A day of LOVE -

Yes, tomorrow is Valentine's Day.  Such a special day loaded with pinks and reds.  Hearts and balloons.  Every kind of card possible to find that special way to say I LOVE YOU.

We planned out our weekend which included spending an evening with the Wilt's.  Never, NEVER a dull moment when we all get together.  That family definitely keeps you in stitches - and we are so happy to have Cierra (aka "C") be welcomed and loved so much by them.

A room full of laughter with awesome food and lots of wine - and of course we get to see KARA  our special Traveling Vineyard Consultant =)

Today - well it was just a little cold.  Windy, brisk, cold.  But not too cold to have dinner at Paddy's with Cierra & Blake before heading to the Old Opera House -

Ronnie purchased tickets for us to see "One Slight Hitch" - it was so cute and funny.  Perfect way to spend Valentine's Eve =)

Tomorrow is the last show but Rex's Exes sounds pretty good and I love supporting the locals.

Did I say it was cold out?  Brrrrr - a warm cup of coffee and a slice of red velvet cake hits the spot.  And as I catch up on my e:mails, I have an update from Money Saving Mom   I have learned so much from the information she shares.  I will have to share the coupon apps another day but I did find this evening's post - 5 Keys to Have a Strong Marriage - another perfect Valentines' Day.

Please Click the 'red' Money Saving Mom above to read the whole article but here's a summary =)

1. Stop Coasting

A good marriage doesn’t just happen; it requires a LOT of work and time and effort. Just like you couldn’t expect to build a muscular body without putting in a lot of time weight-lifting, so you can’t expect to have a strong marriage if you’re not constantly building it up.

2. Don’t Keep It G-Rated

Seriously, people. You are supposed to be lovers, not roommates. Act like it. 

3. Find the Good and Praise It

There are always a host of things we can point out, pick at, nag, and criticize. If we spend all our time focused on that, we’ll be frustrated with how far short our spouse is falling from where we want them to be.

On the flip side, there are always, always, always good things to praise. Become a noticer of the good.

4. Ask Forgiveness Often

A good marriage is built around a lot of humility and the ability to say, “I was wrong, will you forgive me?” Those are hard words to say, but they are necessary.

We all make mistakes. We all say words we shouldn’t say. We all respond in anger at times. When that happens, be willing to admit you are wrong.

5. Learn Their Love Language

While I don’t like to box people into specific categories, every person has a unique love language — the way they feel most loved.

If you’re unfamiliar with the five love languages, they are: Words of Affirmation, Acts of Service, Receiving Gifts, Quality Time, and Physical Touch. In many cases, you’ll be a mix of a few of these, but you’ll almost always have one that is dominant. If you’re not sure what you love language is, you can take this quiz here (and be sure to have your spouse take it, too!)

What did we ever do without Facebook and the internet?  Ok, maybe we read books or listened but seriously I could spend days reading articles and learning.  So - happy Valentine's Eve.  

Local talent -

I enough pictures and memories of this girl to put together a scrapbook =)

She has spent so much time with our family.  From weekends to vacations to adventures.  But now she s all grown up.

One of the things I love about FB is that you can actually keep in touch with people.  Of course we are 'friends' on FB as well as her Mom and I which makes me smile.

But I have to say when I saw this I was amazed!  She REALLY is all grown up and BEAUTIFUL.

If you are interested in her make up tips and tricks, definitely subscribe.  She plans to keep up the good work =)

Shhhhhhhh! Don't tell.....

I have never, NEVER been good with keeping secrets.  Actually I don't like secrets.  But when I decided to sign up with BESTMARK I knew I was going to be challenged have to learn how to be quiet =)  Oh my.

But, my first assignment was at one of my favorite places -

Very exciting!  I was to look at two things - first a large appliance and second a DSLR camera.  How perfect!  I have been wanting a refrigerator but just can't afford it right now and a camera?!  ha!  Love me some cameras.

Once you sign-up, you get a list of assignments in your area weekly.  You find one that you can make work (there is a specific date and time) then you sign-off, read the pages and pages of requirements and plan your trip.  I was just a little nervous that I might not do something right.  You also only have a number of hours after the mystery shopping to provide the survey and receipt to prove you were there.

Ok, so we enter.  Notice I said WE.  I convinced Ronnie to go with me =)  Right toward the appliances.   There are some really amazing refrigerators.  Some that even cost as much as a car.  After walking around for a few minutes, we find a sales person.  (Directions say it has to be a blue shirt with a name tab).  There she is.  So I start with my questions.   She does a really nice job trying to sell us the refrigerator.  She explained the differences nicely and after we told her we weren't ready today, she took the time to write down all the info for the one we liked.  Nice.  This is definitely on my list of 'nice to have' 'in the future', LOL

Next up the camera department.  We walked around there longer than anticipated (you also have a timeframe).  And here she comes, ha!  But, the instructions say you can't use the same person for both items.  Luckily she handed us over to a guy that knew lots and lots about cameras.  It was  hard for me to play dumb but I survived.  He took his time and explained the differences, etc.  Another nice job.  And THIS I would love to have -

 

All this took just under an hour but it was fun and I will sign up for more.  It's pretty easy work for some extra cash.  AND, I was successful at not telling either what we were doing (even though we actually knew one of them from 4H).  I even beat the deadline for filling out the paperwork and submitting for payment.  YAY me.

So.....if you too would like to payoff some of your Christmas bills or start saving for your summer vacation, check out Bestmark.  I'm sure there are others out there as well.  Go for it!

I'll leave you with another way to clean house and make some cash -  THIS BLOG is the place to go!  Crystal is awesome.  I was able to sell some used books to Amazon and am looking at other things to do. 

We are ALL about making or saving money, right?  Happy Friday Eve my friends~

Let's donate -

Any time St. Jude's Children's Research Hospital ads come on, it hits me how fortunate I have been with 4 healthy children.   One of my children has faced some challenges but today lives a happy, healthy life and for that I am grateful. 

The stories are hard to take and the little faces are so sweet. 

Today happens to be a day that we can give.  This place -

is donating 10% of all proceeds to St. Jude's.  This is awesome and how Firehouse subs came about is also a very interesting story -

Firehouse Subs is a US-based, fast food restaurant chain that specializes in hot subs. Founded in 1994 in Jacksonville, Florida by former firefighter brothers Robin and Chris Sorensen, Firehouse Subs serves sandwiches with meats and cheeses, "steamed" hot and placed on a toasted sub roll. Locations offer a family-oriented atmosphere, with a firefighter theme that includes fire equipment throughout the store and a menu that features sandwiches with themed names. They offer hot sauces in a range of intensities. Pictures mounted on the walls highlight local firefighting history, as well as the founders' history of firefighting service.

Pretty cool, huh?

I do not know if other Firehouse Subs are doing the same thing but feel free to check out the closest one to you here then click on the "find a firehouse" link at the top. 

Or, there's always the option of donating directly to St. Jude's.  You can do so HERE!

Every little bit helps.  Helps both the children AND their families.  Thanks in advance for also donating!!

MEMORIES.

where to start.  As far back as I can remember, I have had a camera.  It might have been one that you attach a flash.  It might have been one that you slide for the film to advance.  It might have advanced to one that actually spit out the pictures.  Bottom line, photography has forever been a part of my life.  I remember begging my parents for a camera.  One that I could take on my bike and capture the fish at the Fish Hatchery.  I finally got one.  I. LOVED. IT.

As the years advanced, my love for photography continued, which included scrapbooking  I have tons of stickers.  Tons of papers.  Photoshop templates.  Photoshop Elements templates.  My all time favorite......My Memories.  But bottom line, I still have boxes and boxes of pictures.

I follow Becky Higgins.  She is awesome.  And this video is so fitting -

You MUST watch.  I cannot, CANNOT imagine having her come to my house for 3 days.  Oh My Goodness.  But regardless, if you are at all interested in scrapbooking or catching up or starting with digital/paper, please check her out.  I am thinking what she is about to share is going to be awesome.

I always tell my children that one day.  Just one day.  They are going to look at all the pictures and scrapbook pages and totally LOVE me.  Do it.  Do it for your family =)  xo

What to buy?

We know a special 7 year old princess that is very difficult to buy for.

She. Has. Everything.

So when it was time to put together her gifts for the party, I was stumped.  And then I remembered a video I watched for pajama pants.  Have I told you lately how addicted I am to Shabby Fabrics?!  (I know...only a million times).

Last night before I went to sleep I watched this video -

Luckily I had already purchased some 'Frozen' fabric and I was pretty sure I had enough.  

I watched the video again this morning - then with time running out, I had to figure it out =) So I gathered up the fabric -

and then just to make sure,  I asked Jennifer to follow along LOL

then step by step these cute little pajama pants came to life -

I even had time to whip up a matching pair for her American Girl doll, too  Such fun!

This was such a fun, quick project.  If you're looking for something to do with some warm fleece and a little bit of trim, this is awesome.  Be sure to watch the video so you have the exact process straight from Jennifer.