My Living/Breathing Bucket List - Updated

Time for an update - Been far to long


1. Travel to every state in the US at least once in my life. I would love to stay in every state but will be happy with touching my feet on the ground of every state.

2. Take a cruise with my family, hopefully this one happens soon!

3. Have a honeymoon (without the kids).

4. Host my 1st giveaway on my blog  This has been done a couple times. 

5. Win a new blog makeover from Simply Stacie and Kelly's Lucky You Build a Beautiful Blog Week. Yes I won!!!

6. Have a career that I love.  - Check

7. Get 200 followers on my blog. - Done now on to # 8

8. Get 500 followers on my blog. - Set back with this one... #6 got in the way. :)

9. Get 1000 followers on my blog.

10. See Cavalia again, loved it so much!!

11. Take my daughters horse back riding. - We are counting pony rides for now

12. Own a dog, of course not until my daughters are older and can help. Cross this one off since Little J is allergic to dogs and cats
13. Lose 40 lbs - I have 10 lbs that seems to come back and leave and come back but I will take it
14. Learn to cook at least enough to feed my family more then boxed items  - Due to some circumstance in my life this one became a necessity

15. Finish both my daughter's baby books.

16.  Renew my vows with my husband at the local Renaissance festival.

17. Own a home with a backyard. 

18. Go to the circus.

19. Finally take the time to get both my daughters christened, I have guilt about this one since they are now 8 and 4, but on the other hand I raise them with faith and love.

20. Find the time to have a girl's night out without feeling guilty. - Girls night out, check. Guilt, still there. 

21. Find someone I trust to watch my children. - I have friends who can watch if needed but I am still on the lookout for that actual babysitter

22. Learn calming techniques so that I can reduce my stress level.  Again this became a necessity

23. Be able to live comfortably without having to worry about how I am going to pay my bills. I work so hard and still struggle everyday. 

24. Go camping with my girls, although this one I am willing to wait on until Little J is older. 

25. Finally let go of the "bad" people in my life even if some of them are blood. - I honestly thought this one would take FOREVER! But my life changed and I had to take a good look at the people around me. Made me realize who I needed to keep in my life and who I needed to move away from 

26. Stand up for myself better.  - Something else I learned over the last year

27. Take our vacation to Myrtle Beach that we have planned, cancelled, talked about but never been able to go on.  Took our vacation now onto #2

28. Find my husband one great, perfect gift that he will not exchange and will not leave me broke!  I have decided that being the best wife I can be is the best gift of all.

29 - Work on my Thirty One business. (Start by having an actual home party!, Mine have all been FB)

30 - Let go of a lot of guilt for stupid things. 

Elf on the Shelf 2014

Big J & Little J have been a bit unruly the past few months so our Elf on The Shelf decided it would be a good idea to visit early. (Normally  he does not visit until after Thanksgiving)

He has been up to some crazy & funny things so far this year.

Day one he arrived and decide to hang from the pot rack

Day 2 - Big J had mentioned how funny it would be if the elf was trying to carve our pumpkin. Well "the Elf" did not want to make a pumpkin mess so he decided coloring on the pumpkin would be just as funny.

Day 3 - Big J plays the flute in band and we found this flute ornament for her music teacher. Our Elf decided he would give it a try. Elf approved!

Day 4 - I guess we were in need of some laughs so our Elf decided to bring us some Elf jokes.

Day 5 - He broke out the board games. a couple Barbies and dogs joined in for a lively game of Elf Twister!

Day 6 - ELF SCHOOL!  Elf was the teacher of course and was teaching some stuffed animals their ABCs and Numbers. There were worksheets and of course the animals had their pencils.

 Day 7 - After all the excitement over the last couple of days our Elf was tired so he went with the pretend to be a Christmas Tree approach.

Day 8 - Tonight he decided a photo session was in order. My Little Ponies came a long and posed behind the reindeer, penguin and snowman cutouts. Of course Elf had to have his camera and he even took a couple pictures. Just in case Big J and Little J think to look.

I wonder what our Elf will be up to next?

Some upcoming ideas: Hopscotch, Elf donuts and Coffee, Elf Naughty/Nice Reports, Elf Swing and much more!

Does your family have an Elf on the Shelf? What funny things has he or she done in the past? Any good ideas for this year? Share your photos, ideas and links in the comments!

The "new" length of Giveaways

I have been pondering this for awhile now. I remember when I started blogging a couple years ago... ok like 4 years ago, when you entered a giveaway you had maybe 10 chances tops.. Now you have more then a 100. I know I do not have to enter them all, but I would like a fair chance at winning like everyone else.

Do you feel it is necesaary to have so many chances to enter? I get that there are many giveaways that have a lot of bloggers participating but still if you each choose one Social Media site instead of all then the entry form would be so much shorter.   It just seems out of control that in order to get all entries possible I have to comment on 10 blogs, like 20 on Facebook, Follow 30 on Pintrest and then like 40 on Twitter. Not to mention all the vote for me choices and comments that you are asked to make. Why not keep it simple? One comment and one Social Media per blog and throw in a couple votes.

Sigh.. Maybe I am just the minority in wanting things to be simple. or maybe that is why my blog does not have great traffic like some others.

So anyway.. does anyone want to enter a giveaway? Perhaps you would like a $25 credit for Thirty One?

a Rafflecopter giveaway 

If anyone is interested in earning more free products over the holidays, please let me know. 

Fall Allergy Tips From Children's Claritin

 

I never used to have to worry about allergies, but about 5 years ago when I moved south I was suddenly hit with headaches, itchy eyes and a runny nose. Allerges at their worst. I know also have two chidlren who suffer from seasonal allergies.Thanks to Children's Claritin Big J, Little J and I are able to overcome our allergies and get back to living life to its fullest. (I have found that Children's Claritin is actually the only thing that provides me with relief from my allergies.)

 

 

 

Back to School Allergy Tips

 

1. Be sure to have Children’s Claritin, the #1 pediatrician-recommended non-drowsy allergy brand, on hand!

2. Multi-vitamins are building blocks to having a strong immune system. Make taking a multi-vitamin part of your

child’s daily routine.

3. Let there be light! Mold doesn't like sunlight, so try to keep your curtains open during the day. Should be easy

during the summer months!

4. Did you know that most pillows trap allergens, dust mites, and bacteria? Monitor the cleanliness of the pillow

your child with allergies sleeps on and replace if necessary.

5. Back to school season means lots of laundry for many moms. Be sure to remove laundry from the washing

machine promptly. Allowing wet clothes to sit in the washer means mold can quickly grow there.

6. Monitor pollen counts and adjust outdoor before and after school activities accordingly. Dry, windy days

can be particularly high in pollen.

7. Showering or bathing at the end of the day as opposed to the morning can be helpful in removing allergens

from body surfaces and hair.

8. Stay hydrated! Always send your child to school with a bottle of water. Drinking lots of clear fluids through the

day can help get rid of toxins and flush out body.

9. Peak pollen production typically occurs in early morning, so try to plan outside activities at other times of the

day.

"As a member of the Children’s Claritin Mom Crew, I receive product samples and promotional items to share and use as I see fit. No monetary compensation has taken place and any opinions expressed by me are honest and reflect my actual experience."

Thirty One July Mystery Hostess Party

Thirty One products are so versatile. They can be used for so many things! Car trips, organizing closets, teacher gifts, new mom gifts, picnics, sports, you name it!