A Shout Out for Lisa!

Okay, so I mentioned in my last post that one of the ladies who writes on our blog has been busy with a new business. As any entrepreneur knows, starting your own business is tricky and can take up, well, time. A lot of it. And then to balance a home and a young family...not so easy. So, you'll only see Lisa post as much as her time can spare.

But one thing about Lisa, besides being one of the nicest people in the world, is that she is a super talented artist! She's found a knack in the art/craft world and she's taken off with it. If you get the chance, stop by her little online shop and oogle over all the cuteness and hey...maybe even buy something! ;) Here's a sneak peak at what our Lisa can do! (Pst! She does custom work, too!)

Visit her Etsy shop here: The Little Gift Box - Etsy

OR

Visit her webpage here: The Little Gift Box

We love you, Lisa! Keep up the great work!!!!

Jessica's Book List

Okay, so, it looks like we've all taken a week off from the blog here! (for those two people who may actually follow this blog, besides ourselves, these last few weeks have been keeping us busy with family emergencies, moves, a new business...you know...life!). BUT, this week's topic I have been looking forward to for a long time, because it's a topic that initially brought us all together....BOOKS!

My very first Sunday in our new ward here in Tampa, a few ladies came up to me and introduced themselves. One of them asked me if I liked to read and would I be interested in joining their book group. Of course, I said yes! I love books and I needed to meet some people and make new friends desperately. I have been to three meetings so far and am already slotted to host the group next month. So, I thought I'd pass along the books that the ladies here have chosen to read. Maybe give anyone who is looking for some good summer reads some ideas!

FEBRUARY

• Jane and the Unpleasantness at Scargrove Manor by Stephanie Barron - Jane Austen a sleuth? Hmmm. Those of us who love to read Jane Austen know she has a knack for building characters who are very good at observing...and isn't that what makes a good sleuth? Observing, being unseen, and then understanding people more than they understand themselves? This is a cute "who done it" book and the heroine...finally...being Jane! :)

MARCH

• A Tree Grown in Brooklyn by Betty Smith - Set in the early 1900's, this is an awesome book about a girl, Francie Nolan who beats the odds. Francie is a third generation American who lives in Brooklyn with her alcoholic father, a mother who works to keep the family afloat and her younger brother. Where most children born in poverty in Brooklyn are destined to follow in the footstep of their parents, Francies parents are determined (despite their shortfalls and trials) that their children will have a better life. I cannot say enough good things about this book! Each character is so well developed, by the end, you'll be routing for each one of them.

APRIL

• The Help by Kathryn Stockett - 1960s...Martin Luther King, Jr., Vietnam, JKF, Hippies, Civil Rights, first man on the moon...there is one word that comes to mind when I think of this decade in America...change. Most of the time change isn't a dramatic thing...people naturally don't like it, it takes time to get used to it, there is an aspect of "unknown" that frankly scares some people. And that's just what three women from Jackson, Mississippi set out to do. Change. Change the way people are treated and how their perceived in society. This is another must read book. *Pst!* Read it quick! There's a movie adaptation coming out this August!

MAY

• Matched by Ally Condie - Okay, so we obviously haven't meet to discuss this book yet, but, it's the book I chose and I just finished it yesterday! I chose this book because, well, I went to high school with the author! Okay, so don't get too excited. I didn't actually know her, but I knew who she was. She graduated a year ahead of me, but, small town, small high school, we all know of each other, even if we don't actually know them. Anyway....since I claim to be from Cedar City, UT (I figure I've moved around enough times I've earned the right to claim anywhere I've lived as "home", and since Cedar holds so many good and important memories for me, well...) I'm always interested in what my fellow Cedarians are doing! ANYWAY...so, if you loved Hunger Games then you'll love this book (also set to be a trilogy...and....as word has it....a movie!). Cassia is a 17 year-old girl who lives in a dystopian society. She's told what she'll wear, what she'll eat (how much she'll eat!), what her job will be and, of course, who she'll marry, or be "matched" to. Her optimal match that Society has paired her with is a boy she's know all her life...until Cassia discovers that there is a glitch in the system and it's possible that she is actually supposed to be matched to another boy she's known most of her life. The only problem is, it's not up to her to make the choice. But, is the choice that Society has made for her the one she would have made? Hmmmm. guess you gotta read the book to find out! ;)

So. There you go. I hope this helps in getting your summer reading list together! I don't think you can go wrong with any of these books. I've enjoyed reading them and I've enjoyed getting to know the ladies in my book group (though I do miss the ones in my old one, too!). Happy reading everyone!

a week in my shoes

Instead of boring you all by telling you all about my hum-drum week, I'll just let this picture and quote do the talkin'!

“Before you criticize someone, you should walk a mile in their shoes. That way when you criticize them, you are a mile away from them and you have their shoes.” - Jack Handy

In Her Shoes....

A few years ago, my mother-in-law and sister-in-law came to visit us in Houston. We went shopping at (I think) every shoe store in Houston.....and had a blast. That night we happened to rent "In Her Shoes," from Redbox as we ate Ben & Jerry's ice cream. I love this quote from that movie, regarding shoes: "I get something out of them! When I feel bad I like to treat myself. Clothes never look any good... food just makes me fatter... shoes always fit." After "Rose" said that, my MIL was like: "Aaaaahhhh, that is sooooo true!" We laughed, but really it is. Shoes always fit!
I cleaned out my shoe stash this weekend. I have been through almost every space in my house to purge, organize and sort for this upcoming move. I lined up my shoes to see what I had: (and it worked out nice this week's post happened to be on shoes, so I snapped a shot;)

I really love colored shoes for some reason.....I loved my first pair of red shoes. They were from J. Crew and every time I wore them, people always made a comment. Now, I have yellow ones that I have worn pretty much to death, but love how they go with so much.
These are the 2 pairs I've been eye-ing for a few months now. White for the summer and grey for the winter. If I could just find a good sale at Journeys!


Whenever I come home with a new pair of shoes, Justin says, "really? another pair?" That's when I tell him, "Hey dude, your buddy Vance told me they looked good!" ;)

my favorite subject....

Ladies, I love me some good organizing. I pretty much fell in love with Justin on a visit to his new city in Houston, when he pulled me into the parking lot of the Container Store. I had never been to one and thought that date was so perfect. (Yes I'm a total nerd, but I really loved that he knew me well enough to know that such a date would be so fun for me.)

I haven't always been the best organizer (my mom and siblings could attest to that;) but I have always wanted to be organized and felt so much better for living that way. For the past 10 plus years, I have ALWAYS had my closet color coded:

It is so simple to keep up with and really makes me "think" about purchases.....Do I really need another gray shirt? Clearly-no.

In becoming a stay at home mama, I maybe took up "organizing" as a little hobby, or maybe just being home all the time instead of working full-time made me realize I needed it. It started with this book I read while I was pregnant with Kate. Justin was living in Colorado doing an externship, while I was in Utah doing full-time Dental Hygiene temp work. Since I hardly knew any office co-workers, I would get lunch by myself and go sit somewhere and read. I had found a book on my big sis's shelf (I lived at her house) called: Sink Reflections by Marla Cilley. My sister said she had borrowed the book from a friend who told her it really helped her get organized, mentally and throughout her house. I took so many notes on that book and sure enough, after Kate was born, we got settled in DC and in life.....I came across those notes as I was trying to organize my house. I don't know if it was a bit of postpartum adjustment or just "new normal" life adjustment, but I really needed something at that time in my life to help me feel like I was "doing something" and being productive. I know, I know raising a child and taking care of the home is totally productive, BUT when Justin came home at the end of the day and said, "What did you girls do today?" I often found myself just thinking, "Not much, we went on a walk, I did a load of laundry, I read some of my book, talked on the phone. etc, etc." But it all felt kind of aimless. Sometimes (too often) I would go to Target out of boredom (just adjusting having not made any friends yet). The FlyLady, as she is called, really helped me get a handle on my new life as a stay at home mom and take care of the everyday housework/life stuff-so I could enjoy my family and feel accomplished in my new lifestyle. Her whole philosophy is to "shine your sink" each night so that you wake up in the morning refreshed and ready to tackle whatever could happen that day. She has MANY MANY many other great ideas, but I connected to the whole idea of getting the work done first, so you could enjoy life. "Our FlyLady system is all about establishing little habits that string together into simple routines to help your day run on automatic pilot. You can do this!" The website can be a bit much at times (until tonight I haven't ventured there in over 2 years, but has some great little tips to get started)
OK, not to be a plug for the whole website, lady or products (really I only read the book once) but basically this is what I took from it that has worked for me:

Every day of the week is a theme: (mine goes like this)
Sunday: Sabbath/Spiritual Day
Monday: Cleaning Day (scrub bathrooms, kitchen, mopping, dusting, all that weekly cleaning stuff) I found out that Monday worked best.....we could relax on the weekends and then Monday would be a fresh start to my new week.
Tuesday: Office Day (pay bills, go through all the mail that needs action for that week, plan out my groceries/meals for the next week or 2, make appointments, emails and calendar stuff)
Wednesday: Errand Day (always Target and a grocery store...lately it's Trader Joe's, and any other places like the post office, etc.)
Thursday: Project Day (any project I have going on, sometimes a decorating or organizing project whatever I feel in the mood that needs to get done!)
Friday: Family History Day (scrapbooking and picture organizing)
Saturday: Family Fun Day (I don't like to do laundry or clean on Saturdays or anything housework-ish. I love having all the "other stuff" done so we can just go have fun doing whatever we feel like or need to do!

These weekdays aren't always followed. Life does need to be fun and spontaneous too, BUT whenever I feel like I'm not getting much done, I go back to live my schedule and I start accomplishing a lot again. Currently the move is priority numero uno, so lately this is not followed much at all.......

I am trying to live a philosophy this year (instead of a New Year's Resolution, read post here) where I just be more mindful of the things brought into our home. We've pretty much decided we are staying in the Air Force (for this year at least;), and I really am sick of moving so much junk. I've been asking myself, "Will this really make my life better?" or "Is this just a good deal?". Target finds are usually the later, unfortunately;)

One other little *gem* I found to help label plastic bins and those sterilite/rubbermaid drawer things are these business card pockets I found at Office Depot. They work great to leave on the box and switch it out if I use the box for something else. (Kind of similar to Jess's idea....)

Anyway, I'm sure like with so much in parenting and life in general, this may all change in a year or two, but this is my current mindset of organizing and getting things done!

Too much STUFF!!!

I am by NO means the lady you should be talking to about organization. I have and most likely will always have just too much stuff. I love stuff-that's the problem. I love crafts stuff, clothes stuff, toy stuff, kitchen gadget stuff, all kinds of things that after a while become more "stuff". Moving is a great way to "de-stuff" ones home. With our recent move it has been exciting/nerve wracking/difficult to part with some things but I am so happy to lighten the load! In the new place I also have a new mantra , well a shopping mantra anyway. It's "where will I put this?". I refuse to totally clutter this home and while I love to decorate I'm trying hard not to buy things because they're cute or on sale-which, if you know about my Target obsession-is not always easy. SO, if I can offer any advice on the subject-it's this-no more stuff!!! Get the things you really need, think before you buy and try to use the "stuff" you already have, or at least make sure it's a super wonderful Target find! ;)