What's old is new!

Lately I've been so inspired by this blog, among others, so I've started to think about how I can refashion some of my own clothes into new pieces.

I have two pairs of capri pants that I got super cheap at Old Navy a couple years ago, but I've never loved them because their length just wasn't flattering on me. So I decided to try making one of them into a skirt.

This is the "before" picture:

(I should've been wearing them so you could really see how they looked on me)

And these are "after":

I'm totally pleased with it and it was actually quite simple. I had ripped open the center seam back in April, then last night I felt inspired to work on it again so I spent maybe an hour and a half and got everything done but the hem. This morning I finished it and I've been wearing it ever since. I got a brand new, free skirt just by shopping my closet and using a little creativity. Love it!

Happy Friday, Grammie!

Blessings

Tuesday morning Jeremy got up and was getting ready for work and I realized I only had one meal to send with him and he needed two since he had to stay late for an evening meeting. I didn't want to go grocery shopping until Wednesday so I could take advantage of "double coupon day" so we had a bit of a problem. So as the day went on and I failed to be as thoughtful as I should have, it ended up that he called me on his way home and said he was starving, so I suggested he stop somewhere to pick up some dinner for himself.

His commute home is not a very long one, and there are several food places right across the street from us, so I expected to see him shortly. I know when we gets really hungry he kind of shuts down and his sole focus becomes obtaining food as quickly as possible. So when it seemed like a long time had passed and he still wasn't home I contemplated calling to check on him. Just then he called me and asked if his wallet was at our apartment because he couldn't find it. I looked and sure enough it was, which meant he had no means to pay for the dinner that he had just ordered.

Knowing that I didn't have much that I could pull together for him on short notice, and knowing that if he came home without food he was going to be grouchy, I said a quick prayer asking the Lord to give him some free food.

Sure enough a few minutes later he walked in with fresh Leeann Chin dinner for free!

Then tonight we went out to walk to the post office to mail a package. On our way down the alley we stopped at the dumpster to drop off a load of dirty diapers and Jeremy happened to glance inside the dumpster and see a bunch of girls shoes in there. I peeked in and said we should take them so Jeremy fished them out and we now have three perfectly fine pairs of shoes for Clara to wear in a year or two, and they were free! The tennis shoes can run through the wash and get some new shoelaces and they'll be great. I was excited that I can now say I've been "dumpster diving!"

Weekly shopping

I went slightly overbudget this week, spending $46.50. The BBQ sauce was free, Quaker True Delights granola bars were $1, and the two jars of pasta sauce were $1 each.

Had I bought all of this at regular price and not used any coupons it would have cost me $77.87.

Memorial Weekend

Sunday and Monday we were at my parents' cabin in Wisconsin. The weather was amazing and we had a great time with the family. Sunday afternoon Jeremy and I went for a short canoe ride on a nearby lake. That was probably my favorite part of the weekend! There's something so peaceful about being out on the water. And we had fun trying to chase a loon around the lake. You can probably guess that we never caught him! My sister also helped me with a couple sewing projects (thank you, thank you, thank you, Angela!). One was Clara's bike seat that I just posted. The other will be posted soon I hope.

Clara had fun helping us pack.

And we spent lots of time outside around the campfire.

We celebrated Hannah's 4th birthday with a princess party!

And we did lots of cooking on the campfire.

The only bummer about the weekend was the fact that Clara was up until 1:00 AM! We had such a difficult time trying to get her to go to sleep. Unfortunately she kept most everyone awake with her crying, but finally she slept. Hopefully she doesn't do that again!

New seat

Remember this bike seat that I bought at a garage sale for $7.50?

The old cushion was really ugly and not in very good condition, so with some instruction from my sister I made a new cushion for it this week! I already had the fabric so all it cost me was a little bit for the batting to go inside it. For about $8 total we have a great bike seat for Clara!

Now we just need to get her a helmet and we're ready to go.

Recent fun

Can we say spoiled?

Summer jammies...

Slobbering on mommy's apple...

Visiting daddy at work...

Menu Plan Wednesday :)

We were at the cabin over the weekend so I wasn't able to post our menu plan on Monday. Here it is...

Wednesday
Omelets, toast, orange slices

Thursday
Letcho with rice, fruit

Friday
Birthday party for my dad!

Saturday
Lunch- Leftovers or sandwiches
Dinner- Hamburgers, cold pasta salad, fruit

Sunday
Lunch- TBD (depending somewhat on what I get at the grocery store today)
Dinner- Frozen pizza

Daddy snuggles are the best!

Fun new toy!

I've been wanting to find an exersaucer for Clara to play in this summer for a change of scenery. She isn't crawling yet and it seems to me she would get bored sitting on a blanket all day playing with the same toys over and over.

I figured it would take lots of searching to find one in my target price range...less than $10. I've looked a few times at a local thrift shop by our apartment, but they never had any. And I've been to garage sales once this spring, but no luck there either.

The other day my mom went to a thrift shop closer to them and found one for $4.50! It's in great condition and is just what I wanted. If we had bought a comparable one brand new it would have cost probably $50-60. What a deal!

Happy heart!

Clara got a great report from the cardiologist this morning! The hole in her heart has closed and they never need to see her again. They were a little bit sad about that since she's so cute, but they were happy to give us good news. Praise God for healing!

Weekly shopping

This is what $45 bought us this week. The highlights were $.25 pasta and being paid $.12 for a bottle of Sweet Baby Ray's BBQ sauce! Thanks to sales and coupons I saved $40.68. Not too shabby.

Menu Plan Monday

I'm posting this week's menu plan early because tomorrow is going to be a busy day for me. I'll be with Clara at the cardiologist for most of the morning, and Jeremy is working late tomorrow night so I won't have as much free time.

The appointment tomorrow is just a follow-up from her NICU stay last Fall. When they discovered the problems with her esophagus they ran several tests to see if any of her other body systems were affected, which I guess often happens to babies that have the type of birth defect she did. Thankfully they didn't find anything except for a small hole in her heart. They expected it to close on its own so tomorrow's appointment is to make sure that has happened. It shouldn't be a big deal other than the fact that it will take us away from home for a few hours when Clara would normally be napping.

Anyways, on to this week's menu...

Monday
Summer Sausage Soup, biscuits

Tuesday
Fish fillets, baked potatoes, zucchini

Wednesday
Chicken breasts, wild rice, carrots

Thursday
Homemade pizza

Friday
Spaghetti with homemade sauce, garlic toast, frozen peas

Saturday - Monday
We'll be at the cabin!

I'm also planning to make some coconut almond muffins this week, and maybe a batch of whole-wheat waffles once we've cleared some space in the freezer.

When babies refuse to nap...

This morning Jeremy and I left Clara with my mom while we attended an event at church. When we dropped her off I tried putting her down for her morning nap, but she didn't think she needed her nap. Or maybe she just thought she'd rather play with Nana than sleep. When I called my mom after lunch to check on Clara she told me that Clara was asleep on their living room floor! This might be normal for some kids, but not for Clara. The girl pretty much will only sleep in her bed or in the car. So let this be a lesson Clara....you might think you're a "big girl" who doesn't need to nap, but you're wrong. If you refuse to nap, eventually you will crash.

But I have to say, it made for a mighty cute picture. :)

Masculine cards

Well I dug deep last night and managed to pull out a little inspiration for two manly birthday cards using only what I already had at home. I was quite pleased with myself! Although I will admit they did not come easily. The blue one is definitely more masculine than the green one, but Jeremy said the green one will still work. So I made three of each of these designs. Now if I can just come up with a couple more designs I'll be happy. And maybe someday soon I can clear our coffee table and loveseat of my papercrafting explosion!

Last night

Last night we had chicken cordon bleu for dinner and we were both quite pleased with it.

It was really easy and yummy so I will definitely make it again!

And Clara played some couch football with Daddy! She liked it!

It IS easy being green!

Yesterday I whipped up a batch of wedding/anniversary/shower cards and the best part is they all have at least one "recycled" element to them. I feel so earth-friendly!

After our wedding I had cut up some of our cards to re-use them. So some of these have pieces of those cards on them, and some have magazine clippings on them, and the light blue ones are actually personalized stationary that a dear friend had given me several years ago with my maiden name on them. I covered up my name and now they're good to go. I have successfully replenished my stash of love cards.

Clara is in bed now so I thought I would tackle the dreaded manly birthday cards tonight. I pulled out several papers that looked man-friendly to me, but I still feel at a loss for inspiration. As I see it, my choices now are 1) go to the craft store in search of inspiration 2) trudge through and try to get in the groove with the supplies I have 3) work on a sewing project instead or 4) give up on crafting all together for tonight. I'm not sure yet which option will win.

Crafting

Yesterday I pulled out my papercrafting supplies and set out to make cards for upcoming birthdays, anniversaries, weddings, etc. I had specific people and occasions in mind that I needed to make for, but I really got in the groove with this particular pack of papers and before long I had made 11 girly birthday cards! Twelve would have been a nice even number to stop at, but I had no inspiration left for the 12th one.

Now I need to get back to my list and make some manly birthday cards and some wedding/anniversary cards. The manly ones always trip me up. I just struggle with knowing how to make a good manly birthday card. If you have any suggestions, do let me know!

Mother's Day

My sweet baby was so excited for Mother's Day that she woke up an hour earlier than usual! She (and daddy) made me a great card and let me know that a necklace with Clara's birthstone is coming in the mail.

After church we went to my parents' house to spend the day with my mom and grandmas. We ate great food and helped with some yardwork. It was pretty chilly out, but Clara did get to enjoy a little bit of fresh air. And while she was out Jeremy got some great pictures of her in the Dora chair...

Jeremy and I had an early miscarriage in our first year of marriage, so I didn't necessarily consider yesterday to be my first Mother's Day, but it was definitely my first Mother's Day with a baby in my arms. I enjoyed it very much and I am so thankful for the gift that Clara is to us!

For Grammie

Another cute outfit from Grammie Judy...

Thanks, Grammie!

Menu Plan Monday

Here's our menu for the week...

Tuesday
Potato soup, biscuits

Wednesday
Hot dogs, coleslaw, chips and fruit

Thursday
Chicken cordon bleu, baked potatoes, carrots

Friday
Out to KFC to use our free dinner coupons!

Saturday
L- attending a lunch event at church
D- Baked tilapia with mango chutney, brown rice, veggie

Sunday
L-Blueberry pancakes, eggs
D- Leftovers

I'm also hoping to make some pitas, granola cereal, and cookies or muffins this week.

I haven't blogged in awhile because my computer has not been feeling well. But I think Jeremy fixed it this morning (thanks, honey!), so I'm back. At this moment Jeremy and I need to head down to my parents for dinner and to pick up Clara so I thought I'd just post a quick picture of the babe because I think she's so cute.

Mommy loves you, sweet girl!

Garage Sales!!

Jeremy stayed home with Clara this morning and let me have a little break from being mommy. So Brook and I went to some garage sales and it was so great! It was really nice to get out and do something fun without having to tote Clara around (although I was glad to get back home to her and snuggle her up!) and I found some great things. I spent $20 total and got everything pictured below - some boy clothes for a friend that just had her baby this morning, two sippy cups and two brand new pairs of shoes for Clara, a baby wrap carrier, and a bike seat for Clara. The cushion on the bike seat is a little funky so I think I might make a cover for it using some scraps I have here.

This was the first time I've gone out to garage sales this year...and I can definitely see doing it more often!