Hey guys,
I am home with all 3 kiddos today, one of which is sick (stomach bug....yuck). I have oiled him up and he is sleeping peacefully. So, while the twins and 3 year old are asleep, I thought I would share how I beat the 4 gift card per order Target policy.
We received a lot of gift cards from friends and family for the arrival of the twins. We already had a lot of what we needed, but there are some things that you don't need unless you have twins (or 2 kids close in age). Enter....the double stroller.
I have been saving all of our gift cards to hopefully not have to pay anything for the stroller. I have been stalking Target online (because I have the most money in Target gift cards) and saw that the stroller I want is on sale!!! Woohoo! I was super excited, added it to my cart, got all of my gift cards, and sat down to order when I saw you can only use 4 gift cards per order!! WHAT!!! I was so bummed. Of course, the stroller I want isn't carried in stores so that wasn't an option either. I was about to order the old school way (over the phone) when I decided to try something....eGiftcards. You can email an electronic gift card. It takes some time and a little rearranging, but it can work. I had 9 gift cards and needed to get it down to 4.
Target also has to make it a little more difficult because you can't enter the amount you want; you have to use the preselected amounts.
So here's what I did:
-two $50 gift cards combined to make one $100 egiftcard
-two $40 and one $20 combined to make one $100 egiftcard
-$50 and $25 combined to make one $75 egiftcard
I still have a $5 and $15 gift card ($20 egiftcard is not an option)
After I got the first 2 egiftcards, I went back to target.com and combined them to make one $200 egiftcard.
So, after I get all of my egiftcards, I will have one $200, one $75, a $15, and a $5. When it is all said and done, I will only have to pay $2.32!!! Woohoo!!!
Family
Monday, August 3, 2015
Thursday, July 16, 2015
Falling in Love-Day 4
Headache? Cramps? Arthritis? Backache? Other pain? If you answered yes to any of these questions, then you need PanAway in your life.
As many of you know, I was diagnosed with muscular dystrophy at the age of 12. I have had very little progression, but while pregnant with my twins, I started to develop a lot of muscle weakness in my left leg. I have developed a foot drop on my left side and weak thigh muscle. Because I have changed how I walk to accommodate my foot drop, my gait is off and I am using my right leg more. Due to overuse, I have started developing pain in my right hip and knee. PanAway has become a new best friend of mine.
The first thing I noticed about PanAway is the smell. It smells just like icy-hot cream to me. The second thing I noticed after I applied it to whatever was hurting (when I first used it, it was for cramps) was that you start to get the warming feeling from the oil. The third thing I noticed was that it worked quickly.
Max also fell in love with PanAway when I tried it on him for the first time after he played golf. He came home complaining saying that his back hurt. Before he could reach for Advil like he usually did, I begged him to let me try PanAway on him. He was very impressed and didn't take any Advil!! Emily and oils: 1 Max and modern medicine: 0
So, next time something hurts, try PanAway. It does not have to be diluted with a carrier oil (such as grapeseed, coconut, etc) and can be applied straight to the skin. Do not ingest PanAway. I know I'm only supposed to give one tip, but, you can also apply a little peppermint with the PanAway to give it an extra boost.
Want the pain away? Grab PanAway!
20 minutes under $20
So, I was cleaning up the house the other day, and as usual, come across random things that have been shoved in a shelf, cabinet, or closet. Random things like spools of crinkly ribbon that is used for gift packages (I have no clue why I bought 3 rolls of the same color) and random packs of tiny dry erase markers that I bought for about $5. They are items that get moved around all over the place because they don't really have a home.
Someone on a website I follow recommended that if you have random things that you don't use and they don't have a home to get rid of them if they can be replaced in 20 minutes for under $20. I think this is a great idea for those random things.
So, as I looked at my spools of ribbon and dry erase markers, I decided that they didn't really bring me joy (so I should get rid of them anyways), but sometimes it's even hard to justify that. So, I decided that since these items could be replaced in 20 minutes (I could go to Wal-Mart) for under $20, that they were not worth hanging on to, especially since I didn't know when or where I bought them.
If you are not ready to full-on declutter, but have random things that don't have a home, this is an AWESOME way to get a little jump start.
Happy decluttering!
~Emily
Someone on a website I follow recommended that if you have random things that you don't use and they don't have a home to get rid of them if they can be replaced in 20 minutes for under $20. I think this is a great idea for those random things.
So, as I looked at my spools of ribbon and dry erase markers, I decided that they didn't really bring me joy (so I should get rid of them anyways), but sometimes it's even hard to justify that. So, I decided that since these items could be replaced in 20 minutes (I could go to Wal-Mart) for under $20, that they were not worth hanging on to, especially since I didn't know when or where I bought them.
If you are not ready to full-on declutter, but have random things that don't have a home, this is an AWESOME way to get a little jump start.
Happy decluttering!
~Emily
Monday, July 6, 2015
A new adventure and finding my sweet spot
As if I need another adventure to begin...
Since deciding to put my teacher hat on the hat rack for the next year and putting on my mommy hat, I have been doing A LOT of thinking about what this next year will look like for Max, our kids, and myself. Most of you know, I LOVE my oils, and I will continue to love and share them with others. But, I have also discovered another passion of mine that I want to pursue...ORGANIZING!!!
I have always loved to organize. I even asked for a label maker for Christmas one year. I never really thought I would ever consider blogging about organizing until I was at my church's summer Bible study for moms. It happened to be the first day I attended this summer that we talking about this (God's timing is perfect, isn't it?) We read a chapter from Living Well, Spending Less called "We All Have a Sweet Spot." The first quote in this chapter is from Ken Coleman. He says, "People are most successful when they are in their sweet spot. Your sweet spot is the intersection where your passion meets your greatest strength." I definitely LOVE to organize (passion). One of my favorite memories is going to The Container Store in Atlanta before moving to college. An entire store geared towards organizing. I also think I am pretty good at organizing. I'm not sure I would call it my greatest strength, but it is definitely something I think I do well (unlike managing money). So, maybe I'm on the journey to find my sweet spot.
I am a VERY type-A person and OCD when it comes to cleaning and organizing. I became obsessed with cleaning and organizing when I was in college and I had roommates that were messier than I was. I do not have a hard time throwing things away, but a book helped me to think even more about things to throw away and get rid of. I fell off the cleaning out and organizing wagon when we moved into a much larger home that had more space than we knew what to do with. While having a large home is a blessing, it also allows you to clutter up unused rooms and keep more than you really need. It is easy to have a room (or 5) to put things in and just close the door. However, with the arrival of the "burrito babies," we now need that space and make it more useful for our family. Enter Marie Kondo.
I am reading an AWESOME book that walks you through how to declutter and tidy your home. It is called The Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organzing by Marie Kondo. She gives VERY explicit steps of how to do this, and, if you follow her steps, you should only have to declutter your house once. Of course there is always the day-to-day tidying. I will be honest, some of her ways of parting with items is a little strange to me (like thanking items for what they have taught you), but I understand what she is saying.
So, i have been cleaning out and discarding. I haven't totally started the KonMari clean-out as I am not finished with the book. As crazy as it sounds, I LOVE to throw things out. Max and I have even talked about putting my love or organizing into something bigger than our own home and possibly becoming a professional organizer. I definitely have a passion for organization and tidying and have already felt "lighter" by getting rid of things. I would love for you to join me on this journey as I discover my sweet spot.
~Emily
Since deciding to put my teacher hat on the hat rack for the next year and putting on my mommy hat, I have been doing A LOT of thinking about what this next year will look like for Max, our kids, and myself. Most of you know, I LOVE my oils, and I will continue to love and share them with others. But, I have also discovered another passion of mine that I want to pursue...ORGANIZING!!!
I have always loved to organize. I even asked for a label maker for Christmas one year. I never really thought I would ever consider blogging about organizing until I was at my church's summer Bible study for moms. It happened to be the first day I attended this summer that we talking about this (God's timing is perfect, isn't it?) We read a chapter from Living Well, Spending Less called "We All Have a Sweet Spot." The first quote in this chapter is from Ken Coleman. He says, "People are most successful when they are in their sweet spot. Your sweet spot is the intersection where your passion meets your greatest strength." I definitely LOVE to organize (passion). One of my favorite memories is going to The Container Store in Atlanta before moving to college. An entire store geared towards organizing. I also think I am pretty good at organizing. I'm not sure I would call it my greatest strength, but it is definitely something I think I do well (unlike managing money). So, maybe I'm on the journey to find my sweet spot.
I am a VERY type-A person and OCD when it comes to cleaning and organizing. I became obsessed with cleaning and organizing when I was in college and I had roommates that were messier than I was. I do not have a hard time throwing things away, but a book helped me to think even more about things to throw away and get rid of. I fell off the cleaning out and organizing wagon when we moved into a much larger home that had more space than we knew what to do with. While having a large home is a blessing, it also allows you to clutter up unused rooms and keep more than you really need. It is easy to have a room (or 5) to put things in and just close the door. However, with the arrival of the "burrito babies," we now need that space and make it more useful for our family. Enter Marie Kondo.
I am reading an AWESOME book that walks you through how to declutter and tidy your home. It is called The Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organzing by Marie Kondo. She gives VERY explicit steps of how to do this, and, if you follow her steps, you should only have to declutter your house once. Of course there is always the day-to-day tidying. I will be honest, some of her ways of parting with items is a little strange to me (like thanking items for what they have taught you), but I understand what she is saying.
So, i have been cleaning out and discarding. I haven't totally started the KonMari clean-out as I am not finished with the book. As crazy as it sounds, I LOVE to throw things out. Max and I have even talked about putting my love or organizing into something bigger than our own home and possibly becoming a professional organizer. I definitely have a passion for organization and tidying and have already felt "lighter" by getting rid of things. I would love for you to join me on this journey as I discover my sweet spot.
~Emily
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