I Actually Accomplished Some Things This Weekend!

I have felt like I am falling so far behind in so many things lately.  The past month has just been one thing after another, and it has really left me overwhelmed.  Finally, however, I feel like I have had a pretty productive weekend, and I'm pretty psyched about that!

Oh sure, I still have to work on Christmas stuff for the first time we'll celebrate Christmas with extended family (which is coming up pretty soon).  I need to work on baby shower invitations for a shower I am hosting for Eric's sister.  I have to work on a large correspondence training project for the therapy that I do part time. 

Sigh.

Okay, happy thoughts.  Let me tell you what I actually did accomplish though. 

1. Got caught up on quite a few emails that I had been putting off, as well as a variety of other computer related tasks.

2. Watched half of season two of The Big Bang Theory with Eric.  (And, in what truly shows my ADHD tendencies, I stopped writing this post to go send him Big Bang Theory flair on Facebook and forgot I was writing this.  But, maybe it was on my to do list, right?)

3. Cooked three pounds of ground beef and made it into Sloppy Joes.  I froze it into two meals, in order to allow that everyone gets to have as much as they want and Eric will still have leftovers for work.

4. Separated a three pound log of ground beef (yeah, I had another one) into four portions to use for meals.  Then I froze each of those portions for later use.  It would have been easy to freeze it into three portions, but I like that with four portions (3/4 of a pound), we'll eat a little less meat and then it brings down the per meal cost of the package of ground beef.

5. Cooked a whole chicken (purchased on sale) in the crock pot, and then picked all of the meat off to freeze (after Eric had dinner).  I also picked all the meat off of a store prepared rotisserie chicken (it was on sale too).

6. Had a crafting evening with my Mom where I started working on a handmade Christmas gift for Molly.  I'll show you some of what I worked on soon. 

7. Learned to do a blanket stitch to work on #6.

In addition to the listed things, I worked on laundry, went to Mass, and a variety of other things.  Sure, I still have a lot to do, but it's nice to look at a list of things I have completed.

What do you really need to do this week?  What are you proud of having completed lately?

Photo by limonada

Many Little Links: November 14, 2009 Edition

File Folder Word Wall -- Early Bird Homeschool

This is a really great way to get the benefits of a word wall that you often see in classrooms, without having to put them up on your walls at home (especially if you don't have a dedicated school room)

The Lost Rule of Organizing -- Small Notebook

Just loved what Rachel has to say about organizing one of her drawers.  So, so true.

The Real Crafter in The Family -- Sycamore Stirrings

Great idea for letting your kiddos make little stuffed friends

Charm Necklace -- Chasing Cheerios

Oh. my. goodness.  I had a bunch of these.  I sometimes think about them, as they are long since gone.  Seeing them pictured again, well, it made me extra sad that I don't have them anymore.

The Chocolate Notebook -- Small Notebook

What a fun way to chronicle some moments of your life.  And, I have to admit it -- I love notebooks.

Oh, and one more quick link to check out -- Amy from Cheeky Cocoa Beans currently has a couple of giveaways on her blog for large prints from UPrinting.  Since I talked about decorating with large photographs earlier this week, I thought some of you might be interested in popping over to enter the giveaway.  (Hurry though, it ends very soon!)

7 Quick Takes: November 13, 2009 (Volume 21)

~ 1 ~

Thanks so much for all of the kind words on my Grandmother's sudden passing.  It was so helpful for me to be able to write about it, and I appreciate all of the kind words that you guys have left.

We had the funeral last Friday, and spent this week continuing to clean out her apartment.  It has all been tiring both physically and emotionally, but it has also offered so many small moments of joy, as well as time to be with family.

~ 2 ~

In my quest to say yes to the kids a whole lot more often, I have found myself spending a lot more time doing things like listening to books that the kids have written (especially by Molly, who has to read them to me, since they are mostly scribbles with a "mom," "dad," or "cat" tossed in occasionally), playing rock paper scissors,  and drawing with the kids.

Though I have felt so behind in many things I need to do lately, it has also been nice to say yes a lot more often instead of saying "in just a little while," which becomes "how about tomorrow?"

~ 3 ~

  

Speaking of being busy -- how can I always be busy?  And, really -- if a person is always busy, then are they actually busy or is it just their normal?

~ 4 ~

After struggling with whether to get the H1N1 flu shot for the children or not, we finally had the immunizations.  They had been very scarce around here.  So, when the county had a mass immunization, I knew we just had to decide.  Since Jack has a heart defect (and Molly now has a small murmur), I thought that it was probably a good move for our family.

So far, so good -- no side effects.  And, while the shots were free, we did spend an hour and thirty minutes in line.  We also spent $16 on books for the kids as rewards (seriously -- what kid wants to wait in line that long for a shot?), and then $25 on lunch from out.  Those were some expensive shots!

~ 5 ~

The Homeschool Classroom has been nominated for the 2009 Homeschool Blog Awards!

Help us move up a few more places in the Best Homeschool Group or Family Blog category -- we would really appreciate your support! 

~ 6 ~

It was with a lot of sadness that I read this week that my favorite online scrapbook store, Lifetime Moments, is closing in less than a month.  Not only is this an amazing store with great selection and fabulous customer service, but their message board has introduced me to a whole new family and their yearly crops have left me with memories that will probably stick with me forever.

If you're a scrapbooker and have never shopped at Lifetime Moments, you might want to check out their closing sale.  They have 25% off everything in the store with the code of 25-011 at checkout.  Go quickly though -- they are already selling out of an awful lot of things.  To make it easier to browse though, it does appear that they are trying to keep up on deleting products that have sold out.

Goodbye, Lifetime Moments, I'll miss you.

~ 7 ~

One of my favorite song lyrics lately is from You, Me, and the Bourgeoisie by The Submaries:

Love can free us from all excess, from our deepest debts, 

Cause when our hearts are full we need much less.

This post is linked to 7 Quick Takes and Weekly Wrap Up.

Photos by: [ henning ] (cemetery statue) / kelvin255 (stressed out doll) /  Brent and MariLynn (candy hearts)

Why You Should Choose Larger Portraits for Your Walls

I used to have my own photography business, and I hung around on many photography forums.  One thing that came up again and again was how so many people would order very small sizes of prints.  They might order some wallets, a handful of 5x7s, and then their big portrait -- an 8x10.

I will admit, I once thought of 8x10s as big.  Not anymore.  Sure, if you're planning on using it on a 12x12 scrapbooking page, then an 8x10 is nice and eye-catching.  But, on a wall, if you can swing the expense of a large print from a photographer or even print your own photograph large, it is really worth it.

In my house, we don't have a lot of photographs on the wall, but the ones that we do are larger.  The smallest ones we have up are 12x12 framed scrapbook pages.  Most of the others are large and printed on canvas (from when I was able to get deals on them).

Just look at the comparison of an 8x10 portrait that I set next to the 24x24 (yes, that's two feet by two feet) canvas and 16x20 canvas that I have on the wall.  Even the 16x20 looks small compared to the 24x24, doesn't it?  (Sorry for the messy desk, but I needed to add in the desk to give a true size comparison.)

I get so many compliments on the portraits that I have on display, and I think one of those reasons is that they are eye-catching in their size.  

For a more frugal twist on this decorating idea, the next time one of the big online photo labs offers up a great deal on large prints (think at least 11x14, but why not a 16x20), order some of your favorite photos that you have taken.  Then, watch for deals on frames at places like Michael's or Hobby Lobby. 

Trust me -- you will get compliments, and, if you're like me, it will make you smile often while you're looking at the big portraits on your wall.








This post is linked to:  Works for Me Wednesday and Frugal Fridays.