Getting Organized

So... the diet didn't work out. Going to Portland always ruins that for me. But am going to try eating healthier again and more importantly I want to start exercising on a regular basis.

Now on to my next New Years Resolution...getting organized. I was starting to get fed up with tripping over toys every time I walked through the living room. The kids have way too much stuff for their own good and there wasn't really anywhere to put it all. We just had a couple Rubbermaid containers we threw stuff in, which wasn't ideal since all the different toys got mixed together...and it certainly didn't look good. I decided that the toys needed to be moved upstairs, because we have a loft area that doesn't get used for anything, so why not turn it into a play room?

If I had the choice/money the playroom would look something like this:
But since I am not a millionaire, I had to see what kind of budget design I could come up with. I drove on over to Target, one of the best stores ever, and came up with some good stuff! Granted I could have spent less, especially if I would have built some items myself, but I needed this done now. If I put something like this off it most likely will not get done in the near future.

First, I found this cubby unit, that was on sale for $40. The pink and green containers were $6 each, So $24 total. I may have been able to find these cheaper elsewhere, but once again I didn't have the time. The unit took me about a half hour to put together by myself, but it was really easy. Forgive the poor picture quality, I just took these on my phone. The containers hold mostly books and some other random toys.


Next I found these adorable little storage ottomans! I love how they fulfill two purposes and look so cute. I sorted out the kids toys and they each hold different types (legos, barbies, etc.). They were $20 each, so I spent $80 total. I already had the table that wasn't being used.


Here is how the room looks now. I still have to clean up the back wall, which is why I am not showing the whole room. I think I will add a cute chandelier or some type of cute lighting. The total cost of this project was $144. Worth every penny to finally feel a little bit organized!


Cameron likes it too! I would love feedback, so feel free to give me ideas or critiques!

On my way to a healthier me

Well, it is that time of the year again...time to start eating better, exercising and losing some weight! Emery is competing in a biggest loser contest at his work, so I am going to compete against just him at home. It is always easier to lose weight when you have someone doing it with you! So, hopefully I can stick with it and get some of this fat off. I was eating really bad for the last few months, so I have packed on a few pounds.

Today is the first day and so far I have eaten some healthy cereal for breakfast. I plan on having plain yogurt with fresh blackberries mixed in for a snack, a tuna sandwich for lunch, and chicken with vegetables for dinner. When Emery gets home we are going to do our workout on the XBox Kinect (that we got for Christmas) and I will probably hop on the elliptical for a bit.

The first day is always the easiest...wish me luck!

Earrings

I forgot to add the pictures of Morgan getting her ears pierced for her birthday. She kept talking about getting earrings, so I decided it was time (I didn't want to get them pierced until she really wanted them). So off we went to Claires, actually it was The Icing...they looked more competent than the teenagers at Claires. Morgan was excited, but once she found out what was going on she freaked out a bit. Once they pierced her ears she started crying, which I expected would happen. She got over it pretty quickly though and now she LOVES her earrings. It's funny because she reminds me every night that we need to clean her ears, what a smart little 3 year old I have!

Pirate Island

Ever since it opened I have been curious about Pirate Island in Orem. So when we were trying to decide where to go for Morgan's birthday I thought it would be the perfect place to try out! It was perfect and we had so much fun...well the kids did anyway. It is basically like Chuck E Cheese, but pirate themed...and the food tastes better! They had a pirate ship play area and arcade games and the whole interior of the building was decked out in pirate stuff. Even the servers were dressed up in pirate costumes and had to talk in pirate accents (I would hate that job). Morgan enjoyed her birthday at Pirate Island and I think we will come back for Cameron's birthday! P.S. Sorry about the picture overload!

Build A Bear

For her 3rd Birthday, my friend Catherine decided to take Morgan to Build-A-Bear Workshop. She took lots of pictures so I could see how much Morgan loved it!

Morgan picked out the horse, which was no surprise to me. She loves horses and unicorns just like her mommy! This is the horse before they put the stuffing in.

It is so cute how they have the store set up. Kids are able to help create their stuffed animal. This is Morgan pushing the pedal to fill up her horse.



Morgan even got to pick out a heart, so her horse would be brought to life!



Now the horse was ready for its first bath and grooming!


Morgan really loves "Brownie". Thanks Catherine! And happy 3rd birthday to my sweet little girl! More birthday pictures to follow!

Swagbucks

I stumbled across a website the other day, because I saw my friends on facebook were "liking" it. It is called Swagbucks and basically you earn points for searching the internet, which you can redeem for prizes. I have been doing it for three days and already have enough for a $5 amazon gift card. It doesn't sound like much, but I literally didn't do anything, except browse the internet like I normally do anyway! I downloaded the toolbar and whenever I do a search I just search out of their search engine...which does suck, because it brings up a lot of ads mixed in with the real results...but what I am looking for is usually at the top of the list anyway. Obviously I wouldn't recommend using it for a research paper, but when you are just messing around on the internet it is not a problem.

So...if you like the idea of earning prizes for browsing the net, go ahead and sign up with this link. I will get points for you signing up and if you don't like it you can just stop doing it. Just use a junk e-mail account and you will never hear from Swagbucks again, lol.

Finally!

So yesterday I got back from a trip full of delays, which left me super tired and cranky. But I got home and found out I got awarded part-time! I am so incredibly happy, it was like Christmas! I have been waiting for this for 7 months. It has been so hard being away from my kids and Emery for so many days a month, but now I will be home so much more. I can still pick up trips if we need extra money. Honestly, I don't ever see myself leaving this job now that I am part-time. Now I can have that perfect work-home balance that I wanted so badly and I am so grateful.

Oh and I did have an overnight in Portland, so my parents took me out to dinner. It was so good to see them as it always is! I also had an overnight in Eugene and the weather was beautiful so I took a nice bike ride. Besides the many delays, it actually wasn't a bad trip I guess. I am on call Monday thru Friday, so who knows what the coming week has in store for me...but for now I will enjoy my two days off!