New Decade, New Me

As mentioned before, my 20-something status is ending very soon.  In less than a year, I'll be embarking on my journey as a 30 year old.  For awhile, I have felt that I wanted to project a new image as a woman in my 30's (whether I felt like I was truly that old or not!) I want to wear clothing that is a little more sophisticated, a little more classy.  But, I wanted to be mindful, though, of obtaining this look on a budget.  I've watched enough "What Not to Wear" episodes to know that I need to get some basic items in order to obtain my "look".  These items need to be very versatile so that I can dress them up or down depending on the need.  While I will still enjoy some days of "lounging" around in sweats, I want to be more put together on a daily basis.

Before I started shopping, I took inventory of what I already had and purged my closet of clothing that I no longer wear or doesn't go with my new look.  I wanted to simplify my closet so that it wouldn't be difficult to pair items together. After doing that, I discovered that I had the basic pairs of jeans (minus a pair of skinny jeans...still trying to be brave enough to try a pair of those on!).  Recently, I found a pair of trouser jeans at the Goodwill; it only took a few months of looking for a pair, but I'm so thankful to not spend a lot on them!  Also, I have a few cardigans that will be great for layering.  There were some shirts that would also be good under cardigans.  But I was missing dresses, a jean skirt, shorts/capris and some shirts that could have multiple purposes.  I also needed some updated shoe choices since my basic flip-flops aren't exactly the most fashionable footwear (oh, I will still wear them, but not as often!!!)

So for the past week and a half, I've been browsing the Internet for deals on what I need.  If I didn't absolutely LOVE the item or if it wasn't versatile, I refused to purchase it.  One store had a 25% off everything sale plus free shipping.  I found needed items that were already on sale and then paired it with the 25% off, too.  I'm was pumped =)

It's been a big mind-change, though, because I used to flock to the "Junior" section of a store.  But I am now gravitating towards the "Women" section.  Now, I will still shop the Junior section from time to time, but I don't want to project a "Junior" image anymore. I also noticed that I was attracted to more "womanly" stores i.e. Ann Taylor, Gap, etc. instead of Forever21 or Maurices (I did however find some basics at Maurices that were more womanly and for a good deal so I ordered them.)  

Since I wasn't successful at finding a jean skirt that could be both causal or dressy at a reasonable price, I scoured eBay for one.  I found a brand new Ann Taylor skirt that is right above the knees.  It was under $10.  Couldn't beat that, eh?

Saturday afternoon my shopping buddy and I went to the Goodwill and I found a few more basic items.  I bought a pair of casual Bermuda shorts that will be great to go to the park in the summer; a pair of dark denim Bermuda shorts that can be worn with a wedge shoe or a simple sandal depending on the occasion.  I also found a few more shirts.  But I was super excited about a pair of Ann Taylor black wedge shoes.  I've never worn wedge, but I was really attracted to these shoes (and the price!). 

While a girl can't help but be excited about a new wardrobe, I'm also excited about how I am mentally trying to change my perception of the next decade.  Yes, I still can't believe I'm not going to be in my 20's anymore, but I'm beginning to think about how this new era is a time to focus on what I do well and the things I want to change about myself.  And that's exciting to me.

So watch out...I may not always be wearing a T-shirt, jeans, and a pony tail every time you see me.  And that's a good thing!

As Sweet As They Come and Ex-Girlfriends

I've had a horrible cough for about a month and a few days ago I spiked a low-grade fever (which I still have).  Because mommies don't get sick days, I've pressed onward even though I don't feel great. After we had a pizza party with root beer and a movie in the living room last night, I just needed to crash on the sofa.  Malachi really showed his sweet, nurturing side to me.  He tucked me in with a blanket and pillow and he came over about every 5-10 minutes to ask if I needed more water or if he could do anything for me.  When it was his bedtime, he brought over my laptop in case I felt like working on it.  He refilled my water because he wouldn't be around to do it anymore; he also said if I needed anything that I just needed to come get him and he would do whatever I needed.  I felt so proud that he would take such good care of his mama. 

While eating breakfast this morning, Isaiah decided to talk about James' ex-girlfriends (which we've never really talked about that with them so I have no idea WHERE it came from).  Anyway, Isaiah has the notion that James "lost" these girls by playing Hide and Seek, but when James met me, he didn't lose me and loved me so we got married.  LOL...oh Isaiah, I love how you think!

Shoe Shopping is Serious Business

A little over a week ago I discovered that Malachi was now in dire need of new shoes.  The sides were pulled away from the frame of the shoe.  Since James had a huge project this past week/weekend and wasn't home much, we had to wait until this morning to go shoe shopping.  Malachi had been super excited about getting new shoes (uh, yeah! you should be!!!) We went to Kohl's to see what bargains we could find.  There were only 1 1/2 aisles of boy's shoes.  We went up and down the aisles over and over.  Nothing really caught his eye except the "Z" shoes which I guess he had his heart set on.

The marketing was great on these shoes because they have superheros on the box and he just thought it was the most awesome thing.  Unfortunately, they didn't have his size and even on sale, it was more than what I wanted to spend on tennis shoes.  Also, Sketchers are not the best for all the running that he does during the day, everyday.  The shoes were super heavy and I knew that he would not be happy with how it would affect chasing the other kids on the playground.

I found what I thought was a great pair of shoes for him.  They were New Balance, great for running, and looked nice.  I told him that I wore New Balance in high school when I ran track and cross-country and I thought they made me a faster runner. He wasn't sold on them.  I found his size and he tried them on.  I asked how they felt.  He said the top of the shoe was good, but uncomfortable (???).  I loosened the laces, but he wasn't convinced.  I showed him that the way the laces were on the new shoes are exactly like the laces in the old shoes.  He then said that they felt fine.  But then he noticed the back of the shoe had a little lope (to help pull the shoe on) and he didn't like the loop.  I showed him that if he pulled his pant leg down then you couldn't see it.  After he came up with a few more reasons why we shouldn't get them and me responding to his negatives with a positive, he said the shoes were ok and we could get them. (at this point we had been there for an hour!)  I could tell that he wasn't really excited about the shoes, but the price was right, they had his size, and I thought they were an excellent choice for his active lifestyle.  I decided to make a deal with him; we would buy these shoes, but would go to Shoe Carnival to see if they had the right size in the Sketchers.  He agreed and we shook hands on it.

At Shoe Carnival, they had a bigger selection of possible shoes for him, but didn't have his size in a lot of the shoes he was attracted to.  Also, the prices were higher than what we found at Kohl's.  They, too, didn't have the right size in the "Z" shoes and I had him try on another pair of Sketchers so he could see how the "Z" shoes would feel and tried to explain to him that it would weigh him down.  After half an hour there, we reluctantly left the shoe store empty-handed.  I could tell he was sad about not coming away with the shoes he really wanted, but I really thought that he would learn to love the New Balance.

We got home and I told James about the drama surrounding these shoes.  He was able to talk up the new shoes and showed Malachi that on the shoe it said it's for running.  James suggested that Malachi run inside the house to see how much faster he could run with them.  Malachi did and after a few laps decided that he wanted to run with them outside.  Of course we weren't going to say no so he ran all around the sidewalk for quite some time.  When he came back inside, he told me that he wasn't happy about the shoes at first, but now he likes them.  Whew!

Now comes the question:  If a 6 year old is so dramatic about tennis shoes at this age, what in the world is he going to be like when he's older?!?   And if Malachi is like this, what is Samara going to be like?  I don't want to begin to think about that!  

New Spring Look

Samara's all ready for spring.  She put this outfit together all by herself (I mean are you at all surprised?!?)  The outfit consists of a "Bam-Bam and Pebbles shirt, pink shorts, Princess Jammie shirt, and, of course, her Jayhawk slipper boots.  And nothing pulls it all together better than a Santa hat.  Flaunt that look Miss Samara!

Late Night Research

While learning how to live more frugally, I have discovered home-made recipes for household items like laundry detergent, dishwasher soap, all-purpose cleaner to name a few.  I had NO idea that people made their own!  So last night my "shopping buddy" (if you don't have one, you should get one) ventured out in search of pricing how much it would cost to buy the needed materials so we could make a big batch together and split it in half along with the cost.  That way if we didn't like how it worked we wouldn't be out as much money. 

For those of you who know my "shopping buddy", you know that we rarely ever shop during normal hours.  We shop late at night.  And last night was no different.  We meandered around Target until closing time (11pm), but scored some awesome sale/clearance items. We didn't find all the necessary items for our recipes so we stopped by Dillon's MarketPlace which is fortunately opened 24 hours for our shopping convenience.  We found the rest of the needed items except for essential oils.  The store had a big "organic" section so we really thought they would carry this, but after wandering around for quite some time, we weren't successful.  So at midnight we decided it was probably time to call it a night.

I am going to find buckets and spray bottles to put our "creation" in and then I'll be ready to give this thing a whirl!  Oh and by the way, there will be lots of coffee consumption today, but it's Friday so I can hang on for one more day to hopefully sleep in past 6-something-am!!!

Valentine's Celebrations and a Sick Girlie

Tuesday was Valentine's Day.  Our family was blessed with multiple days to celebrate this "lovey-dovey" day.  Late last week James' mom mailed homemade, heart-shaped sugar cookies along with a Valentine's card for each of us.  Malachi was super excited to be able to actually read the card himself and we all enjoyed the yummy treat.  Friday afternoon Malachi got out of school early and I had us packed up to head to KC for a quick visit so the kiddos could meet their new cousin, Sylvia. And of course, visit the rest of the family.  Right when we got into town, we headed to Nebraska Furniture Mart because my mom was working then.  She proudly introduced us to her co-workers and then treated the kiddos to See's Candy where they each picked out some gourmet suckers for V-day.  I was pretty happy they didn't go nuts inside the store =)

We then made our way to my sister's house.  Malachi was anxious to be able to hold the new baby; he simply adores babies.  He was playing "peek-a-boo" and trying to talk "baby talk" to her.  Then the time came that he was seated on the couch with pillows under his arm and precious Sylvia was placed in his arms.  His smile was priceless (I was too busy making sure I was right there to grab her if needed so I didn't get a pic =( )  The cousins enjoyed playing together and then we went to spend the night at my parents' house.  Early Saturday afternoon we met up with one of my cousins and her boys to have a play date at McDonald's.  It was so nice to catch up a bit while the kiddos ran around.  Afterward, we headed back home.

Monday night Malachi finished up all of his Valentine cards for his classmates.  He wrote all of their names and signed his name to each.  Fortunately, I had him start on this project a few days before because the task of writing so much might have been a little daunting for the guy. 

Valentine's Day ended up being quite busy, but fun.  After dropping Malachi off at school, Isaiah, Samara and I went to MOPS where the mommies decorated sugar cookies for their families and made little coupon books.  It was wonderful to relax and chit-chat with other gals.  The kiddos made heart Valentine's so they were quite thrilled to show me.  For lunch, I made heart-shaped PB&J and then for snack we had some Valentine cookies along with a juice box (a treat at our house!) Since Malachi insists on James and I taking turns going to his special school functions, it was James' turn to go to the Valentine's party.  The class ate cupcakes and passed out their Valentine gifts/cards.  A girl's grandma made such a special gift for all of the kids.  It was a "Tooth-fairy pillow".  It was a blue heart pillow and in the middle was a smaller heart pocket with red trim around it that will hold the tooth. Malachi insists on keeping it by his real pillow for when the anticipated day comes when he loses his first tooth.  When I asked how his party was, the first thing he said was, "I didn't eat a lot of candy."  LOL...that was going to be my second question!  Instead, he brought home a gallon jug full of candy.  Maybe that will last until Halloween ;-)  Our dear elderly neighbor across the street brought over a Valentine's goodie bag that also included treats for George.  We are very well stocked on sweets! 

Yesterday it was obvious that Samara was not her usual bubbly self.  She kept the same PJ's on all day (yes, no dresses were worn).  All day she lounged around and didn't talk much.  She had some diarrhea and complained her tummy hurt.  Late in the afternoon, I let her soak in the tub (she normally takes showers now) and then I painted her nails.  Afterward, she wanted to watch a movie in my bed so we cuddled and around 5:30pm she fell asleep (you know she's sick then!)  I tried to wake her to eat, but she couldn't stay awake.  Finally at 7:30 she came downstairs and wanted to eat some cereal.  I let her stay up a little later than normal since she took such a late nap. Fortunately, she slept really well last night.

Today, she has already changed out of her PJ's into the Mr. Incredible's suit and is playing with her dollies so she must be on the mend.  YAY!!!

Snow Fun

Overnight we received our first substantial amount of snow.  When Samara came down the stairs this morning, she beamed and said, "It's my birthday!" (because everything revolves around you when you're 3 years old)  We waited until James came home for lunch to venture out to play.  There were snow balls thrown at each other and George.  As I'm typing, George has crashed beside me.  Poor tired pooch.

RUN, Samara!!!

Being a Target Doesn't Phase George

He Got Me!

Poor George (again)

"This is Frosty the Snowman"

Duck Isaiah!