Family Binder- Jane Edition

It seems like everyone and their dog has a family binder, so I though I would try one for myself. I’ve been using mine for about two weeks and I love it!! I’ve tried a bunch of other versions but none of them seemed to work for me because my family is very small, and we don’t have a house of our own. So I made one that would work for us.

In the front of my binder I have a three whole punch, a pouch with various office supplies, and a business card holder.

After that I added a baseball card page for coupons and other small important papers.

to separate the different sections I punched holes in file folders and added the content on the inside. The first folder is for Family Home Evening and Date Night planning.. I plan each activity on index cards and put them in more baseball card holders. I try to plan at least three months in advance.

In the back of each folder I taped a sandwich bag for little things that I might need.

the next folder is for the calendar. I added a page to keep track of all the birthdays.

The next section is for my daily, weekly, and monthly cleaning schedules as well as a page for planning home improvement projects.

And the last section is for personal information. I have a worksheets for medical information for my husband and I. Along with the binder I have a regular notebook that I use to keep track of my To-Do list.

If you are totally wow’d by my pages they are available along with a bunch of other printable pages at my Etsy store YourHomeMatters

Mormon Women: What I really do.

Lately I have had a lot of questions about what Mormon women do. So I thought I would share.

What do you really do?

i heart wrinkles

This is my puppy Indi. She was born on the 4th of July so we named her Independence. We love her soooo much. I just love all her little wrinkles they are the cutest little things.

However sometimes her wrinkles get irritated and need to be cared for.

First we need to know how to spot a wrinkle that is irritated so we can catch it before it actually gets infected. If your bulldog has an infected wrinkle you’ll need to take her to the vet.

As you can see the skin around her nose is red and inflamed.

(I apologize for the ‘yucki-ness’ of this photo)

My baby is not very cooperative when it comes to her nose wrinkle especially when it’s a little sore. After you have your pup in a tight hold pull back the fold and wipe with a damp paper towel  to get all the dirt out and dry completely. once dry squeeze a pea size of triple antibiotic cream onto your finger and swipe all around the affected area. To keep the wrinkles from getting irritated in the first place be sure to clean your pups wrinkles every day.

And that’s it!

If after a week the wrinkle is still inflamed you may want to see your vet.

And here are a few more pictures of my baby just because she is adorable.

Messenger bag

Right before my freshman year in college I was looking for a very specific bag to carry all my school supplies in. I wanted a messenger bag big enough to fit all my books and my laptop with a few pockets and a place to put some pencils for easy access. Unfortunately all the bags I found were too small or too expensive. So long story short I settled for a regular back pack that looked pretty sturdy. Turns out it wasn’t. 2 months after the semester started it started to fall apart.

So this semester I set out to find exactly what I wanted and again I didn’t find anything that worked. After a long week of searching I decided I would make my own. It turned out so well I thought I would share my design.

This is the finished product.

and it is so simple to make.

I used duck cloth for the outer and just a regular cotton for the liner.

First I figured out how big I wanted it to be. (Mine is 15″ Wide x 13″ High x 5″ Deep)

Pieces:

I like to cut a pattern from newspaper .

Make sure you cut each piece from both the shell and the lining.

Starting with the lining. begin by lining up one end of the ‘bottom/sides’ with the top side of the ‘back’ side. pin and sew along the side.

Sew all the way to the bottom of the ‘back’ piece then turn and continue all the way around the bag and add the front piece the same way until you have a large pocket, and set aside. Use the same technique to finish the outside of the bag.

Next, iron a 1/2in hem on both sides of both strap pieces.

Then pin both pieces together and sew.

To make the flap piece as pictured above pin both flap pieces right sides together and sew on three sides (You can sew all four sides but I thought it would be a waste of time because it will be hidden anyway).

At this point if you would like you can sew a few pockets on the inside by cutting out a piece of fabric to the desired size of your pocket and sew a hem on the top, after wich you just sew the pocket onto the right side of the lining.

after words iron 1/2in around the rim of the shell and the lining.

then put the lining into the shell and pin them together, starting with the corners so they line up correctly and sew three sides.

with the side that is open stick the flap between the liner and shell then pin together and sew.

last but not least, the straps. pin the straps on the sides of the bag so it hangs at the right length for your height and sew in an ‘X’ pattern.

I hope you enjoy this bag as much as I do and don’t forget to like me on Facebook.

Thanks for reading

Power of Positive Thinking

Hello all! I had such a great weekend, and I hope all of you did too. This weekend I had so many good thoughts running through my head as my hubby and I hiked and climbed and played with our new RC cars, that I thought I would share some good thoughts with everyone.

About a month ago I was listening to a Marriage ‘Tele-retreat’ put on by The Dating Divas (P.S you should totally check out their website it is one of my faves). The first speaker was Hillary Weeks, a Christian music artist and motivational speaker. She talked about the power of positive thinking and introduced her new project billionclicks.org. You have to go and listen to her story it is so funny and insightful and it really inspired me to join her in spreading a billion ‘clicks’ around the world.

So here’s the deal, you need one of these little clickers (available on their website), mine is pink because I’m crazy for pink.

These are just simple sports counters or people counters or whatever else people use them for.

Now all you have to do is carry your little clicker around with you and every time you have a positive/uplifting/funny/happy thought you click your little clicker. Then at the end of each Day/week/month/whatever you log onto the billionclicks.org website and enter how many clicks you had. My first day clicking I had 201 clicks and I was blown away, I couldn’t believe that 201 times that day I had a good thought.

I have so much fun clicking with my little pink clicker and carrying it around with me on its little pink wrist band that I couldn’t help but share it with my friends here.

It really is amazing that when you are paying attention to all the good things you think about during the day that it actually lifts your spirits and it also has a profound effect on the people around you. My hubby will actually come up and click my clicker every time he sees me smile or every time I tell him a joke. Not only that, but, when I started clicking and counting my good thoughts I could tell that it had an effect on him too. He would see that I was in a good mood that would put him in a good mood (besides who doesn’t love when their spouse has good thoughts?)

Some Ideas for Clicking

• When exercising
• While cleaning
• When listening to toddlers having a temper tantrum
• When you’re really tired but you HAVE to finish this one term paper
• When you are so happy you can’t imagine having a bad thought (Man I need a few of these days)
• When you don’t feel like going to the gym
• When you don’t feel like going anywhere
• When you know your husband is totally wrong but you know he won’t believe you if you tell him
• When you are watching “101 Dalmatians” for the 101^st time

These of course are just a few of my favorite times for clicking.

I would love to hear if any of you have joined this movement so make sure you leave a comment or like me on face book.

Thanks for reading!

Memorial Day Weekend!

Happy Memorial Day everyone! It feels like forever since I have been able to Blog. Right after my last post I started a new Nanny Job and suddenly didn’t have any free time. However, today I found some free time while the kids are sleeping, to share my Memorial Day weekend plans with everyone!

Memorial Day, for those of you from outside the United States, is a federal holiday celebrated on the last Monday in May. Memorial Day was started after the American Civil War in honor of the men who died during that time. Later it evolved to honor all fallen soldiers. These days we decorate the graves of fallen soldiers and veterans with Flags as well as flowers on the graves of our other friends and family. My family does what we call the “Cemetery Tour.” We gather our whole family and drive all over to visit the graves of our family members who have passed and leave behind a pot of flowers.

However my hubby and I will be missing the tour because we are going on our very first camping trip together. Woot! So since this will be my only post this week I thought I’d put three posts into one I Call it Mechaniky-Crafty-Journal-thing about preparing for a camping trip.

So first the most important thing to do is decide where you are camping, how much it will cost and who will be going with you. After you have figured out the basics you’ll need to find a way to get to your camping spot. For most people they drive, so having your car in prime working order is a must. First you will want to check the oil.

Turn the car off and wait for it to cool before trying to locate the dip stick.

Most engines look fairly similar to this one,

The dipstick will probably look a little like this.

Make sure that the oil is above the “Full” line/groove. If it’s not you should add oil before you leave on your big adventure.

Next you’ll want check the rest of the fluids in your engine, such as Window Washer Fluid and Coolant.

After all the fluids have been topped off you should check the pressure in all of your tires using something that looks a little like this.

The outside wall of the tires should have the recommended pressure listed.

After all this I like to clean out my car so I have enough room for everything to fit.

Alright, Now once you get there you will need something to eat. Below is the menu I put together for our 2 ½ day trip as well as a couple recipes. Since my hubby doesn’t get off work until around 6 we decided just to grab a burger before we hit the road instead of trying to cook in the dark.

Friday

Dinner

• Eat out

Saturday

            Breakfast

• Hot Cocoa
• Breakfast tin foil dinner

            Lunch

• Sandwiches
• Potato Chips

            Dinner

• Tin Foil Dinners
• Corn Bread

 

Sunday

            Breakfast

• Bagels
• Orange Juice

 

            Lunch

• Sandwich
• Potato Chips

            Dinner

• Hot Dogs
• Chips

           

Monday

            Breakfast       

• Muffins

            Lunch

• Sandwiches
• Potato Chips

Snacks

• M&M mix
• Fruit
• S’Mores
• Dutch Oven Cobbler

 

Water (80 oz per person, per day= 3.75 gallons)

• 4 gallons drinking water (1 case of Smith’s Water)

 

I’m pre-making muffins using a mix and the Corn bread I’m Going to cook in a dutch oven using another mix. Here are some of my new favorite camping recipes

M&M Snack Mix

2 C M&Ms

2C Mixed Nuts

2C Snack Pretzels

Mix together.

 Tin Foil Dinner

Foil dinners are pretty basic, This is my version.

½ lb Steak

½ can of Veg-all or other mixed vegetables

½ can can of cream of mushroom soup

spices and seasonings

Mix together the above ingredients with spices and condiments to your heart’s content. Place the mixture on the center of a sheet of foil, wrap in a tent pack, and place on hot coals for 25 minutes.

Tin Foil Breakfast I found this recipe at artofmanliness.com

½ C shredded potatoes

2 eggs, scrambled, uncooked

2 frozen sausage patties

spices and seasonings

Cheese (optional)

Crimp the sides of your sheet of foil so that the eggs won’t go anywhere when you add them. First place your hash brown patty on the foil. Then place the eggs on top of the hash brown patty. Then place the sausage patties on top. Season with spices and condiments and wrap.

Place on hot coals and cook for 15 minutes. Add the cheese when it’s done.

I’m making all my foil dinners a couple days ahead and freezing them so I can just take them out of the cooler and place right onto the fire.

Last but not least, I have a Checklist for your gear so you don’t forget anything.

Camping gear checklist.

Basics

• First Aid Gear
• Map
• Back Pack
• Garbage bags for the rain (and/or pack cover)
• Bags for garbage so you can pack everything out
• Hiking      poles / walking stick

Sleeping

• Sleeping bag
• Sleeping / ground pad
• Tent
• Headlamp / Flashlight
• Pillow
• Watch w/ alarm

Safety

• GPS      / Compass
• Bear      bell
• Sun glasses
• Whistle
• Rope / bear line (25’+)
• Food bag / container
• Bear      spray

Clothing

• Boots
• Flip      flops / sandals for around camp
• Gaiters
• Long underwear
• Underwear
• Socks / liner      socks
• Shorts / pants
• Shirts
• Fleece / Parka
• Rain gear
• Ziploc bags and stuff sacks for organizing
• Hat      for sun / rain
• Hat      for warmth / bandana
• Gloves

Eating / Drinking

• Water bottles
• Water Filter
• Stove
• Fuel
• Lighter / Matches
• Pots / Pans / Pot handle
• Napkins / Towel
• Bowl / cup / utensils / knife
• Soap / hand      sanitizer
• Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner per day
• Snacks per day
• Tea / coffee / hot cocoa / energy drink powder
• Hot      sauce, spices, herbs

Personal effects

• Toothbrush / toothpaste
• Toilet paper / baby wipes
• Chap      stick
• Deodorant      / lotion
• Sunscreen
• Bug Repellant
• Shovel      (for bathroom use)
• Glasses / contacts / contact solution
• Hair tie
• Book      / cards
• Camera
• Binoculars
• Music

I’ll add some pictures next week after we get back.

Thanks for reading and don’t forget to like me on Facebook.

Random Pictures of Life

Whew, now that finals are over I can finally get back to my blog.

I thought I would start off this week with a peek into what my life was like last week.

My week started off like this, Hubby and I got breakfast at our local McDonald’s (It’s not the best breakfast but it was the only one open when we left the house that morning)

This is what the school looked like when I got there, yes it was too early for anyone to be there but me.

A long day of classes in this incredibly stimulating environment.

Most people don’t like the industrial feel of UVU’s architecture but I think it is important to remember the industrial beginnings. plus it’s pretty.

And then it was the weekend. On weekdays we are up too early to see the sun coming through the window, so I really enjoyed waking up to some natural light.

After which we got what I like to call an all-weekend drink, I never finish mine but I like to bring out my hillbilly side every once in a while.

Then I had the privilege of mailing my FAFSA application, I like to think of it as my own personal government bailout.

It has been windy and rainy and cold so I indulged in a warm tea in my favorite mug.

After which we finished off the weekend with some yard work at the in-laws, where we found a robins nest.

Ah, what a wonderful weekend.

See ya’ll next time.