It's Fall Y'all!

Well you know it's fall when Starbucks rolls out the Pumpkin Spice Latte.  Before you ask, no I haven't gotten one yet but yes, I intend to at some point.  Beginning this month, I'm going to be prepping my house/life for the holidays.  Yes, I realize Christmas is nearly three months away, but it'll sneak up on me fast.  For me, it always feels like once Halloween hits, everything else is rushing in behind it.  So preparedness is key.  But on the other hand, it's important to 'stop and smell the roses.'  What fun are the holidays if you can't enjoy them?  So on that note, I'll be writing about my to do lists, both fun and functional, from now until New Years.  Of course, I'll still be sharing recipes and other tips in between.

Let's start out with my holiday prep list.  My goal is to finish everything on this list before the end of this month.  That way, I can enjoy all the fall fun in October...pumpkin patch, here we come!

1. Fall Cleaning
You've all heard of Spring cleaning, but now that summer's over, it's time to do it again.  Not to mention, when you start with a clean slate, it's much easier to just do touch ups throughout the busy season.  Remember, start from the top of the house and work down.  Don't forget your car!  Get an oil change and clean the car inside and out!

2.  Purge and Organize
This really goes hand-in-hand with my first item.  When you're cleaning out your closets, bring fall and winter items to the front and spring and summer items go to the back.  While you switch them out, take the opportunity to evaluate your wardrobe and get rid of items that don't fit or are worn out.  Go through your pantry and get rid of items that are past their expiration date or you simply won't eat.  Keep in mind that unopened, non expired food can be donated to a food bank or homeless shelter.  Same goes for clothes and housewares...these are great donation items.

3. Evaluate Your Calendar
If you need to make doctor appointments, now is the time to get them out of the way.  Same goes for any house maintenance (i.e. have a toilet that runs?  Get a plumber out to nip that in the bud now!).  If you plan to have any holiday parties, decide the date as soon as possible so you can send out invitations in plenty of time for your guests to fit you in (don't send out a Christmas invite now...but I would send them out 4 weeks in advance).

4.  Prepare for Family Photos
Book your favorite photographer early!  Their calendar is likely to fill up fast because everyone wants Christmas photos in time to send out cards.  Not sure how soon is soon enough?  Just ask.  Be clear about the date that you want the finished product ready and they can help you figure out a good date to get your pictures taken.  In addition to making your appointment, start thinking and shopping for your outfits.  You want to 'go' together without being matchy-matchy...unless you're into that sort of thing.  It's good to shop early before the selection gets picked over and gives you plenty of time to shop sales and get alterations done if need be.  Oh...and one last thing...get thee to a salon!  You don't want your split ends or roots showing!  Make an appointment for the whole family to get a nice trim at least a couple weeks before your photo shoot.

A few more optional things to make your holiday season easier...

• When you're cooking dinner, double the recipe and freeze half for an easy dinner later.

• Stock your pantry with all the supplies you'll need for holiday baking. 

• Set your gift-giving budget and stick to it.  Make a list of all the people you plan to give gifts to.  This will make it easier to budget how much you can afford to spend per person.  You may also want to give yourself some wiggle room within that budget in case you find yourself invited to a party and in need of a hostess gift.  

Garage Sale Finds

Now before you turn your nose up in the air and say, "I don't want to buy someone else's junk," hear me out!  Aaron and I regularly make a Saturday morning of driving around looking at garage sales for things that we can use or fix up and repurpose.  Surprisingly...it's a lot of fun.  Believe it or not, we've furnished our entire living room (minus the couches and the television) from garage sales. I've also gotten quite a few home decor items that are perfectly good and in style...you'd never know that I got them in someone's driveway.  The only difference is...I paid pennies on the dollar!  Jealous?

Anyway...I thought that I'd share some of my finds today with you...just in case you're a skeptic.  

What I got:

4 rectangular collapsible storage totes

1 kids hat from the Gap

1 Boppy pillow with case

1 St Louis Cardinals Teddy Bear 

How much did I spend today?  Bet you wouldn't guess...only $4!  The totes were $1 since they had some minor damage to the seams on the bottom...nothing I can't fix.  The Boppy pillow was $2 and came with the cover (regularly $39.99).  The hat ($12.95 at Gap.com) and bear were $0.50 each.  So...aside from the minor stitches that are needed on the totes and the washing I gave everything else...great stuff for a steal!   I even had some change left over to buy lemonade.

I will actually say one thing about second hand stuffed animals...I wouldn't give one to my child unless it's made to be washable.  The bear I bought will go to my Dad's house where he and his two dogs are big Cardinal's fans!

If you're interested in garage saleing in your area, check out the Yard Sale Treasure Map app on your smart phone.  You can access it on the go or plan your route at home and print it out.  

***If buying used baby/children items, ALWAYS check the recall list first!  When in doubt, opt out!***

Foam Tiles=Awesome Photo Op!

A while back, my mother-in-law, Debi, gave me a package of those foam letter/number puzzle tiles.  She said they make great mats for little ones to have tummy time on.  Since we have tile floors, I think we can use all the extra padding we can get for Ayden.  Anyway, I put them down and as usual, I started snapping picture after picture of my son at play.  As I was snapping away, I noticed how cute the tiles were as a backdrop for pictures.  Bright and colorful...and his sweet baby face really popped with all the color behind him.  

Lightbulb...they're letters and numbers...you can SPELL WORDS with them.  Duh.

So I found the letters to his name and spelled his first name, the date and then one row of random letters and numbers to set him down on.  Wouldn't you know it...makes a really cute way to chronical his growth!

5 months

6 months

I know my pictures aren't the best quality, but I think the concept is pretty darn cool!  My only regret is that I didn't think of this sooner.  I still think it'll make a really fun display for his first birthday party!