Have an A++ Day today!

Walking into work this morning I was asked the typical How are you? to which I responded. A++ This startled the people around me.  A++ That's extremely happy :) Some reminisced the last time they had that great of a day. 

Why isn’t everydayA++? 

I totally understand that there are days with illness and death that cause us to mourn, but I feel like most of our bad days really aren’t that bad. 

Top 5 reasons my day is A++

#1 I have an adorable healthy son! - Sure he kept me up a good portion of the night, but I wished and prayed for a son for a long time... I finally have him!



#2 I have a wonderful job where I am successful and appreciated - Sure I could be sleeping in or barefoot and pregnant living on a 30 acre farm - but my job is HUGE blessing in our life!

I love dreaming about farm land!

#3 My son is crawling now! Just before 6 months! Yes, I could see this as a negative because I now have to redo my entire house to be baby proof... But I am loving it! Being a mom is truly glorious!



#4 I had an email waiting in my inbox when I arrived from my husband telling me how much he loved me. We try to begin each work day with a short note of love from each other. 

#5 I have manure for planting my garden. Sure, my car really smells, as does our neighborhood now :) But I am well on my way to growing perfect tomatoes!

We have so much in life to be grateful for! I have to remind myself everyday to stop and appreciate all the blessings that I have.  

What are the things that make today an A++ day for you?

3 Easy Steps to Fabulous Fashion

“You look so fashionable!” 

I looked over my shoulder to see if they were talking to someone else. I have been called many things in my life, but fashionable was never on the list. I made a resolution with my husband this year for us both to become more fashionable.

Top three things I discover while trying to dress fashionably!!

My long hair when I first met my hubbie!

#1 Know your limits... I am not someone who is willing to spend 45 minutes on my hair in the morning... I used to have gorgeous long hair... I would always get compliments when I would wear it down... about 1x month. Now I have a cute short haircut. I wear my hair down way more often... For me wearing my hair down and short is way cuter than long but always up in a ponytail.

Life with baby = Five minute cute casual look for a wedding!

#2 Try new things... I have been using the same blush and lip gloss for years... The result. I look great right when I put it on but it fades within a hour or two. I have been reading the Small Things Blog for great ideas on hair and fashion and I discovered a new favorite lip stick... and it works! I can put it on in the morning and it last until lunch... and then redo at lunch and it lasts the rest of the day!

Enjoying my pink lipstick to match my shirt! 

#3 Bust out of your comfort zone... I laid my clothes out and realized that everything I owned was pink... and while I love pink (and hate black) sometimes mixing it up is the best thing to do. I starting realizing looking at Pinterest boards that black can make a really nice base for outfits... allowing the color to really pop. Now my black sundresses are some of my favorites. They are very slimming and my color accents really stand out.

How do you stay fashionable? Do you have any helpful tips?

Finding glass water bottles

I love drinking water... and I hate paying $1.25 a bottle... 

So I tend to keep a case of bottled water in the back of my car. However I drink a lot of water! However while I’m choosing the natural route... drinking water... I’m using enough plastic to encircle the rain forest! And its all landing in the backseat of my car, or on top of my desk.


After much convincing from hubbie we set out to find the perfect water bottle. Reusable plastic were out... they always smell musty, and tasted like plastic to me. Aluminum were popular, but after watch the office and them talking about their water tasting like aluminum I couldn't go there. 

We wanted glass... reusable glass bottles that wouldn't spill in your bag.

You wouldn't believe how hard it was to find them... We looked and called every store imaginable! Finally, we ordered them online. And they were expensive too!

Months later we were shopping at Home Goods and we saw they had Voss water in glass bottles, and picked two up. I wish we would have gotten more. There was no shipping, they were only $2.49 each. These are nice for a long trip where space isn't as much of an issue and you just want a lot of water.

Now I enjoy fresh crisp water each day... and the landfills are empty... or at least they don’t have all my water bottles coming.

What is your favorite water bottle? Was it hard finding the perfect one for you?

Growing the Perfect Tomato!

Some of the hundreds of tomatoes from last year!

Salsa, blt’s, bruschetta... they all taste a bit more magical when created with fresh juicy tomatoes. 

So in addition to working full time, being a wife and mommy, I also am in constant quest for perfect tomato! These are my discoveries.

The first ingredient is farm fresh cow manure! Each year a close family friend always brings me several bags of this fabulous fertilizer!

Next is our compost pile... even though we live right in a town we have two compost piles set up in the back yard. We have a small garbage can with a tight lid in our kitchen so we can make sure all egg shells, and extra fruit and veggies extra are saved. Using the small garbage can has been a game changer because you don’t have rotting fruits sitting on your counter looking gross yet you can still reap all the benefits.

Once you’ve dug up your soil - and added manure and compost ready its time to start.

Put your tomatoes in a place where they will receive sun 100% of the day! For us this meant digging up part of the front yard to pursue our garden dream, but you wouldn’t believe the number of compliments I receive from walkers and neighbors alike.

Plant your tomatoes deep. You want to cover the stem up to the first leaves. The part of the stem that you bury will help roots to branch out giving your plant a strong foundation.

Now my tomato plants got huge, almost as tall as me!! So you want to stake them up.

Nightly watering seems the best. It is slightly cooler at this point, so the water has a chance to absorb into the ground before the sun starts scorching again the next day.

Once you actually have tomatoes on the plant it is good to break off some of the extra branches with leaves that don’t have tomatoes on them. This allows the plant to focus its energy exclusively on the tomatoes.

Ultimately, God blesses us making the tomatoes grow, but these seem to be a few things I can do to help. Good luck planting.

High Five for Friday!!

The days before a long weekend are always the worst... it seems like they drag on forever. But the weekend is here!!

View from our balcony last Memorial Day! 

#1 Top moments this week are getting ready for my garden!

#2 Remember last Memorial Day - I was only a few months pregnant and Hubbie and I took our last just us get away!

#3 Finding my trash treasure picnic table!

#4 Enjoying cooler weather for walks at night.

#5 Discovering I get to take the Dave Ramsey Legacy Journey. Basically, a course about giving and growing wealth after becoming debt free. We're not there yet, but working hard at it!

How do you grow your tomatoes? Did you and your hubbie do anything special for just you two when you were pregnant with your first baby?

Two Minute Outfit Upgrade!

Have you ever found yourself racing out the door... but knowing you need to look great? I know I have so I started my two minute outfit upgrade!

For me this is my pink flower scarf and a pearl necklace. It amazes me the way it takes a simple outfit and adds just a touch of beauty!

Other great 2 minute outfit upgrades...

#1 Paint your nails before you walk out the door and let them dry while driving to work

#2 Put on open-toe shoes then paint your toes before you walk out the door

#3 Take your hair out of a ponytail - and shake it out for wind blown casual look

#4 Just touch up your lipstick and blush

#5 Grab a pair of great shoes to spice up your outfit

#6 Smile at your baby! Nothing is more beautiful than a happy mom! 

What is your two minute outfit upgrade?

Trash Treasures - Finding the Perfect Picnic Table

Screech! It’s big garbage day and I just found the perfect picnic table...

Ok not the perfect picnic table, there is a board missing off the top, and the bench on one side is gone too... but I can see that this will be a treasure.

One problem, I’m late getting off work and I can’t fit it in the trunk of my car. After awkward attempts of trying to make it fit and causing a traffic jam, I decided to stash it in my friend’s backyard who happens to live close by.

Finally on Sunday I set back out to claim my prize. I know it won’t fit in the car... but it is only 3 blocks away so I decided to take my Graco Snuggleride stroller frame and set out. I was peppered with puzzling stares as I proudly walked down the street with my babyless stroller.

Halfway there I am offered a truck by an inquisitive neighbor, I am grateful but decided to press on in my mission. I arrive, load the picnic table, things are going like magic... now I’ve just got to push it three blocks and go to Lowes to replace the boards.

I am applauded on my way back by the same neighbor who offered his truck, but he realizes that its broken and offers me a board. Not only does he end up giving me a board, but measures it, cuts it and replaces fixing both the table and bench seat.

I left to collect my trash treasure and came home with a perfect baby picnic table! My goal is to paint it a cute color... but my son and his friend seem to love it right now!

Have you ever found a trash treasure? Or was there ever a neighbor who helped you achieve a dream?

Be rich today!

Bills are piling high, then there’s lack of sleep

Laundry is not done, I begin to weep

When will I be wealthy, rolling in the doe

Until that moment happens off to work I go

Life can get discouraging balancing baby, bills, housework etc However I just began the most impressive book 

Today we are rich! by Tim Sanders.

I absolutely adore this book. He talks about how we are rich, today, right now! He asks you to reflect on all the wonderful things you have in your life.

Tim Sanders was abandoned by his mother, and his father was murdered, but despite these circumstance he learned to appreciate and savor every moment of life.

“I meant that we have all we need, enough to share... And because we were able to share, we’re worth something. By being able and willing to give, we are rich.”  

Five things that make me rich today!

#1 My wonderful marriage to my husband. I still love going on date night with him every week!

#2 My wonderful family - Having my son is truly a dream come true

#3 Our new Canon 60D camera! It takes amazing photos :)








#4 Our home - which has a wonderful backyard for taking pictures

#5 Charlie new stuff animal Oatmeal William - made with love by his great-grandma 

Have you ever read Today we are rich? Is there a book that inspires you?

Dress Like Super Mom

Skinny jeans perfect hair

A touch of makeup style and flair

Nothing fancy, that's simple enough

But with nursing and diapers it sure gets tough

So how do you dress like super mom

I've found the secret keep reading come on

I had an epiphany today as I contemplated what outfit to style for What I Wore Wednesday... All the classic things bounced in my head, sun dresses, suits, curly hair, and heels. But my baby was fussy and I was exhausted from a long day at the office. Then I realized sometimes being super mom just means wearing sweats and a t-shirt playing with your baby.

Instead of digging through my closet and getting all dolled up, I whipped my hair into a pony tail, grabbed my camera and balloons and went to play in the yard with my son. We laughed and laughed! It was the perfect cure for a long day, and as he snuggled with me as I wrote I realized today I truly did dress like super mom!

What is your super mom outfit?

Diaper Sizes a Lose Lose Situation

I hate choosing a diaper size... 

I feel like you lose no matter which way you go. My little guy was growing like a champ... and exploding his diapers up the back all the way to his ears. He was getting big and the diapers didn’t go very high above his hiney so it made sense that they were exploding... and I jumped from size 2 to 3.

I rejoiced problem solved... yes I was spending more money on diapers now, but at least we weren’t dealing with explosions.

Then I started noticing a new pattern..

He was joyfully jumping in his saucer when I noticed that the knee on his pants looked strangely green and yellow... and then his whole leg started turning that color. Sure enough his back was CLEAN!! but all down the front of his legs was spilling poop...

Bath after poop explosion! 

Then again last night he was fussing when I was getting him ready for bed... His snuggie looked fine but when I unzipped it the inside onsie was covered all over the belly with the classic green and yellow... but again his back... perfectly CLEAN!!

I am just destined to be constantly changing poop explosions!! I use the smaller size it’s up the back, the larger size it’s up the front... conclusion. We need to potty train EARLY!!

How do you keep your kids diapers from exploding??

Top Five Ways to get Babies to Sleep!

I need sleep! Even as a mom there is still a limit to sleeplessness. I am reaching the point where even coffee and coke cannot cure my ills. Here are my 

Top Five Ways to get SLEEP with a baby! 

I do not always follow them, but at least I know what they are :)

1. Visit Grandma! The advantage of going to grandma’s house to

take a nap is that she will get sleep after you leave!

2. Switch sleeping schedules with hubby. We’ve got a new routine: Hubby goes to bed at 8:30pm & me at midnight. I keep little Charlie for the first shift, then he’ll take little Charlie from 4am and onward.

3. Grab your stroller and take a walk! There is something about a walk outside that makes a baby content and sleepy. After the walk, don’t move the baby! Pass out on the couch next to the stroller.

4. Drive around the block, again, and again, and again! As little Charlie gets older it doesn’t always work, but for the first 4 months it was a life saver.

5. Wear him out... I usually let him play in his jumper

before bed. He’ll bounce like crazy, till he starts rubbing his eyes. Then I know its my time to cut the lights, nurse, and fall asleep for the night.

Bonus tip: If all else fails, I would nurse him and then put him in the stroller in the house. I would put my feet on the stroller to push it back and forth while rocking in the recliner. (You can watch a movie on your tablet, with all the lights off, and baby will peacefully drift off to sleep)

Obviously, these are just my humble thoughts and opinions. You need to do what is best for your baby.  You should always talk with your Pediatrician before trying these things.

The Perfect Travel Storybook

Have you ever found yourself stuck with a screaming baby without any toys?? 

Me too... But I think I found a solution...

The Adventures of Little Scout eBook

I love storybooks!!! But I love my tablet too... And even though I swore I would never let my baby play with my tablet, when we were stuck on the highway without any exits or places to pull off and he was screaming you can bet I was showing him pictures on my tablet.

Recently I wrote my first book... The Adventures of Little Scout combines all my favorite things, cute rhymes and fun illustrations! Although my goal is board books... An eBook is the perfect beginning :-) its free and it goes with me everywhere!!

Here's a preview...

Page 1

Page 5