7QT Friday: blah, blah, blah, GIVEAWAY!

1. Happiness is letting your 3 year old burst into her older sisters' bedroom to wake them up with Rebecca Black's Friday blaring from your iPhone.

2.

Theresa of Ordinary Lovely and Micaela from California to Korea (and back again) are running a blog hop called See Me Homeschool. (You can read my interview for Micaela's How I Homeschool series here.)

You can get an in-depth look into the chaos that is St. Jude's School for Kids Who Want To Read Good and Do Other Things Good Too on Monday, February 23rd.

That's Monday, Monday, better check back on Monday...

Dang song stuck in my head.

There are lots of other (better) homeschooling bloggers participating so be sure to check out their homeschools too. Here is the blog hop schedule.

If YOU have a homeschool and want to participate, there's a link-up and an Instagram hashtag (#seemehomeschool).

3. This is a short video of actress Frances McDormand saying wise things about aging and womanhood. 

4.

I've been having far too much fun over at the Twice website. Technically, it's Like Twice. Twice is another one of those online secondhand stores, but with higher end clothing and...

wait for it...

Actual Measurements of the Actual Items for sale!

Do you realize what this means?

It means a much higher chance of getting something that actually fits!

Not only that, but the Twice people include the "fit" in the description.

Lemme 'splain.

The women in this house wear Julie fit pants from LOFT. Over at Twice, if the tag says "Julie," they let the web readers know that detail!

They also have good prices and a great return policy. They'll give me a little bonus if you sign up through my link and they'll give YOU a $10 credit!

5. RobinsOwn Soap Shoppe on Etsy.

You must go to there.

Robin makes soap by hand in her home using goat's milk and a cold process method that I do not understand.

I do understand that the soap is beautiful to see, smell, and touch.

Brown Sugar Soap

Edmund uses the Cedar Bay in the shower. Patrick uses a bar of Sexy Man he got for Christmas.

We currently have a lovely sweet wine heart-shaped soap in the powder room. Who knew that wine scented soap would smell so delicate and clean?

I got wee rashy Polly the Simply Goat's Milk shown above.

Pumpkin Bier, or as I think of it, Cinnamon Goodness

Robin is always adding new scents and shapes and I have yet to receive one I didn't care for.

I don't have a picture of them, but for Christmas I gave some people Robin's Madonna and Child shaped Cherry Almond soaps.

Sunshine Yuzu

In the past, we have also enjoyed the Frankincense and Myrrh, the Pumpkin Bier, and the Sunshine Yuzu flavors too. Sunshine Yuzu is my favorite everyday hand soap scent. Yuzu is a Japanese Lemon.

I'm saving this one for summer. It's called Icky Yucky Hands.  It's so pretty, it looks like it would taste good.

Robin is a single mom who runs her Soap Shoppe out of her own home.  She doesn't have a car, so she walks to the post office to deliver her handmade products every Friday.

I don't know Robin and she has no idea who I am, but I do know her soaps and recommend them to everyone I know.  I call her "my soap lady."

6. A GIVEAWAY!

I am going to give one of you LUCKY readers this gorgeous bar of Blackberry Sage Dragon soap AND the teal soap dish pictured here.

Just hop over to Robin's Shop then come back and tell me what you think looks good in my comment box. I will choose a winner from the commenters so please make sure your contact info is accessible.

The winner will be chosen sometime in the next week when I get around to it. Probably by Wednesday because I'm planning a WWRW post for that day.

Patrick just stuck his head over my shoulder and said, "What are you blogging about? Soap! I love her soap!"

7.

I did not do a What We're Reading Wednesday post this week, but the February link-up lasts all month.  Next month's link up will be on March 4th.

Linking up with Kelly for 7QT Friday! Friday! Gotta Get Down on Friday!

Christmas Gift Ideas 2014

Someone asked if I had any good Christmas gift ideas.  I don't know why they asked me, but here's what's going down the chimney in these parts.

Books (Plus a Tie-In Item)

I've given this Little Red Riding Hood storybook with an Etsy made red velvet riding hood.  I've been told they make a nice Ranger cloak too.

This ballerina jewelry box goes perfectly with these Ella Bella Ballerina books.

I talked Grandma Santa into an Etsy made replica Little House on the Prairie outfit (made-to-order! custom fit!).  It will look darling on my little Laura while we read Christmas in the Big Woods .

My teens are getting books too.

Peter is getting The Princess Bride: An Illustrated Edition of S. Morgenstern's Classic Tale of True Love and High Adventure by William Goldman.

Susan is getting The Story of the Trapp Family Singers by the real Maria von Trapp.

Lucy is getting A Lantern in Her Hand by Bess Streeter Aldrich.

Other Kid Ideas

This is not my photo, it belongs to CupcakeCutieKids.

I love these Personalized Superhero capes from Etsy.

Photo from AlmondRod Toys.

This Nativity Set,

Photo from AlmondRod Toys.

or these Saint blocks.

This Kathe Kruse® 14-Piece Nativity Set is gorgeous, but pricey.

My nearly 12 year old is all about card tricks and magic sets. The Melissa and Doug set is nice but we got Jim Stott's Deluxe Magic Kit for our future Gob.  The reviews are very good and it's a little more ma-tour.

Don't know who Gob is?  Watch this 13 second video.  C'mon.  It's only 13 seconds and no ad time.

Stocking Stuffers

Fun Band-aids and toothbrushes.

Paper Dolls.  Temporary Tattoos.  Dover can meet all of your needs in this area.

Real Metal Cap Guns.

Edmund has several different makes and models of these on his wishlist. He circled them all in the JM Cremp's Boys Adventure catalog. Soon he'll be too grown-up for cap guns, so I'm on a mission to make sure he gets every one now.

Plus, I love the smell of caps.

That is not weird.

This magic wand for the future Gob in your home.

Less Stuff  is More Stuff

Magazine Subscriptions

Namely, Ranger Rick and High Five and Calliope.  Calliope is a world history magazine recommended to me by a librarian friend who reads it herself.  I brought home an issue for Patrick to review for bias and he found none.

Frugal Scrooge I am, I went to the library and took coupons from their magazines to use while ordering some gifts.  It totally saved me money.  That or using Subscription Addiction.  It depends  on the magazine.

iTunes music. Email entire playlists or albums.  No wrapping, no post office. All goodness.

Experiences

Disney on Ice, Medieval Times, Theater or Concert Tickets.  Mani/Pedis. Someone around here is going to the Premium Theater that has reclining seats and serves food on his birthday.

Photo Albums.

Print the pictures.  Or order a book.  I so badly want to do the Order a Book thing, but so many pictures to upload!  How big are these books?  What's the easiest program to use?

Gifts for Grown Ups or  The Nearly Growned Up

These scarves from Accessory Concierge. Plaid is back, baby.

This Horn of Ale that Jen and Hallie linked to.

My college boy is getting a poker set.  This could be a great idea, or a really bad idea.  It's a better idea than the Horn of Ale, of that I am certain.

This year I'm giving lots of this handmade soap from RobinsOwn on Etsy.  Robin is blogger Simcha Fischer's friend and she makes a damn fine soap from goat's milk.  This soap is so good that I want to eat it. Well, I want to eat the Pumpkin Bier kind that I've got going right now.  Smells like cinnamon and love.

Personalized stuff is big again.  I remember my monogrammed crewneck circa 1982. It was probably from Lands' End. Lands' End can monogram just about anything.  These patterned gloves might be coming to some teenage god-daughters near me.

My teen girls and I stumbled upon the newly opened Altar'd State store in a Missouri mall over Thanksgiving.  They adored all the clothing and accessory items.  I was moved by the Christian music, and Bible verse home decor.  I wish they would open one by me, but until then, they have a webstore.

This photo belongs to Victory Day & Co,

As I shared on the Housewifespice Facebook page, I bought this watercolor Bible verse print for myself from an Etsy handmade shop.

It says, My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness. 
2 Corinthians 12:9

Jesus keeps whispering this to me on my longer, harder days.  It's right up there with Phillipians 4:13 for my-top-best-speaks-to-me-Scripture-passages.

Lots of these links are Amazon Affiliate links which pad my purse if you click through, but lots of these links aren't.  I actually try to shop Etsy as often as possible.  I follow lots of Etsy artists on Instagram and you should too.

If I'm not shopping Etsy, I'm shopping through eBates.  I've gotten several checks in the mail from them this year.  Make your 2015 a little greener by using eBates.  Also an affiliate link.

I'm asking for a peace-filled Advent for all of my readers this year.

7QT A Week in Review

1.  Saturday

We got to see Jim Gaffigan's show and spend some time with him backstage.  You can see that his baby bump rivals mine.

2. Sunday

We watched a Family Movie chosen from Netflix based on the number of stars it got.

Kon Tiki did not disappoint.  Patrick and I had both read children's versions of Thor Heyerdahl's Kon Tiki when we were kids, so we were familiar with the historic adventure from Peru to Polynesia.

Edmund enjoyed it too, thank goodness, because we were aiming to please the 11 yo old boy demographic.

3.

Monday, I got a call from my midwives.  No gestational diabetes, but a little on the anemic side.

Phew.  I'm not just a lazy sack of trash.  I'm not just old and pregnant.  I'm old, pregnant, and have low red blood cell count!  I can change one of those things!

I got this stuff for a small fortune at a health food store.  The bottle is hard to open and I spilled a few drops yesterday.

Shoo-Wee!  That stuff smells like rusty nail water.  It tastes slightly better though. I expect to have massive increased energy levels a n y m i n u t e n o w.

4.  Tuesday was the Feast of the Annunciation.  

All of these big Catholic vocabulary words can be very confusing, so I made a matching game for Edmund.

I printed pictures of famous artworks such as the Annunciation above, the Assumption, the Immaculate Conception, the Nativity, the Epiphany, the Presentation, the Baptism of the Lord, the Transfiguration, the Crucifixion, the Resurrection, the Ascension, Pentecost, the Assumption, and a few others.

Then I printed the words in a big, nice-yet-easy-to-read font.  Cut the words out let him match them up.

It's pretty darn near impossible to find a picture of the Incarnation that is not the Annunciation or the Nativity. 

I used this one, which is sort of cheesy, and maybe confusing.  

I was hoping there would be a picture of Jesus appearing somewhere, saying, "I am the Word Incarnate." Sort of laying it all out there for us, the way Mary did at Lourdes when she said, "I am the Immaculate Conception."  But I couldn't find one.  If you know of one, please share!

5.  Wednesday, I decided to go ahead and put away my three maternity sweaters, because the sight of them is mucho depressing.  

I also got out all of Jill's summer clothes because, gosh darn it, is supposed to be SPRING! I refuse to let the weather man dictate what we will or will not wear.

I even cleaned out the front hall closet AND I put all of the snow pants in the basement.

Yes, I know I have cursed Chicagoland with more snow as a result of my actions, but on the plus side, Jill has at least three potential Easter dresses.  Scroll to QT 7 to see one of them in action during our Easter dress photo shoot.

6.  My high-schoolers have been on Spring Break this week.  

Peter is on the left.  

Peter got to go on a self-paid trip to Walt Disney World with his baseball team.  Susan and Lucy got to help me catch up on laundry and clean out that front hall closet.

I had been planning to take everyone out for breakfast yesterday, but middle of the night stomach flu hit Jill, so we were in no shape to go anywhere.

Miracle No. 1:  She had to go potty right when she got sick, so she was already near the toilet!  

Miracle No. 2:  She seemed fine all day, and no one else seems to have caught the bug.

She is feeling 100% again and was deee-lighted when this adorable pillow doll of her patron saint came in the mail from WaltzingM.  

Charlotte sells both the finished saint dolls, or the doll kits for crafty peeps.  

7.  Today, I made up for yesterday by taking the big girls out to lunch at California Pizza Kitchen (fish tacos for me, shrimp fettuccine for them), and on an epic shopping adventure.  We were very happy that Patrick was able to work from home today.  

Edmund only called me three times while we were out, twice about history, once about math. He is not on Spring Break.

There is a Dress Barn near me that we have never ventured into.  I looked at their stuff online with Susan and Lucy the other night and we were BLOWN AWAY by their selection of adorable yet modest dresses that are reasonably priced.  I signed up for emails to get a 20% off coupon and with the "buy 2 dresses, get $10 off sale" we scored big time in the dress department today.

Too bad you can't see her coral wedges that match perfectly.

Patrick might not think they need two dresses each, but we have the Easter triduum, Lucy has a Spring Dance, plus there's Peter's graduation, my brother Peter's wedding and rehearsal dinner, and a summer baptism coming up.

Each of these dresses was near or less than $40.  

This one is actually from Kohl's, but it was also under $40 with my 20% off coupon last weekend.

Plus, we figured out their sizes so we can take advantage of the much larger selection online, in case someone happens to need this one, which fit either of them perfectly, but only came in beige (yuck) in the store:

Both retro and classic.  

Or this one:

The website tells you what size the model is wearing AND how tall they are!  It's nice to know that this model is 5'10" so this dress won't be shockingly short on my 5'9" daughter.  Lucy wears the petite sizes because she did not get the amazon genes.

We loved lots of the colorful dresses.  Is it just me or does LOFT only sell clothes in gray, ecru and skin color lately?  The girls appreciated that Dress Barn is arranged by color.  Don't look good in orange? Just move away from the orange section.  

Patrick's aunt used to be a buyer for Dress Barn. Susan and Lucy were wondering just how does one become a buyer for a store like that, and wouldn't that be a dream job?  

Yes.  Yes, it would.

Linking up with the cool kids at Conversion Diary.

Easter Basket Ideas for Everyone

For the younger set:

I recommended the Rhythm Band RB210S 12-Pack Egg Shakers last year, and they were a big hit at our house. I split the dozen with a cousin. Six shaker eggs is more than enough for any household.

I've been looking at the Calico Critters Hopscotch Rabbit Family for awhile now, and was thrilled to discover that Calico Critter sets are buy one get one 50% off at Toys R Us right now.  I used my eBates to get a little extra cash back and avoided shipping charges by doing in-store pick-up.

I know Target is selling a much cheaper version, but I read some side-by-side reviews, lost at least a dozen ebay auctions, and decided to invest in some new-in-box figures for Jill.  I just know these bunnies are going to love living with the Disney princess figures.

Target's Li'l Woodzeez wins in the tiny animal buildings and accessories department though.  At a fraction of the cost, the Li'l Woodzeez general store, bakery, cottage, and camper are every bit as good as their more expensive Calico Critter cousins.  Jill's birthday is right around the corner!

Schleich animals show up here for all gift occasions.  These Schleich Chicks look especially springy to me.

I grabbed a Melissa & Doug Jumbo Coloring Pad for Jill when she was sick a few weeks ago, and she has spent HOURS coloring in it with washable markers.  The paper is perfect for markers, and the illustrations are both big enough yet detailed enough for little hands.

I love Dover and there are a lot of Dover Easter books to choose from:  stained glass books, sticker books, books of temporary tattoos, and plain ole coloring books.  I give Dover books to all of my kids, regardless of age.

Even Grammy loves a temporary tattoo every now and then.

For teens:

There are so many fun mash-up tee-shirts at Tee Fury, like this Inconceivables tee. Get it?  It's The Incredibles but with the Princess Bride characters?  Brilliant.

An egg shaped lip balm?  Perfect.  The eos Organic Smooth Sphere Lip Balm (5 Pack) is available through my affiliate link right there, or at your local Costco.

Santa put some peppermint VIA packs in the stockings of my three high-schoolers, and they got some clearanced pumpkin spice VIA packs for St. Valentine's Day.  Nothing brightens a teenager's day like a latte on the way to school.  I know, because they label their packs with sharpie and NO ONE had better mess with them.

For Easter, they might be getting the Starbucks VIA Latte - Vanilla Latte (5 Single Serve Packets), or I might switch to Starbucks Via Ready Brew Iced Caramel Flavored Coffee in hopes that warmer temps are coming soon.

For boys:

We are perpetually short on AirSoft ammo, loads of weapons, no ammo.  Edmund will be thrilled to be able to reload once again.

He's also getting some Paper Targets because some thoughtful person (me) gave him this paper target stand for his birthday, that did not include any actual targets!

The boys in this house are also getting batting gloves or golf gloves, golf balls or baseballs, and maybe a pitchback for practice.

It's kind of a big ticket item for an Easter basket, but that's what happens when your birthday is 12 days after Christmas.

Our baskets will also have the obligatory chocolate bunnies, jelly beans, and Peeps. Always gotta have the Peeps.  My kids don't even like them, so that means they are ALL for ME!  Bwah-ha-ha!