Wednesday, January 29, 2014

family: snow day

We rarely get much snow in North Carolina so when we do, we get excited! I've been at home with the girls all day yesterday and today. We've been trying to squeeze in as many fun activities as possible since we haven't had to be running to preschool, work, or errands. We have been relaxing and having fun at home! We woke up to about an inch of snow on the ground. Enough for the girls to stomp around in. I bundled them all up for some fun this morning.


Then it was time for snow angels...


And lots of smiles...






A sweet hug...


Then we came inside for some delicious snow cream...


Such a fun morning... now it's time for naps!

Tuesday, January 28, 2014

fashion: this week's outfits

A week of cozy, warm, fashion remixes! 
Items that are still available for purchase online are linked.


Shirt: Old Navy
Jeans: Old Navy
Boots: Target
Cardigan: Target
Scarf: Target


Sweater: Izod (thrifted)
Jeans: Old Navy
Tank: Old Navy
Scarf: Target
Bracelet: The Jewel Box


Jacket: Old Navy
Shirt: Old Navy
Jeans: NY & Company (thrifted)
Boots: Target
Scarf: Target
Watch: Target
Bracelet: Gift


Vest: JC Penney
Shirt: Old Navy
Pants: Target
Watch: Target
Bracelets: The Jewel Box & J. Crew Factory
Necklace: gift


Cardigan: Target
Leggings: Gap
Boots: Hunter
Shirt: Anthropologie (thrifted)
Mug: Target
Scarf: Target

Monday, January 27, 2014

fashion: glitter bow flats

I've pretty much failed my closet remix challenge. But I've learned a lot through the challenge. Mixing up outfits is tons of fun. I've worn things together that I typically wouldn't. I've enjoyed looking for new ways to combine items that I already own.
 
I had high hopes for myself. Hopes for zero shopping in January and even bigger hopes to make it to March without buying anything. But this is the reality. I love shopping. It's my hobby. Some people spend their extra money on fitness, sports, crafts, books, or smoking. Shopping is where I spend my extra money. We have a pretty strict budget at our house since I only work part-time. I have a spreadsheet and I allocate our money to bills, spending money, dining out, giving back to Jesus, etc. We rarely dine out but I have money set aside for us to do so if we need/want to. 
 
This month I did pay off a bill that was lingering over my head. It feels great to have that taken care of. But instead of not shopping, I'm sticking with my mindset of moderation. This was my mindset before the challenge but I wanted to challenge myself to use what I had differently. That mission was accomplished and I'm reminded that with all things, moderation is most important.
 
One of my January purchases were these adorable glitter bow flats. They have my name written all over them. Pink. Bows. Glitter.
 
 
I got a great deal on them. They retail for about $40 + shipping. I paid about $20 with free shipping. But not without a hassle. Haha! They are from Just Fab. I signed up for the VIP Membership to get them for the discounted price knowing that I could cancel that membership right after they were delivered. I called as soon as I got them to cancel the VIP Membership and the lady literally tried to talk me out of cancelling for about 10 minutes. Even though I interrupted her every minute or so telling her I wanted to cancel. It was just laughable. She was working so hard to try to get me to stay. I hope she convinced someone else to keep the VIP Membership!
 
But back to the shoes... they are adorable. They ran big so I ordered a size smaller than I normally wear. I can't wait to style these pretty shoes!

Wednesday, January 22, 2014

fashion: this week's outfits

Today is my 22nd day of my closet remix challenge. The good news- I have created 22 new outfits with things I already had in my closet. The bad news- I did make a couple of purchases. Two items I've been wanting for awhile and I got a good deal on them. And an impulse purchase at Old Navy from the clearance section.
 
So I have I failed my challenge? I don't think so. I'm not planning to wear anything new until February. Then I will start another month of attempting to make zero unnecessary purchases. Wish me luck next month. I have shopped way less this month and I've been able to use some of our extra money to pay off a bill so that's progress.
 
Here's my outfits from this week...(items that are still available online for purchase are linked)
 
 
Sweater: Express (thrifted)
Jeans: Old Navy
Tank: Old Navy
Scarf: thrifted
Boots: Belk
Watch: Target
Earrings: Etsy
Bracelet: The Jewel Box

 
Sweater: thrifted
Jeans: Target
Boots: Belk
Necklace: Luxe Craving


Cardigan: Marshalls
Jeans: Old Navy
Boots: Charming Charlie
Watch: Target
 

Shirt: Old Navy
Vest: Old Navy
Pants: Target
Boots: Target
Necklace: Groopdealz
Watch: Target
Bracelet: J. Crew Factory
 

Jacket: Old Navy
Jeans: NY & Co. (thrifted)
Heels: Target
Sweater: The Limited
Watch: Target
Bracelets: Groopdealz and J. Crew Factory
Necklace: gift

 
Sweater: thrifted
Jeans: Gap
Flats: Target
Watch: Target
Necklace: gift

 
Sweater: Target
Heels: Target
Jeans: Old Navy
Vest: Wal-Mart
Necklace: Sira & Mara

 
Vest: Old Navy
Necklace: Groopdealz
Sweater: NY & Co.

Tuesday, January 21, 2014

thrifty: valentine's day decor

One of my favorite ways to stay thrifty and within our budget is to shop my home. I have collected a lot of stuff in my 28 years of life. A lot. I'm trying to declutter and get rid of excess items. We've done well with that through yard sales and donations. So now we are trying to be sure we aren't buying more unnecessary stuff to replace it with.

I love decorating and celebrating holidays. But I don't have a lot of decorations for anything besides fall/Thanksgiving and Christmas. I mostly just focus on decorating my mantle and having a fun holiday wreath on the front door. 

After the Christmas decor was packed away, my decorating focus was Valentine's Day. I got a few items from Pinterest and then started shopping my home to see what I already had that I could repurpose. 

 
I made two garlands. For one of them I used glittery foam hearts that I bought on clearance last February for 50 cents and some twine I had in the garage. I made the other garland with pom pom balls I already had. I used a needle and fishing line to connect them. 

On the left side, I use an old canister that my mom gave me paired with Olivia's blocks to spell "LOVE" and the book we gave her for Valentine's Day last year.

On the right side, I used a vintage mason jar to hold some heart paper straws that I picked up from the dollar section at Target. I also added a few of Julianna's puffy heart stickers to the jar. The love sign is from Hobby Lobby about 6 years ago. I added a wedding picture and a sweet picture of the girls.

I only spent $1 to create this since I shopped my home for everything else!

My second project took me forever to complete. I had the idea the day after Christmas but it took about 3 weeks of the wreath sitting on my kitchen counter before I got to work.

My friend gave me the straw wreath when she got married and her last name changed. It already had the letter "S" on it. I changed the color of the yarn to pink, gave the letter a fresh coat of white spray paint, and added on the rest of my foam hearts.


The yarn was a pain. It's imperfect but that's ok. It was made with lots of love. I love how the wreath looks on our red front door. This project was completely free because of shopping my home and repurposing the old wreath from my friend. I love thrifty decor!


Saturday, January 18, 2014

Julianna: second haircut

Julianna just got her second haircut. It's been about a year since her last one so it was time. Her hair is so long and pretty and it's even more gorgeous after a trim. She told me on the way there that she wanted her hair to look just like mine. 


She was so serious during the entire hair cutting process. 


She kept her eyes on the mirror pretty much the entire time.


She got a couple inches cut off the ends and a few long layers (like mommy).


And she did such a great job. She listened to Kahli, sat still, and was such a big girl. 

 
Check out that gorgeous hair on her! Can you believe that hair belongs to a 3 year old?!


It was a wonderful experience thanks to Julianna's great behavior and our wonderful hair stylist, Kahli! 

Tuesday, January 14, 2014

fashion: this week's outfits

I'm still going strong on my 2014 Closet Remix Challenge. 14 days in and no purchases. I did win 2 necklaces on Instagram from Our World Boutique and I only paid shipping costs. I've already worn them and mixed them in with my outfits.

Here's my outfits from the past week. Items that are still available to purchase online are linked.

 
Vest: JCPenney
Boots: Juicy Couture
Shirt: Target
Watch: Target
Bracelets: J. Crew Factory



Shirt: Old Navy
Jacket: New York & Company
Boots: Belk
Jeans: Walmart
Scarf: Target
Bracelets: The Jewel Box and gift
Watch: Target

 
Shirt: Old Navy
Tank: Gap
Jeans: Old Navy
Boots: Hunter
Necklace: gift
Bracelet: J. Crew Factory


Dress: Family Dollar
Cardigan: Target (thrifted)
Boots: Target
Scarf: Target


Shirt: Old Navy
Jeans: Gap
Boots: Target
Necklace: Our World Boutique
Bracelet & Earrings: The Jewel Box


Sweater: Target
Boots: Target
Vest: Aeropostale
Jeans: NY & Co. (thrifted)
Watch: Target
Bracelet: gift
Earrings: The Jewel Box
Tank: Gap
 
 
Sweatshirt: Old Navy (similar)
Scarf: Walmart
Boots: Hunter
Bag: Dooney & Bourke (vintage)
Jeans: Old Navy

Follow me on Instagram to see my outfits daily! Happy Remixing! 

Saturday, January 11, 2014

food: baked egg rolls & sesame noodles

I love pinning recipes on Pinterest. I spend a lot of time making myself hungry. I also love to try to make many of the recipes that I pin. But the truth is, I'm terrible at following an exact recipe. I rarely measure exactly and I like to throw in my own ingredients or omit things I don't like. I also find the easier and most budget friendly way to make what I'm after. So this recipe is my take on about 3 recipes that I've seen in various places. I went back for thirds so I would say it turned out delicious!


Baked Egg Rolls

Ingredients:
- 1 package of egg rolls wrappers (I found them in the produce section, close to the lettuce)
- 1 bag of chopped Asian salad (it's a mix of cabbage, celery, carrots, etc. I bought it at Walmart)
- 2 tablespoons of soy sauce 
- 1/2 cup of Asian sesame dressing
- wonton strips
- 1/2 lb. of chicken tenderloins
- 1 teaspoon of seame oil
- 3 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil
- sweet and sour sauce for dipping

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

2. Heat frying pan and add sesame oil. Cook chicken until cooked through. I cut my chicken into small pieces before cooking. 

3. After chicken is cooked, combine Asian chopped salad with dressing. Place in micowave for about 25 seconds so it's wilted but not soggy.

4. Mix chicken with salad/dressing mixture and add soy sauce. 

5. Use a cookie sheet covered with parchment paper for baking or grease the cookie sheet. 

6. Put filling mixture in the egg roll wrappers and fold as directed on the package.

7. Place folded egg rolls on cookie sheet and brush extra virgin olive on the top of each of them.

8. Bake for 10-12 minutes or until golden brown.

9. Serve with a side of sweet and sour sauce or another sauce of your choice.

10. Enjoy!


I served my egg rolls with sesame noodles. They were yummy and so easy to make!
 
The sesame noodles recipe can be found here: http://inspiredreamer.com/simple-sesame-noodles/

thrifty: shopkick

Today's thrifty tip is shopkick. You need to download this app too! Simply by walking in stores, you earn "kicks" that can be cashed in for gift cards.


I've earned two $5 Target gift cards from this app and I haven't even used it to it's full potential. I've mostly just used the walk in feature to earn kicks when I go into stores like American Eagle, Target, and JCPenney. 


You can also earn kicks by scanning products at various stores like CVS and Walmart. Another way to earn kicks is to purchase items directly from the app and they give you a percentage of your purchase back in kicks.



I've scanned products before and made a purchase through shopkick but I normally just walk in to the stores to earn kicks. You just have to stand at the entrance of the store, open the shopkick app, and you earn the kicks. Inside of the app it tells you which stores are close by that you can earn kicks at and the app notifies you of bonus kicks.



Use this link http://get.shopkick.com/bromine14065 to sign up and start earning kicks today! You will earn 50 kicks just for using my link.

Friday, January 10, 2014

Julianna: the things she says

Julianna is almost 4. Where has time gone?! She's loving preschool and adores dance class. She's a busy girl! She's quite a talker and pretty much never stops talking. She will have a conversation with just about anyone and even talks in her sleep. I'm going to start recording on the blog some of the silly things the girls say and some phrases that are on repeat.


Here are some of the things she's currently saying...

"Mom, it's just be tend." (pretend)

"That color is wipe." (white)

After every thought, she says, "ya right?!"

"This is getting so ridiculous!" She says this anytime she is in trouble or asked to do something she doesn't feel like doing.

"Mommy, is this fashion?" After she gets dressed, she has to ask me to be sure.

And when she sees a mole on someone, she calls it a "meatball."

A lollipop is a "wooly pop."

Thursday, January 9, 2014

family: less & more

I typically don't make new year's resolutions. Mostly because I will forget about them by March.

The past 2 years, I did my one word. In 2012, it was courage and courage was exactly what I needed then. Last year, my one word was encourage. And I hope I succeeded in encouraging others! I was blessed in September with taking over leadership responsibilities for my mom group at church, North Ridge Moms. I have been encouraged by the other women in this group so much! It's been such a blessing in my life!

So this year, I couldn't think of just one word. I thought of an idea to live by. Less or more. What do I need less of in my life and what do I need more of? What is truly important? This took a bit of thinking and reflection but I think I have it narrowed down to what I want to focus on but I may add on as the year goes along.

Family

Less... saying "no"

More... exciting, new adventures and more quality time together 


Finances

Less... spending money on unneeded items (this is why I'm participating in the 2014 Closet Remix Challenge)

More... paying off bills and giving back to Jesus
 

Health

Less... junk food and fast food trips

More... water and daily excercise


Love

Less... distractions when we have time together 

More... dates- at least one per month (babysitters?!)


Living more. Loving more. In 2014.

What are your goals/resolutions/words for 2014?