Holy wind batman!

Seriously it is crazy windy out here today. It was bad yesterday but today seems to be worse. Maybe I should listen to my husband when he says those exact words to me, seeing as he is going to school for Meteorological Science. One of the oh so wonderful down falls of living in the desert is the wind, of course since it is the desert not only do you get the wind but you also get a bunch of dirt flying through the air with it. Ah fun times. I have been hunkered down inside only going out if absolutely necessary. I don't know what came over me when I got the bright idea to take some pictures. While the sky is a gorgeous blue and the trees look absolutely lovely blowing in the wind I think I might have gotten frostbite on my toes. Maybe it had to do with the fact that I went outside in sandals haha. Hey I'm from CA, all I pretty much wear is sandals.
Here's just a few of the pictures I took while freezing my bum off.

Frugal Mission, part 1

I am joining in on another mission from Girly Gazette. This one (about being frugal) is something I've always wanted to do but it seems to me there are so many roadblocks, at least where I live. Printed coupons are not accepted and that's where I used to get 90% of my coupons. Amy from The Original Coupon Coach is wonderful enough to be helping everyone out with some of her wisdom. To start she has asked us these questions. Here's my responses:

1. Why do you think you spend too much money at the grocery store? I see things I like and just throw them in the cart instead of sticking to my list.
2. What are your weaknesses when grocery shopping? Something on sale LOL I also stock up on lunch items for my kids lunch and we go through dairy really fast so I stock up on that also.
3. When/how often do you normally do your grocery shopping? I typically shop every two weeks. Sometimes I will forget an item and run to the store to buy it and never leave with just that item.
4. What products do you shop for most often? I buy chicken, milk, cheese, veggies and fruits the most.
5. Are you brand loyal on any products? Not. I usually look for the cheapest brand/off brand.
   
6. At what grocery and drug stores do you normally shop? I shop at winco and occasionally Walmart Super Center and Costco for bulk items.
7. Do you currently have a grocery budget or an amount to which you would like to get your grocery spending down? My grocery budget is $200 every two weeks. I try to stay under and usually manage to keep it around $150
8. Do you cook most meals at home or do you mostly eat out at restaurants? I cook at home
   
9. Do you currently get the Sunday paper? No

I am very excited to hear all of her suggestions on being frugal, thank you Amy for helping all of us that are frugal challenged out.

The fun things to do with hair

I love hair. Maybe I should be more specific. I love my kids hair. I love doing my daughters hair in little bows and pig tails and clips and headbands. I love it all. Now Shawns hair is, well it's freaking awesome! I cannot say this enough, I LOVE his curls. I think they totally go along with his wild and crazy personality and it's just part of who he is.
Bath time is one of his favorite times. He runs to the bathroom panting like a dog and saying "bafff, bafff, BAFFF" LOL So while he sits there and enjoys the running water I mess around with his hair. While I was giving him a bath tonight I wondered how many different ways I could do his hair before he got annoyed. Tonight's lucky number would be....4. Didn't get too many but hey at least I got pics.





Okay now this picture seriously cracks me up. The water got cold for a second and he started to shiver. It was like in slow mo starting at his toes working it's way up and this was the face he made. I can't believe I actually caught it on camera. He's so gonna hate this picture when he is older.
And my favorite. My sweet baby boy and his curls :)

What is my gift?

I've made it to do three of Girly Gazettes questions for their launch of their new site. If you haven't been to the site yet go check it out! The question for today is....
What is your gift and how will you use it?

This one is easy for me. I have always seen my gift as humor. I LOVE to make people laugh. Doesn't matter who I just love it. Although the best is my kids (obviously LOL). I am one of those people who doesn't mind making a fool of myself if it will light someones face up or make their day even a tiny bit brighter. For some reason I am a horrible joke teller so I don't even go there haha. One of my favorite things to do is to dance, that in itself is hilarious because I don't have a single dancing bone in my body. Mama does not know how to get her groove on. But every time I do dance my kids laugh and laugh and join in with me.

Wordless Wednesday-Im not sleepy

My sweet baby boy did not want to go to sleep the other night. He was in there babbling away "reading" his book. I brought him out hoping to get some mommy cuddles he had something else in mind. He went and played around a bit as you can see in the pics above and then he went off and hid and made a poopy LOL Guess I knew why he wouldn't go to sleep. But hey at least I got about two minutes worth of cuddles and some alone time with my little man.

Who is in my tribe"?

Today's question from Girly Gazette is: Who is in your “tribe”. Who inspires you? Who do you turn to for inspiration and encouragement? I do not have many friends but the one's I do have a I love to death. I have many acquaintances who I wouldn't put in my tribe because well they're just acquaintances. But the few friends I have are the best. I have tons of online friends, funny I seem to bond better with people via the internet then in real life LOL

My list doesn't consist just friends. I have family listed in here because not only are they my family they are also my closest friends. Okay so the one's in my tribe are:

Gena from Fairytales & Puppy Dog Tails. She is such an awesome person and mama. She has always been there for me when I needed her and has never been one to judge. And yes I can say that truthfully. There's aren't many people who are truly like that but she is one of them.

Jenny from The Gatton Family. I have known this chikie since highschool! We lost contact for many years but finally got back in contact when I moved into the same condominium complex as her last year. I am so happy to have her back in my life. She is such a sweet person and has the cutest little boy. Seriously his eyes are to die for! She also loves my kids and is never bothered by them. Not all people are kid friendly, especially when their not their kids but she is not one of those people.

My mother. Do I need an explanation for this LOL My mom has always been an inspiration to me. Of course we have our differing opinions but when it comes down to it she will always back me up and visa versa.

My husband. Again, explanation??? LOL My husband and I have been together since I was 15 years old. This March we will be celebrating our 8 year marriage anniversary and in September will be 13 years together. HOLY CRAP, we've been together forever haha. We have both grown so much since we have been together and it's like we are one in many ways. We are both there for each other through the good times and the bad times. And trust me just like every normal couple we have had our good times but we have definitely had our amazing times too. He is my rock, my love and my best friend, who could ask for anything more.

My children. Although they are young they are my second biggest support team so to speak. No I don't lean on them for support but they are like my little cheerleaders. I love that they are so young yet they have so much love for someone and that someone is me. All I have to do is listen to one of them giggle or say I love you or give me a hug and no matter what type of mood I'm in I am instantly happier. They are the biggest blessing that have come into my life and I am so proud to be their mother.

What makes me feel fabulous

I've always been sort of a shy person. I had heard about twitter many times from friends who have accounts there but I stayed away for silly reasons. Finally a couple months ago I gave in and signed up. I am so glad I did because I have met so many incredible people through twitter. One specific person is an inspiration, Kadi. This woman is amazing. She is a wife and mother to seven, yes you read that right, seven beautiful children. This week she is holding a blogging event all about women and what makes them them and full of positivity and encouragement. This is in honor of her new site Girly Gazette I have never done something like this before and I'm very excited (also nervous cause that's just me lol). So let's get started.

Challenge #1: What makes you feel fabulous?

I will be honest, feeling fabulous is not usually my thing. I am a walking stress ball half the time. My husband works full time but his schedule is a little odd. He goes into work on Fridays and doesn't come home until Sunday evening. So our weekends are not the norm. His days off are spent with him attending classes at the local college out here. He is currently taking three classes and it occupies most of his time. Soooo, long story short I am left to run the household by myself. As my husband puts it "You're pretty much a single mom". Okay back on topic here. What makes me feel fabulous are the simple things. Here's a short list:

When my kids say good morning with smiles on their faces
My kids smiles
My kids laughs
Love and cuddles from my babies
My husband paying me a compliment
Taking a shower
Doing my makeup
Getting a hair cut (I only get a hair cut every few years, bad I know but I see that as my pampering time)
A massage
My husband cooking a meal for me
Cooking a family favorite meal & watching everyone enjoy it
Going shopping (who doesn't love a little retail therapy)
Laughing
Hanging out with friends
Having a clean house

Those are a few of my favorite things that make me feel fabulous. Stay tuned tomorrow and the rest of the week for more questions that I will be answering from the Girly Gazette