Holiday Blocks

I have been wanting to do this project for about a year now... and I FINALLY did it! My mother-in-law has a big box of wooden blocks that she shared with me, and since I already had mod podge, paper, and my handy dandy Cricut cutting machine I got for Christmas... it was the perfect time to get it done! Here is the finished product:

St. Patrick's Day

Valentine's Day

Thanksgiving

Halloween

4th of July

Easter

P.S. Since there are only 6 sides, I didn't do Christmas. I think I will do a smaller separate set with a few different sayings for Christmas. Also, a few of the holidays didn't use all 11 blocks, so I plan on putting some kind of picture on the extras like a turkey for Thanksgiving and a shamrock for ST. Patrick's day.

Tribute to Grandma Ruby

My dear Grandma Ruby passed away yesterday at 90 years old. I would like to take a minute and reflect on some of my favorite memories of her.

• No one loved babies more than Grandma
• She loved to read and was passionate about learning/education
• She loved her family more than anything in the world
• She sewed me many outfits for birthdays
• She loved the outdoors and going camping
• She always made me feel special and loved
• She was a great cook
• She was a romantic
• She had a great sense of humor
• She even slipped a swear word here and there!

At my wedding reception

Trying to keep warm outside the temple on my wedding day

Grandma holding Maybrie for the first time

I love you Grandma Ruby!

Maybrie's 1st Haircut!

Yes, I know, Maybrie is 2 years old... but it has taken her this long to grow enough hair to cut any. And actually, it was more like a trim. I tried to get her excited by saying we were playing beauty parlor, and she liked that idea. She was very cooperative. Here are her before and after shots:

BEFORE

You can't tell because her hair is wet, but it has been getting in her eyes.

Goodbye "mullet" or "rat tail"

AFTER

No more hair in her eyes!

An evened out bob. I think it kind of looks like a little dutch boy haircut. She is too cute!

New Job

Brian started a new job yesterday. He is working for RE Powell in Yakima. It is his first office job and will help him develop business skills as he pursues a Master's in Business Administration. Since we will not be headed to dental school this fall, unless Western University in CA accepts him (he is currently on the alternate list), we are moving forward with an alternative plan of gaining a degree in business. We are grateful Brian has this job opportunity. He is a little overwhelmed right now, but he will soon get the hang of things... there is always a transition period with each new job.

Now that Brian is working every weekday instead of the weekend shift at Walmart, I am no longer substitute teaching, but am staying home full time with Maybrie. I am hoping I can make some real progress potty training Maybrie this month. She continues to keep us on our toes and is learning a mile a minute right now! She is such a little girl now and is very imaginative in her play. This is a picture of her playing in a big empty box after we set up our new couch last week. She had a ball playing in her new doll house!

BEST deal EVER!

Okay, so I know I already posted about my new couponing craze... but this deal I got today is SO awesome, I just had to share! I mentioned in my past couponing post that I tried to get these J & J baby lotion/ washes for free with coupons two weeks ago, but they were wiped out. I was bummed about yet another failed attempt at couponing for free items and decided to ask if they did rain checks for the sale price. And boy was it worth the 5-10 minutes I waited for the manager to come and fill out two rain check slips for me! I just purchased these 6 lotions/washes for...

wait for it....

$1. 16 !!!!

That is a value of almost $30 that I just got for a buck! I am stoked! I got them for $.99 each, plus I had a dollar off coupon for 4, and $.75 off 2... thus costing me $.50 + tax! AWESOME!!!! :)

P.S. Before everyone thinks I am too great, I must confess that this was all possible thanks to the awesome couponing site happymoneysaver.com which did most of the investigating for me! Check it out.

Thomas

I am now 22 weeks pregnant. This week I had another ultrasound. Our baby boy is growing well, and now weighs 1 lb. 1 oz. Brian and I having pretty much settled on the name Thomas, and today I decided to look up it's meaning and popularity. The name means twin. I was very disappointed. He is definitely NOT a twin... so can I still use it? We chose the name because of our prophet Thomas S. Monson. I think I will just tell him he is named after a prophet and call it good! What do you think?

I LOVE my husband!

I know it is common for women to say how wonderful their husbands are after they are whisked away on a romantic getaway or given a nice gift. While I appreciate moments like that, I think the times I realize how much I love my husband are the weeks like this one... the bad ones!

Wednesday started off with me having a weird dizzy spell, having to call in sick to work, and getting carried back to bed by Brian. Then Brian got the devastating news from University of Washington that he was denied admission to the dental school this fall. By the evening both Maybrie and I were coughing and feeling sick.

Thursday morning both Maybrie and I woke up miserable. I went to the doctor and found out I caught yet another, even worse, strain of a cold/cough/ sinus infection. He sent me home with two antibiotics. That night Brian woke almost every hour with Maybrie and even helped me to a steam bath/shower when my sinuses became unbearable.

The next morning Brian woke to me throwing up in our bed. He heroically ran and got towels to catch it in and clean up and sent me to the bathroom to change my soiled clothes and get it cleaned out of my hair. Brian cleaned up my mess and changed the sheets while I showered. Then he came and blow-dried my hair for me and tucked me back into bed! He spent the day caring for me and Maybrie. All I have to say is that I LOVE my husband! He may be too frugal to buy me flowers on Valentine's and treat me to fancy restaurants, but he is the kindest, most loving man I know. He is there for me when it truly matters. He pushes through the tough times and truly treats me like a princess. He is also an incredible father to Maybrie and I know he will be just as great with our little boy. Brian may not be a millionaire, but he is worth a million to me! I love you Brian and am so grateful for the decision I made to marry you over three years ago.

Couponing

So, this year I have tried to get into couponing to save some money. I started following some cool blogs that list great deals, and have been clipping lots of coupons. Since there are not very many stores close in this small town I decided to just try for the deals at two stores: Rite Aid and Safeway. The last couple weeks I have entered the "nesting" phase of pregnancy and have been on the hunt for good deals on baby supplies. Last week I scored three jumbo packs of Huggies diapers for $4 each (regularly $12). That's three packs for the price of one! Pretty sweet! Also, I have a rain check for 4 free Johnson & Johnson baby wash/ lotion to redeem. They were cleared out when I went to score the deal with the diapers, so I decided to ask if I could get a rain check for the sale price. I'm glad I asked because I was able to, and since I have a coupon for each one too... they will be free! Tonight Maybrie and I went while Brian was at mutual, and I am stoked about how well I did. Check it out!What I got:

• 2 Aveeno lotions
• 2 Aveeno moisturizers
• 2 Aveeno Baby products (wash & lotion)
• 6 toothbrushes
• 2 Nivea chapsticks (1 not pictured because Maybrie would not give it up... it's her new "make-up" :))
• 1 Softsoap hand soap

Cost before Wellness + savings and coupons:

• $85.42

What I paid:

• $33.21

Total Savings:

• $52.21 !!!!!!

Pretty Cool huh?! :)