THIS IS SOOO LONG!

FIRST OF ALL:
This is what happens when your kids get your camera.
Fun surprises...hmmmm....YIKES!

Here are a couple of pictures from Thanksgiving:

I either forget to bring my camera or bring it and forget to use it.  I snapped a couple of interesting pictures though:

This is my brother sweeping.  I know it seems like a weird picture, but I think this is the first time I have ever seen him sweep anything.  I know he won't look at my blog so I can make fun of him all I want
HA HA HA!

This is another weird one...Christian wanted a picture with Averi and of course SANTA!

This is Averi and her Great Grandma Taylor/Johnson.  Averi doesn't look like she is smiling, but she really is!  We are still trying to teach her how to smile in pictures.  It is sooo cute!  I think that is what Grandma is laughing so hard about. 

My nephew Brody spent the night before Thanksgiving with us.  I bet his parents were surprised when he showed up painted like a clown!  I was laughing my head off!  I didn't want to let him do that but I thought he is only a kid once...who cares?!

Now...here is where my life gets crazy!  Some of you may have to sit down before reading this.  Drum roll please.......I AM DOMESTICATED (well...kind of)!  Yahoo!

See, I wasn't born with the Martha Stewart gene, so this has been a challenge for me for about hmmm...let's see...well, since I moved away to college.  I was lucky enough to have room mates who loved to do laundry and cook all of the time.

I tried my hand at many homemaking skills but I get bored easily and I can only do so much.  James and I have a team work system worked out at our house, but lately I have been thinking I need to step it up a little.  Also...I am heading into hibernation season when I get "winter blues".   I decided that the busier I am the less time my body has to think it needs to sleep, and eat.

Now, some of you may be thinking what James was thinking, and worry that I may burn myself out by taking on too much at once.  Well, I have had that worry myself, but I think I better do as much as I can while it still seems fun.  : )

These are some of the projects I have been trying out:

1) Make a menu and actually use it!  I have the pickiest kids and they have driven me to frozen pizza, macaroni, and chicken strips for far too long.  I have taken back the kitchen and I have made stuff like stuffed shells and chicken, orange chicken and rice, meatloaf, and all sorts of yummy casseroles.  It has been a challenge for my kids, but I think they are learning that flavor can be good in food.

2) I decorated some of our yard for Christmas.  This may not seem like a big deal to most people, but after the big wreath incident of 2006, we had banned all outdoor decorations...until now.  (the incident is that we had bought these cute big wreaths to hang at the peaks of our house and we thought we were doing something really special when soon after our neighbor-who is our bishop and we totally like him don't get me wrong-well...he came home one day with the same wreaths, only 10 times bigger and with lights on them and hung them up on the peaks of his house.  Our wreaths looked like little baby wreaths compared to his and we lived in the shadow of his wreaths that whole winter!)

O.K., that was a little dramatic, but it was real to us!  I decided that our yard has been barren too long and I don't care how small our wreaths are, I displayed them proudly.  However,  I did scare my other neighbor guy while he watched me carry around a HUGE ladder and climb to the top all by myself.  He kept asking me if he could help but I am very stubborn and kept turning down his help.  I think he was mostly scared that if I fell he may have to give me CPR or mouth-to-mouth.

3)  Being frugal.  I used to be frugal, but I lost my desire to compare prices and coupon years ago!  It just wasn't for me I guess.  However I thought of my sweet husband working so hard and wondered if there were ways I could help save money around the house without giving up some of the finer things in life.

I had all of these super cool decorating ideas in my head for Christmas but had a very, very small budget.  I decided to re-purpose and get creative.  I was at Fred Meyer and saw some scraps of trimmed Christmas Tress that were waiting to be thrown out and I asked them if I could have them.  They gladly let me take them off of their hands.  Then I needed some filler for my project and decided that I could cut down my way overgrown sage bushes and spray paint them red to go in the middle.  I created a my own decoration.

Now...you have to just trust me when I say it was way cuter a couple of weeks ago before the branches started dying and the wind has blown them to pieces.  TA-DA:

Imagine it lush and green...that how it started out.  Nothing lasts forever I guess.  : )

Averi with me shopping.  It was very stressful.  I ended up coming home and debating for too long and lost interest in the whole project...so this is what got thrown on a wreath and hung on our door.  This is my "I'm too tired to make this look any better" wreath. 

5)  For James' work, every department gets to choose a wreath to decorate and then auction off for charity every year.  This year he waited and waited until a couple of days before it was due and had no takers.  So...I had one night to come up with something.  I was still sick of wreaths, and I felt like I had used up all of my creative juices, so I was a little stressed out.  I threw this together and put TONS of glitter on it hoping that the sparkly effect would attract someone to it.  I don't know how much it sold for or if it won any of the showmanship awards, and I don't care either!  I just sent it and hoped for the best.  It could have looked a lot worse...

 6) Lastly, I decided to make my own cleaning products.  This made me feel sooo smart!  It took a little effort, but I think it saved a TON of money.  I made dishwasher soap, hand soap, febreeze, furniture polish, and general cleaner.  So far, so good.

I also found a lot of cute clothing items I would love to have, especially scarves.  I am really into them right now.  I found a lot of cute ones I liked, but they were so expensive!  So...I made my own!   Without sewing or any "making" skills at all.  I took yarn and tied it together in a pattern and it only cost about $2.00.  I also taught Taylor how to do it too.  We are so proud of ourselves.  We love them too.  Here is a picture of mine being worn by my lovely banister. 

 So...don't be surprised if I do overdo it and burn out.  I will have fun for now and at least have dinner on the table for my family most nights...that saves a lot of money too.

I guess I should start my Christmas shopping now...it is already December 12th.  OOPS!