4-Day Weekend Update - It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year!!!

Happy Monday everyone... it's offically the start of the Christmas season, my favorite time of year! We had a very busy 4-day Thanksgiving weekend... Thursday we went to hubby's grandmother's for Turkey Day w/ his family. Had a good meal, and ordered our new TV! 55" LCD HDTV by Insignia that we got on sale for $1200 - LOVE it! Friday, hubby picked up the new TV at the Best Buy store, and we ran by Big Lots and got a new TV stand.

Saturday we went to Walmart *shutter...* the dreaded store, and got our pictures done at PictureMe - I love that portrait studio, have NO complaints, and prefer them any day over Olan Mills for their quality, and quantity/price. While there, we also picked up the curtain track I'd ordered site to store, and got groceries (heaven forbid...) I'd have much rather gone to Kroger, but since we were already there and all...

Got the house cleaned up, tried out my new Shark Steam Mop and I love it! It's so much better than the Swiffer or Clorox mops... and well anything beats a regular old mop and bucket... and it's just steam, no soap, no wet floors to worry about the kids tracking all over just after I finish!

I also finished all my Christmas shopping (online, I refuse to go to any other store other than the grocery between Black Friday and Christmas Eve...) We got all our Christmas decorations up inside (minus the nativity set & fiberoptic angel I'm still digging for) and we'll be putting the outside lights and decorations up next weekend!

Saving $$$ This Christmas

So far we've managed to stay within our budget & save some money this Christmas.

We did the big part of the shopping for the kids at Big Lots.

I scored a kitchenette set for $35 for my 18 month old (and an extra set that came with tableware & food for $5 since the kitchen just came w/ cookware), along with an $8 toy stroller & a baby doll with mini basinette basket which was $12.

For our 4 year old son we got an easle (I believe it was $25 or $35) but it's a great easle- well constructed, has a chalk board on one side & I think I dry erase on the other-- there's something on the other side... but it also matches the toy bins we got for his room - it has two bins on the bottom to store art supplies. We also got him some $10-$15 army sets that hubby picked out... and I am ordering his Transformer from amazon.com (he's getting older, it's getting harder to be completely thrifty with his Christmas list...)

We are getting our pictures done at Walmart next weekend - a family Christmas picture & the kid's yearly photo. This will play a big role in our gift giving this year, and we will use the family photo on our Christmas Card.

For immediate family we're doing inexpensive gifts if we know what they want or a gift card. (Don't want to give too much detail, as I have family who read the blog... LOL) But we're staying in our normal Christmas budget of $100 per child, and $20 per family member that we buy for, so I'm proud of us.

Pantry Design

So we've looked & looked for a stand alone pantry for the kitchen... I had one on order, but it was backordered, and it's a good thing b/c it really isn't want we want, and we can't really find what we want... so hubby is going to build one (apparently he has this carpentry side that is just now coming out after 4 years of marriage), and I'll stain it to match our cabinets - look at the picture on the left, what might one call that stain color? Walnut? Cherry? It's not really "red", I'd say it's more walnut myself...

Here is the layout idea (no where near scale... just a *very* rough sketch) It will be approximately 6ft tall x 3ft wide x 1 1/2ft deep.

I want two layers - the top will be 3 shelves, and the doors will have "can shelves" installed. The bottom will be two pull out shelving units. We will go price everything this weekend, and I will let you know what we're looking at... Our budget is no more than $200, as this was the most I planned to pay for an already built pantry... hope we can stick to it! This will quailfy as our first "real" Do It Yourself projects!

Material list:
FRAME:
1- 3'x6' (or larger) piece of plywood for back
2- 1 1/2' x 6' (or larger) boards (probaby 1/4"-1/2" thick) for sides
5- 1 1/2' x 3' (or larger) boards for bottom, top, middle, & shelves

DOORS:
1- 3'x6' (or larger) piece of wood to cut into the 4 doors
6- 6"x18" boards for can shelves (will need to be 1/2"-1" thick in order to cut down to have an outter lip to keep the cans from falling out)
4- 4'x6" boards for sides of top doors (can shelves frame)
10- door hinges
4- knobs

PULL OUT SHELVES:
2 - 1 1/2' x 3' boards for bottom of "drawers"
4- 6"x3' boards for the fronts/backs of the "drawers"
4- 6"x18" boards for the sides of the drawers
sliding drawer hardware

And lastly: interior stain (walnut or cherry - to be determined)

HomeGood Style Scope - I'm a Global Casual

Take this quiz!

Your style…revealed! Sarah, you are a Global Casual

Your home is warm and inviting, and expresses your curiosity and zest for life. You have wide-ranging interests, and an appreciation for many different cultures and ways of life. You bring a sense of the far-flung world into your home through its décor through unique or artisan-made treasures. Objects in your home tend to reflect your personality, your passions, your values, and your eclectic interests. This gives your home a sense of intrigue and comfort.


You value order. You feel happiest if your home is well organized. You understand that when your house is in order, your mind feels clearer. Rather than a lot of meaningless objects or overly-designed items, you are happier with a few well-placed things. Your home is your respite from a busy life. Try to avoid letting things into your home that you don't really love.


Putting Your Style to Work!

With your style and needs in mind, here are a few tips that will help you make your home a little happier.


1. Your Design Challenge: ORGANIZE


The front hall sets the mood for your entire home. Consider how to accommodate all the room's functions as beautifully as possible. At the very least you need a console, and if you're short on storage, consider a dresser. Outfit the surface with nice trays and bowls for mail, keys and sunglasses. Keep a trash can for immediately tossing the junk mail. Closet-door or wall hooks encourage coat and bag hanging rather than dumping. If you have children, try to give each a basket in the closet for hats and gloves. It's nice to have a chair or bench for changing shoes, a mirror for last-minute lipstick checks, and a lamp or sconces for warm light.

2. Your Happy Place


Make this room as comfortable and inviting as possible by bringing in some real furniture like an armchair or a sofa if you have the space. A little lamp on the counter or decorative hanging light can set the mood. Stools are great perches and can easily be moved around. Don't forget to bring your personality and style into this room: hang some art or display a collection of family photos in mixed frames. Consider bold, happy colors in the kitchen as well, like brightly colored pots and pans, big bowls for corralling fruits and vegetables, and trays for spices, oils, teas and pepper mills.


3. Be Party-Ready All the Time!


Scent: The first thing you notice about a home is how it smells. Use naturally fragrant cleaning products. If you find a scented candle or fresh potpourri you love, stock up on it. Any scent you like, whether perfume or linen spray, can be used on upholstery, bedding or just spritzed into the air.



Mood: Nice, flattering light makes us feel good. So nix the harsh, direct light from overhead fixtures in favor of the softer glow from floor and table lamps. Also, stock up on some votive candles and a couple of hurricane lanterns for setting around the room.



Food: Devote space in your pantry or on a shelf for go-to party essentials: crackers, dip, chips, nuts—whatever you like to serve. Keep on hand a collection of attractive bowls and cocktail napkins, and you'll be able to set a spread—instantly!
 Drink: The simplest and chicest thing is to have a drinks tray or table always set up. Include a mix of pretty glasses, an ice bucket, a lovely pitcher, and bottles of soda and water. When the bell rings, just add ice and limes.

Weekend Progress: Thrifty Big Lots Deal

We made a lot of progress again this weekend. In addition to Christmas shopping & laundry, we hung some more picutres up, I got Andrew's room completely unpacked & finished, and I got my dining room unpacked.

At Big Lots we got Andrew some new Toy Storage Bins, which were a lot bigger than his old ones (I was able to consolidate 3 bins into 1!), and they cost a lot less than what we'd paid for the smaller ones at Walmart! Not to mention I got $10 off the already low price b/c we took the display model - this was our second time going in there for these bins and them being out of stock, and the last time they had told us they'd have more by last Wednesday... but one of the bars was a little bent, and being the negotiator I am, I got him to sell me the display (which they don't normally do) and knock $10 off the sticker price.

The finishing touches on Ella's room were the pictures & shelf above her changing table (which as yet to be painted white) and the stickers on her cheferobe. And we still have to get some curtains & shorten the cornice board to hang above the window.

Thrifty Tips 101

I'm all about being thrifty... I'm all about saving money where I can, and using my extra money towards our home improvment adventure... With Christmas time coming up, we try to save anywhere we can. So far this how we've saved money this holiday season.

1. I take my lunch every day to work... and instead of buying nasty/processed/over priced frozen meals, I just fix an extra serving at dinner the night before. So today for lunch I'm eating delicious pot roast, potatoes, and carrots & corn on the cob -- beats the crap out of frozen anything (taste & price.)

2. We started our Christmas shopping this weekend. My kids are 1 & 4, so I can still get away with all or most of the shopping at discount stores like Freds & Big Lots. (This year my 4 year old does specifically want an Optimus Prime transformer, so that's one thing I'll have to go to Target for...) But what I'm going to pay for Mr. Optimus, I managed to buy a toy kitchen set (the actual kitchen, not just some dishes) for at Big Lots -- $35 for a toy kitchenette that would have cost $80-$100 at Walmart or Target (don't get me wrong, I LOVE Target, but I love my savings more...) As for Walmart, I only go there if I can't get what I'm looking for anywhere else for less... strongly dislike Walmart...

3. Craigslist is your friend. So is ebay, amazon, and overstock.com.

4. Decorations: I've seen so many good tips for "DIY" Thanksgiving & Christmas decor... One thing I saw was spray painting pine cones silver or gold & using other "dead" tree limbs/floral arrangements for "fall" decor...

5. DIY storage ideas. The most recent idea was the DIY Magazine Holders... Loved this idea - saves money, but also allows me to decorate my holders anyway I like!!! (And for those following the blog, while I had a very productive weekend, due to the rain I did not get to my magazine holder/spray painting projects.)

6. Google! I always google an item I want to make sure I'm getting the best price... I can't stand to buy something, then turn around a week later and find the same thing cheaper.

7. And lastly, I never down 2nd hand anything... I'll take gently used items any day! I have a 1 year old- they outgrow clothes faster than I can buy them... Ebay is a good find for gently used kid's clothes - the last lot I got my son was all brand new w/ tags, name brand clothes that I couldn't have gotten that cheap if I'd have been willing to drag myself into Walmart... and same for my daughter - a good bit of  the last lot I got her were new, and what was gently used you could barely tell - nothing a good wash won't fix! We have an email shop here at work, and I got JC Penney drapes & throw pillows that go perfectly in my new family room (the drapes were new, and the pillows were used for decor only) and I couldn't have gotten them cheaper anywhere else!

Some may call me frugal or cheap, but I call it "thrifty." :-)

Introducing the Family & Home

So I've blogged & blogged about out home improvements & renovations, I thought I'd introduce the "us" who live in the home a little bit more...

So there's me. Sarah, age 24 (25 in February), mother of 2, I work as a Program Assistant for the Master of Public Health program for Mercer University. I live in Georgia, I've been here going on 5 years. I was born and raised for 19 years in Muncie, IN.  I love music, blogging, home improvement, camping, grilling, being outdoors, photography, and being with my family.

We bought our first home back in 2007, which we knew wouldn't be our permenant space, we just didn't know for how long... well, our son was 3 when baby #2 came along in 2008... We knew once there were two munchkins roaming the house it wouldn't be long before we needed more space... and we had learned that the elementary school district we were in wasn't the best, so we started looking for a new space in 2009.

We found Tiffany Ln, after seeing a few other homes (fell in love with 1, but it was a little too expensive since we hadn't sold the current house...) Well  Tiffany Ln was bigger than the first home by a couple hundred sq ft, and while the basement wasn't finished (probably one reason it was less $) the price was unbeatable (Thank You economy!) Over 2900 sq ft 3 bed/2 bath 10 year old home for $108,900, when they were running closer to $130,000 everywhere else we looked... I asked what's wrong with it? Crazy thing - nothing, other than a recent termite infestation that the sellers had removed quickly and put the house under bond for a year, and according to our inspector and his thermal imaging scan there was no damage. That was it. We didn't ask them for anything else (other than a very small door repair and to have the house cleaned & cobwebs removed from the basement...) And it appraised for $114,000 (with the poor market right now, it's tax assessed value is like $126,000...)

So we went from 1270 sq ft, to 2919 sq ft - what the heck was I to do with all this space?! Well I've managed to fill it up pretty well, and we have a set goal for finishing the basement within a year.

My husband is Adam. He's 25, works for our local cable company (which entails free internet & TV-- our total monthly bill is like $10, and we have high speed & every channel out there - including a few new channels that right now are "employee only" for testing - HAHA!) I love his job. Possibly more than he does...

Hubby is a computer geek (loves his games), is into camping, being outdoors, and spending time with us, his family, and his friends. We met back in 2004 and married in 2005. I promise God brought me to Georgia  for the sole purpose of finding him!

Our kids are Andrew & Ella. Andrew is 4, and Ella is 18 months (1 1/2 years for you men and nonparents out there who are like what's with the month thing?) Andrew is in pre-k. He loves superheros (Iron Man &  Transformers are really in right now with him...) He's loves playing with cars, trains, army men, and the list goes on.

Ella is on a talking spree -- she will accurately repeat  any word you say, even the ones you don't want her to... Oopsie. Some of her favorites are milky, mommy, and the oh so favorite of anyone who hears her say it, sexy.

And last, but not least, is our fur-baby, Bubbles. She is 4 years old and a mini dauschund. She likes to lay in your lap, especially when you least want or need her there (like last night when I was on the floor trying to fold laundry...)

Adam thinks it's funny to shoot her with the toy gun he got at the grocery last weekend (yes I have 3 kids, not just 2.) It's just those little suction things you shoot at the tv or window and they stick... but the poor dog is skiddish enough without having to hide from the husband... she puts up with enough from the real kids! :-)