Thankful Thursday, Week 5

Wow.  Week 5?  Already?  Crazy!
This week has been... well.... a doozy.  And it's not over yet.  We're hanging in limbo over some things regarding our move, so it's been a little bit stressful, but I'm really trying to be thankful in the midst of the stress.

1.  That my life is in God's hands.  HE's got this.  Especially when I don't.
2.  Pink satin ribbon.  It just makes me happy.
3.  Small idea that make a big impact in the long run.
4.  Four-year-old passions.  I love to watch my girl dance.  I love that she's passionate about it.  That it's without fear of who's watching.  I pray that it's like that for her forever.
5.  The toys on my floor.
6.  Leopold!  (inside joke for my husband and I. ) But it makes me laugh every time I think about it.
7.  That God has given us freedom to question things.  Even Him at times.  I'm so thankful that He's faithful through my questions.
8.  For my fabric and ribbons.  Just having them around inspires me to create.
9.  Celebration lunches and times with my friends.  We took out a good friend for her birthday this week, and it was such a good time!
10.  Games of tag.
11.  My kids laughing at each other.
12. Paper dolls and coffee dates with just my girl and I.

13.  Listening to my big guy read.

14. Music that soothes the soul

15. Hot showers after a stressful day

16. Knowing that others are praying for us and our situation

17.  That the sun is FINALLY out!

18.  Cleaning out and getting rid of things that are no longer needed.

19.  Joy in the journey and joy through the journey.

20.  Time spend as a family.

Tip Tuesday: Endless Dryer Sheets

I already shared with you my laundry detergent recipe.  This one, I wanted to try out for a couple of weeks before I shared it.  So far, I'm loving it.

I  bought some sponges from the dollar store and cut them each in half.  Then I grabbed a plastic container, filled it with one part fabric softener and 2 parts water.  For every load, depending on size, I grab one or two of the sponges, wring them out, and throw them in the dryer with my wet clothes.  After they're done, I put them back in the container.  It's been working great!  No static, my clothes are soft, and they smell good!  All for a couple of bucks.  SCORE!

Idea courtesy of Pinterest.

Make Something Monday. DIY cell phone cover

So, I love my iPhone.  I'm also fairly careful with it.  But I drop it. A lot.  So, I need a cover for it.  I grabbed a clear plastic cover from Hobby Lobby for $2 and decided to customize it.

These were the scrapbook papers that I grabbed.  Some of my favorite things... Music notes, purple damask, and a vintage looking Paris themed print.

I traced around this decal that I bought with the cover.  I thought I could use them together, but I don't really like the idea of sticking something to the back of my phone, and the sparkles didn't fit under the plastic cover.  Bummer.  But, good template.

See?

I also used the decal for a template when I cut out the camera lens hole with an exact knife.

Here's what they look like finished.  I used my one inch circle punch to cut out the hole in the damask one.  I like how the apple shows through.

Voila!  SO cute!  And fun!  I can change them whenever I want.  The possibilities are endless!

I've already changed it twice.

In other news:

My daughter brought one of her dollies to me this morning with a major issue:  When you put her hat on, it bulged on one side.  Tragic!  So, I fixed it with a cute little flower.  First I stitched it to the hat...

Then glued a cute flower button on it.  Adorable!  And the little miss is happy!

Have a fabulous Monday!  I plan to!

Filofax Friday

When I was getting everything ready to decorate my pages this morning, I thought that maybe I'd do my February month on two pages as well, but decided against it.  I want to get some Valentine-y stickers before I do that.  So, stay tuned to see how my month will look.

I'm definitely feeling the need for spring!  It's been so dreary here lately, so I decided to brighten things up with flowers and bees and butterflies.

I grabbed this cute flowery washi tape from the Dollar Store, and the pink from Target.

I used my paper cutter to cut the pink washi in half to use vertically as separation.  I've never done this before, so we'll see how it goes this week.

Here come the flowers and bees!  I got these stickers at the Dollar Store, too!  I love it there. :)

Here's my finished pages for next week!  I love the little bees!  This week is bound to get crazy since we're wrapping up things for my daughter's dance show on Friday, and I have moving companies coming to do estimates for moving our house.  I'm starting to get excited!

I will be taking one of my reader's suggestions,  (thank you, giftieetcetera!) and adding a tab to my moving section that will basically tell me what is going in which box and where it is to go at the new house.  I just haven't worked it all out in my head yet.

Here's to another great week!

Thankful Thursday

This is week 4, which already puts me at 100 thankfuls!  I love keeping my list.  And the more I'm thankful, the easier it is to find things to be thankful for.

1. Late night snuggles.  The last couple of nights, my youngest has had a really hard time sleeping, which means she's been in bed with us.  Although it makes it almost impossible for me to sleep, I really do cherish the snuggles.  And the way she has to be touching me is really adorable.
2. That we finally know that we're moving.  It's been a long time coming.  And it's been hard for me not to say anything on social media.  I hate not knowing.  So, to know that we're moving, even thought it's going to be such a huge change for us, is big for me.
3.  For friends and family already there.  In the last few months, one of our friends from church moved back to where she grew up.  And, go figure, it's the same area that we're moving.  Not only that, but my brother and sister-in-law just moved to NC, which will only be a few hours from us.
5.  I love to plan.  And right now, I'm planning a 4+ day road trip with 3 kids and 3 pets.
6.  I'm thankful for my mother-in-law's job.  It's currently giving us discounts as we travel across the country.  I heart discounts.
7.  Ice cream with my guy.
8.  Moving companies.  I'm thankful that we'll be working with one this time.  And that they may be packing us.  Keeping my fingers grossed for that one.
9.  For the awesome landlord that we've had while living in this house.
10.  Lavender and Melaleuca essential oils.  In the last month, my kids have had croup, ear infections, and pink eye.  I haven't had to take them to the doctor.  These amazing oils have cleared things up, and faster than any antibiotic that we've ever used.  For more information about the oils, please contact me!
11.  Medallions.  I make these for a local boutique, and I love how quickly they sell!
12.  Feathers and rhinestones.  I love making pretty things out of them!  Hair accessories for dancers... So pretty!
13.  That my brother and sister-in-law are no longer out of the country.
14.  Ceiling fans.
15.  Frosty mornings.  I realize that after we move, these will probably not happen as often as they do here in the Northwest.
16.  Plans coming together.  We have a route!

17.  For Pinterest.  Here's the link to my " The Big Move" board.  It's got all kinds of moving tips as well as road trip tips.  I'll be updating it on almost a daily basis over the next 3 weeks.

18.  For creative friends.  One in particular.  She suggested that I laminate a map of our route for each of my kids and give them each a dry erase marker to track our route while we're driving.

19.  For texts from my husband just to say "I love you."

20.  For pug videos.  I came across this one this morning.  Absolutely adorable!

http://blog.petflow.com/as-a-dog-owner-i-cant-believe-these-dogs-sat-still-for-this-but-they-seem-okay-with-it/

What are you thankful for this week?

Recovering from yesterday.

So, yesterday was a Monday.  A horrible, horrible, Monday.  I try really hard to start each day out on a positive note, simply because I really believe that if you think you're going to have a bad day, you will.  Well, I didn't think it at the beginning of the day, but it turned out to be a rough one.  Pictured below is my nightstand.  See the chocolate chips?  Dark chocolate chips to be exact. After the day I had yesterday, this is what I resorted to.  That, and an hour or two of Downton Abbey after everyone had gone to sleep, and all was right with the world again.  Here's my tip for this Tuesday:  When you have a bad day, drink a glass of wine, grab some chocolate, (any shape or size) and watch a chick flick.  You will feel immensely better.  I promise.

You know the suspender and bow tie sets that I was to finish yesterday?  Well, here's one of them.  The only one that I actually had time to get done.  You see, all of my children were home from school yesterday.  I love my kids.  I don't love when the fight with each other and fight with me all day long.  I didn't get to sit down for even five minutes together to work on my projects.  And, so I'll bet you that before 10 AM this morning, I will have the rest of the suspenders done, and have plenty of time to get the things done that I need to do for the boutique.

The bow tie and suspender sets really are cute, aren't they?  This one is for the boy in the dance group.  The others will have rhinestones on them.  And have coordinating pigtail bows.  So cute!

My hope for you today is that you have a fabulous one!  I plan to!

Monday, Crazy, Busy Monday

It's Make Something Monday.  And I'm trying to get a whole slew of projects done.  I'm working on a few things for different dancers.  Here's one of them:

That pile of black and white is actually suspenders that are mostly done.  10 sets of them.  They all have matching bow ties, and eight sets of them will have pigtail bows to match.  As well as bling.  I heart bling.

This is what my craft room looks like right now.  And this is just one corner of it.  It's a wreck.  

But, there's a lot going on in here right now. I have several things I need to get done before our big move.

This is a project that I finished a while ago.  It's hanging on my bathroom wall and I love it.  I attached magnets to the back of my makeup and the little baskets are from the dollar store.  I love that my makeup is up and off my counter and organized.  If anyone is interested, I can post a tutorial on how to do this.  I purchased everything that I didn't already have from the dollar store, so this is really cost effective, too.

Okay, I must get back to work...  And laundry and dishes in between projects.   Maybe it should be the other way around?

Filofax Friday... And a BIG announcement.

Sorry I'm posting so late in the day!  Today's been an interesting one, and I'm still processing all the emotions that have come with it.

I'l be adding some new sections to my Filofax.  I'll tell you more about that later in the post.  I picked up some Martha Stewart dividers today, and of course, the holes don't match up.  So, I covered them with washi tape, and re-punched them.

Voila!  They fit!

Here's the announcement:  Check out the tab.

Yep.  The Pogue family will be relocating.  To Georgia.  YIKES!  This'll be a huge change for us, and I'm scared and excited all at once.  I've been in the Northwest my entire life, so I'm sure everything will be new for me.  I'll be using my Filofax to try to organize our move and all the craziness that comes with it.

Here's this week:

Not a lot on the schedule yet, but I'm sure it'll be packed by the end of the week.  I love the harlequin washi tape, and I picked up the stickers in the Dollar Spot at Target.

Have any of you used a planner to organize a move or other big transition in your life?  I want to know about it!  Comment if you have any tips for me!

Thankful Thursday, Week 3

As you know, Monday was this dude's 6th birthday.  Most of my "thankfuls" this week are about him.  He's my middle one, and he had a rough start.  And it was really rough on me.  After he was born, he was sick for a long time.  Almost a year.  It was really, really, stressful, and once I finally came out of "Survival Mode" I really struggled with postpartum depression.  It was definitely a roller-coaster.  I'm so thankful for him, and that he's so happy and healthy now.

1. For NICU and its staff. (I have a really special place in my heart for them since I had two preemie babies.)

2. For the Asher-man. 

3. For his health.

4. For his sense of humor.  This boy can almost always make me laugh.  And the thing is, he just turned 6.  He's already quite witty.  Scary.

5. That he's so easy going.  This boy is oh-so laid back.  It's really hard to light a fire under him about anything.
6. He's so giving.  He shares with his siblings so well, and puts them first most of the time.
7. He very rarely complains.  He just goes with the flow.
8. The mischievous sparkle in his eyes.  Although he's so laid back, he's ornery.  And I love that.  It's so fun to see the wheels turning in his head.

9.  The way his voice gets deep when he's serious about something.

10.  Random "I love you, Mommy!'s"

11.  For his willingness to obey.  For the most part, when I ask his to do something, his response is, "Yes, mom."

12.  Cute hats for when it's windy.

13. For God's provision in all aspects of my life.

14. For friends that make me laugh.

15. For washi tape.  I seriously love the stuff.

16. For my oldest son's persistence.  Although it's really frustrating a lot of the time, I know that in the long run, it's going to be a good thing.

17.  For my husband's desire to keep me happy.  He really does.  And if I'm not happy, he fixes it.  

18.  For my kids' desire to help with everything.

19.  For new creative ideas.

20.  For my messy, messy, craft room.  Which I need to clean today.

Magnetic Cups.

This is something I found on Pinterest, so I really can't take credit for the genius of it.  But, every time another mom comes into my house, they take one look at my fridge and make some sort of comment. I grabbed some cups from the party section at Wal-Mart.  My kids have all their favorite characters.  Princesses, superheroes, monster trucks... And they love them.

They love that they can reach the cups and get their own water.  I love that I don't have to wash 18 cups every day.  They grab a drink, and then stick their cups back on the fridge.

How I did it:  These round magnets are super strong.  I used E-6000 to glue the magnets to the cups.  I love E-6000.  It does have to set for 24-48 hours, but once it's dry, it can be run through the dishwasher or whatever you need to do.

So, there's your tip for this lovely Tuesday.  It looks as though I'll be spending mine nursing sick kiddos.  Have a good one!

Happy Birthday to my 6 year old guy! (And a dye job.)

My middle guy turns six today!  I'm so proud of him.  He's pretty laid back and is so mellow about things, and for the most part is just an easy kid.  Happy birthday, Dude!  We love you so very much!

We'll have a party for him later on this week, but we're celebrating as family tonight with a special dinner of his choice and a cake.

Now on to business...  Make Something Monday!  Here it is!

So, I have this pair of jeans.  I like how they fit, and they really are cute, but, they're kind of flesh colored.  They looked pink when I bought them.  But, every time I've worn them, I've been asked if I'm wearing pants. Not a good thing.

I bought some Rit dye in tangerine orange, and thought I'd give it a go.  The instructions are fairly easy.  You have to mix the dye and then put it on the stove top and stir it for half an hour...  Here goes nothin'!

Stir, stir, stir



Oh, and wear gloves!~  This stuff will dye your hands.

Because these are made of cotton, I had to add a cup of salt.

When they were done, I washed and dried them.  I think they turned out pretty nice!

What do you think?  This was fairly easy and fun.  Probably something I'll be doing again.

Filofax Friday

Ah, Friday, I'm so glad you're here!  And, as promised, here's a view of my week at the end of it.  I have most everything filled in.  Today is rather blank, and I'm relieved.    Honestly, it was a struggle sitting down to focus on anything this week, so I'm really glad I had my Filofax to keep me on track.

Here's a view of my upcoming week.  My middle son's birthday is on Monday, so there's lots of party planning going on.  I used a polka dot washi tape I got at the dollar store (SCORE!) to decorate my pages.  I attempted to cut some of it with some cute scrapbooking scissors to give it a decorated edge, and let me tell you, that's harder than it sounds.

I think I'm going to go to Target this week and look for more things to decorate with.

I used some fun stickers that I've had since I was in about 3rd grade.  Don't ask me why I've had them that long.  I don't really know.  And if you know me, please don't do the math.  It's scary.

It's simple.  But, it's pretty cute.

What are your favorite places to get stickers and decorations for your planner?

Thankful Thursday Week 2

This week has been tough.  And long.   And hopefully soon, I'll be able to share why.  I hate to be so cryptic, but sometimes secrecy is a must. :)  In the midst of it, I've been really trying to be thankful, and although it's been tough, I still managed to get a list of 20.

1. For peace that passes understanding.  Even when it doesn't make sense, even when I have no idea what tomorrow brings, I have peace.  I love that.
2.  For good dreams.  The last week, my daughter has been waking up, (sometimes in the middle of the night) by good dreams.  Dreams that make her happy and excited.  Love it.
3.  Friends that just drop by.
4.  A warm home.  This week has been cold.  And not nearly as cold here as in other parts of the country.
5.  Days that I can just relax.  I don't have anywhere to go, and not much to do.  It's nice to just sit with a cup of coffee with kids piled on me and veg.
6.  The boys' teachers.  I'm so thankful for these ladies!  Not only are they watching over my babies while they're at school, but they love them, and are instilling in them so much knowledge!  They work with me and are very communicative.
7.  Down blankets.  I have one.  Everyone should have one.  They are the best.
8.  The dance family that we're involved in.  That my little girl loves it so much and that they care about her so much.  That she has so many good examples to look up to and emulate.

9.  Our Church family.  New Vintage Church means so much to me.  I love that people are people.  It's a real place.  Not a holier-than-thou place.  I love the vision there, Jesus. People. Cities.  I love the pastors, Matt & Lisa Molt, and I love the friends that we've made there.  There is literally a group of women there for me that are in the same place in life that I am.  That I can laugh, cry, be ugly in front of, and I know that they will love me through it and pray with me and for me.  I don't think they'll ever know how much that means to me.  So very, very good.

10. New opportunities that present themselves everyday.  We just have to look for them.

11.  Encouraging text messages.  I love these.  If you have my number, text me.  :)

12.  Dress up!  My kids were playing "Cops and Robbers" last night.  This is what it looked like:

13.  Early morning laughs with my man.

14.  Donut holes.

15. Dirty Dishes.  Yes, really.  They mean that we have food.  That we can provide enough to feed our kids everyday.  More than once.

16.  My new pillow.  Seriously, this thing is awesome.  My guy got it for me, and it has a gel pack in it that never gets warm.  That means I stay cool all. night. long.  I love it.

17.  Friends that are neighbors.  Neighbors that are friends.  One of mine texted me yesterday because she saw a need and she went above and beyond to make sure that need was met.  I am so blessed.  I don't think she knows how much that meant to me, but thank you!!!

18.  Busy days to occupy my mind.

19.  New plans and ideas.

20.  Teachable moments.  We heard a song on the radio this morning, and my kids asked what it meant.  I was able to explain forgiveness.  I love that.

I really feel better than I did before I sat down to write this.  Being thankful is such a cool thing.  Let me know some of the things you're thankful for!

Tip Tuesday

Today's Tip is how to have a silent breakfast table instead of listening to your kids argue over who has the bigger fruity pebble:
  Absolutely forbid them to open their mouths unless to put food in it.
Just kidding.  I may or may not have done that this morning.
Actually, I thought I'd share something about one of the essential oils I use.  My oldest son, is a typical seven year old boy in that he absolutely hates to sit still.  The boy quite literally hits the ground running in the morning.  He has non-stop energy.  Unfortunately, this also means that in school, he has a hard time sitting still and focussing on what he's supposed to be doing.   He also is one of the most social kids I know.  He loves people.  He loves making friends.  He loves hearing the sound of his own voice.
Thankfully his teachers have been pretty understanding about who he is, but that doesn't make him exempt from the rules.  So, it's been a struggle to not only keep him in his seat, but to keep him quiet and focussed.
We were at our wits end.  He's a good kid, and he really wants to do the right thing, but he has a hard time controlling himself.  I decided to try "In Tune", DoTerra's focus blend.

I was honestly kind of skeptical.  But, within the first couple of days, his teachers had noticed a huge difference.  I got a note from his book club teacher saying that he was reading better than he ever had, and she didn't have to get after him even once about talking and not doing his work.  We started by putting it on him in the morning, and by the 3rd day of using In Tune, his teacher sent home a note asking if I could send it to school with him so she could reapply at lunch time. I was SO surprised!  The bottle has a roller-ball, so we just apply a little bit to the back of his neck before school, and then his teacher does it again at lunch time.  It really is amazing how well it's worked for my little man.  Awesome, awesome, stuff.

And, it's resulted in getting notes like this home from school as opposed to notes telling me how he was having a hard time not shouting out and staying on task.  

He still has days where he has a hard time.  He's a boy.  But, I do know that this has really, really, worked for us.  He'll even ask me for it if he's having a hard time focussing on his homework.

We use DoTerra essential oils for a lot of things around here, so I'm sure you'll be hearing more about them.  I love their history, I love that they work and that they're safe for my kids.  I love that I don't have to worry about putting weird chemicals in our bodies.  We still use traditional medicine for some things, but more and more, we're relying on essential oils.  If you want more information, feel free to comment!  I'd be happy to share more.

Shirt Refashion

For Make Something Monday, I decided to redo one of my husband's shirts.  I really enjoy refashioning clothes.  It's SO much fun, and it's FREE!  (If you already own the clothes, anyway)  This is a XXL button up that my husband doesn't wear any more.

Thanks, Babe, for taking the pic!  This is the only one that he was home for, so I couldn't use his mad picture taking skills on the rest of them.

I put the shirt on my dress form inside out, and buttoned it up.  Then, I pinned away!

After I was done pinning, I tried it on just to make sure it fit before I sewed it up.

I LOVE my dress form.  It's a vintage adjustable dress form from the 1940s.

After I sewed up where I had pinned, I cut the extra fabric off.  I really like doing it this way simply because if the shirt is too tight or I don't like how it fits, I can just rip out the seams, and redo it, without having to worry about losing fabric.

Sorry about the bad selfies!  Like I said, my husband is at work, and I dare not trust my four year old daughter to take a decent picture. :)

It looks really cute belted like this with a pair of leggings.

The sleeves are dropped for a more relaxed look.  I didn't take the shoulders in at all.

Yes, I had to stand on my bathtub to try to get a full pic.  A girl has to do what a girl has to do...

I threw an oversized sweater over it, and I'll wear my boots with my leggings.  Super cute and comfy!  I actually like it a lot more than I thought I would!  What do you think?