D.M.V.

Nothing clever with the acronym.  It is what it is. Department.Of.Motor.Vehicles.

I had the lovely opportunity to go spend well over an hour there this week *trying* to renew my license for the SECOND time.  You see with all the new laws, they want you to bring your placenta and cord still attached to your mother who also needs to show proof of citizenship, to prove that you were born in the U.S. and you are not an illegal immigrant.  (I know kinda gross visual).

I mean seriously.  I have had my drivers license for 20 years, have renewed every 5 years and this last go round I have to bring everything under the sun to prove I am who I say I am and born and raised in the U.S. of A!

I had my birth certificate (which was a whole nother lengthy process to obtain since I was born in a different state), I had my marriage certificate since my last name is different than what I was born with, I had proof of residence to verify my current address but I did not have my.....

Dah-dun-dah....

My Social Security Card. 

Now wouldn't one think that a Certified Birth Certificate would be the end all be all of proof of being born in the US, therefore being a US Citizen.  Yeah, that is what I thought...but they didn't see it that way.

Well here is the kicker.  I had my purse stolen awhile back and my SS card was in there.  I hadn't got around to going to get a new one BEFORE my license expired, didn't even think it about it, but I can't get my SS card reissued WITHOUT my current *valid* drivers license.  Nice, huh?

They make this so easy.  I get why they have all these hoops these days, but c'mon. 

So to make a really long story short, I attempted to go to the SS office TOO this week but they close at 330pm so another waste of time.  I was hoping I could talk someone into getting my SS card with all the documents I have but who knows if I would have been successful.  I might still try it (before 330pm of course).

The only other option I have been told is to bring my last years W2s which have my SSN on it.  I think this might end up being the easiest option, but I still have to dig through my files to pull it.  Arghhh...

Trips to the D.M.V fun times.

Did I mention how entertaining it was to people watch during my hour long visit?  That made the time pass pretty quick. 

I am going to go get a bumper sticker that says:

Or maybe I will wear it on my chest *proudly* on my next visit.

iPad2 Or $500.00 Giveaway Starts Oct 3rd!

I am at it again!

I teamed up with 30+ other bloggers for the Social Media Boost to giveaway an iPad2 OR $500.00! 

Check back on Monday to enter and for all the details!



Days Like These

Do you ever have days where you need something like this?



Yeah, me neither!  It has been a long week!  T.G.I.F.

Happy Friday everyone!  Hope you have a great day!

You Know You...

Live in a house with several males when...

• You randomly find underwear, boxers, briefs, in odd places.

• They think it is the *norm* to drink out of the milk carton (I caught Hayden trying to do that just yesterday).

• They make it known, loud & clear, that they lifted the seat when they went to the bathroom (yet often times don't flush)

• There is toothpaste gunk in the bathroom sinks on most days (why is it so hard to spit, then rinse?)

• We have air fresheners strategically placed throughout our house.

• Utensils those are for special occasions.  (LOL)

• Bed head is how they roll (who needs a comb or brush).

And last but not least....

•  If it is football, basketball or baseball season (so pretty much 365 days /year) and the tv is on, it is on a game.

I hope Kaylyn learns to love sports as much as her dad and brothers otherwise, she is going to be odd women out.  I think our oldest daughter needs to move back home.  We need less testosterone and more estrogen in this house. 

Bring on HGTV!  Or better yet, how about a Lifetime movie?



If Only "They" Told Me

….for the next 18 years I would not go to the bathroom alone; if they are not in the bathroom with me, they are banging on the door wondering when I will be done.

….I would never have another full nights sleep; for I am now such a light sleeper with one foot on the floor ready to jump up at any given sound.  They are just breathing!  That’s a good thing.

….I can survive on 3 hours of sleep (as long as coffee is involved).

…..I would always eat my food cold because the second I sit down to eat my meal it is inevitable that someone will need something…a glass of milk, another napkin, a clean fork because they just dropped theirs.

….my tatas will never be the same.  They will forever hang low.  Buy a good supportive bra and just deal with it.

….I will spend many a days vacuuming smashed up cheerios or cheese-its from my carpet.

 

….I will have more worry lines on my forehead than I can count but the laugh lines around my mouth are much more defined.

….getting out of the house on time with every one clean (including me) is like getting a bill passed in congress.  I will take on time if I had to choose which option.

…..that when my daughter was 14-16, we would not “like” each other very much but fast forward a few years and we are the best of friends

….the car, the kitchen, the bathroom…will never be clean.

Even if “They” had told me, I wouldn’t change having 4 healthy, beautiful, strong willed children for anything.  I would swim the ocean there and back for them.  They mean the world to me. They ARE the world to me.  They hold my heart in the palm of their hands. 

I love you Sweet Babe, T-man, Beanpole & KK. 


Have you hugged your kids and told them you love them today? 

Blessings

Have you heard this song? Blessings by Laura Story.  

This song has been resonating with me lately. 

When we think *HE* is not near nor listening, *HE* is, you just need to have faith that there is a plan.  You might not know what that plan is today, tomorrow or the next but there is a lesson to be learned through all of life's ups and down.  Keep holding on.  Keep praying and *HE* will answer.

Read the lyrics.

Blessings by Laura Story

We pray for blessings
We pray for peace
Comfort for family, protection while we sleep
We pray for healing, for prosperity
We pray for Your mighty hand to ease our suffering
All the while, You hear each spoken need
Yet love is way too much to give us lesser things

'Cause what if Your blessings come through raindrops
What if Your healing comes through tears
What if a thousand sleepless nights
Are what it takes to know You’re near
What if trials of this life are Your mercies in disguise

We pray for wisdom
Your voice to hear
And we cry in anger when we cannot feel You near
We doubt Your goodness, we doubt Your love
As if every promise from Your Word is not enough
All the while, You hear each desperate plea
And long that we'd have faith to believe

'Cause what if Your blessings come through raindrops
What if Your healing comes through tears
What if a thousand sleepless nights
Are what it takes to know You’re near
And what if trials of this life are Your mercies in disguise

When friends betray us
When darkness seems to win
We know that pain reminds this heart
That this is not, this is not our home
It's not our home

'Cause what if Your blessings come through raindrops
What if Your healing comes through tears
And what if a thousand sleepless nights
Are what it takes to know You’re near
What if my greatest disappointments
Or the aching of this life
Is the revealing of a greater thirst this world can’t satisfy
And what if trials of this life
The rain, the storms, the hardest nights
Are Your mercies in disguise

Family Week With E-Mealz!

It is Family Week with E-Mealz.  So sit down, pull up a chair and have a dinner date with your favorite people!

Right now, when you go to E-Mealz you can sign up for a FREE dinner menu complete with sides.  Priced from Walmart and feeds 6-8 people.

I had the opportunity to use the e-mealz service and it worked wonders for our family.  For $1.25 week, it did all the work for me.  It gave me lots of great ideas that I still have in dinner rotation and even priced it out based on one of my local stores. 

E-Mealz is specifically designed to help you stay on track with your grocery budgeting and easy dinner planning for your family. If you are not yet an E-Mealz subscriber, use this special discount code for any new E-Mealz menu plan subscription. ENTER CODE: FAMWEEK  (good until 10/8/10*)

**This post contains affliate links.

Is It Just Me?

Man oh man, is it just me or are grocery prices hitting the roof?

It used to be that I could stay on budget of $80.00-$100.00/week for our family and that even included diapers/wipes and a few other household items at times. I would use coupons and watch the sales and such of course, but it was still manageable.  Not anymore!

I noticed starting around June time frame, that our food budget started creeping up each time I went shopping.  At first I thought maybe I was just buying a bit more convenience food since it was summertime and I needed to stock the fridge more since school was out.  Or that I was buying more fresh produce but I went back to my menu plans and receipts just recently and it was neither!  I wasn't buying anything out of the ordinary.

Bottomline, the cost of food has just been increasingly going up, up, up the past 6 months. 

I *try* not to buy a whole lot of processed foods and *try* to cook semi home made but doing so adds up quick.  It is a sad day when it costs less to eat *unhealthy* processed foods then to eat *healthy* foods.  It's no wonder that those in the lower income bracket are more likely to be over weight and diabetic.  Heck, we are in the middle income bracket and have issues with staying on budget and at times are eating quite a bit of carb heavy meals since these tend to be *cheaper* . 

I know higher food costs is not an *excuse* to eat unhealthy and I know it can be done with some good planning and a decent amount of time, which I often lack but...definetly going to try and make some changes so we can get back on track with our budget and eating healthier.

What changes have you made to your grocery budget in regards to the price increases? 

How do you feed your families healthy meals without breaking the bank?



Image courtesy of http://www.lordofdesign.com/



Menu Plan Monday

It is that dreaded day after Sunday.  Argh!

The only thing I think I look forward to on this day is MMP.  I know pretty sad, right?

So what are you waiting for?  Check out all the other *awesome* menus at I'm An Organizing Junkie.



Sunday

Taco Bake
Spanish Rice

Monday

Tator Tot Casserole
Applesauce

Tuesday

Tuna Melts
Carrots/Celery & Ranch

Wednesday

Chicken Stir Fry
Yakisoba Noodles

Thursday

Sheperds Pie
Orange Wedges

Friday

Breakfast For Dinner (kids favorite)

Saturday

7pm Football Game--Eat Out


What's cooking in your kitchen this week?

Six Word Saturday

Practice Random Acts of Kindness Today!

Let someone cut in line at the grocery store.

Pay for the coffee for the car behind you in the drive thru.

Take a meal to a sick friend.

Send a greeting card to an elder from church.

Tip more than you normally would when you are out to lunch or dinner.

Compliment someone.

Babysit for a tired and worn down mom.

Smile and say hi to a perfect stranger as you are walking into the store.

Leave a sweet note in your mailbox for the mailman/women who always delivers your mail rain or shine.


Do you want to play along with 6WS?  Describe what is going on in your life at the moment in 6 words and then link up with Cate at Showmyface.com.

Have a wonderful Saturday!

What I'm Lovin



I am loving the baristas at the Starbucks on 122nd  for being open at the butt crack of dawn every morning.  Without them, I don't think I would make it to 8 am without crashing and burning.  I would like a Grande, Skinny Mocha, No Whip, with a sleeve and a stopper so I don't spill it all over myself as I walk into the office.

Trident sugar free gum is a great bribery tool for one 4 year old that does not like using his inside voice while in the car.  Yes, I bribe my 4 year old sometimes.  He has this bad habit lately where he likes to *scream* when he *talks* in the car.  He gets a piece of gum as a incentive bribe to talk quietly.



My debit card.  What did we do without a debit card?  Carried cash all the time?  Wrote checks?  I do neither now.  I *love* my debit card and feel lost without it.  I WAS lost without it awhile back when Mr. Hayden decided to get in my wallet and hide it somewhere.  We have yet to find it.  I, of course, ordered a new one. 



I'm Lovin Mr. Bissell or whoever invented the handy dandy carpet cleaner.  Without this, we would have gobs and gobs of spots on our carpet from several small children who fail to remember that we eat and drink IN THE KITCHEN.  I'm Loving my MIL too for letting us always borrow hers.  I know we should just break down and get one of our own. 

Restaurant.com.  *Love It*  Always great deals and great restaurants.  Some gift certificates are as low as $2.00!!  Check it out and see if there is a favorite restaurant in your city. 

And last but definetely not the least...





Garnier Nutrisse for washing that grey right out of my hair.  (I know that was from another companies hair product but I couldn't resist).  Do you know what company and hair product that slogan was for?







**Restaurant.com is a company that I am affliated with however I used this service long before I was affliated with it and *LOVE* it. 

Disney Family Fun Subscription $5.99 (10 Issues)

Need some new Family Fun ideas? Order Disney Family Fun magazine and get 10 issues for $5.99! 

That is 80% off the cover price ($29.90).



Don't delay the deal is only good through 9/23/11 1159pm.  

Magid Gloves Lens Towelette Review

It has been super sunny here in Pac NW. 

Now, I am not complaining by any means but the sun is so bright, I got to wear shades!  My eyes hurt if I don't.  The only problem is, my two young children *love* grabbing my sun glasses off my face.  Nothing worse then when I go to put them on and there are tons of gooey fingerprints on them.  Sure, doesn't make for a clear view.

It is nice that I have recently had the opportunity to use the Pre Moistened Lens Cleaning Towelettes from MagidGlove.  No more wiping my glasses with the inside of my shirt and just smearing the prints more.  Or breathing on them, fogging them up, not to mention scratching them with the rough material.  The towelettes are small, compact so you can just slip a couple in your purse, pocket, wherever.  They are disposable so when you are done, just toss them.  They are anti fog and anti static. 

Coincidentally, my husband works for an optical lab so we have tons of the small square shammies to clean our glasses with but quite honestly, these towelettes are much better.  No lint like those.  Plus it seems that I can never find one of those when I need them.  I am going to give my husband some of these towelettes to take to his office to use.

The  Lens Cleaning Towelettes are very versatile and can be used for Glass, Plastic, Polycarbonate Lenses and Goggles.  Regular eyeglasses, sun glasses, ski goggles, protection eye wear....


Headquartered in Chicago, IL, Magid Glove & Safety is America’s leading manufacturer, importer, distributor and direct supplier of hand protection, personal protective equipment (PPE) and industrial hygiene products. A valued partner in safety to thousands of companies since 1946, Magid proudly offers its own signature Magid branded products as well as products from such top-quality brands as 3M, Ansell, Showa-Best, Moldex, MSA, Sperian, Uvex, and many more. Utilizing a state-of-the-art warehouse management system, Magid ships 95% of its orders within 24 hours of receipt from the world’s largest PPE inventory of over 30,000 items.

Beach Bound

We took off to the beach a couple Sundays ago as a final summer hurrah!   Just for the day, on a whim.  We don't typically do stuff like that so spontaneously but figured what the heck.  It was such a glorious day in Portland and knew that it was going to be equally as glorious at the beach about 2 hours west.  And it was! 

It was BEAUTIFUL! 

Here are some pictures from our day trip.







After the Seaside Aquarium we went to lunch and the arcade.  Fun times!

We played this game, I swear a thousand times.  No joke. 

You know the game, The Candy Crain.  Token after token after token...



For this.  Seriously !?&*%$

 

He did play a few other games to win *some* tickets.



And bought these.  Cute, huh?   You too can have these for a mere $20.00!
I know you want them. 



 

And then we headed back down to the beach.



To put our toes in the sand.




And our face (s). 







Mmmm, sand.


And no beach trip in Oregon is complete without a trip down Highway 101 S. to the Tillamook Cheese Factory for some *cheese* and ice cream.

Mooooo....

Bubble Gum and German Choc Cake Ice Cream.  The German Choc Cake was to die for.  Ohh, how I *loved* thee and wish they sold it in stores.





There's *My* Holy

The other night while Hayden and I were sitting down eating dinner I couldn't help but catch him out of the corner of my eye, craining his neck around looking at my chest. 

I said, "Hayden, what are you looking at?"

He says, "I was looking for God? Mommy, do you have God in your heart?"

And I of course said, "I do, do you?"  And he says, "Yes."

And every time "Holy Is The Lord" comes on 104.1 The Fish, he says, "There's My Holy," and sings along with the song.  It is the cutest darn thing!











I *love* that our little boy has such a big heart for God.  I know with God all things are possible and as long as he keeps God in his heart, he is going to go far.



Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it. Proverbs 22:6

Cuddlee Pets-Panda $7.99!

How ADORABLE are these?

And the Panda Cuddlee Pet is only $7.99 plus $2.00 s/h until 9/16/11 11:59pm!  While supplies last.

They are soft and cuddlee. Perfect to cuddlee up to as the weather turns cold, while watching a family movie or naptime.  Man, a nap with one of these sounds good right about now.  

I think I am going to snatch a few up for Christmas presents. 

Want one of your own?  Don't hesitate because with the Pillow Pet craze I am sure they will go fast at this price.

Get the deal here.

**This post includes affliate links. 

Firsts

Last week we had lots of firsts in our house.

On Sunday before Labor Day, we took off to the beach for the day on a whim (which was somewhat of a first since we rarely take off on a whim and this was probably our first and last trip to the beach of the summer). I know pretty sad.

Summer in our neck of the woods barely started in August weather wise and then it was time for school to start, football practice, games, etc so now no real weekends to do much... other than going from here to there and there to here.  If you are a mother of several active children, you know exactly what I am talking about.  

Anyways, back to the subject.

Kaylyn fed the seals for the first time.

And touched a few sea urchins at the Seaside Aquarium



She also had her first carrousel ride. Which she *loved*

And she got to play in the sand. 

And roll in the sand.

She was so excited.

Hayden got to ride a motorcycle.

With daddy's help of course.

He started preschool.

And Mr. T started 7th grade.  He is officially in middle school now (although 6th grade here is at the middle school too).

Phew, lots of stuff going on.  What is going on in your world?

Wordless Wednesday-WOW!

Wow! Gives me chills!  

Complete strangers uniting to help save a complete strangers life putting their own lives at risk!

GOD has a plan!

Ok, so maybe this wasn't so wordless. 

A-B-C-1-2-3

Magnets.

You either love them or loathe them.  I am not sure where I stand on the matter anymore.

They are great distractors for the kiddos when I am in the kitchen...They help them learn their
A-B-C-1-2-3's.  We have this Vtech set of magnets that you put the raised magnet in the little *plug in* and it says the letter and the sound it makes. A for ah. B for ba. C for ca.  D for da.  You get the point. 

And now I am going to have that in my head the rest of the night.  Great... 

So anywho, like I said they are *great* and all until they end up scattered all over the floor and someone gets hurt. 

And that someone of course, would be me.  In the middle of the night while trying to get a drink of water. (I knew *I* should have picked them all up; it's my own darn fault, right?)


Ug, drat.  That is all I have to say (although I am sure I said something different the night before last when this all went down).

Menu Plan Monday

Monday, Monday...We meet again.

Do you want to join in with MPM?  Post your menu and then link up with I'm An Organizing Junkie.



Here is what's cooking at our house this week. 



Sunday

Pork Tenderloin
Baby Red Potatoes
Green Beans

Monday

Weiner Wraps
Tator Tots
Carrots/Celery & Ranch

Tuesday

Chicken Pot Pie

Wednesday

Tuna Casserole
Green Salad

Thursday

Baked Ham
Au Gratin Pototoes
Apple Sauce

Friday

Chicken Cannelloni
Corn

Saturday

Eating Out-Tyler has a 7pm football game



What's cooking in your kitchen?

Missing-Airman Ryan Dent USAF

Please pass this along. 

Laura at A Goddess of Frugality son is missing. Follow the link for additional information.

He has been missing since on/around Aug 29th.  He is 19 and is stationed out of Lackland Air Force Base in Texas.

Please spread the picture around and contact Lackland, AFB in Texas if you have any info (good or bad) at 210-671-1110. He may be in the following areas: San Antonio, TX, Sherman, TX, Ft Myers, FL, or Taylor, MI. It is very likely he would be wearing a Detroit Tigers hat or shirt. Thank you all!

Six Word Saturday

Ya!  It is Saturday and you all know what that means...


6WS.  Want to join in?  Describe what is going on in your life at the moment in 6 words and then link up with Cate over at Show My Face.

 

Hayden's First Day of Preschool.  Success!

What was I so worried about?  He did awesome!  Within minutes of getting him signed in, stuff put in his cubbie, hands washed, he was off and running.  Meeting new friends, playing with blocks, play doh, puzzles.

And he got to play on the playground in the boat. Ohh and he was line leader! 

When I picked him up, he was still napping peacefully.  He was all tuckered out from a busy day at preschool. 

What was  I so worried about?

Have an awesome Saturday!