Happy Homemaker Monday

Happy Homemaker Monday "button" from Sandra at Diary of a Stay at Home Mom

I totally LOVE Sandra's new Happy Homemaker Monday "button"! She does an amazing job with her photography! Sandra kicks off the Happy Homemaker Monday from her blog at Diary of a Stay at Home Mom. Be sure to stop by and tell her Kat says hi!

I am still struggling with Prednisone withdrawal but according to all I've read on the internet, I should be near the end:) I felt better today but after doing oh so little, I was exhausted! I will try for more tomorrow!

So on to the first Happy Homemaker Monday of 2013!

The Weather...It really warmed up here today (didn't check the temperature) and the snow is nearly melted:) Old snow is really gross! Happy to have it go and perhaps get some fresh in a week or so.

Right now I am...relaxed in my chair with the dogs at my feet--all three of them! They didn't get the memo that I AM NOT a dog person!!!

Thinking...about how far behind I am on my goals for the month:( Tomorrow is another day...

On my reading pile...We are starting The Warrior's Path by Louis L'Amour in our read aloud journey through the Sackett series. I just downloaded The Covenant (Abram's Daughter book 1) by Beverly Lewis and am also reading The "Do What You Can" Plan by Holley Gerth and Where is God When it Hurts? by Philip Yancey.

On my tv...Not sure what's on. I am in a reading mood again:)

Favorite Blog Post this week (mine or other)...
So Long 2012 Elizabeth Farrar at Bella Vita. All for the last sentence..."may you be surprised by joy"! That is my new favorite phrase for 2013! Thank you Liz:)

Something fun to share...

I am totally LOVING the new book/magazine I got for Christmas! I have been marking projects I want to make and hopefully will be able to get started on some next week. This week I have a list of projects I want to make that have been on my list for awhile. If you like to sew, quilt, craft, be sure to check out this book!

On the menu for this week...I don't really have a menu for the next week. Just flying by the seat of my pants. With the food allergies it is easier for me to just take one meal at a time this week. I should get the hang of this soon! Tomorrow we are having Penne pasta with Marinara sauce and a big green salad!

On my "to do" list...

• laundry
• clean off my desk
• declutter kitchen counters
• finish lime green knitted cowl
• thank you cards (still not done)
• Declutter 25 items this week

What I am sewing, crocheting, knitting or crafting...

• I should finish the lime green knitted cowl tonight:)
• Knitting a pair of socks
• Need to put ideas on paper for thank you cards

Homemaking tips...I like to put a dryer sheet between the waste basket and the plastic bag to make it smell fresher. I use the Meyers dryer sheets so they're not too perfumey.

Looking around the house...Dogs, dogs everywhere! Them and their toys!

From the camera...

Fingerless mitten I started last year

I think I will try to finish the fingerless mittens I started last year when I finish the socks I am currently working on.

On my prayer list...

Friends who are having varying health issues right now. 

Bible Verse/Devotional...

"In the morning sow thy see, and in the evening withhold not thine hand: for thou knowest not whether shall prosper, either this or that, or whether they both shall be alike good." Ecclesiastes 11:6 (from The "Do What You Can" Plan)

Thanks for stopping by to check out my Happy Homemaker Monday. 

Kat

Sunday Night Chit-Chat

Loving my new Camellia Cylindre Tea Maker:)

Well, it's time once again for the Sunday Night Chit-Chat! Carla starts us off each week at My 1/2 Dozen Daily so hop on over to see what she's been up to! And, if you have time, check out the other links as well. 

I am...

Reading...The "Do What You Can" Plan by Holley Gerth; Where is God When it Hurts? by Philip Yancey and our read aloud is still To the Far Blue Mountains by Louis L'Amour but we are nearly finished!

Watching...Hugo on Netflix

Listening to...the movie playing while I'm blogging:) Also our English Bulldog, Rocky, snoring.

Baking/Cooking...Today was better than yesterday but still rough so didn't get any baking done; hopefully tomorrow. We had Mizidra for dinner today.

Happy I accomplished this week...I got the Christmas stuff put away and the laundry caught up!

Looking forward to next week...Working through a few of my monthly goals. 

*BONUS QUESTION*
What is the minimum # you feel comfortable with sitting in your bank account/piggy bank? 

I really believe what Dave Ramsey says about having a $1000 Emergency Fund plus work toward six month's living expenses in savings. 

Well, that's it for me tonight! Have a great night!

Kat

January Decluttering and No/Low Spend Challenge

I meant to get this post up on Friday but when I visited the doctor on Thursday he told me to go off the Prednisone. Sounds simple enough. He said in a couple of days I might have a "slump" but not to worry. Well, 24 hours after I took my last Prednisone I went into a major slump--tired (slept for hours), achy muscles (lower back was killing me), headache! I would call it a little more than a slump. Today I am still really tired but the aches are pretty much gone! I will do an update on my doctor visit tomorrow:)

Decluttering:

• 4 pair pajamas
• 10 books
• 1 set of hot curlers from the 80s!
• 5 bottles of vitamins/supplements that were past date
• stack of old magazines

Spending:

Ah, I've only been through one week of the month and already have to revise my spending. I had hoped to only spend $20 this month. Since I am only working with my allowance I thought that should be doable but I guess NOT!!! At the end of last month I had $52.80 left which is amazing since we had just gone through Christmas!!! So, my revised plan is that I not spend more than that $52.80 during the month of January! So far this month I have spent the following:

• $2.99 on the Paperless App for making lists (LOVE it!!!)
• $2.00 for tip when Hubby an I ate out last Thursday (he didn't have enough cash to cover the $5 tip)
• $12.99 for Bamboo Circular Knitting Needles--I couldn't find the yarn to finish my scarf so decided to purchase the needles needed to make it a Cowl instead.
• $2.99 for the Kindle download of The "Do What You Can" Plan...21 Days to Making Any Area of Your Life Better by Holley Gerth (thank you Sandra for the heads up on this book only sorry I missed the free download)

According to my new Spending app (free) I have $31.83 to last me through the month. I will need to spend some mid month to purchase items for February's stamping club but am hoping I can do it for $30 or less:) At least I am really thinking about each purchase before I make it. I have to hand it to those of you who are working with a whole family budget! Fortunately, hubby takes care of that and does a fine job so I'll just stay out of his way:)

Hopefully I will have a few more inches on the Cowl down to show you tomorrow:) And I have a before and (hopefully) an after shot of my trouble spot--my desk! It has been a disaster since before Christmas!!!

I will be back a little later for the Sunday Night Chit-Chat so be sure to check back by!

Kat

Thankful Thursday

Welcome to Thankful Thursday! For any newbies reading my blog, this is the day each week when I share with you what I am thankful for! 

#1...I am thankful that I was able to get my new Thankful Thursday button up and running for today's post:) I can mark one item off my monthly list!

#2...I am thankful for my wonderful husband who loves me and does so many things to take care of our family...he works hard, takes care of the family budget, does the grocery shopping, takes care of the car's needs plus much, much more!

#3...I am thankful for Carla's January Decluttering and No/Low Spend Challenge to get me on track for the New Year! Today I spent $2.99 of my $20 on a listmaking app called Paperless for my iPad. I was hoping to put it on my iPod Touch but the iPod is too old:( Love the new app though!

#4...I have dropped 2 pounds in the last week. My doctor says that losing weight is easier if you're not eating foods you're allergic to. Maybe I will be able to lose that 30 pounds after all.

#5...I am thankful for the medication (prednisone) that is keeping me sane while I am weaning my body off the foods I am allergic to. Unless you have had chronic hives, you have NO idea what it was like! This little vacation has been a real blessing:)

Okay, it's your turn...What are you thankful for today?!

Have a great day! I'll be back tomorrow with an update on my January Decluttering and No/Low Spend Challenge!

Kat

As Promised--the Crafty Stuff

Card made by Chirella Wallace

I received a few really cute handmade cards this year and wanted to share them with you before the "season" was completely gone! The card above is so elegant and made by one of my Happy Stampers! 

Card made by Judy Handbury--a Stampin' Up! customer

Card made by Christy Correa--another Happy Stamper

Card I received from Kim Bach as part of the Happy Stampers Card Swap

Each card is so different yet wonderful! I appreciated each one and I hope you enjoy them to.

One more thing before I go...

This is the scarf I am knitting...for MYSELF! I rarely make anything for myself! I get so excited when I finish something that I quickly find someone to give it to:) I found this yarn in my favorite color (lime green--the package calls it Monterey Lime) so decided to make myself a simple scarf to enjoy for the winter! It will look great with my black coat, don't you think?

Close-up of scarf stitches

I am knitting the scarf using Lion Brand Hometown USA bulky weight yarn and size 13 bamboo knitting needles. It is a simple k2, p2 pattern. I purchased two skeins of yarn but might have to get one or two more to make it as long as I want. There goes $8 out of the $20 I have to spend this month!

I am also knitting a pair of socks (also for myself) but will wait till I get the heel turned to show it to you.

What crafty projects do you have in the works in the first week of this new year?

Kat

January Goals 2013

Borrowed from The Every Girl

January Goals

The holidays are finally over and it is back to life as usual if that is possible in a week that has already had THREE Sundays in it! Do you know what I mean?!!! The guys went back to work today so now it feels like Monday but is in fact Wednesday! Maybe by next Monday I will have the days all sorted out again:)

I have been reading blog posts about Goal Setting in the New Year. I have tried the New Year's Resolutions and the yearly goals and can't seem to stay on track  till Valentine's Day! I say I'm ADD but most likely just have ADD tendencies--I have great ideas and can start projects but have poor follow through. As soon as I see in my mind what a project will look like finished I am off to the next one even if that one isn't actually finished! Have I mentioned the SIX unfinished  crocheted afghans in my craft room?!!! I think it was on last year's goal list but I am afraid to go look for fear of seeing all the other things I didn't do:(

Sooo, this year I am going to try monthly goals. No more than 10 in a month. And try to keep them reasonable. My goals for this month are...

1. Complete Carla's January No/Low Spend & Decluttering Challenge which means I will be removing 100 items from my home (throw away or give away) and I have limited myself to spending only $20 of this month's allowance. Hubby does the grocery shopping and takes care of the bills so I don't worry about that money (he is sooo good with money). I do however want to start saving some of my allowance and stamping income each month.
2. Bible Study for 30 minutes per day.
3. Write in my journal 3 x per week.
4. Exercise 30 minutes 3 x per week.
5. Make two of the sewing projects on my list and post on blog.
6. New Blog Header sooner than later!
7. New Thankful Thursday button!
8. Make Thank You cards and send for Christmas gifts received and to hubby's clients.
9. FINISH pair of socks I am knitting--both of them!
10. Complete and post my Design Team project for The Cupboard Trilogy Challenge for February.

Next month I want to start adding some of my unfinished projects to the list and see if I can get them done. Also REALLY want to start making Christmas and Birthday gifts so I don't save them all till the last minute.

Do you set goals for a year, month or ??? What are some of the goals you are setting for yourself?

Kat

Happy New Year...2013

Photo from www.dreamstime.com

I have spent most of the day thinking about this post as I was cooking and cleaning. I wanted it to be something profound and memorable but alas all I can give you today is my best wishes for a New Year filled with God's blessings! Elizabeth, the author of one of my favorite blogs, Bella Vita, quoted her friend, Connie as saying, '"May you be surprised by joy" in the New Year!' I loved this so much that I had to share it with you and will probably be sharing it with everyone ALL year long! I pray that each one of you will be "surprised by joy" around every bend and turn in the New Year!

I will be back tomorrow with some goals, pictures of handmade Christmas cards I received (oh so cute) and I want to show you the new scarf I am making! 

Have a great evening!

Kat

P.S. Be sure to check out Bella Vita; her blog posts really are profound:)