My life...

Hair Pretty's

2011-10-12T15:55:00.000-07:00

Just a quick look at my project I had planned for today. It took me a whooping TEN minutes. It is very simple but I think (I hope) this will help us keep things all in one spot.

What I used: A large oatmeal container
Two sheets of scrapbook paper 12x12
Scott tape
Mod Podge
Brush and scissors

Because the container was to big for one piece of paper to fit around I had to cut the second to fit and used the left over to cover the lid. Once I got the seems figured out and how I wanted the to look I taped them into place and then started with the mod podge. That was it. I would love to take the credit for this idea but I cannot, it was another find on Pinterest.

Before I started I cleaned the inside of the container. It is now home to all the little hair clips.

New Recipe Tuesday - Buffalo Chicken Macaroni and Cheese

2011-10-04T14:10:00.000-07:00

This weeks new recipe comes from The Girl Who Ate Everything via Pinterest. Buffalo Chicken Macaroni and Cheese. It was delicious!

The recipe is pretty straight forward but there are a lot of steps. For me it would be a great recipe for our Sunday night family dinner's when I have more time to prepare the meal and more people to enjoy it. It made a HUGE 11x14 baking pan. It has some kick to it with the buffalo wing sauce and pepper jack cheese. It was almost too much heat for my girls. The recipe does give an alternative to make it not as hot.

In the future I plan to separate the the mixture in two pans and freeze one for a later time.

DIY Day

2011-09-14T08:33:00.000-07:00

Dear BFF’s,

I love you but I have found another. BORAX and WHITE VINEGAR who knew you could bring so much joy to my life.

Like a lot of stay-at-home mama’s I try to stretch our budget to the fullest. I love being able to have my girls in gymnastics, playing t-ball or soccer. I love to shop for all the super cute clothes and shoes (my not so secret addiction) them. In order for me to do that I have to find other areas that I can cut or stretch. I try to do my best at couponing but I am definitely not as extreme as others.

Lately, I have been hitting the internet aka Pinterest, another not so secret addiction and have so many DIY cleaning products for the home. Slowly I have been working my way through and finding my favorites. I have discovered you can clean everything with Borax and White Vinegar.

I purchased a 76 oz. box of Borax for $2.76 and a gallon of vinegar for $2.58! That is quite a bit of saving from the manufactured made products and on top of that I didn’t need to have a fan on while I was cleaning the bathrooms.

In the next couple of weeks I am post some of my favorite recipes and what worked best in my home.

Wakening My Praise

2011-09-12T13:17:00.000-07:00

It was so good to be back in church after being gone for a short family vacation. We have worship music on in our home constantly but there is just something about standing with church family and worshiping together. The sound of the voices raising up, watching the little ones dance and imitate their parents by raising their hands. I love it.

"Every day I will waken my praise...You are good."

Continuing my list of gratitude...

#297 - 304

Family weekend at the beach

Beautiful weather for the weekend

Girls giggling and having fun in the water (this is a rarity on the Oregon Coast)

Sneaking away for a "Jesus Date"

Waking up and falling a sleep to the sound of the ocean

Safe travels

Soccer

First day of Pre-School and Pre-K

R1 goes curly

2011-09-08T15:42:00.000-07:00

My beautiful four year old has long blond and very straight hair. Lately she has been asking me to make her hair curly like one of her friends. I have tried different ways to make it curly but the attempts have either taken so long that she looses all interest or she complains about it hurting.

Attempt # 1

She was all smiles for about ten minutes and then wanted them out fast.

Attempt #2

This attempt went pretty well but used a lot of hair spray and took a lot of time.

Finally, our third attempt was a success for both R1 and mama. I found a youtube video for a "no heat curl" technique. After washing and blow drying her hair complete it took about 15 minutes to wrap her hair. Then she headed off to bed. The next morning we had a curly blond hair little girl ready to start her first day of Pre-K. I used not hairspray an it stayed curled all day.

Finally..

Homemade rope bowl

2011-08-18T09:41:00.000-07:00

As the fall and the holiday is approaching I wanted to start setting one day a week aside to make decorations and Christmas gifts. So Wednesday is designated "craft day". Hopefully, I will be able to complete and post pictures by Thursday but no guarantees. :)
A friend and I found a tutorial on Pinterest (of course) to make our own rope bowl. It was a little by trial and error, we should have read the tutorial a little better. I think the over all product turned out pretty good. Here are pictures of our bowl and you can check out the tutorial at Every Creative Endeavor .

New recipe challenge

2011-08-17T08:30:00.000-07:00

I wish I was more of an adventure when it comes to cooking with lots of time during the day to try new things but I am not, a previous post about my pot roast issues will prove that. But I am bored with all the same ole' same ole' dinners that we have ALL the time.

So here’s my challenge, I have decided every Monday night I am going to make a new recipe for my family (with peanut butter sandwiches as my stand by). My all time favorite food is Thai and I am in search of a yummy Pad Thai recipe. Please send me one if you have it.

This week I found this Roasted Pepper and Basil Pesto on Pintrest and it was a hit. I had most of the ingredients already which is another part of the challenge; use what I have on hand. Here is how mine turned out. I only had shell noodles but they worked just fine. I also sautéed my red peppers instead of purchasing roasted in the jar. Next time I will add chicken too. It seemed kind of plain with out some type of meat, especially for my meat eater husband. It received thumbs up from the family.

Happy Anniversary

2011-08-16T15:09:00.000-07:00

Today as I have gone about my morning routine I notice what today's date was and I will admit I got immediately grumpy, sad, and grateful all at the same time. On this date in 1952 my parents were married at the ripe old age of 17. My dad still had a year of high school left but my mom's family were planning on moving and my mom didn't want to go. So they did the only 'logically' thing and that was to get married.

My parents would tell us how they were not allowed to kiss (they had liked each other since they were 12 years old) so they would pass snicker candy bars to each other and that meant a kiss. They were married for 42 years before my dad passed away.

I miss them very much but I am so thankful for them teaching me through all the ups and downs of life they were always there for one another.

1949

1953

1991

I'm back..... Multitude Monday

2011-08-15T08:50:00.000-07:00

I cannot believe it has been a year since my last post. So much has changed so many life experiences from celebrating milestones with my girls to the unexpected loss of my mom. The past birthday year has left me with many emotions that I am still sorting through but I am getting there and finding who I am in Christ all over again.

Picking up where I left off on my list of gratitude:

#290 - 295

- God's patience with me

- Dinner with family and friends for my birthday

- Husband getting me the shoes I wanted

- A friends gift card to get me more shoes! :)

- Date night at the fair with husband and friends

- Screaming, laughing and NOT throwing up on the "spinny" rides

31 again...

2010-08-17T11:16:00.000-07:00

Ok so maybe I celebrated an anniversary of my 31st birthday but my real age just makes me feel real old especially having a 3 and 2 year old. Why 31? Everyone does 29 and maybe people will fall for me being 31. :) Anyways, my super thoughtful husband completely surprised me with a family necklace. I love the fact that after 13 years he still can surprise me. I have been wanting a family necklace for a long time and I have been looking online and finding the different ones I like. I really didn’t think he was paying much attention. He was and for my birthday last week he surprised me with a necklace from The Vintage Pearl. I LOVE IT!

284 - 289

* My thoughtful husband

*Spending time on my birthday with my mom and going to Mom2Mom with me

*My amazing Mom2Mom friends who surprised me with a cake.

*Cards from all the kiddos

*Opprotunity to work from home for my former boss

Dad's song

2010-07-28T15:14:00.000-07:00

When I was growing up I dreaded waking up to this stupid, yep I said stupid song my dad would sing. He was way more of a morning person then I was. I think he secretly loved hearing us moan and complain because it was too early.
Now it is my turn or is it? R2 has been singing this song over and over again and flashbacks of my childhood of waking up to this song and the light switch being flicked on have all come rushing back. What have I done? Did I mention she is singing it over and over again.

Multitude Monday

2010-07-19T22:50:00.000-07:00

#273 – 283

~ Dinner with new friends

~ My sister gave us their pool last year and we are enjoying it this year.

~ Hearing…”look mom, look”

~ I can never get enough of hearing my girls sing.

~ Spending time with my family

~ Free fire wood for camping

~ Family bike rides

~ A walk in the country with R1while she rides her new bike

~ The smell of mint fields

~ Husband’s job is safe for another 6 months.

~ Girls coming home from a couple of days with grandparents.

The Maguire Project 2010

2010-06-29T20:33:00.000-07:00

Yay for finally having some fun in the sun. We had a great busy week full of play dates, Mom2Mom and family dinner. I love the fact that my girls want to be outside playing at 8am and it has been nice enough to say yes.

Play date #1 for the week plus a walk to see the pony.

Play date #2…I love this girl. She colored a family portrait for me. If you cannot see on the picture it says The Maguire’s. I love how she colored my husband’s hair. He is sporting a nice pink mohawk.
Every Wednesday for the past eight weeks some of the kids from our church come to the house (play date #3) while the parents are at bible study. We were finally able to have a night where we could be outside.
After meeting at the park with our Mom2Mom group (play date #4) the girls and I headed for the grocery store. While we were picking out a watermelon we found this huge moth.
Yay! I learned to make my own fondant. I was reading Bake at 350 and she has a super easy recipe for homemade fondant. Cheap too! I was getting reading for a baby shower I was hosting and decided to copy her idea for Mother’s Day cupcakes. I had so much fun making the fondant and saving money.
Ahhh…Saturday. It started off with a baby shower at my home, a birthday party in the park, a trip to Best Buy (my husbands candy store) and a stop for some yummy pizza.

After an amazing morning at church. We headed over for family dinner. It was so nice that the kids were able to play in the pool. They had so much fun.

;) Susan

The Maguire Project 2010

2010-06-22T21:13:00.000-07:00

R1 and her bff decided to make a drum set. Chopsticks and parts of a stackable cake and there you have it. Mixed with some Toby Mac and it was quite the concert.Coloring the "Fruit of the Spirit

Wednesday {06.16.10} - No photo

R1 has been begging to play on the schools playground. Finally, no rain and school is out so we took advantage of the afternoon and played. Side note R1 does have more than this one dress. I realize she is wearing this same dress in a lot of my post. It is a favorite twrilling dress that the elbows are almost completely worn through. If I would let her she would wear it 24/7.

I mentioned before that I was chosen to host a Hasbro Game Night through House Party.com. We had fun. The night started out with a Chinese food potluck, good company, the new Trivia Pursuit game and ended in a late night game of Mega Monopoly.

Finally...for those who know me and have been to my house you know that getting molding installed is HUGE! It has started. - P.S. It really bugs me how messy our garage looks in this picture. :)

I will say I do have twinge of guilt over my choice of Father's Day present for my husband. I will definetly benefit from it in the long run by way of having my molding completed. He had borrowed a friends saw to get started but he was happy to have his own.

Scratch and Sniff

2010-06-11T09:18:00.000-07:00

I love that there are so many resources on the internet to find craft ideas for my kids.
We have been learning the Fruits of the Spirit. Swag searched (of course) Fruit of the Spirit and found Danielle's Place. What a great source. I found lesson plans, coloring sheets and fun crafts for them to do including making scratch and sniff paint.
My girls love to paint. This is what we did:

4 – Kool Aid packs (Strawberry, Grape, Cherry, and Lemon-Lime)
Add 1 to 2 Tablespoons water to each color

That is it. I will admit that the strawberry was the only one I could really ‘sniff’ but it was fun.

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Rain, rain, go away…

2010-06-09T23:50:00.000-07:00

Today I learned when the weather forecast says there is a 20% chance of rain it is code for a 100% down pour.
This morning was the first of summer play dates for our Mom2Mom group. The plan was to spend a couple of hours at the park with a back up plan being my house. After having rain overnight we actually did see the sun…park here we come.
As I pulled up to the park it just started pouring, thank goodness for the cover, sidewalk chalk, and snacks. The kids were able to get out and play on the slides at least until it started thundering.

Susan

Chocolate Play Dough

2010-06-03T12:48:00.000-07:00

I should start this off with a warning…this play dough smells so so so delicious that you may just want to eat it but it does not taste as good as it smells. My two year old found that out real quick.

Here is the recipe I found at The Idea Room. It took about 10 minutes total.

Mix together:
1 1/4 cup flour
1/2 cup cocoa
1/2 cup salt
2 tsp. cream of tartar
Make sure you combine these ingredients until they are thoroughly mixed together. Then add 1 1/2 T. cooking oil and 1 cup boiling water. Mix and knead until you have a nice smooth ball of dough. I doubled the recipe for 4 kids.

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Susan

Hasboro House Party

2010-06-02T13:32:00.000-07:00

I am so excited I just received my goodies to host The Hasboro House Party. This is my second party that I have won to host. Lots of goodies and coupons to share. I'll post pictures from our party night soon.

Multitude Monday

2010-05-24T10:09:00.000-07:00

In the midst of loss sometimes it is easy to see the things that we think God “didn’t” do but in your heart of hearts you know that God’s ways are always for good. At that time how much more important to remember to thank Him for the things that He has provided for us.

264 - 272

Finding some fun new songs for the girls to learn about the Fruit of the Spirit.
Watching/listening to the girls play ‘worship’. Funny stuff…R2 does a great impression of our Pastor playing the keyboard. (camera battery was dead…bummer)
My husband building a planter box for our garden.
Mama Date with R1 and Daddy Date with R2
R1’s idea of a fun Mama Date is going to the ‘apple chai store’ aka Starbucks and spending time at the bookstore.
A visit with Nana and Papa John

My niece Stefani
Our church family who have spent time praying for Stefani
God showing up in our service on Sunday

+Susan

Monday…Monday… :)

2010-05-17T16:51:00.000-07:00

252 - 263

Spending time shopping with my mom
Husband and girls planting flowers for Mother’s Day
A picture collage of my girls a friend made for Mother’s Day
An unexpected special card from someone at church
My husband waking up super early (430a) to support and encourage me to work out.
R1’s determination
R1 saying “Mom, your amazing….you’re the best mom I have ever had.” ;)
Having chalk all over our drive-way and sidewalk.
Husband surprising us girls with Frappuccino
Spending time with kids from our church and getting to know them better (and their parents…lol)
God’s promises
Eating our first bb-q of the summer outside.

If you don't like Monday's

2010-05-03T10:06:00.000-07:00

If you don't like Monday's... start your Multitude Monday list, it will change your perspective.

#245 - 251

- Having a great children's dentist that my girls love and no cavities

- Dental insurance

- Time spent with friends

- One on one time with my oldest

- My neice has made it another week in her pregnancy

- The girls receiving cards in the mail from Nana

Lip Gloss

2010-04-27T22:36:00.000-07:00

Ahhhh...today started out rough. My oldest and I were just not seeing eye to eye. I was busy trying to get some things done and she was busy doing everything I asked her not to.

I have been reading the The Five Love Languages of Children and I am learning R1's love language is quality time. So today I stopped, I stopped what I thought I needed to get done and spent time with my girl. R2 was napping so it gave us the perfect time for some one on one time.

A friend had given me an easy recipe to make homemade lip gloss, this is right down R1's alley. I have to say it took a whole five minutes to make the lip gloss and there was very little to the clean up. We had so much fun and making lip gloss turned into putting curlers in her hair and have a day of beauty and smiles on both our faces.

Here's the recipe. Have fun.

Small container with lid. ex: baby food jar
2 Tbs shortening
1 Tb drink mix powder (we used Kool-Aid, two packets is 1 Tb.)

Microwave shortening for 20 - 30 seconds
Stir in drink mix until the powder is fully dissolved into the shortening.
Place lid on the container and let it sit until solid again.

Project Life {Week 16}

2010-04-27T12:19:00.000-07:00

On Monday, April 19th...my husband and I celebrated our 13th wedding anniversary. It was a busy day full of work and a meeting definitely not the most romantic way to spend an anniversary. We had made plans to celebrate on another day but still....This little note on our bathroom mirror was a great way to start my day. I didn't get to see him until later in the day but this note made my heart smile all day.

Play dates... the girls and I went and spend the afternoon with a young mama in our church. They had so much fun playing with all the "new" toys, although Carsen wasn't to excited about them moving in on his things.

The last night of our Bible study. I am so blessed to have Pastors who are such great teachers of God's word. Our eight week study was Awakened Hearts: Understanding and Entering Into Intimacy with Christ.

How do you like our fort?

We spent the morning working in our yard. My husband rented a rototiller and got our flower beds ready for planting. We then took the girls shopping for plants and seeds. These are the impatience I planted in my flower boxes that will hang on the porch railing.

We spent Saturday planting the seeds we purchased on Friday and then took the girls to the mall. R1 has gotten so tall that all of her jeans are now capri's. We got a ton of great deals but came home with no jeans for R1.

Birthdays, birthdays, birthdays....

Celebrating Noah Newton's 3rd birthday. So cute.

Multitude Monday

2010-04-26T23:15:00.000-07:00

My graditude list is growing...

#233 - 244

- Great prayer time at Bible study

- Someone speaking into my life

- Friendships of little girls

- Getting to go to a girl movie with some friends

- Fullfilling a craving of enchillada's

- Spending an entire day with my husband

- The annoyance of the alarm going off super early so my husband can have time to read his bible before work

- My mother-in-law selling a canopy to our truck we forgot about

- Getting some great shopping deals

- The sweet deep voice of my youngest singing Away in the Manger...in April :)

- Playdate with a young Mom in our church

- Planting seeds in our flower beds

Shopping!

2010-04-24T17:29:00.000-07:00

We had a great day shopping. The girls were in good moods and listening which made Dad and Mom in good moods. To top it all off we got some smokin' deals.

Aeropastale had a hot coupon this weekend. $10 off coupon of a minimum purchase of $10. I purchased these great shirts for my husband for a total of $13. I think I might 'have' to print me off another coupon and get these super cute flip flops on sale for $9.99.