Homemade Laundry Detergent

I mixed up a batch of homemade laundry detergent yesterday, after discovering that Meijer's carries all the ingredients needed. I tried it out today on the items that I hand wash, like underwear, socks, hand towels, etc.

One of the first things I liked about it was how easy it was to make. Took maybe 10 minutes and that included grating the soap.

It smells wonderful. Kind of lemony, and I do not normally like citrusy smells, but this smells fresh and clean.

I was kind of skeptical about not needing to use fabric softener with it, but I tried it. The clothes did feel a lot softer than they normally do. I will let you know how they feel after they air dry. I hate how hard clothes are when you air dry them!

I have not tried it in the washing machine yet, as we still have some Tide left. Once that is gone I will be using the homemade detergent.

So far, I like it.


Homemade Laundry Detergent (Powdered)

1 cup washing soda
1 cup Borax
2 cups finely grated soap (I used Fels Naphtha, but you can use any spare bits you have around the house.)

Grate 2 cups of chosen soap. Combine all ingredients. It is recommended that you give it a whir in the blender to chop all the pieces of soap up really fine, so they will dissolve better, but you do not have to if you do not want too.

Amount needed per load of laundry varies on where you live, and the water quality. Generally 2 Tbsp will work for a normal load. If the clothes are really dirty you can add a bit more. Some people say that the 2 Tbsp does not get their clothes clean enough, and other people say they do not have to use that much. It will require some experimentation to discover what you prefer. I used 2 Tbsp on the hand washables and they seemed to be just as clean as with store bought detergent.

I highly recommend checking out Little House in the Suburbs for more great home made ideas. They also have a recipe for liquid laundry detergent if you prefer that over powder. Go here for that.

Hell has frozen over

I called my mom this morning and shared that with her, as my son has slept until 8:30 for the past 2 mornings! Maybe he knew I needed that extra sleep? Whatever the reason I am definitely not complaining.

After picking up a repo for work and eating lunch with Jeff and Daniel at Cici's Pizza, I headed to Meijer's to do the weekly shopping. I got Daniel a Cars bathrobe for Christmas and used the $4 Santa bucks for today, for a total price of $15. Now for the great deal I got.....I have been planning on getting Jeff a deep fryer of some sort for Christmas. I made him get rid of his Fry Daddy when we moved, as it was NASTY. I promised I would get him another, but have failed to do so as of yet. I saw one on sale a few weeks ago, and that was when the idea of getting him one for Christmas was born. I have been pricing them, and the one I wanted to get him was between $40 and $50 depending on where I got it from. I found one on sale at Meijer's today for $29.99. $20 cheaper than normal price, plus I could use the $6 Santa bucks, so I paid $23.99!!!!!!! YES!!!!!

I also discovered that Meijer's carries all the supplies needed to make your own laundry detergent. So I made up a batch today. I will let you know how I like it after I do laundry tomorrow.

While I was making the detergent, I was half way listening to the Auburn vs Alabama game. Jeff is happy AL won. I am not happy. Auburn looked horrible, and we lost for the first time in 6 years.

We trekked downtown to the Christmas parade and spent 2 hours freezing our buns off. Well I was some what warm, Jeff was the one who was cold. No baby a long sleeve T shirt in 40 degree weather won't keep you warm for long. Daniel loved it. He got to give Spiderman a high five!

Now we are all back home relaxing. Daniel is content to watch a movie in his room, Jeff is watching football, and I am catching up on all my blog reading I have missed in the past few days. (I might not have commented but I have read them.)

I am Alive

Sorry for the absence of posts/comments. All hell has broken loose at work, and I have to fix it. I will be back soon I promise!

Weekend Projects

My weekend feels like it flew by. Maybe because I stayed so busy? We took Daniel to see Madagascar 2 with our freinds on Saturday. After we got back I spent the rest of the day cooking up a storm. My pecan pie looks burnt, but tastes ok. One of the pumpkin pies the crust looks burnt (hate my oven). The pumpkin pie with the homemade crust actually turned out really nice! And the pumpkin muffins are WONDERFUL!

Yes I use my Halloween plates all year long!

I sent Sunday cleaning up around the house (not that you can tell it now) and then made 2 potholders from quilt blocks that a friend gave me. I had planned on giving them as gifts for Christmas, but I might find it hard to part with them.

This is the first one I made.

This is the second one I made, and it is my favorite.

Now if I could just catch up on the rest of the stuff I need to do I would be doing good.

Christmas of Dreams Day 9

What is the most unusual gift you have received? Best gift? Do you re-gift?

When I was in college I dated a guy that was from Memphis. I had signed up to be a counselor at the church retreat he usually worked at after Christmas every year. We had plans for me to drive up the day after Christmas. The weekend I was supposed to go home, I got food posioning. I was miserable, and ended up not making it home until Christmas Eve. I frantically rushed around getting everyone's presents, and made sure that I had all his stuff ready to leave the next day. I got to Memphis, and he had not even gotten me anything! He said he had not had time, even though he had been home for a week and had gotten the presents for the people he was not going to even see until after New Years! I was PISSED. When he finally did get my present he got me an autographed Isaac Hayes cookbook. Needless to say, we did not date much longer. That would have to be my most unusual gift I suppose.

Best gift? That would have to be the camera my husband got me last year. I have bad luck with cameras. I had left my old camera on top of my car, and watched it explode in my rearview mirror as it hit the highway. Jeff got me a new digital camera for Christmas last year, and made me open it the night before, so that I would have it to use Christmas morning. (Yeah I lost that camera at a NASCAR race this summer. BAD CAMERA LUCK)

I do not remember ever re gifting something. If I get something I do not particularly like, I usually keep it for a while and then on my next cleaning binge I will donate it to Salvation Army. I do not have a lot of storage room, so it is hard for me to let things sit around that I do not use.

For more interesting blogs head over to Momdot.

Todays question was brought to you by: JaC Jewelry, Cutie Covers, and by Sassy Baby.

Easy Pumpkin Muffins

I was on a baking frenzy today (2 pumpkin pies 1 with homemade crust, 1 pecan pie, the muffins, a french toast casserole for breakfast tomorrow and dinner), and I found this recipe. They are YUMMY and very easy to make.

INGREDIENTS
1 (18.25 ounce) package yellow cake mix
1 (15 ounce) can pumpkin puree
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

DIRECTIONS
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease a 12 cup muffin pan or line with paper liners.
In a large bowl, mix together the cake mix, pumpkin puree, cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves until smooth. Spoon equal amounts of batter into the prepared muffin cups.
Bake for 20 to 25 minutes in the preheated oven, until a toothpick inserted in the center of one comes out clean.

The 12 Days of Thanksgiving: Day 7

I am thankful that we are able to spend the weekends together as a family. We might not do anything other than watch football games together, but it is nice to be able to spend that time with each other.

I am so proud! I have to brag!

Over the past few weeks we have been talking to Daniel about how we were going to have him pick out a toy to donate so that another little boy could have something for Christmas. We explained to him that while we may not have a lot to spend, we have a lot more than some people do, especially this year. There have been several conversations about how if something happened and we couldn't provide a Christmas how he would feel. We have also tried to explain to him how it is important to share what you have with others, no matter how insignificant you think it is. I know he is only 3 and does not understand exactly what we are talking about, but I hope that by beginning early, he will grow up to be a compassionate and caring adult.

I took him this afternoon to get his first dose of the flu vaccine. (He was strangely excited and just KNEW that he was going to get his shot in his belly like Grampie does his insulin) His new pediatrician is near the K Mart on Nicholasville Rd, where Z Rock 103.3 has been doing Homeless for the Holidays all week. For the past 3 years the morning show has camped out in the K Mart parking lot for a week and raised food and clothing/toy donations for the holidays. This was their 4th year there and they were worried that with the economy donations would be down. The last I heard today this year was actually a record year!

As we were leaving the doctors I told Daniel we were going to go get a toy and donate it to Homeless for the Holiday. He proudly walked into K Mart and into the toy section chattering the whole way there about what he might pick out. He went up and down the ailes and finally decided on a big truck that had a lot of cars inside it. I picked up a couple of kids books and let him pick out a small toy since he had been so good all day. (It was only $1 but he is thrilled with it)

When we pulled up at the donation site he insisted on giving the men the toy himself. He told them this is for someone else's Christmas. Then climbed back in his car seat to go home.

I sat in the parking lot with tears streaming down my face because I was so proud of him. This from the boy who when told no is known for pitching a fit, and when in a store wants everything he sees. "Maybe Christmas will bring me that," has been heard many times over the past few weeks. When he was picking out the toy he never once asked for anything for himself, it was only when I asked him if he would like a small toy that he even thought about getting something. The fact that he is three years old and was able to give so selflessly makes me proud.

12 Days of Thanksgiving Day 6

I am thankful that my husband found a job with a company that offers decent health insurance.

We just became eligible for health insurance, and I was surprised with how reasonable the plan was. Floored is more like it!

My company offers health insurance, but for a family, the cost is something like $200 every 2 weeks. Plus they have a high deductible and copay. We can't afford that. So for the past 3 months Daniel has had no insurance at all, and we have been hoping and praying that he does not get sick.

Jeff's company pays $115 a month. For all three of us, our cost is only $45 a week!!!!!! The deductible is reasonable, and so are the copays and RX costs!!!! HALLELEUGHIA!!!!!

We are off to get him a flu shot this afternoon and get the new patient package, and he will be getting a checkup in the next week hopefully!!!

Christmas of Dreams Day 8: The shopping day of DOOM

The lovely ladies at Momdot want to know:

Do you shop on Black Friday? What time do you start? Do you finish all your shopping on that day? What’s the best deal you have found? What’s your shopping strategy?

HELL NO!!!!!! I have never spent that day anywhere near a mall and I don't plan on it. Ok well I might venture out this year since I am taking that day off work, but there is only so much shopping I can do with my child in tow.

If I do head out, it will be at a reasonable hour, not 4am. I like sleep thank you very much! I might use that day to grab some things for DH, if I can somehow keep my child from spilling his guts to DH once he gets home.

But most likely I will be curled up at home snuggled into the couch with my son, enjoying my time off.

Todays sponsors are: Koshas, Leapfrog, and Soda Club

12 Days of Thanksgiving: Day 5

What are you thankful for? Blog it and then head over here to spread the word.

Today I am thankful for the fact that in this cruddy economy, I still have a job. That job allows me to provide for my family the warmth and comfort of a home, food on the table, and clothes on our backs, with a few extras thrown in there every once in a while.

I do not know many people who at some point in their career, don't have complaints about their job. Don't get me wrong, I have several, but I am thankful that I have a job. There are so many people who are losing jobs, and sometimes it makes me sad to know that with my line of work, the bad economy is actually good for my job. Less jobs=more repos for my company. I know most people think I am a "bad guy" but I do know that times are hard for everyone. Even our family.

Win a homemade detergent kit

I have been reading about making your own detergent for a while now, and I plan on trying it as soon as I use up my stockpile of Tide.

Sisterly Savings is offering a blogger a chance to win a laundry detergent kit from Soaps Gone Buy. Head over to her site and check it out.

Book Giveaway

Do you like to read? Do your children like to read? Do you like getting free books?

If you answered yes to any of the above questions go visit Owlhaven and enter for your chance to win.

Winner will be chosen on Monday

Christmas of Dreams Day 7: Naughty or Nice

Brought to you by: SillyMonkeez

Also brought to you by: My Baby Bump

(Sorry my links are doing weird things on Blogger this morning)



Tell us who is on your naughty list? Who is on your nice list? Why?

That is a tough one! I have to say all my friends and family are on the nice list. They have supported me this year in my decision to move far away from them, for my promotion with my company. There are moments when I think my son should be on the naughty list, but then he turns around and looks at me with those big blue eyes, and says something that totally cracks me up! Then there are the times when I have watched more NASCAR coverage than I care too that I think my husband should be on the naughty list, but he will turn around and bring me roses for no reason what so ever.

I do know one thing that should be on the naughty list: THE ECONOMY. Get your act together man!! You are putting a strain on all us normal people.

Letter to my uterus

Dear Uterus,

Will you please make up your mind what you are going to do. I know you are going through Depo withdrawls, and I am trying to be understanding. The past few months have been rough for you, and me as well. But could you please decide if you are going to start your monthly thing once and for all. This constant naggy pain, and wildly unstable hormone changes are starting to get to me. If you won't decide for me, please take into consideration my DH, who is bewildered by my mood changes and random crying jags. So if you will not take pity on me, please have pity on him.

Respectfully yours

Your host body, Natalie

12 Days of Thanksgiving Day 4

On this cold wintery day, I am thankful that I do not have to spend all my time working outside. I have a warm office that I can hole up in every day from 8:30-5. And on the rare occasions when I have to venture out into the arctic like termperatures, I am thankful for the many layers of clothes I am wearing.

Christmas Of Dreams Day 6: A Trip Down Memory Lane

Brought to you by: Flying Colors Baby, Uncommonly Cute, and Lollipop Books.

And don't forget to head over to Momdot and check out all the wonderful blogs!

Day 6 Question: We would like to know what is your favorite holiday memory from your childhood?

Growing up I knew that my father did not really like Christmas. He would go through the motions and put up lights, help with the tree, and all the other Christmassy sstuff, but you could tell there was something missing. He was not in the Christmas spirit I guess you could say.

When I got older I understood why.

My father was a Marine during Vietnam. He was Echo Company 2nd Battalion First Marines, and was a mortar platoon sergeant. One Christmas Eve, they had just come off patrol and were holding a bridge against the enemies. My father was supposed to go on guard duty, when his best friend offered to instead. He knew my Dad was exhausted and needed the rest. Dad agreed, and watched him walk off into the jungle. Then he watched the explosion that lit the night sky, and knew it was his buddy. He had stepped on a landmine on the way to the bridge. My dad still does not talk much about that night, but I am sure he felt like it was his fault.

When I got older, Dad began to go to PTSD classes, and began to deal with the emotions he had locked away for so long. And I suppose as they say, time heals all wounds. Seeing my Dad go to the mall with my Mom, and actively helping pick out our Christmas presents, instead of staying home and sending everyone else to do his shopping, was one of the happiest memories I have. He got some of his Christmas spirit back!

12 Days of Thanksgiving Day 3

What are you thankful for? Create your post and go here and leave it on mr linky.

I am thankful for silliness at bedtime.

As I was tucking my son into bed last night, I startd pretending to be asleep in his bed. He quickly told me I had to sleep with Jeff. So I called DH into daniels room and he immediately crawled on the other side of Daniel and turned out the lights. We spent several minutes snoring and pretending to be asleep, while cuddling with Daniel, who was giggling like crazy.

Daniel then told my husband he could not sleep in his bed because he was stinky. (Even though they had both taken a shower earlier in the evening)

So i am thankful for laughter and silliness at bedtime, and times together as a family.

Christmas of Dreams Day 5: Giving Back

Today, make a blog post about what you do to give back during the holidays. Do you volunteer your time? If so, please tell us where. What do you do to teach your children the true meaning of the holidays?

Brought to you by Baby Pop and Chic Covers

If you have not already done so, head over to momdot and check out all the cool blogs!

As a child growing up my parents always taught me to be concious of others. Whether it was their feelings or the fact that they might not be as fortunate as we were.

I do not ever remember walking by a Salvation Army bell ringer without putting something in there. Even if it was just a couple of pennies. Daniel has already learned that when he sees them he gets to put the money in. Now I just have to get him to understand why he does that lol!

I have never volunteered at a shelter during the holidays, but was thinking to myself on the way to work this morning, that maybe this would be a good year to start. I will have to run that one by my DH later.

We have already explained to Daniel that he is going to pick out a toy to donate to another little boy that won't have a Christmas like he is going to have. He has already decided on a dinosaur.

I am going to make some scarves to donate to the local drive the radio station is doing this week as well.

We do not do anything big, but every little bit helps. I want to raide my son the way I was, so he understands that, you might not have much to give, but it is better than doing nothing.

12 Days of Thanksgiving Day 2

If you would like to join in or just read more posts go here.

Sorry I missed out on Day One, but here is my day two.

I am incredibly thankful for my wonderful husband.

There really are not words to describe how thankful I am.

He sacrificed a lot to move here for me and my job.

He is patient when I am bitchy. And boy can I get bitchy lol.

He (tries) to let me sleep late on the weekends.

He helps me clean the house.

He washes dishes everyday. Sometimes 2-3 times a day!

He is my best friend who I can talk to about anything.

He puts up with my crazy new ideas, and even suggests some of his own, on how to save money.

He loves my son like his own.

My son loves him, sometimes I think more than he loves me lol.

I could go on and on, but I am truly thankful that we found each other, and that I get to share my life with him.

I am going into hibernation

I had a wonderful weekend! It was nice and relaxing and spent in good company. I mighthave to go into hibernation however until warmer weather. There was snow in NOV!!!!! Ok so it did not stick but it was there.

Daniel had a blast playing at the mall with Hoss on Friday night. He wanted to go back Saturday!

Thanks so much to Lisa for more jewelry making help. And for showing me the stitch I needed to make my neighbors birthday scarf and a scarf for Daniel to match his Spongebob hat and gloves.



He really liked his scarf and was gracious enough to model it for me.



Jeff also volunteered to model the other scarf.

I grabbed an odds and ends leftover trim bag while at Wal Mart and it had a great rhinestone trim that matched my neighbors scarf!



Sunday I spent in the kitchen preparing my neighbors birthday meal, and watching the last race of the season (YAY!) with Jeff.

My husband really is the most wonderful man alive. He cleaned the apt for me on Saturday without having to be asked, and did the laundry on Sunday when I said I REALLY did not want too. So my clothes will be wrinkled for the next week, but it was nice to not have to do them myself. I am truly thankful for my wonderful husband!

Now I have lots of crafts to keep me busy for the next few weeks in preparation for Christmas.

Christmas of Dreams Day 4: What is your favorite holiday recipe

Today's question for Momdot's Christmas of Dreams is brought to you by: Bottlewise and Glow Mama.

What is your favorite Holiday recipe?

That is a good question. Last year was my first year to host any holiday get togethers. My mom handled the turkey for Thanksgiving and I did the rest. I honestly do not remember what I did. I am sure there was a green bean casserole as that is my all time favorite dish to eat. Wow. My mind is a blank.

I am going to be doing Christmas and Thanksgiving all by myself this year and I have no idea how to cook a turkey, but that is what phones are for! I call my mom ALL the time to ask her about recipes and cooking advice.

I will share a recipe that I have recently discovered and I absolutely LOVE it.

Feta Cheese Stuffed Pork Shops

1 contained feta or blue cheese crumbles ( I do not like blue cheese which is what the recipe calls for so I use Feta and it is yummy!

2 green onions chopped

4 pork loin chops bone in or boneless with pockets cut in them by deli

toothpicks

1/4 cup sour cream

1 tablespoon flour

3/4 cup milk

Preheat oven to 350 (or you can cook these on the grill)

Combine choppen onons and cheese crumbles and stuff in pockets of pork chops. Secure openings with toothpicks.

Place in oven for 30 minutes or so until done.

Combine sour cream, flour and milk and pepper to taste in a sauce pan over medium heat. Whisk constantly until mixture boils and then reduce heat and simmer about 3 minutes still stirring until mixture thickens. Pour mixture over chops and garnish with any leftover feta/onion mixture.

This is realtively easy and quick and is super yummy! My husband said it is his favorite meal I cook.

Christmas of Dreams Day 3: Christmas Budgets

The lovely ladies over at momdot have asked the day three question of:

Have you started your Christmas shopping yet? Do you budget for the holidays? Do you always stick to your budget? Share with us any budgeting tips you may have!

(Cue Sesame Street Music)

This wonderful question was brought to you by: Appledonia, Hippos Toes, Kushies and the number 4. Sorry could not resist that last one!

Budget? What is that? Is that some new curse word today's kids have come up with?

No seriously.

Budgeting has never been my strong point. I do not even have a household budget! But I am working on correcting that. I usually try and keep a running list of how much money we have and what we need to pay out. I handle all the bills in the house out of my account. My husband does not even have one! He just hands the money right over to me every Friday.

I know I am AWFUL!

So no we do not have a budget per se for Christmas this year. We just know there is not a lot to spend, so we are trying to find other ways of giving gifts.

I have stocked up on Bath and Body Works at sales and using coupons. I have begun making jewelry thanks to a friend showing me how. I am searching the scrap fabric for things I can use to make nice inexpensive gifts, so no one feels left out, but we do not go into debt giving to everyone we want to give too. And of course, staying here for the holidays this year instead of going home.



That is just some of the stuff I have gotten.

I guess you could say I have a Christmas Game Plan, not so much a budget. I know what I have to work with and I am doing things to make sure it works.

And yes, for the first time ever, I have already started my Christmas shopping. I am NOTORIOUS for waiting until the last minute. But not this year! I am now supper dupper awesome plan ahead wife! WOO HOO! I even know what I am going to get Jeff. Now I just have to write my list for him to get me, drive him to the mall, show him what is on the list, and then print pictures off for him, just in case he forgets. Yeah he is not the best at picking out prsents. I mean a weather radio for my birthday!?

What Twilight female are you?

Take the Quiz and Share Your Results!

I am an Esme. Who would have guessed?

You can find this and more at www.twilightersanonymous.com

Shoppers be warned: Lots of stores closing due to "recession"

My husband mentioned this the other night and I really did not pay much attention. He said he had been listening to the radio and they were saying that you needed to be careful what gift cards you bought people this Christmas as there are a lot of stores that will be closing after Christmas and the giftcards will not be accepted.

I did not think there was any truth to that but I was WRONG! Yep see DH I can admit when I am wrong. Or I MIGHT be wrong. The article on snopes does not say anythign about the giftcards not being accepted but there are some stores planning on cutting back the number of stores they have.

Here is a link to Sisterly Savings post. She has a link to the snopes article that says the rumor is partially true.

Christmas of Dreams Day 2

Today brings day two in the Christmas of Dreams Blog Party at MomDot.

Brought to you by: La Plates, Let's Go Strolling, and Natity's Design.



Today's question is: Traditions, what are some of your favorite family traditions? What are some that you want to begin?



Honestly, we do not have any traditions yet, as this is our first year as a married couple.

Growing up, my family would always attend the Christmas Eve Service at our church. We have not found a church here yet, but I would like to find a Methodist church who does a Christmas Eve service to attend this year. Last year we went to my husbands church and took communion, but there was no actual service.

I am hoping that this can be the beginning of every other year we spend the holidays at our house, instead of driving all the way home. This will both mine and my husbands first year away from our family during the holidays. They have been invited to come here if they want too, but we are not going home. With the shaky economy and my husband not having PTO at his job yet, we just really did not think we could afford to take the time off to get back home. I think it will be a lot more relaxing to stay here as well.

I am also going to start the Christmas cookie tradition with my son this year. Growing up my Mom had a TON of Christmas cookie cutters. Every year she would make dozens upon dozens of Christmas sugar cookies and let me decorate them. She would buy white icing and all kinds of doo dads to go on them and then let me make my own colored frosting with food coloring. WE had some interesting cookies! Purple santa's, turquoise reindeers, you never knew what you would get. Then we would make plates of them and give to our neighbors, freinds and teachers. As I got older I continued to give my teachers and friends cookies. To this day one of my friends Dad's will start harassing me as soon as Thanksgiving is done, about when he is going to get his goodies.

That is about all I can think of the start this year. I guess we will have to experiment over the next few years and see what works for us. Or maybe I will get some ideas from reading all the blog posts in this contest!

I had to share this post: The Manverse

The fabulous Mrs.Who recently coined the term the "Manverse."

She takes a closer look at the manverse here and readers share their experiences with the Manverse in the comments.

I highly recommend it!

Blog Party Day One

Still have not figured out how to make the pictures a link so go here if you want more info and/or to join in.

Thanks to sponsors La Belle Toile and This and That by Randi

Day 1 Question: Introduce us to your family and share Holiday pics of years past

Well our family consists of:



Me



My husband



My son



Luna



And Spot.

I really do not have too many holiday pics from past years. Last year my hsuband and I were engaged and did celebrate with both our families, but in the excitement, not too many pictures were taken. Lets see what I can find.



This was 2006. Notice the lovely GIRLY pj's my mother had bought for him.



Another from 2006. My sisters LOVELY wrapping job. WOW! I was a lot skinnier.




This was taken at his daycare last year. My little Angel. (Note: Do not let the innocent look fool you.)



Daniel is opening presents and Jeff is putting them together.


This year I am going to take a TON of pictures. This will be our first Christmas being married, in our new city, and without our extended families

Try it Tuesday: Glade Cinnamon Gingerbread Scented Oil Candle

I have never been a big "holiday scents" girl. To me the smell of pine and cinnamon and such were just gross. Now do not get me wrong, I love the smell of FRESH pine and cinnamon but not the scented candle smell. To me they always smelled bad.



I stocked up on Glade products at Meijer's this past weekend since all of the Glade products were half price, and I had a TON of coupons from the previous weeks paper. Imagine my surprise when I was sniffing along and I found a heavenly smell...and it was a Holiday scent!

Cinnamon Gingerbread is one of the yummiest scents I have found. I immediately plugged it in when I got home and I have been loving it ever since. Even my son remarks on the way it smells every time he comes in the door.

Free Hanes Underwear

Hanes has a promotion going on called Wedgie Free Wednesdays. You can go to here every Wednesday and enter to win a free pair of panties.

I got my free pair when they were doing the original promotion a month or so ago, and I just got another free pair in the mail yesterday from this giveaway.

Who can pass up free underwear?

Free Shipping at Macy's

For today only, Macy's is having an awesome Veterans Day Sale! Sale ends at midnight.


Use coupon code: VETSFS

Thank a soldier today...and everyday

Veterans Day has always had a special place in my heart. My father served in the Marine Corps (or Marine Corn as Daniel says) during the Vietnam War. He gave one of his legs and lost many of his friends while serving his country. I have major respect for my father and everyone in the military. It takes a special person to do what they do.

So make sure that you thanks a service man today and everyday when you see them.

Exactly the way I feel today

It has been one of those days.

Free Bottlecap Jewelry Making Class

Lisa at Tribal Witch is offering another free jewelry making class. Go here for more info or to reserve your spot.

I had a blast at the last jewelry class and learned a lot! I can't wait for this one.

Update on Lady Luck

My husband is the most wonderful man alive. The first thing out of his mouth when I got home Friday was "Can we go look at Best Buy tomorrow? I just was curious to see what they have. I thought we could use the gift card for Christmas presents, because there is not anything I really need."

WOOHOO!!!!! I did not even have to ask!!!!!

Luck must be a lady

I have no luck. I never win contests, giveaways etc. I always seem to get the bad end of the deal. I mean how many people do you know that register in a state and in less than 6 months time gets Jury Duty? The only thing I can remeber winning is a book for Daniel from Mrs. Who's blog on Bluegrass Moms.

My husband on the other hand, has been blessed by the Luck fairy it seems.

When we first met he NEVER wore his seatbelt. After a few tears and him finally realizing how important it was to me that he buckle up, he started wearing his seat belt. I was always skeptical if he actually wore it when he was at work, but he swore up and down that he did. About a month after moving here he went through a drive through one day and got a piece of paper from a policeman (not a ticket) to go online and register to win prizes, all because he was buckled up. So he asked me to go online and register him and I did. A week later I get an email telling me he won 2 tickets to the Busch race at the KY Motor Speedway. Yep we went and had a blast!

Then we have the free vacation we won from entering some giveaway at the mall. (Although they were supposed to call us back about that and never did) So that may not ever happen. Oh well. Still counts.

Now he calls me to tell me he won a $100 GC to Best Buy! How the hell did you do that? Oh you know that thing at the supply warehouse they were doing today....Yeah he registered and won...AGAIN.

Now I am just wondering if I can convince him to use it for a Christmas present...Somehow I seriously doubt that.

So luck must be a lady who has a giant crush on my husband. (Who can blame her?)

Free 8x10

You can order a free 8x10 from Walgreens if you order online and use the code FREEPIC. I am using mine to get a picture of Daniel I was planning on getting for my mom and Dad for Christmas! Now it is free!!!!!! YES!

Watch out Matlock

Yep I got called in for jury duty today. I got selected to be on the jury but there were only 6 jurors chosen for the final selection. I did not make the cut. Oh well maybe next time. I did however walk around beautiful downtown Lexington after we were dismissed. It is soooooo much nicer than downtown Birmingham. I had a lovely brunch at Sunset Bakery. It was my first time to visit there and I highly recommend it. My sandwich was delicious! And of course I HAD to try a couple of deserts. YUMMY!

Some new Chirstmas gifts I made

We watched Journey to the Center of the Earth last night. Daniel loved it of course because it had "monsters" and dinosaurs. It was not bad actually. While I watched I also worked on some necklaces for Christmas presents.







That last one is my favorite. I already know who I am going to give it to as well.

And finally I finished my napkin (yes only one so far) the day before. Turned out pretty good. There was one edge that did not match perfectly but it does not bother me. They are for our use at home.



I am really excited about all the stuff I am doing. I know it will help save us a lot on Christmas this year and we will be able to do things for people that we originally thought we were going to have to leave out.

Free Kodak Photo Books

Wal Mart is giving away 40 free 4x6 Kodak photo books at each location. Runs through Nov 7, 2008. Might be a good idea to call first and make sure they still have some.

I feel special, oh so special

All of the smear ads in this election have really gotten on my nerves these past few weeks. It got to where I did not even want to watch the news, or TV in general, because of all the nasty adds. Whether they were for the Presidential election or the local Lunsford/McConnell election, they just really made me cringe.

After voting this morning though, as I was driving to work, it really made me proud to be able to say I voted in this election. No matter what way you look at it, this election is a part of history. If Obama wins, you have the first African American president. If McCain wins, you will have the first woman VP and possibly president.

So yes I feel special to know that I was a part of this history changing event!

Try it Tuesday: Lush's Sultana of Soap

Today's Try it Tuesday is Lush's Sultana of Soap


Thanks to MJ I am now a huge fan of Lush products. I visited our local Lush store (located in Macy's in the Fayette Mall) a few weeks ago and came away with several samples and a chunk of their Sultana of Soap soaps.



I love this soap. It smells heavenly, and unlike most bar soaps, it does not leave my skin feeling dry. It can also double as a air freshener as I have found it keeps my whole bathroom smelling good.

It has a warm milky scent, if that makes any sense. It lathers VERY well. And it is incredibly moisturizing. I am definitely going back to get more when I run out.

If you do not have a Lush store near you go here to order online. I have been incredibly happy with all the products I have tried from their line.

Don't Forget to Vote

Don't forget to vote tomorrow! Go here for some freebies for people who vote.

Remember, if you do not vote, do not complain about the way the country is run.

What a crazy weekend

Halloween was great! Daniel had a blast trick or treating around our neighborhood. He scored tons of candy. And we had no trick or treaters at our apt so I have even more candy then I know what to do with. Guess the guys at work are going to love me when I bring all that candy in!



We had a lazy day Saturday. I went to Hobby Lobby and picked up some scrap fabric and some beads and stuff and spent the rest of the day creating. I finished one necklace and made charms for a few more. I also started some cloth napkins for the house. Yes Gramma would be proud. I am using small stitches and taking my time. To my surprise I actually enjoyed sitting there sewing. I picked up some great fleece scraps and I am going to make some scarves with that.

Now for the crazy part. Sunday night I watched my neighbor get hit with a taser and there was a naked woman running around in front of our building! Yep, kid you not. We put Daniel in the bathtub and turned on the fan so he could not hear all the yelling and cussing our neighbor was doing. I called dispatch to report what was going on and she asked me if the woman was white, black, hispanic etc. She about died laughing when I responded with "Oh she was definitely white!" She somehow managed to disappear before the cops got there. No easy feat considering what she was wearing or lack thereof. Then the cops showed up and our neighbor literally went crazy. He punched out the whole front window. Frame and everythign and was throwing glass and pieces of the frame at the cops. When he tried to climb out of the window is when the cops shot him with the stun gun. Then they ran upstairs and kicked in the door! They had to restrain the guy on the stretcher and he was still screaming and cussing. When I went out to walk Spot later one of the cops asked if he could get my name and all tha jazz so I said sure. He was walking around outside getting my info and he shines his light on the 2 chairs that are sitting outside under the upstairs window. My first thought was why did someone spray paint that chair red? Then I realized that was blood! The entire chair was covered! Pretty nasy. Eventually everything calmed down. Daniel thoguht it was neat because the cops were outside our apt. Thankfully I do not think he heard too much of what the guy was screaming. Guess that is one way to get rid of nasty neighbors!