Friday, February 27, 2009

Nikki's Amazing Deal of the Week

So we all know Old Navy can have some pretty good discounts on clothing, but $75 off a $100 purchase? That's amazing! At OldNavyWeekly.com, you'll find great coupons that can save you a ton of money. Here's the fun part: the coupons are hidden within the advertisements. All you have to do is move your mouse around to find the hidden pop-up coupons. You can only print one coupon at a time so choose wisely. Also, there's a finite amount of coupons per deal. Unfortunately, I missed out on the $75 off $100 discount and the $50 off $100 coupon (the website will let you know when they run out of particular coupon), but I did find a 20% off coupon, not bad. You can be sure I'll check back often for more sweet deals.

Monday, February 16, 2009

Eden's Money Jar


Over these last four years Pete and I have discovered that Eden responds very well to positive reinforcement. So I thought it would be a grand idea to reward her for doing tasks that are above and beyond expected behavior. Each time we notice Eden behaving above and beyond the "call of duty" we will add some change to her jar. Naughty behavior will be punished by removing change from the jar. At the end of the week, if she has earned a dollar or more, she can spend it at the Dollar Store or Walmart. As a side note we do disciple with spanking as well. I not ashamed to say it because I think this is a tool that God has given us to help shape our children to His will. I'm not sure how we're going to work out all the details (we're kinda learning as we go), but I think we'll have set behaviors that will always warrant a spanking: Bad attitudes as shown by pouting, stomping, crossing arms, or saying "I don't have to!"; violent behavior toward Noah; lying; and deliberate disobedience. Lesser offences may be dealt with by removing money from the jar. With that being said, Eden does so many GOOD things and I felt she needed to be rewarded for those times. There are many times I've seen her comfort her brother, clean up a mess, or choose to obey a difficult request. As soon as I told her about the "money jar" she was super excited and grasped right away that exceptional behavior will be rewarded. I also thought this would be a good way to introduce money management. She'll have just a dollar to spend plus some extra change for tax, so she'll begin to learn the value of money and "shopping" on an budget. As she gets older I think we'll encourage her in the disciplines of giving, saving, and investing as well. All in all, E and I had a great time crafting her money jar. I let her do most of the gluing and "designing" and she was so proud of her project when we were done. I hope this will really help to encourage her in doing good deeds.

And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds. Hebrews 10:24

I'm not Martha Stewart but...


....I think I made some pretty sweet slip-covers! Awhile ago I had an overwhelming urge to be creative until finally, three months later, I gathered up enough courage to pull out the old sewing machine and make something happen. I'm so encouraged by my first sewing project in over 15 years!







The slip-covers are an envelope style that I can take off and wash or change out according to my mood. I plan on adding buttons to the end of each flap in order to help secure the covers. I hope this is the first of many sewing projects yet to come!

Saturday, February 14, 2009

Fun Name Guessing Game

Our baby girl will not officially be named until she is born but we do have 4 strong contenders. I thought it would be fun to throw out a few clues and see what names people come up with. Just comment below and we'll see who comes the closest. Also, you can go ahead and guess which name you think we'll end up using. Good Luck!

  • All 4 names are "Old-Fashioned"
  • One is a Family Name
  • One is Not in the Top 1000 Names for Girls -according to the Social Security Administration
  • One is a Popular Nature Name
  • One is derived from a Saint that lived in the 13th century

Friday, February 13, 2009

Amazing Noah!

All I can say is that we're so amazed by our little boy right now. Lately he's been demonstrating an ability to recognize letters and numbers. He probably learns a new one every couple of days or so. We haven't even begun formally teaching him his alphabet so we're just kind of in awe right now!

Fun Polls

I thought it would be fun to add some polls about the new baby. Feel free to guess her birthday, birth weight, and time of birth. I'm also trying to figure out a poll regarding her name, so check back for more polling fun!!