October mini-mail pen pals!

When I saw this post over at Meredith's blog, I knew I had to participate in her mini-mail pen pals! 

My boys love to get "fun mail" and I love to give gifts- this was a win-win for our family!!

October's theme was a hodge-podge of either your child's favorites or fun Halloween things. I signed the boys up together and they had sibling pen pals as well. We hope Madison & Jack loved their package as much as we loved ours!! 

Here are the fun packages we sent out:

We sent little Madison a grow your own princess and a Disney princess chalk board {she loves princesses}. We got her a cute pair of gloves for fall that are sure to match any cute girly outfit! We also sent some fun Halloween goodies- glow in the dark nail polish, a spider cookie, pumpkin pez, and face painting make up kit. 

We sent Jack a grow your own dinosaur kit, and little dinos to play with {he loves dinosaurs}. Because Jack loves cars, we sent him a lightening McQueen chalk board, and a new hot wheel. We also through in some Halloween goodies- a pumpkin cookie, a pumpkin pez, and a face painting make up kit! 

The boys also gave them a card with a photo of themselves and a few things to help Madison & Jack get to know them better!

Here they are all packaged up cute, ready to be shipped!

And here is what they sent our little guys:

Little bug got 2 cute little cars, a pumpkin bib, a squish monster, and a cute spider bag. Little man got a fun monster truck, spider socks, a squish monster, and a pumpkin bag. Madison and Jack also sent us a sweet note telling us about themselves. The boys loved it!!!

Cannot wait to participate next month!! 

No pudge fudge

Saw this at sprouts this week and it had me very curious. Fat free, all natural brownies that use yogurt and you can make single servings in 60 seconds??? OKAY!

You start out by adding 1T of Non-fat plain yogurt for every 2T of mix

look at that batter!! 

Now microwave for 60 seconds

Sampling the batter

this is what it looks like out of the microwave... 

can you smell it??? mmmm....

and then, eat that yummy goodness! 

This was such a treat! I felt like i was splurging on dessert, but it wasnt a splurge! YUM! I am keeping this as a staple in our house for sure! 

{and no i am not getting paid in any way to tell you this...hehe}

It was enjoyed by all!

Thrift store hoppin'

Guess where I went today?? 

oh. i guess the title sorta gives that away huh?

Ahem. Well, I went to 4 {!!} different thrift stores today and found some goodies!!

the table on the left is a long folding table that i think most of you will say "my parents have one like that!" It is great, folds up, and has a snap and handle! $15

the trunk isnt a reproduction like we see most of the time. it is truly vintage. It has a huge lock on the front and an old key attached to open it!! the inside is spotless and I am so so happy i found it! it is going to be one of little man's bday presents. I think it will be great to store his superhero costumes! $15

the other card table is a vintage Samsonite card table that was only $3.50!

that yarn is for a special project! $1

look at this huge vintage sheet score!! 

would you believe me if i told you i walked away paying only $5 {!!} for all three of these full size sheet SETS?!?!?!? swoooon.

here is a photo of my boys... 

...i think i wore them out. bug slept like that for over 45mins and little man ASKED to sit in the basket. troopers.

Handmade goods!

Love groupon, the foundary, zulily, totsy, mamapedia and other fabulous discount sites??

I just found this website called Quite Unique. Quite Unique is a new website that features one unique handpicked item per day at a great value. Great news?? EVERYTHING IS HANDMADE!! Like a deal a day of etsy items!!

Take a look for yourself.

CLICK HERE!

Super mom vs abiding mom

A friend shared with me this blog that had this wonderful reminder to keep our priorities in check. I pray you all seek to abide in Him! 

Super Mom	Abiding Mom
Does	Is (Psalm 46:10)
Tries to impress others	Pleases the Lord (Eph. 5:10,Proverbs 29:25)
Is controlled by an agenda(curriculum, schedule, etc)	Is controlled by the Holy Spirit: (Gal. 5:22-26) (Uses curriculum & schedules as tools for orderliness so she's more free to follow the spirit)
Her self worth is found in her accomplishments (clean house, perfect kids, the perfect bulletin boards, etc.)	Her self worth is found in an accurate view of who she is in Christ Jesus (Eph 2:10)
Her peace is found in the “perfect” environment	Her peace is found in Jesus in the midst of any storm (Is 26:3)
She is discouraged by failure	Failure reminds her that God's strength is made perfect in weakness (2 Cor. 12:9-10)
She expects perfection from herself and others	She practices grace with herself and others (Eph 4:32)
She teaches her kids to be good	She teaches her kids to be Godly (Proverbs 22:6)
She is frustrated with her lack of spiritual fruit	She abides in Christ and bears much fruit (John 15:5)
She does things with her children	She builds a relationship with her children (Deut 6:6-7)
Her perspective is based on what is seen	Her perspective is based on what is unseen (Col 3:2)
She chooses quantity of activities	She chooses the most excellent Way (I Cor 13)

She made a great printable version- I printed one out to keep by my sewing machine to remind myself daily!

Click here for a printable version!

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