Fun Friday: DIY Seed Starter Containers

When it comes to planting a garden, I prefer to start them indoors from seeds. Sure it's a lot more work than buying some plants & plopping them in the ground, but it's definitely more rewarding to start from seeds. 

One of the dilemmas I'm constantly facing, is where to keep them. I've tried the big flats, but those have to be kept outside - where the squirrel ninjas live. So inside it is, but I'm limited on where I can keep them because of the kids. Basically my only option is a very long, but very thin, shelf under an equally long kitchen window. Which means that my creativity had to kick into high gear to find a solution that would work. 

I made the DIY Cookie Basket {made from a paper plate!} that I've seen on facebook a million times, to hold two sections from a cardboard egg carton. With some waxed paper & aluminum foil to help contain the water. The best part though is that they fit perfectly on my shelf! Now if only the shelf was longer...

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Think It Thursday: Kindergarten or Preschool?

It happened. Damien has been registered for kindergarten. But I have to admit that I'm more indecisive as ever.

The cut-off is September 30th, all children need to be 5 by then. Damien turns 5 September 17th. He's currently in the IEP class for some speech issues, but his teacher has said that academically, he's ready. But she also said that there's a maturity issue for boys & she even held her own son back a year before starting kindergarten. So Damien could either go to kindergarten, or have another year of preschool. 

I don't want to decide now, I actually have until about 2 weeks before the start of the new school year. My fear is that if I hold him back like everyone suggests, that he'll get bored with the preschool lessons & focus on the "play" aspect more. But I don't want to push him if he's not entirely ready either.

Of course Damien is a completely different child at school than he is at home, so his maturity may not be an issue as far as schooling goes. After all, I do hate it when kids automatically get categorized (except for two year olds, they really can be terrible). 

What would you do if you were me? I'm open to any thoughts & suggestions. 

 

Work It Wednesday: A SAHM's Guide to Working Out

You know how it goes, you wake up, vowing to get that killer workout in. Next thing you know, it's 8:00 PM & you're exhausted. I know it sounds cliché, but working out can actually make you more energized. But yea, you're a SAHM so you would have the time when? Whenever you can is the answer. (Trust me, I know how it goes.)

My (current) daily workouts vary from 20 min. to 1 hr. But I break them down & get them done whenever I can. I also try to do the same things, but keep them completely different at the same time. (Makes total sense, I know.)

Photo credit: 30 Day Fitness Challenges

I'm pretty big on these 30 Day Fitness Challenges right now (my current is an Easy Squat Challenge). They don't have to be done all at once, so if you have to break them up, just keep track of how many you've done. I find myself doing them when I get 5-10 min. to watch TV or when I'm waiting for the school bus. 

View this photo on Instagram!

I have to say that I have quite the variety of workout DVD's & I try to do one most days. I decide which one to do, by figuring out how much time I realistically have. I try to get one in that's at least 30 min., but if I can tell I'll have to stop a million times, I go for a 10 min. one instead. 

So what else rounds out my daily workout? At least one youtube video of Dance Fitness with Jessica, crunches, push-ups, planking, wall sits, free weights to help build upper body & yoga. I know it seems like a lot & it feels like it when it takes me all day to do it, but when you take into account the amount of time actually spent, it's perfect. Add in the amount of time you spend chasing kids, cleaning the house multiple times a day (especially when it comes to vacuuming & mopping) & going up the same flight of steps a million times...who needs a gym?! You've got this working out thing covered! 
 

Tasty Tuesday: Vegetable Stuffed Crepes

Brinner (breakfast food for dinner) is pretty popular at my house. But I've been trying to eat healthier lately which means that fried eggs, fried potatoes, bacon & toast slathered in butter just won't do. 

•2 eggs

 •1C. all purpose flour

•1/2C. water

•1/2C. milk

•2Tbsp. melted butter or margarine

•1/4tsp. salt

•nonstick cooking spray

•scrambled eggs

•frozen chopped spinach, thoroughly thawed & squeezed dry of excess liquid

•vidalia onion, sliced

•baby portobello mushrooms, sliced

•olive oil

•shredded Swiss cheese

•tomatoes, diced

•Hollandaise sauce

•salt & pepper to taste

 

-In a large mixing bowl, whisk eggs before adding flour, water, milk, butter or margarine & salt. Stir to thoroughly combine. (Mixture will be smooth.)

-In a medium (or large if you prefer) nonstick skillet, lightly spray nonstick cooking spray & heat over med.-high heat.

-Add crepe mixture 1/4C. at time. Quickly remove pan from the heat, slowly turn the pan in a circular motion so the mixture evenly coats the entire bottom. When you no longer see the mixture moving, replace pan over heat.

-After a couple minutes, slightly jerk the pan to see if the crepe moves, if so carefully flip it.

-Cook other side of crepe for 1-2 min. & remove from pan. Repeat process with remaining batter.

-In a nonstick skillet, saute onion in a turn of the pan of olive oil.

-When the onion begins to separate, add the sliced mushrooms & saute until just about done. 

-Add the spinach, stirring well to combine, until heated through. 

-To assemble the crepes, place scrambled eggs down the center & top with vegetable mixture. 

-Roll up & place seam side down on a plate. 

-Top with Hollandaise sauce, diced tomatoes, salt & pepper to taste. 

 

 Enjoy!

PicturesOnGold.com & a Giveaway!

**Disclaimer: I have received products to try from PicturesOnGold.com & am simply sharing my personal opinion which may vary from yours. I was not compensated for this review.

I seem to have more necklaces than any other kind of jewelry. But I've never had a necklace that was so perfect. And I've also never received so many compliments on a necklace before in my life! 

Every time I hear of a locket necklace, I immediately picture the kind I grew up with. They all seemed to have the generic front & you always had to cut your own pictures to fit. So of course I was blown away by the quality of the locket necklace I received from PicturesOnGold. So much so, that my eyes actually watered. (Seriously, they did.)

Aside from the locket itself, I loved how easy it was to build. Yep, that's right, I chose every detail of the locket myself!

To build your own locket, you must first decide on the locket itself. (I have the Build Your Own Sterling Silver 2-Picture Heart Locket) & then decide on what you'd like for the front. I went with a mother with three kids (how perfect!) from the selection of clipart available for Mother's Day. You can also leave it blank, add text or choose a monogram instead.

Next was the inside, which was only difficult because I was being indecisive on which photos to use. I started out with two that I wasn't really impressed with, but when I got to the end, I realized I could choose the pictures I really wanted & leave special instructions to have them placed how I wanted. And you have to admit, the color laser engraved pictures just pop! (Simple laser engraving or a paper photo option are also available, as well as leaving either side plain, adding text or adding a monogram.)

Now for the back of the locket. I kept mine very simple with text in a Script font (Block font also available) that went perfect with the clipart on the front. 

You can also choose the chain. I chose an 18in. Rolo style chain, for the simple fact that it stated that it was very durable. You should know that my two year old has thoroughly put it to the test & it has passed with flying colors! (Box & Singapore chains are also available in varying sizes.)

OK, so now for the special instructions that I mentioned earlier. If your picture isn't quite centered or slightly small, simply tell PicturesOnGold exactly how you'd like it & they'll perfect it for you. My pictures needed to be slightly altered in size & position and I also asked for faces only, which eliminates any background. I was semi-afraid that it wouldn't turn out as I had hoped, but it turned out better than I imagined!

Would you love to build your own Sterling Silver 2-Picture Heart Locket for someone special (including yourself)?

One lucky winner will get the chance! 

The giveaway will conclude on at 12:00 a.m. est on Thursday 5/22/14. Winners will be announced via rafflecopter & in a separate blog post which will be published no later than 3:00 p.m. on Thursday 5/22/14. Winners will also be notified via email & announced on the Smith and Blessings facebook page. Winners will have 48 hours to submit shipping information, which will then be passed on to PicturesOnGold.com for distribution of product. If 48 hours has lapsed, a new winner will be picked & then will also have 48 hours to submit their information. Smith and Blessings is not responsible for prize shipment. 

*Giveaway open to U.S. residents only.

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You can also use the Promo Code: MOM2014 to save 10% on all purchases made until May 9th.

Keep up with the latest from PicturesOnGold on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram & Pinterest.

  

Musical Monday: NEELY & a Giveaway!

**Disclaimer: I have received products to try from NEELY & am simply sharing my personal opinion which may vary from yours. I was not compensated for this review.

When the hubs & I first met, our musical tastes were opposite to say the least. He was a country boy & I would rather head bang to screaming rock. Yep, little ol' me was a rocker chick. (Can you believe it?!) But fast forward over a decade, add three kids & our musical tastes have changed a bit. Of course he's still a country boy & I'm still a rocker, but we now have more appreciation for each others musical tastes. Except for the screaming rock, the hubs likes to actually hear words. 

Lately, we've both been jamming to NEELY, a husband & wife duo that breaks the genre barriers with their own mix of...well, whatever they feel like at the moment. 

Jeremy & Kaci Neely
Photo credit: ReverbNation

"Industry folk have tried to pigeon hole us as Rock, Pop-Rock, Christian and now Country. That's junk! We are NEELY!"

Actually, it's their latest single "Kiss My Grits" that has been playing practically nonstop in my house lately. The hubs loves it (of course), the kids love it & even I love it with it's catchy chorus & rebel attitude.

But I also love "Everything I Am". This song is downright intoxicating how it starts off with the guitar (forgive me if it's a specific kind of guitar - I'm not that musically inclined) & then Kaci subtly cuts in singing. 

But what sets Jeremy & Kaci Neely apart from just about every other recording artist out there, is how incredibly down to earth & independent they are! And I can tell you that I know this first hand after having a Q&A with Jeremy Neely himself!

How was it that you & your wife came to working together?

This is an interesting story. Kaci and I were married in 1996. At the time I performed more classic country in any venue I could find in the Salina, KS area (where we lived at the time). It wasn't until I started helping on a Church worship team that I even discovered that Kaci could sing. As I was preparing a few songs I was not confident when Kaci sat down beside me and began harmonizing. This was in 2001. By 2003 a friend and I wrote "Peace Be Still" and I gave Kaci a gentle nudge out front. The rest you can say, is history :)

Where do you find the inspiration for your songs?

All of the songs I've written thus far has some kind of personal, emotional connection. It isn't always our story but it's always something that either hits me deep or I relate to in some intimate way. For instance, I had problems with addictions. One day I hear this young lady speaking on her struggles with cutting and how her emotional\self esteem problems drove her addiction to self hurt. That hit pretty close to home and from that moment the song "I'm Alive" just flowed out of me. I could tell you an intimate story like that about every song I've written.

How do you set yourself apart from other musicians?

Honesty. I know that might sound like a simple answer but when you really begin to dig it is huge! In today's music industry not many artists are as good or better than their CD\recording. Even some of these YouTube sensations who make you think they are doing live videos of songs are really pre recording, mixing, auto tuning, mastering, etc before they play it back and lip sync to it. Everyone uses auto tune, it saves on studio time and on vocal wear and tear. However, some people take it over board and correct vocal pitch for artists that can't hear\control their pitch. We take this on step further, we mostly travel as an acoustic troupe so that people know that they are getting the real deal. This also allows us to share the stories\inspiration for the songs so our audience can connect not only with our music but with us. For us it is all about honesty and relationship. Which brings up another point: we are becoming more comfortable being who we are honestly. So many artists out there are trying to fit a genre and dress with the trends and sound like such and such to obtain fame and fortune. This is why you'll hear a ballad like "Complete", a rocker like "Move", and now our country rock (aka southern rock) single "Kiss My Grits". My playlist is not confined to one specific genre...it's not who I am, so why should the music that flows from me be? If it's great music, who cares?

How do you balance a working relationship while being married to each other?

From 1998 to 2010 I worked in the corporate world as a Network Engineer (fancy term for a computer geek). I can honestly say what Kaci and I have now is easier than "the old life". Now I'm with Kaci and our 4 daughters nearly 24/7. In the past I was separated from them 10+ hours a day and it was like our family was going in 6 different directions. To be far though, it was tough starting out full time in 2010. It's not just the adjustment of a new town every day and being away from home but finding your place\role in this thing. After four years we've all found those roles and when we tour across the country people are in awe of how efficiently we operate. To top it all off, each of us feel blessed that we get to spend so much time with the love of our life.

When are you coming to Canton, OH?!

Anytime! Most people have this perception that we are some kind of big time music group that is too big for their britches. The honest to goodness is: we are down to earth folks who are trying to make a living like everyone else. What you see on American Idol is not reality for 95% of artists out there making a living. We will actually come and play a concert in your living room! Yep, we do that. Hosts will get anywhere from 10 - 50 friends together who will each chip in anywhere from $10 - $20 a piece and we will do an intimate, story telling concert right in your home. Now granted, we mostly work through an organization called concertsinyourhome.com but there are times we work outside of that organization (a lot of communication and homework for safety reasons). Other than that we play coffee houses, listening room, Churches...anywhere we can take our family :)

Kaci & Jeremy Neely
Photo credit: ReverbNation

See, down to earth REAL people, making REAL music! Which, honestly, makes NEELY that much better! (I'm a total fan, can you tell?)

 
One lucky winner will receive a Kiss My Grits T-Shirt & CD pack (includes the Kiss My Grits CD, Everything I Am CD, and Colorblind - an acoustic CD). 

And a second lucky winner will receive a CD pack.


The giveaway will conclude on at 12:00 a.m. est on Tuesday 5/13/14. Winners will be announced via rafflecopter & in a separate blog post which will be published no later than 3:00 p.m. on Tuesday 5/13/14. Winners will also be notified via email & announced on the Smith and Blessings facebook page. Winners will have 48 hours to submit shipping information, which will then be passed on to Neely Music for distribution of product. If 48 hours has lapsed, a new winner will be picked & then will also have 48 hours to submit their information. Smith and Blessings is not responsible for prize shipment.
*Giveaway open to U.S. residents only.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Also be sure to check out NEELY's online store for CD's, clothing & more.

Keep up with the latest from NEELY on Facebook & Twitter.