March Madness

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For the past couple of years my dad has organized a bracket tournament between my parents, my siblings, and their spouses.  So last week we received the official Bracketball 2012 email:

Everyone -- 
Your completed brackets need to be turned in (hard copy, or email version) by Thursday, March 15, 12 noon to be eligible for first prize.  (Rules: 1 point per win, irrespective of round.) 

The reigning champion is my brother-in-law Michael...and I believe he is currently in the lead this year.  This might just prove that my family has no athletic ability on or off the court!

But we do have a lot of fun playing!      

New Pair of Jeans

In my child-bearing years I have worn a wide range of sizes.  And I have learned not to get rid of certain clothes, especially jeans, because they will eventually fit again.

I really liked the way this particular pair of jeans fit me (especially the length), but the color was a bit dated/lacking/faded.  So I bought some "denim blue" Rit dye and hoped I wouldn't regret the outcome.    

  And I'm happy to say the end result turned out great...perfect for spring!

These jeans now remind me of some of the bright spring/summer 

colors popping up at Old Navy and Loft.  

Linking here. 

todayscreativeblog.net

betweennapsontheporch.blogspot.com

igottacreate.blogspot.com

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

As if we needed any reason to do so!

St. Patrick's Day Wreath

I love the wreath I made last year for St. Patrick's Day.  It's been hanging on our front door all month.

(To see how to make a yarn wreath with felt flowers click here.)

(To see how you can get custom apps delivered to your inbox click here.*) 

Happy Friday!

*Disclosure: I receive a small payment for new newsletter subscribers - thank you.

Q & A

Answer:

Question: 

What happens when you are trying to make your husband's birthday dinner on 

the day your 18 month-old has been diagnosed with a double ear infection.

Happy Birthday to Ryan

31 Reasons We Love You:

(*answers are from all family members in no particular order*)

1. You wrestle with me. 
2. You play bad guys with me.
3. You like ice cream.
4. You taught me to swim.
5. You let me watch Elmo on your phone.
6. You are encouraging.
7. You take me to school.
8. We watch hockey together.
9. You make us laugh.
10. You let me play Angry Birds on your phone.
11. You like pumpkin pie.
12. You feed me fudge-striped cookies.  
13. You like NASCAR.
14. You're my best guy.
15. You play "Hot Box" with us.
16. You work at the office.
17. You like Christmas.
18. You like Christmas lights.
19. You like press cookies.
20. You let me sleep in on Sundays.
21. You don't like chocolate, so there's more for me.  
22. You are optimistic.  
23. You take care of the yard.
24. Your favorite color is green.
25. You pull my teeth out.  
26. You like the 4th of July...and fireworks. 
27. You're a good sport.
28. You're a good teammate. 
29. You are an aggressive driver (ed. note: particularly thankful for this on 09/05/10). 
30. You like baseball. 
31. Because I do.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!  WE LOVE YOU!

Weekend Baby Shower

On Saturday Clare and I went to a baby shower for one of Ryan's cousins.  

(Not bringing Ellen with me made the party much more relaxing.  Although it did feel odd not needing to bring a stash of diapers and a sippy cup with me!)  

Party room.  

Lovely ladies.

It's a Boy!

Corsages for everyone made by the grandmother-to-be.  

Lunch was delicious. 

Sweet desserts.  

Time for gifts!

Clare volunteered for trash duty.  

I think she really liked the front row seat/having something "important" to be noticed for.

  

And, yes, to her aunts...she is growing out her bangs.  

Can't wait to meet Baby C!

Psssst....Looking for new apps catered for you for your iphone, ipad, or andriod?  

Check out appSmitten here!

*Disclosure: I receive a small payment for new newsletter subscribers - thank you.*

  

My version of a "casserole."

Ryan is not a fan of casseroles.  I am a fan of them because you can make them ahead of time!  (Like when your 18 month old is napping!)  And it makes for a much less hectic "happy hour" around here!

I have out-smarted this dilemma in our house by making "wraps."  

(This is pretty much anything you can combine and roll up in a tortilla.)  

The other night I made this combination (while Ellen napped!).  

Mix together:

about 2 cups cooked chicken

about 1 cup of salsa

about 1 cup of shredded monterey jack cheese   

Put mixture into tortillas, roll up, and place in a greased 9x13 inch pan.  

Cover and put in refrigerator until "happy hour" hits.  Then bake at 350 for 20 minutes. 

Some of us like whole wheat tortillas, others do not!

Here's another combination we like:

1 pound ground turkey that has been cooked with taco seasoning according to packet directions

Shredded cheddar cheese

Place ground taco turkey meat into a tortilla, sprinkle with cheese, roll up and place in greased 9x13 inch pan, cover with foil and back at 350 for 20 minutes. 

Easy...and a crowd pleaser!  

PS - Here's a neat way to find new apps that you may like for your iphone, ipad, or android...check out appSmitten here!

*Disclosure - I receive a small payment for new newsletter subscribers.*

 Linking here. 

Homemade Baby Wipes

My aunt told me about this recipe and a friend recently told me her family has also used a similar recipe.  

In a plastic container combine:

2 tablespoons of baby wash

1 tablespoon of baby oil

2 cups of water 

Using a knife, cut a roll of paper towels in half.  (I have yet to make a nice looking cut!)  

Place paper towels in the plastic container, place lid on, and flip upside down.  

The liquid will soak the paper towels.  

Flip back over and pull cardboard tube out.  Pull wipes up from the middle.  

A 3 pack of generic wipes (240 wipes) is $4.88.

Cost for these wipes (makes about 200) was $1.77.  

(I use thick Brawny paper towels for wipes and already had baby wash and baby oil on hand.) 

Cost per wipe is less than 1 cent.  :) 

Linking here.  

betweennapsontheporch.blogspot.com

todayscreativeblog.net

igottacreate.blogspot.com

PS - Here's a neat way to find new apps that you may like for your iphone, ipad, or android...check out appSmitten here!

*Disclosure - I receive a small payment for new newsletter subscribers.*

Not-So-Exciting Home Improvement...

Long story short, we were having some water issues in our basement and discovered the previous (who were also the original) homeowners never put any flashing in place when they added the deck onto the house.  They left that job for us to do...or for us to hire someone to do it for us!  (So thoughtful!)  So here's our most exciting home improvement project to date...

                         "Before"                                                                       "After"

Shamrocks c/o Clare :)

  

The "during" pictures are much more exciting...

Don't you love spending money on something that you really can't "show off?"  

Sometimes the utensil drawer...

...is very entertaining!  

(And I'm OK with that if it means I can make dinner in peace!)

Keeping Track of Meds

In the past few weeks, 4 out of the 5 members in our family have been on some type of prescription.  The two older kids both had ear infections that overlapped and started amoxicillin on different days.  I originally saw this idea here on pinterest and decided it was a good way for me to keep track of who had what prescription when.

Sometimes it's as easy as writing it down...in a place I remember!  

My Bargain of the Year

During "Appendectomy 2011", while on one of my many Target scrip runs, I found green curtain panels that I thought would be perfect for our office.  They were $24.99 each.  

  

The only problem was that there was only one curtain panel at our Target and I needed 2.  I bought the one and thought I would snag a matching one on another Target trip.  But then every time I went to Target and checked, they didn't have any of that same green striped curtain that we liked.  

I finally decided to look for the curtain online....AND THEY WERE SOLD OUT!!!  I immediately called my Target store and asked if they had any in stock.  THEY DIDN'T!  They gave me 2 stores near-by that had them.  I called the one store and verified that they had one left, but was told that they could not hold it for me because it was now on clearance.  Between a napping 17 month-old and a kindergartener to pick up, I couldn't get to Target right away.  

When I finally got to Target around 7 PM that night...my curtain was still there!  But now it was on clearance for $17!  And...there were actually TWO of my curtain panels there!  Since I'm crazy, I still had the receipt and packaging for the original curtain panel at home.  So, I bought the 2 curtains on clearance for $34 and returned the original $24.99 curtain the next day.
Winning!

I'm loving finally having some window treatments!      

MARCH

The March wind roars

Like a lion in the sky,

And makes us shiver

As he passes by.

When winds are soft,

And the days are warm and clear,

Just like a gentle lamb,

Then spring is here.

-unknown