WHY. WHY, WHY!

For some reason blogger will NOT up load my pictures. WHY?! I think because I am such a blog slacker and it hates me.  REALLY?!  Do you think that is going to get me to blog more often? PROBABLY NOT!!

I'm going to stick-it to blogger and blog anyways...that should show 'em, right? HA!

Any who sorry about the rant. :) 

I was REALLY EXCITED to post pictures of my most FAVORITE second-hand buy, and Christmas present.  MY VAN!!!!!!!!  That's right folks, I am rockin' the Mini-van and proud of it! :) I love this thing so much! 

You see we had a Lexus (car) and it was wonderful, but we were squishing 3 kids, with car seats mind you, in the back seat of that amazing car.  No bueno! We sold the Lexus and got a Toyota Sienna.  Some people might consider this 'down grading' but I am feeling like royalty in this baby!  It has it ALL, leather (and heated) seats, navigation, DVD, lasers for cruise control(the HH's favorite), hooks in the trunk space to hang your bags(MY FAVORITE), back up camera(also my favorite), and soooo much more.  Honestly I could live in this thing. Oh, and the older kids can put on their seat belts by themselves.  LOVE THAT! They are not on top of each other so it's 'slightly' more peaceful too.  LOOOOVE!

The HH says that it is going to save me 5 swear words a day...at least!  Now I'm not a big swearer people but try packing 3 kids into a CAR and have to seat belt all of them because they can't reach it because they are so squished.  Then at least one of them is crying because they got their head kicked or hand smashed from someone else trying to get packed in the car. It was Aw-SOME! :) NOTE: These swear words were 'mostly' in my head so not to offend little ears. ;)  Really it has helped in a BIG way, in every possible way.  Who new?

Like I said this is a second-hand van.  We bought it from a dealer who got it from an auction who took it from an older lady so she could transport her dog. ;0  She kept this thing so clean though, and paid for the whole thing to be sprayed with scotch guard.  It looks brand new, but is a 2005.  we got a SMOKIN' deal on it and were even able to pay cash for it! LOVE!!!! 

I was determined to not go in to debt for a car.  We've done debt, and me no likey!  So we were looking at A LOT of vans with fewer upgrades and leather was an absolute no.  Then the day before the guy was buying our car we found this one,  it was slightly higher in price, but we thought we could talk him down and juggle some more of our money to make it work.  We got there to look at it and fell in LOVE, and fell HARD, but were ONLY going to do it, if the price was right.  

We took it to a mechanic and they checked it out for us and it needed to have the CV-boots changed on it, so the Dealer came down $200. The guy buying our car agreed to do a trade through the dealer which saved us another $600, and since we had cash the dealer came down another $1000!  BLEEEEESSED!

We have squished 3 kids into the back of a car for 18 months and now we were finally able to reap the reward of our sacrifice!  I am so glad we waited to find this one and that we stuck to our guns and didn't go into debt! BEST CHRISTMAS PRESENT EVER!



 

Christmas MY Way

This Christmas was both super low key, and stressful all in one.  I had most of my kids Christmas bought by Thanksgiving and hardly spent anything. the stress cam in when I was buying for everyone else. I did stick to my project though...mostly.:)  I broke it for some Sub for Santa gifts and one gift for Jed. Other then that I stuck to it.  Not to bad huh? 

From Santa

Miss J's desk Before and after.  $5 plus paint.

Mr E - Yard Sale $5

Mr C has been asking for a Wii for 3 year straight now and we finally decide that we'd give him his one dying wish. LOL, this kid LOVES video games. We didn't want to give him the whole Wii all to himself though so from Santa he got Wii PJ's-Savers $3, Super Mario Tin Container filled with Mario Cards, stickers, and stuff- Yard Sale $2, and Super Mario Bro. game + his own special red Wii controller.

This is what Santa brought to the family.  Mr C was absolutely in H.E.A.V.E.N!

We bought all this off of KSL it came with a bunch more stuff but we gave it to the family from the HH and I.  I didn't want Santa to look too awesome. Cost $250 for the entire bundle.

Looking ADORABLE in their second-hand Christmas wear.

We also gave Miss J... 

Barbie case with Cinderella Barbie- $3.50, 

Snow White Set- $2, 

Pet Shop Game-$2

Dog Kennel with Stuffed dog and Vet kit-$3

Books from her brothers- 3 for .75

*Everything else pictured are from her Grandma's and Grandpa's

Mr. C also got...

Elmo Live (which he ABSOLUTELY LOVES)-KSL $25 

Books-$2

*Chair and books were from G-ma's and G-pa's

Mr. C got...

Magnetix-$2 

(My cousin bought these at a Yard Sale and let me buy them to give to Mr. C. THANKS NATALIE!)

Bakugans-Yard Sale $2

Toy Story 3 Wii game- KSL $15

Books from siblings- Yard Sale-$3 

Mario t-shirt- Yard Sale-$1

Coupons for extra Wii time- FREE

A post of what the HH and I got will come soon....HOPEFULLY!

BONUS:

Gave this super cute pin cushion (even made it) to my Mother-in law. :)

Christmas Surprises...

Surprise, surprise, I'm blogging!  I'm really starting to believe that I am NOT so good at keeping a blog.  How do people find the time to do everything? HELP! If you have any tips on how to juggle...life.  Let me know.  Yes it's been a while, but here I am (when I should be sleeping) BLOGGING. :)

We have a little tradition in our family to give the kids new (well new to them anyways ;)) Christmas pajamas, books, and ornaments on the night that we decorate the Christmas Tree.  We usually try and do this on December 1st.  This year it didn't happen until the 5th because the HH has had to work A LOT, and we did not want to do it without him.  

We use to give the kids there Pajamas on Christmas Eve but I hated that they didn't get to wear them through the Christmas holiday so we switched over to this way and it has worked great.  The kids love getting a few gifts early and they love wearing their jammies as much as possible. 

 Here's the cute little bunch dressed in their new PJ's with new books in hand.  As you can tell Mr. E is beyond excited about his new book. :)

Mr. C PJ's- Hand-me-downs from his cousin- FREE

Book- One of my old Chapter books-FREE

Mr. E PJ's-Hand-me-down from cousin-FREE

Book-Yard Sale-$1

Miss J PJ's-Yard Sale-.50

Book-Yard Sale- $1

Remember how I wasn't sure what to do for their Christmas ornaments this year? After MUCH thought, I decided on these "I Spy" ornaments.  My Mom had left over clear ornaments that she let me have and I used some of my scrapbooking ribbon that I already had, then went around the house finding things that were small enough to fit in and that described my kiddos. I also printed off small pictures of each of them and small pictures of certain things that they liked plus a small picture of a Nativity and put them in as well.  The kids LOVED them and have taken them off the tree more times then I can count to look at all the fun things in their special ornament.  In fact Miss J already broke hers once.  Thank goodness my Mom had a back-up one for me.  THANKS MOM!!!!

I love these kids so much!    

They make the Holidays that much more fun and their excitement is defiantly contagious.  

Can't wait for Christmas morning!!!

A Second-Hand Birthday

This little girl turned 4 and had a fabulous Birthday.

She could have cared less that all her stuff was Second-Hand.

I love that about kids!!!

Here is the goods...

Mr. C gave her a Dora book that she had wanted for-ev-er.  Found it at a yard sale for $2. :)

Even the Princess wrapping paper was from a Yard Sale. $1.

She loved it and Mr. C received a big, fat, hug.

Mister E gave her a coloring/activity book and crayons.  This girl is a coloring fool and absolutely loved this.  Who cares if it came from DI for $2 and the crayons .50.  Not her!

The HH and I gave her a Snow hat and gloves set that I actually got last year on clearance for $2.74, and this helmet purchased at DI for $1!

We also gave her this cute little scarf that I purchased before my project started form THIS  awesome Girlie!  She makes the cutest stuff ev-er! I got it for half off though $8. We also gave her this scooter that I purchased off of KSL ($10) last year for her birthday, but 3 days before her Birthday (last year) she  decided she wanted a STAGE.  yeah, that's right a STAGE to dance and sing on. :) Since her Daddy is the best, he wipped her up one in less then 24 hours using only materials we had lying around the house.  

It came complete with carpet and storage!

The cake was NOT second-hand. ;) But the candles ($1.99 for 4 packs of candles) and the Princess toppers ($1) were purchased from Savers.

Funny story:  

We've been letting Miss J ride her scooter around the house and Mr. C wanted to bring in his scooter from outside and ride it inside too.  

I told him No, because it was dirty.  He said that Miss J's scooter had dirty wheels too. I explained to him that it just looked dirty from having wear on the tires but that I cleaned it up really good before we gave it to her. so now it's clean.  

Then miss J comes scootering into the kitchen like she owns the place and says, in her sassiest voice mind you,    " Yeah, she picked this up from a Yard Sale."  

She thought she was the coolest ever because her scooter was picked up from a YARD SALE. I LOVE it! I love that she still thinks it is cool. Probably won't last into the teenage years though will it?  I guess I won't break her heart by talling her that I bought it off of KSL and not a Yard Sale. ;)

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! ;)