Tips

Personalized Notebooks

2012

An easy and very personal gift for any Mom is to put together a personalized notebook. And don’t think you are too old for this! You are never too old!! You can do pictures, hand prints, notes, or whatever you think your mom will love best. Here are a couple of ideas that we have used for my Mom.

Favorite Memories of Mom

Idea # 1: We made this book with all the children in our family ages 7-25 and spouses were included. The youngest drew a picture or the cover. Every member of the family has 2 pages in it. One to share their favorite memories of my mom and the second for a painted hand print. (We thought it would be funny to add a hand print. lol) Everyone typed something up (or told/gave me what they wanted to say and I typed it up) and we placed each sheet of paper on a piece of colored card stock. We attached all the pages together with 2 hole punches and some colored yarn. Honestly, we used what we had and we put this together the night before Mother’s Day. My Mom loved it and still has it 8 years later!

Here is the Cover:

The Cover was followed by a list from the youngest of things she liked about our Mom and then her hand print, which she embellished with glitter (her idea).

The following pages were letters and hand prints from the older children. Most were specific stories and memories they loved to remember about our Mom. My other sister added a foot print to her “print” page.

To Have a Mom Like You!

Idea # 2: This was put together by my Sister-In-Law, Emali. It is a simple folder with clear plastic sheets. We were each asked to write “What it means to have a Mom like you”. Most are letters that start just with that. The youngest made a cute colorful page that spelled out “MOTHER” and a word for each letter. Below is an inside cover. And again, this is another of my Mom’s favorite Mother’s Day keepsakes.

Need some more ideas? Check out these 5 Simple Mother’s Day On a Dime Gifts

Filed Under: All Ages, Birthdays/Celebrations, Creative Gifts Tagged With: Crafts, Fun, Tips

Burned Out

2012

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I don’t normally get personal on this site. I try to make this more of a place to inspire you rather than all about ME, but I feel like I need to get this out there…I have been on the edge of a blogging burn out for the good first few months of the year. I was debating on quitting, handing the site over to someone else or something crazy. From September up until the middle of December I had been able to keep up with a regular weekday posting schedule. That’s 4-5 times a week. A first for me! I was pretty dang proud of my consistency. Then the year started with a preschooler who refused to nap, a less than ideally healthy me and our family life started getting really busy. So after talking to the Hubster, we decided to slow down my posting to 3 days a week and with the help of friends and many guest bloggers I was able to prep the site to run on its own for 2+ months. It was crazy to prep, but it was amazing the relief I felt and my ability to focus on my little family. And boy, oh boy am I glad I had that time because we had a lot of really good changes happen all at once!

Image: digitalart / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

We had an amazing opportunity to purchase our first house, which equals no more renting. We are very excited about that! The Hubby had a change in his work schedule which allows us to have a more consistent schedule and spend weekends together as a family. Both of these things pretty much were wrapped up/happened all at the same time. We were hoping to close a couple weeks early on the house and have 1 or 2 weekends to transition between homes. Our closing was pretty smooth, but as most closings go, it got crazy towards the end. Because of some small paperwork delays, we closed later than our original close date on a week day (not a weekend as we hoped) and the seller, determined not to extend a 2nd time, ended up closing in the last few hours of the final day. Good thing, too, because we were packing the truck that day not sure what we were going to do with all our stuff and a 24 hour rental truck! lol But it all worked out! The only bad part was that we were not able to do basic prep to our new home before we moved in and only had 2 days to clean our rental out. (The house had been vacant for many months and needed a good vacuum, carpet cleaning, extreme wipe down of everything and paint job. I did not realize how bad/dirty it was until much later….something I’m going to give the blame to higher powers because that was a serious blessing not to notice! lol) With some extreme help of my mom and sister we were able to extreme clean the rental the remaining 2 days of our contract (I am cheap and wanted our full deposit back, which we got!). Then it was back to our new home for me to start the deep cleaning. I think I made it only one more day, Friday, and vacuumed the house like crazy before we had the carpet cleaned that Saturday. The next few weeks are a blur. We soon figured out that we had more good news, hopefully, on the way! My body was exhausted from everything I had been doing (and I was terrified to push it any more for fear of another miscarriage) that I listened to my body and let myself rest… a lot! The couch became my good friend during that time. =) I am officially past that 3 month mark and feel a little better about sharing the news. So, YES, we are expecting a new addition to the family late Fall!

See, I told you…Lots of good things happening, but oh so crazy times! I am so glad I had the time to focus on my family and the amazing thing is, is that my site actually did better with all my pre-planning, post less and on “auto pilot” than it did when I wrote a daily post 4+ times a week. Now that I almost have no other distractions, it is time for me to get back. I am making a plan to help me get my motivation back in all departments and I’ll share that with you soon….hopefully, Thursday.

Until then, share with me:

How do you keep everything in order or plan your day as a mom and stay motivated?

Filed Under: About Michelle (aka the Fun On a Dime Lady), Adults, All Ages Tagged With: Tips

Tips to Get Out Of Debt {Guest Post}

2012

Why Are You In Debt?

This is the first task that most people have to address when dealing with debt. You need to know how you got in debt to begin with. There are two main buckets: unexpected life events and poor financial habits.

Unexpected life events, such as emergency medical care, can play havoc with individual finances. If this is your situation, you most likely were not able to control getting here. You may look for options in the future, such as insurance, if you qualify, but there probably was not much preventing this.

However, poor financial habits are completely within your control. For whatever reason, you spend more than you earn, and usually on things you don’t remember spending on. Maybe you bought an expensive new car instead of a used one? Whatever the case, you need to address your habits to overcome this scenario.

Getting Help with Debt

Depending on which bucket you fall into, there are several options available to you to get help with your debt. If you encountered an unexpected life event that plunged you into debt, you may want to seek professional help with your debt. A financial adviser or debt counselor could help you find the idealsolution to your debt problems.

If you got into debt because of poor financial decisions you made, you need to focus on the root cause, which is yourself. You can do this by first, being honest about your debt and spending habits. You can make a budget, and use software like Mint to track your earnings and spending.

Second, you need to get an accountability partner to help you develop new habits, and support you if you stumble. By doing this, you can set yourself up on the right financial track.

Filed Under: Guest Blogger Tagged With: Tips

New Year’s Day Traditions

2011

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As we are prepping for the start of the New Year, it is a great time to reflect on the year we just had AND we have much to be grateful for this year! We have had a lot of changes happen in our lives as I am sure many of you have, too, and are excited for what the year to come has to offer. Yes, New Year’s Day is just a day like any other, but it can also be a great bench mark for us to set in our heads to start new goals. If New Year’s Day doesn’t work for you, choose another! (i.e. the first Monday of the month, the 10th, etc.) Whatever your need is to set a goal, just do it! Create your start date and do not put it off until 2013!

Happy New Years from the Gardners and Fun On a Dime!

And on that note, we move on to our…

New Year’s Day Traditions

This year we are experiencing a little different weather than we did last year….

Okay, big difference! It was in the high 70′s today. L.O.V.E. it! Let’s just say that I will be investing in a few more pair of flip-flops this year! (P.S. The best (longevity and price) flip-flops I have bought for my kiddos were from the Children’s Place. They even have the perfect toddler sized ones with the back strap and are available year round online. To get an even better discount make sure to use a Children’s Place coupon code.)

So with our current weather #1 on our list is to do something fun outside during the day! But if you are on the chilly side of the thermometer, fun inside is great, too! An Indoor Snowball Fight always ends up more entertaining than expected. Use what you’ve got on hand…paper, pillows, and socks are great alternatives! And we are definitely going to play the M&M Straw Game this year, but with a twist…see the tip below.

Tip: If you do not have shake straws (but have regular straws) or have younger younger children who do not have the lung strength to suck up the M&Ms, use dried beans instead. Pinto beans work great! I learned this from my son’s very smart Kindergarten teacher. Such a great alternative!

Then on the schedule is an easy dinner (most likely it will be Homemade Pizza because the kids always request that) and then a Star Wars movie. And probably the biggest scandal of the night (the kids do not know, yet, so it doesn’t count, right?)…

We Don’t Wait Up Until Midnight – We Fake It!

And when we are ready to wrap up the evening (usually around 8 or 8:30), I search on youtube for a video of the ball dropping for another time zone that has already hit midnight. We will countdown with it and then watch the after show on the video. Then the kiddos head off to bed leaving Mom and Dad with a few hours to enjoy on our own. The best thing about this is that we are all not up until midnight wired or grouchy, depending on the person, and we wake up in the morning with happy kiddos!

Whatever you do choose to do this New Year, remember to make some fun memories, take at least one picture, and enjoy the ones you love! Have a WONDERFUL NEW YEAR!!!

What are your plans for New Years?

Filed Under: All Ages, Birthdays/Celebrations Tagged With: Fun, Tips

Our Weight Loss Journey

2011

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After watching My Weight Loss Journey this past year my husband told me in August that he wanted to join me in doing the Live The Life program. I was more than excited!!

All through my Live the Life journey my husband has been a great supporter of my efforts, but did not feel he was ready to join in with me. As a big red meat lover he has slowly changed his habits over the last few years, but especially the last 11 months while I’ve been doing the program. He has gone from requesting at least 2 lbs of red meat a week to eating red meat once or twice every 3 months. He was even uncertain of my turkey bacon, but after having a few meals with it he has now declared we can get it every time!

He used the excuse before that he could not do the Live the Life program with me because his schedule was too crazy. I agree it was crazy with school and work and driving 12+ hours a week, but I told him it was possible. He has since graduated and now has a normal work schedule. His days are long with very little breaks, but he decided he wanted to give the program a try. We did a week trial together and he learned that it was a lot easier than he thought. His managers at work, once they knew what he was doing, were totally okay with him sneaking off for a couple minutes to eat a quick meal when it was not lunch time. He came home with a lot of energy, did not get his evening munchy cravings, and was not starving all day. We did not add the workouts that first week while doing the 7 Day Challenge, and he still lost more than 5 lbs in the first few days!

Here are his Before and After pictures after doing the eating portion of the program for 12 weeks. He did workout throughout the program 2-5 days a week riding a bike and lifting.

Oops, I flipped them! Left is After and Right is Before.

He started at 6’4″ and 265 lbs. His end weight was 235lbs! He lost a total of 30 lbs, 1 inch off his chest and 6 inches off his belly!

He loves his new energy and his renewed love for bike riding. He just went on a 56 mile bike ride last weekend and wants to do more this weekend. And he is actually talking about wanting to do more Live the Life! My skeptic is now a fan. lol

I will admit that it was difficult for both of us to be eating/making the Live the Life meals IF I was the only one making the meals. If he helped prep the meals and put them together in the morning for his day, it was a TON easier! I love that he wanted to do this with me and we are getting healthy together. He is actually talking about wanting to do more weeks of Live the Life. Ah, my skeptic is now a fan!

If you are interested in trying the Live The Life Fitness Program go over and get it now! They are having a %15 off Black Friday Sale. They would make a perfect Christmas gift!

I am linking up to these: Monday – Making the World Cuter, Sew Can Do, Sumo’s Sweet Stuff, C.R.A.F.T. Keeping it Simple, Skip to my Lou,Ginger Snap Creations, Loving Life Tuesday – Topsy Turvy Tuesdays, Sugar Bee Craft Edition, Today’s Creative Blog, Naptime Creations Wednesday – Night Owl Crafting, Fireflies & Jellybeans, Blue Cricket Design, Creations by Kara, Sew Much Ado, Beyond the Picket Fence, the Thrifty Home, 733 a Creative Blog, Someday Crafts, Sew Woodsy Thursday – Somewhat Simple, Someday Crafts, Katie’s Nesting Spot,HOH, Seven Thirty Three Friday – Fingerprints On The Fridge, It’s Fun to Craft, It’s a Hodgepodge Life, A Few of My Favorite Things, Tatertots and Jello, TidyMom, Creation Corner Sunday The Girl Creative

Filed Under: Review Tagged With: Deals, Spare Change, Tips

Asking The Right Questions

2011

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This is an amazing video that seriously changed my way of thinking. After reading last Wednesday’s guest post, Hold Your Tongue, by Rachel, I was reminded that I wanted to share it with you all and had not done it, yet! I first saw this video back in June and I do not think a day has gone by that I have not thought about or referred to something I learned from this speaker. It is applicable to every situation in your life. I will warn you that it is just under 20 minutes, but it is worth it. So, if you are someone who can not just sit and watch something, grab a snack, do dishes, fold laundry or paint your toenails and watch this! You will thank me later. I promise.

The speaker is Rachael Herrscher from TodaysMama speaking at TEDx event in Salt Lake City.