Finished flowers!

ok so here are some very non professional pictures of the finished flowers. I am so excited about these. I am on the hunt now for some pearls and beads to put in the center of some to make them a little more elegant. Now I just need to get a bunch more finished and get to selling them. I have a few more done (some beautiful white ones(they are my favorite)) but I don't have pictures of them. anyway I hope you like! If you want to buy some or have me make you something specific just let me know!

WAHOOOOO!!!!

Debt Free!!!!!

Ok so this is a little bit to exciting for me not to share. We are not quite there yet but I got a check in the mail today for $1200 for selling our Piano (I am still a little sad about that)! We are so close to being Debt free! I am fully confident that if we are smart with our Tax return this year we can accomplish this goal! Its hard not to spend the tax return on fun things but if we can get rid of this last little bit of debt it will feel sooo good! Of course we don't have our house paid of but to be Debt free is so rare these days. Most Americans spend more then they make every year! Last year I read the book The Total Money Makeover and it totally changed my outlook on money! I have not perfected the system but we are working on making it work for our family! Its a great book and a great system for making your life more financially secure! Its not about making money but about using the money you make wisely! You should totally check it out!

Anyway I was so excited when I got the mail today and the feeling of being that much closer to a goal is very very fun!

Crafty Me and Blog hopping

Ok so lately I have been in a very crafty mood, not quite sure why but non the less I am. So I have been doing a lot of crafty blog hopping. I am not really a crafty person by nature. I can craft but have a hard time coming up with ideas on my own. So I love that there are so many crafty people out there willing to share their talent. I have so many crafty blogs that I go to all the time to find fun new ideas. Here are a few of the things I have ben doing lately.

I discovered these silk flowers and have been dying to try them. My sister and I get together this week and had so much fun. these were just from some scraps of fabric we had on hand. I can't wait to go to Joanns and find more. Think of the possibilities!!!!!!! These arn't all put together yet, just layed on top of each other but they will be soo cute when they are done.

Ok so this one is not really crafty but fun. I have a powder room downstairs in my house that is the main bathroom for guests. I sort of copied this idea from a friend but I am going to decorate this bathroom for all the holidays! I just think it is a fun space and I can do fun things with it. so for Valentines day I hung some sun sparkely hearts from the ceiling. I try to buy one new little thing for decorating my house (for each holiday) every year. This year I made this -->

It was an idea I was for a Christmas ribbon tree and I thought "Hey I could do one for every holiday if I wanted" I thought it turned out very cute. pretty cheap and easy too!
So now it sits on my fun plant shelf in my entryway.

Like I said I am not really a true crafter but I try and sometimes it works!! I am making some really cute leggings out of knee-high socks for Adalee so when I get them all done I will post those too! Its so fun having a little girl I can make things for! Sorry Tolson but there really isn't as much cute boy stuff out there!

I would love to know what crafty blogs/sites you guys follow or get your ideas from!!!

Tolson the Photographer

Here are some fun pictures that Tolson has taken lately! nothing fabulous but he has been loving taking pictures of anything and everything as you can see. So I just thought I would share! Life from the perspective of a 4 year old!

I have a Question!!!

Ok so my little man has started into the question phase. I have heard of this phase in a child's life and even had small doses of it but have never REALLY experienced it. Tolson has entered that phase. Jason has been working a LOT this week (as of the end of the day Thursday he has worked 58 hours and will probably work two more full (10 hour) days before the week is out) Soooo I have been at home with my children a lot this week. So we have been going on walks and playing/working in the backyard, cooking, cleaning, etc. tolson has been very curious about everything. For example we will be in the back yard and he will ask "What is Dirt? Where does it come from? Why is it different then this dirt? " So I answer and then he will ask " what are you doing?" (this seems to be the questions of the day) followed by "Why?" I try to answer the best I can and explain thing so he can understand them. I am really glad he is learning things and wants to know about everything... but sometimes at the end of the day when you have had no other adult contact and your 4 year old has been asking questions all day and following you around asking the same thing over and over... well lets just say I was a little exasperated!!!
Well Last night Jason was home for dinner and tolson was starting in on his questions. Jason kept saying ok take two bites and then you can ask another question. I was just laughing! Now you know how I feel! I know its a phase and he is learning and I am so glad! He is such a cute little boy! and I love that I can be home with him and be the one to answer his questions!

Fresh Start!

Ok so I am not one for New years resolutions, it seems like you are just setting yourself up for failure. I do however believe in a fresh start. There are goals that I write that I accomplish and some that are a work in progress... for years. So even though I think resolutions are not for me, I do think I will set some goals for the coming year (years in some cases). January just seems like a good time to do this. When I was in school I would do this in May too when summer would begin. It just seems like with all the Holidays, life just gets crazy and normal everyday life gets put on the back burner for a while. Well now it is time to get back into a schedule and why not make some much needed changes to that schedule. So here goes! Here are 11 things I would like to do in 2011!!!!

1. Have at least one fun outing, trip, special day with my family every month. Making memories is very important to me and I hope that with camping trips or trips to the Mt's or the zoo or to see cousins will become fun memories for my kids and help us to build strong relationships. I think learning and laughing together is so much more important then stuff! I would rather go camping then buy my kids new toys. I hope they will agree!

2. Get up early! Read my scriptures and/or Ensign article, exercise, shower put my tennies on and get my day going. There are a lot of things encompassed in this one. I love to sleep! but I need to get my day going. I also need to be better about reading my scriptures. I know that if I exercise in the morning then I will get it done. I am NOT going to make a weight loss goal but I do want to get healthier and have more energy to play with my kids. I also want to start my day with the spirit! My family is so important to me and If I can be my best self then I can be the best mom/wife for them too!

3. Have a date night at least 2 times a month. We are not in a place where I can say every week. The money for a babysitter and then going to do something and eating is just not in the budget right now. I know I can be creative and do a lot of no or low cost dates but with two kids its harder to just drop them off at the in laws. but I know its important so I am sure we can figure out 2 times a month!

4. Buy a new(er) car. We have been wanting a new car for a while and I am afraid we will need one soon. Jason's favorite thing to do is look at cars, on line, while driving by, anytime. For a date a few months ago I took him out to test drive cars. That's all we did and it was so fun. So this year we will make it happen!

5. Have FHE every week! We are pretty good about doing this but I want to make sure that we really do it! planned lesson and all! I just got a new calling where I will be preparing a lesson every week for kids about his age. So I think I can use that as our lesson and have fun activities to go with it already ready! I know its kind of cheating but I am sure it still counts. I am sure there will be times when we will have to do something else and that is OK with me. I just want them to be real and make sure our kids know that it is important to us.

6. Budget! Budget! Budget!!! This one should have been right after the car goal. I do the books in our house and the budget. This is definitely something I need to get better at. This past few years we have made a scary amount of money (bad scary not good scary) and yet we have survived. (Tithing works!!!) That has not been fun or easy and will not change any time soon I am sure but I know we really are blessed. I think about the families in other countries that make as much per year as we do in a month. I thank Heavenly Father every day for our wealth and blessings. But I can do better. So this year I am going to make and stick to a strict budget every month. I want a new car (since I will be the one driving it) and this is how we are going to do it. I also want to pay mostly cash for the new car!!!!! Wouldn't that be fun!!!!!

7. Finish the backyard. We have been in our house for 5 years and still have a lot of dirt in the backyard. Jason has done a lot of work on this and I know it is hard for him! I haven't helped much because I know he can do it sooo much better then I can so I just stay out of the way. But this year I am going to get in there and help him. I may not do it perfectly but I can help. when its done it will be AWESOME!! ( by the way this was on the list last year too!)

8. Be better at scheduling. If I want to accomplish some of the things on this list I am going to have to be better at scheduling. I think this will also help me sleep better at night. Some nights I lay there thinking about all the things I have to get done the next day. If I have them written down and scheduled then I wont have to worry so much right?

9. Cook good, yummy, healthy food for my family! I like to cook and I like to try new things. the problem is I like carbs and a lot of them! I love pasta, bread, cookies, sweets, treats and most things that are not good for me. So along with cooking I want to try new recipes once a week and find healthy ones that work for us! If you have any good ones please feel free to send them my way!!!

10. Exercise at least three days a week! I know I mentioned this one in the get up early one but I feel it needs its own goal. Being a mom is the best job in the world but it can wear on you sometimes. I need some me time every once in a while and exercise is great for that. There is a gym opening just up the street and it is cheap. If I can get a new babysitting gig I will join. Then I can have the me time I need, be healthier and have more energy!

11. This one sadly was on the list last year but... GET A FREAKIN JOB WITH BP!!!! I can't believe this was on my list last year and is still not done!!!! I promise if this is not done by the end of the year we will have moved on to something else!!! There is not much we can do to move this one forward but pray and be patient! ITS BEEN ALMOST 2 YEARS!!!!!!! but we feel it is the right thing for us so we are sticking to it! Lets just hope it comes sooner then later!!!

So that's all! I am going to print this up and post it on my bathroom mirror so I can re-read them often. I hope that the new year find you all well and healthy and setting new goals for yourselves. I will do my best to report in on how things are going! Good luck with you and yours! I hope your new year is full of hope, health, love and laughter!