A Green Christmas Part II - Recycle!

When Christmas is over, out goes the used wrapping paper, boxes, and old Christmas cards. It seems like such a shame to throw out those beautiful cards that were sent so lovingly by family and friends. Below are some great ideas to give a 2nd life to your Christmas cards:

Christmas Themed Puzzle:

Cut a piece of cardboard so it is the same shape and size of your Christmas card. Next, cut the Christmas card in half by cutting along the fold. Glue the inside of the top half of the card to one side of the cardboard; allow it to dry. Now glue the outside of the 2nd half of the card to the back of the cardboard; allow to dry.  Take your scissors and out puzzle pieces. The difficulty of your puzzle will be determined by the age of your recipient. I'm giving this puzzle to my 2 1/2 yr old, so I will just be cutting out a few pieces.

Christmas Themed Gift Box:

This is a fun way to make a beautiful gift box. Your gift's recipient will be amazed! Click here for directions. 

Gift Tags:

Get out your favorite holiday themed cookie cutters and use them to trace shapes on the back of your card's picture.

Cut them out make a hole or slit on the top of each; string a piece of ribbon to complete!

Enjoy!!!!

Christmas Decor That the Kids can Help Make

With Christmas right around the corner, it's no wonder that my pursuit to keep my 2 1/2 busy was influenced by the holidays this week. On our walks this week, I tasked Archer to collect sticks and pine cones. When we would return home from our walks, he would put his finds in an extra vase I have. This morning, we hung ornaments on the sticks. It looks beautiful and Archer is so proud that he helped to make it!

$10 Game Night

According to Hasbro, National Family Game Night was September 28th, so I'm either really late in gifting this, or really, really early for next year. I love playing board games with family and friends. My brother also shares this love, almost every time I visit him, he and his buddies are huddled over Scrabble, Taboo, etc. So I knew that this year I wanted to find another game to add to his collection.

I found another amazing deal at the fundraiser I recently attended. For $5, I was able to purchase the board game, "Non-Trival Quest".  For another $5, I was able to snag, "Battle of the Sexes - The Battle Continues" from the store Five Below. If I bought these 2 games on Amazon.com, it would have cost me $44.99.

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Don't forget to check out today's Conversation Starter,(found on the right hand side), on celebrity Christmases!

Gifts for Under $10 for Your Little Guys Under 5

With less than a week left till Christmas, I can knock another 2 people off my list.  I found some amazing deals for the 2 little guys in my life.

Gift for my 1st little guy:

What kid you know isn't in love with Toy Story? Combine that love with a space shooter toy and you have one very satisfied gift recipient. The best part? I didn't blow my entire $10 budget on this one toy...it only cost $5 at the store, Five Below! With the remaining money, I was able to buy 3 pairs of Toy Story socks and 2 children's book at $1 a piece. I bought the socks at Five Below and the books at the incredible fundraiser I mentioned last week. If you purchased these same items on Amazon, it would have set you back a whopping $46.17!

Gift for my 2nd little guy:

From the Little Engine That Could to Thomas the Train...I know one thing: kids love trains. I got a combination train book and toy set from my new favorite store, Five Below for $5. I also purchased a Play Doh's Toy Time Race game for $5 from the same story. If asked to describe Toy Time Race, I'd say it's our childhood favorite characters, (Mr. Potato Head, My Little Pony, etc.) meets Play Doh meets the game Sorry! If you bought these items from Amazon, you'd be looking at a total of $32.92.

A Gift for the Mature Gentleman - Part II

My husband's father enjoys self-help or inspirational books, but as I mentioned in an earlier entry, $10 does not get you very far at Barnes & Noble. So, what did I do? I visited our local Dollar Tree and was able to find 2 books for him.
 
In pursuit of keeping within my $10 limit, I went out in search for stores that would help me reach this goal. This is how I found Five Below.  As the name implies, everything in this store is $5 or less. Many of the items are sold here at a cheaper price than if you went elsewhere. But be careful when you're here though, because in some instances, the merchandise is actually overpriced. Click here to be directed to their site.

It was here where I found a desk calendar for only $3; it normally retails for $12.99.

With the remaining $5, I purchased him a Reader's Digest subscription. If you're interested in getting this amazing deal for either yourself or a loved one, click here to be directed to the link.

Go Outside your Comfort Zone!

When I left corporate America, one thing of the things I was afraid of was falling into a dull routine with no room/time for personal growth. I mean, just because I'm a mom caring for 2 children does not negate the fact that I am still a person who wants to experience new things. (And let's be honest, changing diapers and watching Leapfrog can get a little tiring, no matter  how cute your kids are.)

So when a friend of mine bought a new motorcycle, I jumped on the opportunity to take it out for a spin.  A lot of you may be scratching your heads thinking, what's the big deal? The big deal is that I had never ridden a motorcycle before due to the simple fact that I am terrified with how I would fare if I were ever in a motorcycle accident.

I mean, come on, there are no seat belts on these things! The motorcycle industry just trusts that I'm going to hold on to the person in front of me tight enough to keep me firmly seated on a racing bike? Have you seen  cyclist take a turn? They are practically moving at a 45 degree angle. What's to stop the cycle from going down the other 45 degrees and taking my leg along with it? Have you ever seen a cyclist take a car head on and win? You know what, scratch the car, how about a rock in the middle of the road? You are totally going airborne. Rock: 1. Me: 0. All of these very valid reasons have kept me from a bike for my entire life.

So why, after just a few weeks into my gainful unemployment, did I take on something I had secretly vowed never to do? The answer is because I was more afraid of plateauing. When we become parents, our focus shifts, (and rightfully so), from us to the kids. Regardless if you work or stay home, we take the time we would have normally spent on our own development and put it towards that of our children's. So when the opportunity for me to challenge a fear of mine and broaden my experiences came along, I took it.

Is there an opportunity available that you would have normally turned down due to fear, lack of time/money, etc.? I think that as living, breathing people, we owe it to ourselves and our kids to try new things. An unhappy parent does not a happy child make. Besides, opening yourself up only encourages your child to try new things as well.

And by the way...I had a blast!!

Making sure Archer doesn't inherit my fear of the motorcycle...

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Don't forget to check out today's Conversation Starter, (found on the right hand side), on state vs parents' rights.

A Gift for the Mature Gentleman

My dad loves to read anything nonfiction about religion and politics. And nothing ereader please; paper only - thank you very much!

But $10 doesn't go very far at Barnes & Noble. Luckily for me, there was a fundraiser in my area and I was able to purchase 3 books for a whopping $3!!! These 3 books retail at B&N for a collective $54.40. With my leftover $7, I visited TJMaxx and found a long sleeve shirt, (which originally retailed for $20), in their clearance section. I got almost $75 worth of stuff for 10 bucks...not too bad if I say so myself.

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Don't forget to check out today's Conversation Starter, found on the right hand side, regarding the hottest women of all time!