GIVEAWAY TIME!

ENTRIES ACCEPTED NOW THROUGH MARCH 4TH

Alright, it's time for another giveaway! This giveaway is for a very cute hairbow set from Sweet Baby Tutus.

The winner will receive one pink stretchy crochet headband with a matching pink flower clip and two boutique style hairbows in the color(s) of your choice. All hairbows are attached to a covered alligator clip. 

These are great for little girls of all ages! The flower is a 4" daisy and the boutique style bows are approximately 3".

 The winner can pick from pink, black, lavender, yellow and pink with chocolate polka dots.

HOW TO ENTER

Very simple! Leave a comment under this post. You may earn additional entries by becoming a Facebook Fan and a follower of this blog. For each entry leave an additional comment. Ex: "I became a FB fan too!" I will check to make sure the additional entries are valid. This gives you a total of three chances to win!! The giveaway is open to residents of the U.S. and Canada.

The last day for entries will be Friday, March 4th (midnite EST). The winner will be announced Monday March 7th using Random.org. The hairbows will be shipped via USPS within 5 business days of contacting the winner. If I have not heard from the winner within 48 hours of contacting them I will select another winner.

Feel free to tweet, post on FB or blog about this contest!

This Mommy Needs a Break!

I've reached that point.

Every mom has it. It's the day your husband walks in the door and you head out without much of an explanation, just "I need a break!" You drive around, head to a local retail store to walk around aimlessly, maybe a book store to grab a cup of coffee. Not really caring how your husband is doing without you, just that you don't have to deal with bath time, story time, pajama struggles and sibling fighting for that night.



This is my "I've had it!" face



I have started thinking of how long it's been since I've been away from my kids for longer than nap time. I think it was a few weeks ago for a church dinner. Then I started to think about the last time I went out alone. Running to the post office or market doesn't count. Just a mommy only shopping venture, Hmmmm, it's been months. Yes, months!



For some reason this weekend has been tough with the kids. Not listening, fighting, walking out in the middle of church to discipline my son who was talking loudly and not being a "good listener." Then laying down to catch a short nap only to have my son wake up from a very short nap and tap my every five minutes for something, even after I turned on his favorite movie and told him mommy needed a nap too. That didn't happen.

This week I go back to work. It will be for two days a week. I've been worried about how I will handle leaving my daughter who is with me ALL the time (my son attends preschool three days a week). I think this trying weekend has been God's way of preparing me and showing me this job will be a good change. Maybe I will get some of my sanity back.

Not everyone is made to be a SAHM. I've enjoyed the time home with my kids but have known it wasn't a permanent gig for me. I think becoming a part-time working mom will be good for me. Hopefully it will help me find patience again.

I Hate Shopping but... I LOVE Deals!

Okay, I don't actually hate shopping. I just hate it when I don't have the money to buy what I want. Since we're on a tight budget at the moment, I currently hate shopping.

However, I LOVE the end of season sales and today I found some awesome buys at GAP and Macy's.  I must first say that my hubby and I went shopping last weekend and got some pretty great deals too on clothes for my daughter and I found a cute dress.

I headed to the mall today because I received an email from GAP about an extra 40% off their sale items. I purchased $189.50 worth of clothing for $30.50!

Here is what I got:

Gray Cord jacket - originally 59.50 - sale 11.99

Vintage Flare jeans in dark wash - originally $69.50 - sale 12.59

black top with tie and keyhole opening in back - originally 29.50 - sale 2.98

gray tank with beads - originally 29.50 - sale 2.98

I was so excited about the jeans!  I am tall so finding jeans that actually fit is tough. GAP jeans have always fit me well but at $70.00 a pop they are not usually in this SAHM's budget.  Also, I do not buy clothes just because they are cheap! I tried them on, made sure they fit and flattered me. So what if a top is $2.00 and you never wear it! That's two bucks you wasted! The fit of the black shirt was so cute and looked great with the jeans! Yay!

Next I headed over to Macy's. This is where my husband and I found some great deals last weekend so I went to see what was left.  They had an extra 50% some of their sale racks.  This is what I purchased:

3 piece Clavin Klein outfit with vest, shirt and pants sz 2T - originally 66.00 - sale 7.48

two Quicksilver t-shirts - originally 16.00 each - sale 2.48 each

sweater vest - originally 17.99 - sale 2.48

cardigan - originally 19.99 - sale 2.48

All together I purchased around $135.00 worth of clothes at Macy's for 17.40!

All of the items from Macy's were for my son and daughter. I bought the next size up for my daughter so she could wear them next fall. I purchased the short sleeved shirts for my son for the spring and summer.

So, there you have it! A very successful day shopping for me :)

Change is Coming

Quality Time

The time has come. I must go back to work.

I'm happy. I'm sad. I'm nervous. I'm excited.

When my husband went back to grad school for ministry in 2005 we knew it meant having financial hardships for a few years and eventually moving away from our families. All I asked was that I could be a SAHM for a while when he was finally called to his own church. 

Well, we moved here in 2009 and I became a SAHM to my then three year old son and six-month-old daughter. I didn't think I could make it after the first month. I was ready to pull my hair out! But, we finally got into a routine and I loved it. I missed a lot of the adult things, like lunch hours and conversation. I also realized what a gift staying home was for me.

After having my son in 2006 I returned to work full-time after twelve weeks of maternity leave. It was hard leaving him but I had no choice. I had to work.  When our daughter was born in 2009 we had already moved once. I had a new job and could only stay out for eight weeks and then had to return to work. Again, I had to work.

Then my husband was called to VA. He kept his promise and I got to stay home. I realized what I missed while I worked when my son was little. I don't regret it but I am sad that someone else got to see everything I missed.  More than once I've sat back and wondered, 'How in the world did I get all this done when I worked?'  I've learned what an incredible person it takes to work and be a wife and mother and take care of a home while making sure your kid doesn't turn into a serial killer. What's more amazing are the millions of moms and dads who do it every day!

So, in a few weeks I will return to work, this time only part-time. A few days a week. It will help me ease back into the real world. For some reason I think leaving my kids this time will be even harder then when they were infants.  They have become my side kicks, my partners in crime.

I am excited about entering the adult world again! Having conversations that involve subjects other than Buzz Lightyear and trains is a huge plus! I think I'm really going to enjoy my job.

Most of me can't wait to get started. The part of my heart that is with my kids is dragging a little though.

Weekend Blog Hops

Visiting new blogs this weekend!

               

       

I'm in the Spotlight!

I'm the Spotlight blog for Traveling Thursdays!! Read below to participate and possibly be next week's spotlight!

 

Welcome to the Traveling Through Thursday Blog Hop 2/3/11 hosted by Living on Love and Cents, Mom On Dealz, Our Kids Mom , and Belly Charms (The Blog).

The Spotlight this week is Jamie from Makin' It Work. Here are a few things she wanted to share with us all. She is 5 on this week's linky. Be sure to stop by and tell her hello!

I started blogging about two years ago as a way to keep our family updated on our kids after we moved away. I started my second blog "Makin' It Work" about three months ago after I became a SAHM and started my own business.

When I'm not blogging I'm playing with my kids (they are 1 and 4) or making tutus for my shop on Etsy.com Sweet Baby Tutus. I also love to be outside when the weather cooperates and reading.

I love to blog! It's so much fun seeing the comments people leave and it's also very therapeutic. I have met some really great people and found really interesting stories.

Thanks so much for including me as a spotlight!

Would you like to be a spotlight? All you have to do is follow these steps. Also visit Sweet Baby Tutus/ Makin It Work on Twitter and Facebook.
1) Follow the first 4 pages in the linky. These are our hosts. Be sure to comment so that we can follow back!
2) Please only link up your the network we are visiting for the week!--GOOGLE
3) Spread the word about this hop with a post, grab the button, etc.!For more followers- Grab the linky code and post this on your blog for your followers!

Happy Traveling! Be SURE to leave a comment so that we can return the follow.

get the InLinkz code