Stocking Hanging Tip

So as I am starting to decorate for Christmas... and as I wait for our little one to arrive (T- 6 days.... Any. Day. Now), I decided to share a little tip I use for hanging my stockings.

Here we are, a few of our stockings are hung up straight from storage...

In my opinion, they look wrinkled, flat, and well... really empty (minus the far left, it's already "fixed")! I know, I know, Santa doesn't fill the stockings until Christmas, BUT I think these stockings hang kind of blah.

So, what I do to fix this is to simply stuff some crumpled news paper or tissue paper in the stocking to make it look full...

See, much better, fuller, and not less wrinkled...

Voila! I simple, easy fix for flat, blah, pre-stuffed stockings.

Linking up: CRAFT , Our Delightful Home , Sarahndipities , Keeping it Simple
 

39 weeks & a sort-of meal plan

I'm still here! Rather she's still here... as in, in my belly!
39 weeks!

Since I'm about to go into labor any day now, the meal plan is kinda iffy...

Sunday was...
Take out; our power was out until 8pm

Monday was...
Bacon Wrapped Pork tenderloin with mashed potatoes and corn

Tuesday
I have a meeting so bacon, eggs, and toast for the girls, steak for daddy

Wednesday
Italian Sausage, Spinach, and Ravioli Lasagna

Thursday
Encrusted Tilapia

Friday
Pizza Night

Saturday
... no more football :( I don't know! We'll find something to eat

38 weeks

So went I went in for what I {thought} was my 36 week appointment my doc said, "ok 37 weeks". I was like "wait what? I thought I was 36 weeks!", and he looks at the chart and says, "well... 36,6... so... 37". So it turns out it was my 37 week appointment!

THEN I realized that I was full term, what what! Go me! If I went into labor that night, little one would not be considered premature.

Anyway, that was last week, so NOW I'm...

38 weeks

 I have packed my hospital bag (about time huh?), wrapped baby's presents to the girls, and washed and put together the car seat...

... AND the bouncy

... AND the swing

Washed and organized the clothes

... AND the burp clothes/swaddling cloths

I'm feeling pretty good about myself here!!

Weekly Meal Plan #51

SUNDAY was... 
Lemon Garlic Shrimp and Grits

MONDAY 
Chef Salad

TUESDAY 
 Florentine Chicken Soup

WEDNESDAY 
 Ranch Pork Chops

THURSDAY 
THANKSGIVING
- Turkey (with gravy... me)
- Ham
- Mashed Potatoes (me)
- Sweet Potatoes
- Eggplant Stuffing
- Cold cranberry jello (me)
... that's all I know of so far...

FRIDAY 
Hubby's birthday so either leftovers at my mother in laws OR Lemon Shrimp Pasta

SATURDAY 
FOOTBALL! mmmm pizza night?

Recap

 Hamburger, Veggie, Mashed Potatoes

 Chicken & Spinach Stuffed Shells

 Breaded Tilapia

 Pancakes, Eggs, Bacon

 

New semester = new books

Heading back to college after Winter break was always a fresh start in my mind; new classes, new teachers (not to mention new fun and exciting adventures on weekends), but it also meant new books to be bought for those new classes and teachers.

How I wish we had a site like Campus Book Rentals when I was in college. I mean, seriously, books are expensive!

So let's say I was taking one of my um... not as favorite classes this upcoming semester, Algorithms and Data Structures (did I mention I was a computer nerd programmer in my former non-mommy life). The book required for the semester is Data Structures and Algorithm Analysis in C++ by Weiss, Mark Allen with a brand new price of a whopping $138! (can you say YIKES!)

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Let's say you run over to Amazon to see if you can find it cheaper... well Amazon sells it for $112.39. Pretty good savings off of $138, right?

BUT if you RENT from Campus Book Rentals (and keep it through the end of Spring Semester, May 31 ish), you only pay $56.41.

No brainer if you ask me!

Weekly Meal Plan #50

I missed last week... woops :)

Sunday was...
Feta Topped Chicken

Monday
Steak for daddy, mac n cheese and chicken for the girls... mama has a meeting

Tuesday
Mashed Potatoes over Hamburger, veggies.... kinda like a Sheppard's Pie but you don't bake it

Wednesday
Lemon Garlic Shrimp & Grits

Thursday
Chicken & Spinach Stuffed Shells (from the freezer)

Friday
... daddy has drill so something low key

Recap

Italian Ranch Pork Chops

Andoulli Sausage, Red Beans, and Rice

Chicken, Sun Dried Tomato, Broccoli, Ricotta, Mozzarella and Basil

Panko Crusted Tilapia

Tricia Yearwoods Chicken Tortilla Soup

Chicken Parm

Car Birthday - The Drivers License Favor

The second "take home" of the car birthday party were the Drivers Licenses!They turned out super cute if I say so myself :)

On the invitation, I asked parents to email me a picture of their child. Of course, I did have to track down some pictures from facebook from unresponsive parents, but that's ok!

Then, with the Florida drivers license in hand and working in photoshop, I threw together a couple of designs for our licenses.

Like my green florida outline with "The Sunshine State" next to it? Looks kinda similar to this don't ya think?

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To make it cuter, I did add my fun little stoplight dots all around it that I used for all my food signs.
Then I got the pictures printed and cut to size and glued them onto the paper before laminating.

Once dried (er... well I let most dry, the ones that I didn't let dry had a smear of white glue from the picture to the edge where the laminator squished the wet glue out... woops), I laminated the licenses, punched some holes and threaded the ribbon.

The kids really got a kick out of their drivers licenses.

Click here for other Car Birthday posts.

Linking up: CRAFT , Creating my way to success , Keeing it Simple , The Girl Creative , DIY Showoff , 

Making the World Cuter  , Under the Table Dreaming , Marvelously Messy , Our Delightful Home , Blackberry Vine , Shwin and Shwin  , Christy's Cuties , Romance on a Dime , Homework , Not Just a Housewife , Vintage Wanna Bee , A Bowl Full of Lemons , DIY By Design  , Raegun Wear , Sarahndipities , Trendy Treehouse , My Girlish Whims , Sew Much Ado , Dragonfly Designs , Handyman Crafty Woman ,  Someday Crafts , Vintage Gwen , Momnivores Dilemma , Live Laugh Rowe , Delightful Order , Crafty Blog Stalker , Between U & Me , Happy Go Lucky , BaconTime , 

Shaken Together ,

35 weeks down, 5 (or less) to go!

I am 35, nearly 36 weeks into pregnancy #3! Not gonna lie, it's been flying by.

35 weeks

 I'm hanging in there; keeping super busy running around after the 3.5 and 2 year olds and still managing to "work out" (ie, my daughter is at the YMCA for ballet, so I drop the other off at the kidzone and I walk the treadmill at 11% incline going 3MPH - not much but I'm good). We also take the dog (and kids) out for a nightly walk too. My doc has been pretty impressed with my weight gain and I am still wearing my rings... although at times they get a touch snug. Speaking of my doctor, our visits are a joke. They go like this:
Doc - how are you doing?
Me - good, hanging in there
Doc - so #3, you are in great shape. [feeling ankles] No swelling, [measuring belly] yup looks good... and no stretch marks..
Me - You've got to quit saying that, you are going to jinx me...
Doc - Your stomach has already stretched this far twice without stretch marks, I think you are good.... so any questions?
Me - Nope
Doc - See you next week.

15 minutes in and out!

On another note, I started packing my hospital bag last night... but didn't get very far. So far I have my nursing tanks and some fleecy socks that I used last delivery hospital stay. I did manage to wrap and set aside baby's gifts for the girls, so we are good there! Not much but it's a start; at least I have my list now.

I was 10 days early with Charlotte and 4 days early with Jillie.... lets see how this one goes!

 

Car Birthday - Crayon Favors

Back to the Car Birthday party series of posts...

The favors, which the party goers were told to "Take one for the road" were car crayons! These were a pinterest find inspired by Homemade By Jill.

I followed Jill's instructions to a T, and completed the favors a week ahead of time (go me!!).

I found that running a razor along the length of the crayon made the paper come off quite easily.

I then sorted the crayons by color.

Like Jill, I used a tin can setting in a pot of boiling water to melt my crayons while stirring with a wooden dowel.

I then used my pot holders and tongs to pour the wax from the super-duper hot tin can into the plastic car molds.

Once all the crayons were completed, I bagged and tagged them.

The favor bags say, "Thanks for Zooming By my 2nd birthday party! Love Jillie". Then on the back, per my moms suggestion, I wrote "Please enjoy some car crayons". According to mom, people would have confusion over what these were, I of course laughed it off, however... we did have one child eat part of the crayon (she spit it out though).

All my girlfriends were super impressed with the fact that I made the favors; so easy!!

Click here for other Car Birthday posts.

Linking up: Peas and crayons  , Dragonfly Designs ,  Handyman Crafty Woman , Sew Much Ado , Someday Crafts , Between U & Me  ,Trendy Treehouse , Vintage Gwen , Momnivores Dilemma , Live Laugh Rowe , Crafty Blog Stalker , Happy Go Lucky ,  ladyBird Ln
Lamb around  , Young and Crafty , Crafty Moms Share , CRAFT , Creating my way to success , Keeing it Simple , The Girl Creative , DIY Showoff , Making the World Cuter  , Under the Table Dreaming , Marvelously Messy , Our Delightful Home , Blackberry Vine , Shwin and Shwin  , Christy's Cuties , Romance on a Dime , Homework , Not Just a Housewife , Vintage Wanna Bee , A Bowl Full of Lemons , DIY By Design  , Raegun Wear , Sarahndipities ,

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Socks for Sandy

I may no longer live in New Jersey, but after spending the first 18 years of my life there... I will always be a Jersey girl at heart! That is one of the reasons that the destruction of Sandy has hit so close to home.

Belmar Beach, where we would go to for day trips, was flooded and many homes and businesses destroyed. LBI, where close family friends had a beach house where we would visit every summer, had houses ripped from their foundations. And who can forget Seaside, where just about everyone from my high school would spend their Prom Weekend (oh the memories); now destroyed! Further in from the shore, I had many friends affected by Sandy in Hoboken and other inland towns.

For those reasons, I wanted to write up a quick post on Socks for Sandy, which was started by Laura, a blogger located in Little Egg Harbor, New Jersey. (Read her story here.) She volunteered at a local shelter set up in a middle school and saw the need for socks with her own eyes. The temperature dropped (and is still dropping) after Sandy subsided, and people are left walking barefoot in pop up shelters. Putting socks on cold feet signifies warmth and comfort.

 

Let's all get together and give a little warmth to those affected by Sandy!

 

Socks for Sandy

P.O. Box 520

Little Egg Harbor, NJ  08087

Please mail by Friday, November 9, since the need is urgent. 

Laura will receive all packages and immediately take these to the local hurricane shelter for distribution. Any excess will be given to the other hurricane shelters up and down New Jersey's coastline. 

Another option... 

Donating directly to the Red Cross is still the fastest way to get your money into the hands of those who need it the most.