Pinteresting Finds

Who doesn't love Pinterest? It would be hard not to. I like the idea of trying all the DIY and crafting projects, but I'm just not crafty and never seem to get around to it. However, I do get around to the recipes. Here are some I am dying to try or have tried lately. For example: I made this last night. LOVED it.

It is a fried egg, bacon, avacado & tomato sandwich. I toasted the bread and added a little ranch dressing to it. Quick, easy and delicious.


This is what I am making Baker's teachers for V-day gifts. I will make them heart-shaped though.


This dip looks AMAZING! Hot corn dip. I will be making this, hopefully this weekend.


I made this last week. Its a Weight Watchers crunch chicken/honey mustard dish. The crunch is from corn flakes. It was great. I had to leave out an ingredient that may have made a difference, but I liked it alot.


If you follow this blog, you might know that I am challenging myself to only buy USED, CONSIGNED or REFURBISHED OR WITH A COUPON this year. This rule does not apply to food because its unrealistic I think. I would love to use a coupon for everything I buy, but its not going to happen. Anyway, my next project will be to paint our kitchen table. I love this grey color and I also love the yellow incorporated around it. Can't wait to see how it comes out. I plan to distress it too.
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For more of my USED finds, I bought Baker's big boy bed off of Craigslist and I love it! Its shabby, cute. I will post pics on that another time.

Anyone have tips on painting/distressing a kitchen table? I'm going to try to accomplish that this weekend.

Hayes turns 3!

My sweet little niece, Hayes turns 3 tomorrow and she had her party on Saturday at the Jump Zone. It was a great place for a party. I think all the kids had a great time.

Unfortunately, I could not get any good pictures of the birthday girl looking at the camera. She was WAY too busy for pictures.




While most kids were bouncing or sliding, this boy was playing air hockey. What?


Or baseball...
















After the party we had a nice lunch at Nathan and Amy's house and had an all-around fun day! Happy Birthday Hayes! We love you!

A Little Baker Re-Cap & Challenge

I haven't done a post about Baker's latest and greatest in a while. I don't want to forget this stage because like all the other stages, its really cute!

For the most part, I just love two. We are always laughing, never sure of what he will say next or learn. He is such a sponge and we have to be so careful of everything that we say.


*Catching up on "Lost Atlantis"


Fun Facts

Weight- 28 lbs

Favorite Foods (in no particular order)- chicken nuggets, green beans, FRUIT SNACKS (all caps b/c its #1), eggs, bacon, cheese, pancakes, crackers, grapes.

Current Favorite Toys- his train set, Toy Story 4 Wheeler, and although this is not technically a toy, he still is obsessed with www.starfall.com. If you are a mom and haven't introduced this to your kids, go now. He calls it ABC's and Amy introduced us to this early on. He has been addicted ever since.

Favorite Books- Elmo's Favorite Places, School Bugs, Penguins, Are You My Mother, Oh My OH MY Dinosaurs and really this list is too long to complete. For various reasons we own 2 billion kids books. Its a great thing, but they seem to be overtaking Baker's room. His night time routine includes probably 5-7 books before bed. I have to admit this can be exhausting. I'm all about reading and its a great bonding time, but by book 2 or 3, I'm really ready for some me time.

Cute things:
Everytime we go to get in the car he says "Baker Dwive" and wants to sit in the drivers side and drive us wherever we need to go. If we have time, I let him sit there and steer the wheel, do the wipers and the radio. He loves it.

He is very into helping. He feeds the dogs outside every night. He carries it very carefully without spilling and then has to put the cup back in the bag.

He loves the Birthday song and I light a random candle for him and he will sing Happy Birthday (usually to Mommy) and then "blow out the candle" which is hysterical. We usually have to sing it/light the candle 6 times or so.

Now that we live by a pond with ducks, we do a lot of duck feeding. I have a cute video on Facebook of him feeding the ducks, but of course it won't upload here for some reason.

He is still not interested really in potty training. I have to admit I feel no rush on this. While saving on diapers sounds great, it doesn't outweigh the hassle of having to always stop what you are doing to take them to the potty. Baker is the king of "crying wolf" too so I feel like he will use that power against us. However, he always goes potty right before his bath. He throws a fit if we don't let him try, even if its just one drop.

He has known all of his letters and colors for a while. He counts to 10 very enthusiastically, but we haven't worked on knowing what each number looks like.

It is safe to say we love this boy with all we have!

Now, for something I am challenging myself with for the year 2012. I saw on Pinterest a challenge for yourself to only buy USED, CONSIGNED or REFURBISHED in 365 days. This is something I strive to do anyway. Not so much with clothes but pretty much with most everything else. So, I've set the same goal for myself but added OR WITH A COUPON to this list. I started out by buying this from Craigslist:


Its a beautiful pine armoire. At first, from the pictures I thought it would definitely need painting, but once I saw it in person I actually love the look of the wood. Its very rustic already (which is how I would paint it) but it has that "barn" look that I love. It was needed for the very empty wall in our living room that the Christmas tree was covering when we moved in.

I've discovered in buying this that I have an armoire obsession. I realized we have five. FIVE! In the house...only 2 of those actual hold TV's. I just love them.

I'll keep you posted on more of my "challenge" finds.

Au Natural

I've always thought Baker was cutest in nothing but a diaper. Up until VERY recently, he was not a fan of the camera. However, like a miracle sent from above he now works that camera. He says "CHEEESSSEEE" when he sees me getting it out.

In addition he has recently wanted Licorice to participate in things Licorice had no business participating in. Like baths or playing trains or smiling in our pictures. I am really trying to make an effort to learn more about my camera out of AUTO so I did my own little photo shoot with them.

Please note: Lic in bottom left, football stance, and "cheese" smile.




And a shout out from the bathtub...


Sweet, sweet boy.

Vicks

I just haven't been on board with blogging lately. Just being honest. So this post might seem "cheap" but I love it. I love a good home remedy. Some of these tips I cannot wait to try!

Twelve Surprising Uses for Vicks


1. Decongest Your Chest
The most common use of Vicks is to decongest your chest and throat area. When applied to the upper chest, it provides excellent relief of cough and congestion symptoms.

2. On Your Tootsies
Applying Vicks to your feet provides nighttime cough relief. Generously rub VapoRub all over your feet and cover them with socks. Within moments your cough will subside—in the morning you’ll wake up a new, hacking free woman.

3. Achy Breaky Muscles
Vicks relieves sore, overworked muscles. It increases circulation and provides almost instant aid. Use a generous portion and apply it all over the aching area. (Be sure to warn your bedmate as the stench can ensure a nookie-free night.)

4. Get Rid of Nasty Nail Fungus
Rub VapoRub on your toenails if you suspect you have a fungus. Within days, the nail will turn dark—this means the Vicks is killing the fungus. As your toenail grows out, the dark part will grow off and you will have fungus-free feet. Keep applying the ointment over a period of two weeks to fully cleanse nail beds of any remaining bacteria.

5. Stop Your Cat from Scratching
Cats are notorious for scratching every hard surface they get their claws on. To prevent Miss Kitty from ruining your doors, walls, and windows, apply a small amount of VapoRub to these areas. Cats detest the smell and will steer clear. Vicks can also be applied to your arms and legs if your kitty is prone to scratching you.

6. Pet Pee-Pee Deterrent
If your dog or cat is not yet potty trained, put an open bottle of Vicks on the area he or she likes to mark as their territory. The smell will discourage them from lifting their legs and wetting your rug.

7. Headaches Be Gone
Rub a small amount of Vicks VapoRub on your temples and forehead to help relieve headaches. The mentholated scent will release pressure in your head and instantly relieve pain.

8. Humidify Your Sleep
Vicks VapoRub can be used in special types of humidifiers and vaporizers. Ensure your humidifier has an aromatherapy compartment before using. The humidifier will circulate Vicks throughout the air and keep you breathing easy all night long.

9. Paper Cuts and Splinters
To prevent infection and speed up healing time, dab a small amount of Vicks on any small cut or splinter.

10. Ticks and Bugs
If you get bitten by a tick, apply Vicks immediately. The strong odor might help get the critter to release itself and stop bugging you.

11. Reek-free Racehorses
Professional racers smother VapoRub under the nostrils of racehorses on race day. The strong stench deters the stallions from the alluring odor of the female pony and keeps them focused on the race.

12. Go Away Mosquitoes
Vicks wards off mosquitoes. Apply small dabs of Vicks VapoRub to your skin and clothes and mosquitoes will steer clear. If you do get bitten, apply Vicks to the area and cover it with a Band-Aid to relieve itching.

Via http://www.divinecaroline.com/22175/84075-twelve-surprising-uses-vicks-vaporub/2#ixzz1jGDfmS00

Christmas...a little late

Despite my tardiness of this post, I still need to share pics from our Christmas Extravaganza. (Everything is more fun if you add "Extravaganza" to the name, fyi)

We started off with our annual Jones Family Party at our house on Christmas Eve Day.

Baker kissing Lexi






Baking cookies for Santa!




Santa came!

Santa was nice enough to leave a note to Baker about his train not being complete for Christmas morning. I realize why Santa ran out of time. This set came with 8,567 screws. We JUST finished it this weekend.














After we finished up "Santa" we got packed up for Dothan. I was so sad when I realized I left my camera at home! So, I have no pictures from the great fun we had in Dothan. Baker and Hayes both got motorized four-wheelers from Shug and Daggy and they were hilarious riding them together. It was more like bumper cars than anything. We loved getting to see Uncle Hank and Aunt Regina too. I just hate I have no pictures of this. Ah well, what do you do?

I hope everyone had a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!