Christmas - the Shopping has begun! (Barely)

Today mom took April for a couple hours in the afternoon. Layne & I ate some lunch at home then went to a couple stores. I picked up a couple little things for April for Christmas. One of them was from the $1 section at Target, it was some nail polish and nail stickers for her stocking. We made our way to Barnes and Noble after that and picked her up a cute diary with a lock and key. She has so much that its hard to find presents for her. I did get a couple coupon books today that they were selling for a fundraiser at church also. They are for Younkers and cost $5 each. Each coupon book has 1 $10 off any purchase of $10 or more and numerous 20% off coupons. I'm hoping to be able to use these to pick up some gifts as well. Only 5 more paychecks till Christmas! Yikes!! Boy are things going to be tight this year. Hopefully I can come up with some creative gift ideas that are easy on the wallet. Luckily I do have ideas for most of the people on my list. Which helps. Some of them are even homemade gifts, but none of them are real time consuming - definitely a good thing!



Todays tip: Do you like to use those daily shower sprays to help get rid of the day to day grime on your shower walls? Did you know you can make it yourself for about 1/10th of the price that you pay when buying it? I have come across a couple different versions of this of this normally pricey cleaner.

Recipe #1:

Mix together 1/3 cup rubbing alcohol for every cup of water you add to a spray bottle.
Shake, then spray on, no rinsing is required.

Recipe #2:

Mix together 3 cups hot water, 1/2 cup Vinegar, 1 Tbsp Dish Detergent, 1 Tbsp Borax
in a spray bottle. Shake then spray. Note: Do not use this version if you have tile and grout in your shower. The acid in the vinegar can cause the grout to break down!

Oh the things I could be doing!

I don't know about anyone else, but around 10:00 in the morning I start thinking about what I could be accomplishing at home if I were there instead of at work. I begin making a mental list of all the things I am going to accomplish once I get home. Once I walk through the doors to my home I instantly forget everything that was on my "list". Tonight, however, I am happy to report that I actually accomplished a couple of the things on my list. For supper I made tuna and noodles. After I cleaned up from supper I started in right away on finishing up the apples. I successfully canned 7 pints of apples in a yummy lightly sugared syrup. I admit to eating a couple spoonfuls of the apples during the process. In another day or two I'll be able to start in on the pears.


Right after finishing the canning April and I read a couple books. Then right before my eyes the meltdown began. It started because she wanted pop. Being the good mommy I told her no. Wow, talk about unleashing the beast! She was promptly sent to her room. Not 5 seconds later the doorbell rang - it was the Schwann's man. I told him that I wasn't going to order anything. I came back inside and shut the door. April apparently decided that she didn't like it that I ordered nothing and told me that I was a dummy for not ordering. Hm. Guess who isn't going to get to do ANYTHING for the next week?


Today's tip: Is how to make your own shower cleaner. (My mom actually emailed this to me.) Fill a 32 oz plastic spray bottle with 1 cup of vinegar, 2-3 tablespoons Dawn dishwashing liquid, 1 oz fabric softener, and enough water to fill the bottle. Spray the entire shower/tub after each bath/shower and after a few days it will sparkle!