So Many Options, So Little Time...

Christmas is fast approaching and we have a tradition of giving the kids a new Christmas ornament  every year.

Today I realized that I don't have their ornaments yet and that I better get on it since I will be giving Handmade ones(lovingly made by yours truly of course.:)).

I really love to give them ornaments that expresses who they are or what they were 'into' that year.

Here are some options that I found on Pinterest... 

The older two have caught on to my button collection craze.  So I thought this one would be cute.  using buttons in their favorite color.

I love this one!  How precious for Mr. E and his chubby little hand-print.

So cute and so easy! I might be on the hunt for some old wooden puzzle pieces. Anybody have some? :)

This little guy just made me happy.  I thought it could be cute to do it in the kids favorite animal.

All my kids really LOVE books even Mr. E who is my 1 1/2 year old.  He follows me a round with books in his hands all day.  It is so cute.  The best part is is when he'll try and wiggle into your lap even if your not sitting down, but if your holding one of his books then it's a MUST for him to be sitting on your lap.  Have I mentioned that I love that kid?  Well, I DO! Thought this ornament would be great to describe him this year.

So there are some of my choices.  Not sure which ones I'll use or maybe I won't use any of them.  I don't know, what do you think?  Do you have any cute ideas for some?  I need to have them done by Dec 1st!  Wowzers! (Yes that is a word.;))

This little girl has a Birthday coming up.  That means they'll be a birthday post all about her and her fun Second-hand gifts. :)

Park City Shopping with the GIRLS

This past weekend I went with my Sisters, Mom, and Grandma to Park City for our annual Girls Shopping trip.  We have been doing it since I was in college and that's a long time people.  11 years! It is always so much fun and this year was NO exception.
 

 All us girls (minus my sister Tiff who was out supporting her son who plays football for Dixie.  We MISSED you Tiff!) eating out after a long day of ...shopping. :)  You might wonder how I did this.  Well you see I was the one that would give opinions at the dressing room, push the cart, and "Oh, and Aw" at all their great finds, or I would go back to the condo early and relax/fix dinner.  It was so fun! Plus I haven't been in 'real' stores in such a LONG time that it was fun to go see all the cute stuff even if I didn't buy anything. We went in to Nordstrom Rack  and I was overwhelmed with all the cute stuff.  Every where I looked I saw amazingly great stuff, and I didn't even have to dig through a bunch of crap to find it. But what's the fun in that, right. ;)

A few of us also hit up a Savers on our way up to P.C. I found some great finds.

I've been looking for a life jacket all summer for my 6 year old and could never find one.  This one is going to be great for next year and only $2.99. AMAZING!!!!

My little 1 1/2 year old is OBSESSED with books.  I picked up these 2 for him for .69 each. They are both in mint condition. Also a 2 pack of crayons in like-new condition for .99. I can never have enough of these at my house.  Plus stick them with a coloring book and voila

you have a instant gift. 

Cute little vest for my girl- $1.49

shirt and pants for Mister E-$5 for the pair.

This was my favorite find of the day.  When we pulled up to Savers I told everyone that I was looking for this book, and I can't believe that I actually I found it!  What are the chances? I spent a day reading while everyone else went and shopped.  It was so nice to just sit and read! I finished it in less then 24 hrs and I loved it.  If you want a good, clean, book to read or for your daughters to read this is it!  It was so cute. Oh, and I only paid $2 for it. :) 

My sister also found her cute outfit at Savers.  She is the one with the cute Turquoise head wrap on. Her pants were even half off and ended up being $3!!!!! I can't remember what the shirt cost but I'm sure it was a great deal. ;)

We of course hit up the Bath and Body store.  I love that store and all the YUMMY smells.  I did buy from there since soaps and lotion are on my list of things I can buy new.  This was the first time buying there since I started the project though, but I got the sweetest deal.  I got 9 soaps and the yummiest orange ginger lotion (the nice kind in the glass jar) all for $21!  I had 2 coupons that they let me combine!  Score!

I also bought some tights for my little girl which I think would be considered socks, which are on my list of  "can buy new" items. Last month I almost bought the exact same ones for 9 bucks a pop, but I got these ones for $3.50!  So happy to have tights that actually fit my daughter!  I've been squeezing her into ones that were a size (or two) too small.  Poor girl!

This was us at the end of the trip.  We've taken these pictures every year and it's fun to see all of our stuff together, jammed on one bed.  This year was actually way less then we usually have. :)

The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly

The Good: I GOT A CAMERA! Yeah that's right, I finally got a camera.  Yes it is used, and yes it is AWESOME!  Thanks to Mr. Erik Johnson who's camera it was before ours and who so generously gave us his old camera (that is not really old at all) he only had it for a few months, but he got the new fancy, shmancy iPHONE and so passed the love on to us.  He wouldn't take any payment (HOW NICE IS HE!!!!), but I did manage to email him a little itunes gift card so he can get some sweet apps for his new phone.  THANK YOU AGAIN ERIK THAT WAS WAAAAAAAAAY tooooooo nice! 

The Bad: I've been dealing with a massive sinus infection for-ev-er but has recently gotten really, really bad (I almost made the HH take me to the ER in the middle of the night).  I'm on the mend now, but only after spending $260 US dollars just on antibiotics alone!  That is NOT being THRIFTY.  I have to say that it was worth it though, the pain is gone and I can function once again. I just prayer that it's gone for awhile now.

The Ugly: The ugly truth is, is that even after having a camera, and being over my sinus infection I probably will still be a slacker at blogging.  I'm SO SORRY!     I actually have a ton of stuff that I can blog about and I hope to somewhat catch up or maybe not, maybe I'll just start from here, or perhaps a little bit of both. :)  We shall see.

The Good: I'm still rockin' my project and have not bought anything new (except for those on the list ex: socks, undies, and such) even with a shopping trip to Park City (that post coming next). Yesterday I was at Wal Mart doing a little grocery shopping, and I was picking up some toys for my mother-in-law to give as gifts and it made me have anxiety having them in my cart and seeing the cashier scanning them in. I was a sweaty mess when I left there.  I felt like I was breaking the law or something. I think there is something wrong with me...



The Bad: It was recently my birthday and my sweet Sister-in-law's bought me a really cute shirt that was too small (I'm flattered that they think I'm that small though. :))  So I had to go exchange it at the "MALL". I had my 3 year daughter with me and when we walked in she said, "Wow! What is this store?!" She was seriously amazed at how awesome this huge store was. Then I got to thinking that it has been a really long time since she had been in a "MALL" and probably doesn't even remember the last time we were in one. LOL. On the other hand she knows her way around D.I., and Savers like it's the back of her hand. I was kinda feeling bad for her though.  Then I remembered when I was first married and didn't have kids yet.  I went to a Church function that had a guest speaker there and she was talking about avoiding debt.  She made the comment that her daughter had never been in a 'real' store until she was 8 and that was to buy her baptism dress. I remember thinking how sad for that little girl. I truly felt bad for her and thought WOW they must be so poor. Now that I think back on it, I'm not sad for that little girl anymore, but for me back then.  I didn't get it! I had to go through some rough patches and huge eye-opener experiences to realize how truly SMART/RICH that lady was.  Now I'm sure she is debt free including her house, and able to buy things that they not only need but want without putting it on credit cards or worrying about where they will get the money.  Oh, man I envy that piece of mind she has. We are getting closer to that goal though, and I just pray that I have learned my lesson and will never feel bad for anyone who hasn't ever been in a mall before.  Go to a THRIFT SHOP they are SO much MORE FUN!!!! 

The Ugly: How was everyone's Halloween?  Ours was great! We used costumes that we already had or that I got at a Yard Sale so it was cheap, cheap, cheap!  I only had to buy 1 bag of candy and used the rest that I got from a Yard Sale. (Don't remember? Go HERE). AWESOME!   

Mr. Incredible-Purchased last year for $5

Lady Bug-Purchased 2 years ago $2 (that include the skirt!)

Mr. Monkey-Everyone of my kids has worn this at least once. It's working on it's 6th Halloween. :) 

Flapper Girl-Bought at a Yard Sale for $2. (this is where the ugly comes in) The wig was part of that! Is it so gross to buy wigs from a Yard Sale? Oh, well I did and as far as I know I don't have lice, but now my head is starting to itch just thinking about it...oh great! ;)