a practice and when I got done I realized it is the exact colors I already have in my kitchen, so I stuck it in there.

For Christmas I asked for a sewing machine, a real SEWING MACHINE! So I decided to put this baby to work. Before this I had used a sewing machine one other time when I made a baby blanket for Brylee.

This time I had the help of my mother in law. The pattern was made by "sewing for dummies" so I figured that it was a good place to start. I packed up my new sewing machine and took it over to her house. She showed me how to do an apron from start to finish, then the very next day I went and bought enough material for two more. I was sewing up a storm and couldn't believe it! I gave all 3 away and didn't take any pictures, but then I remembered I did take this one picture on my cell phone to send to my mother in law of my proud work. So here it is.....

A few months ago I decided to turn my blog into a book. I have heard of people doing it so I decided to give it a try. Since I am not a scrapbooker it was the perfect solution. It was pretty simple and you can actually add pages in as you go that didn't make it to your blog.

I just googled "how to turn your blog into a book" and Blurb.com came up, and that is the program I used. It was simple to follow and the book is nice quality as well. I think it was about $30 which I thought was a steal considering I will now have a journal type book that I can show my children someday. It actually did take quite a few hours to put together, but I am a perfectionist so it probably took me a little longer, still worth it. It turned out really cute, and I will definitely do it again.

Here was another wall that needed some TLC. The mirror had been hanging there all by itself since we moved here and I felt it needed a little something, so of course you can never go wrong with vinyl in my opinion and then just got some old frames and added ribbon to them. Easy easy easy. So I know some of you out here are so so creative and can come up with this stuff in your sleep, but for me it doesn't work like that. I hope this is the beginning of lots and lots of crafts and projects because I found out that I actually enjoyed doing it. I would love to get more ideas so if anyone knows any fun ideas, blogs or websites please let me know!

Winter update

Okay, it's time to dust the cobwebs(literally my blog background had spiders and cobwebs from Halloween) off of my blog. We had great holidays and family time together and Brylee loved Christmas. She woke up Christmas morning and couldn't believe all of the things that Santa had left her. She actually got the whole concept more than I thought she would, which made that Christmas magic come back that I havent felt in a while.

Her very favorite thing was her baby doll and stroller, Santa should have just stuck with that one thing alone this year and she would have been happy as can be. She likes to fill it with all her "babies" and take them on walks. It amazes me how little girls are born with the mommy instinct, I never taught her how to wrap her baby up in a blanket put it on her shoulder and pat it on the back. She also likes to get tissues to wipe her babies nose. In the morning when I get her out of bed she gives her baby her bottle and makes me put the baby next to her in the high chair with a fruit loop sticking out of her babies mouth. Very fun.

Christmas morning, she wouldn't put the stroller down long enough to get a quick family picture.

She got the chance to sit on Santa's lap. She looked at him and said "Papa!"(Grandpa) I think it was the grey hair that threw her off, because her grandpa Sam has grey hair and she loves him very very much.

She also got the chance to hit a pinata, but instead of hitting it with the bat she just wanted to give him a smooch, it was very adorable. So all in all we had a wonderful holiday season, couldn't have asked for better.

Just before Christmas me, Tara and Erin put on our dancing shoes and went to see the JUDDS! We rocked out to all the classics such as "Why not me" "Grandpa(tell me bout the good old days)" "Love is alive" "Love can build a bridge" I could really go on and on. It was so much fun, and yes we got yelled at for dancing in the isle, and yes we were the only ones dancing and singing in our section but we had the time of our lives! I know you are all jealous that you missed out on the Judds but next time they come I am totally down to go! Wynonna does not disappoint.

But if I am being honest, I am really ready for winter to be over. I miss the swimming pools, parks, and stroller walks. So goodbye winter and goodbye 2010!

So I will leave you with Brylee's "Squish him!" video