Organtic MultiVitamin

It seems like as a mom I am always reading a label. Always wondering if this is safe for my children. Well vitamins are no different. I even read the label on vitamins. And I did it, I have finally found a whole food complex multi Vitamin that is organic. No refined sugar in it, made with organic ingredients. Read more

A Home Business with the Benefits of a Paycheck

I’m often asked what a mom can do from home if she wants a business, but wants to have the benefit of a paycheck. My answer to that is get into a service based business like I have. These businesses are a great option for moms who want to be paid hourly, but want or need the freedom a business offers instead of working a job.

Take a minute and read more about Virtual Asssistance work and this learning product How To Become a VA.

It’s an incredible value and the perfect resource for anyone interested in creating a typing business.

Check it out for yourself, right here: How To Become a VA I did and now I’m a business owner myself, Premium Virtual Assistance. If I can do it I know you can do it too if this is where your interest lie.

Pettiskirt Craze

These aren’t your old fashion petticoats! Kaiya Eve has given the petticoat a makeover and now pettiskirts are a must have fashion item for little girls world wide.

You might be thinking what’s a pettiskirt?

Well they’re only the most fabulous, fluffiest, ruffliest skirts around! Pettiskirts are perfect for play time, portraits and pageants. They can be pricey but there are numerous online retailers who have great sales, you just have to be willing to shop around. Available in sizes infant to large and a multitude of colors.

Kandi Lightner is the designer and inventor of these beautiful skirts. Her story is amazing. Kandi started out making vintage, one-of-a-kind pettiskirts for Fred Segal. She developed celeb following and the next thing you know Dakota Fanning was wearing one to the Teen Choice Awards. The rest they say is history!

The perfect sweet indulgence for your little fasionista!

Kaiya Eve Web Site Kaiya Eve Retailers

Upcoming Project

Well I have an upcoming project I just have to share with you.  We are going on a vacation soon and I had to have something to distract me in the vehicle with the kids. But I had to have something that would not be too difficult.

I have a nephew coming soon (my step sister Jen) and I wanted to have something for him so I picked up this great project and can not wait until to get started.  It is all stitching and felt applications.

You should of seen all the cute ones they had.  I need to find more people having babies so that I can keep working on them.

I will keep you up to date on how much project is going. And can’t wait to show you the finished project.

Turn Your Scrapbooking Trash into Treasure

When you’re done with making a layout, what do you do with the scraps and pieces left over? Do you throw them away? Are they sitting in a drawer, file, or basket just taking up space? Why not use those scraps to add a unique special touch to your layouts? You’ll not only save yourself money on supplies, you’ll be reducing wate to help save the planet.

Punches are a great way to use scraps and add fun flair to your scrapbooks. Most scrapbook stores sell punches that turn your tidbits of paper and cardstock into tiny puppies, stars, rainbows and shapes of every kind. To cut the cost of punches, go shopping with your friends and buy punches you think you all can use. You can trade when you need them or use them at group get-togethers.

A lot of backgrounds are just a collections of pictures. You can make great embellishments and additions to layouts just by taking pictures from smaller background pieces. This is great if you tend to recycle materials like wrapping paper and greeting cards. While a whole group of flowers may make a great layout, a single flower from the same page can be just as, or more beautiful.

Mosaics are a fantastic way to reuse even the smallest scraps. You can be simple by making flowers or sunsets. If that’s just too easy for you, you can find pictures you like and recreate them with scraps. To make the process more efficient, try organizing your scraps by color then size. This will make them easier to sort through for other uses too.

Scrapbooking stores sell all kinds of letters to add titles and substance to a layout. But why spend a lot of money on letters that may not be exactly what you’re looking for? Extra pieces are great for making your own unique lettering. Solid colors make great letters, but you can also experiment with patterns. While if might take more time than buying precut letters or stamping them on, it will give your layout a special touch to make it stand out.

Did you know you can use leftover paper to make your own recycled paper? Just make your scraps very small, add a small amount of water and blend. Then, spread it out on silver foil, blot with paper towels, and allow it to dry. The end result is a thick, textured paper that can be for kid’s crafts, or to add a special touch to your scrapbooks.

Do your kids have an interest in scrapbooking too? Giving them your leftover scraps is a great way to get them started without spending a lot of money on supplies. You can even find very inexpensive digital cameras just for kids so they can take their own pictures for their layouts. They’ll have fun, create memories, and they might just give you some great ideas.

REMEMBER TO KEEP ALL OF YOUR SCRAPBOOKING SUPPLIES AND SCRAPS organized SO YOU DON’T HAVE A BIG MESS EVERYWHERE AND YOU’LL KNOW WHERE TO LOOK WHEN YOU NEED SOMETHING.

Adopting A Frugal Living Lifestyle

Have trouble making ends meet, have more month left than money. Sounds all too familiar doesn’t it? One of the best ways to save money and truly stretch your dollars to the end of the month is to live a more frugal lifestyle.

Being frugal with one’s life doesn’t mean that you will live a life, doing without and hoarded away goods and foods. Frugal living is actually very freeing. Frugal living frees up your finances to work harder and smarter for you so you in turn don’t have to work so hard to actually bring in an income.

In a time where 40% of Americans live beyond their means, meaning they spend more monthly than they make, finding ways to save and learning to be more frugal sounds like a winning idea doesn’t it?

There are a few key concepts that one must adopt in order to begin living a more frugal lifestyle.

Smarter money management. A person must begin to not only spend less money, but also manage the money they have smarter. This can take some time and discipline but will pay off in the end.

Spend less. A person must also learn how to spend less than they make. This can be a difficult process for some who have spent more than their paycheck for a long time, however if they adopt some frugal living ideas they can accomplish this in no time.

Saving. With the money they save through not spending as much, they can begin to put away money into savings; another key to frugal living that will help a person get ahead financially.

Continue the process. Continuing to spend less and save more is the key.

Adopting some key concepts to frugal living can truly change the way you live your life, and the way your money works for you. Become different from the norm and begin a smarter, more frugal lifestyle today.

These are just a few doable tips I found in this ebook Frugal Living How To Stretch Your Hard Earned Dollar. I’m sure you will find some others just as helpful you can put into practice.

To Potty Train, or Not to Potty Train?

For anyone who is struggling with potty training ideas or concern, I have a son who just turned 3. We saw the Pediatrician for his check-up, and discussed potty training. My son has the concept down, but only has concern for going when he chooses.

I am a firm believer in letting my children have some control of their lives. This is a very important developmental stage for them. Many children are forced or manipulated to potty train before they are ready. This can stem from circumstances beyond our control. I have the luxury of being a stay-at-home mom. Therefore, I can allow my children to grow as they are ready.

However, there are many moms who do not have this luxury. They are forced to abide by their daycare’s regulation that before a child can enter into the next classroom, they must be potty trained. I find this ridiculous. The daycare centers are setting a standard not by intellectual capabilities, but by a child’s comfort zone. The Pediatrician confirmed that there is no need to push him to use the potty. The more it is his idea, and I praise him, the more he will want to go. By forcing a child to learn, if they cannot they feel like failures.

Our children will struggle through many tribulations in life without us as parents creating them. So, for those of you moms that have an option, do not make your child afraid of having an accident, let them guide you in what they are ready for.

Marvelous Meat Munchers

Today’s recipe is one for the grill so enjoy the warm summer days with your friends and this recipe.

What You Need:

 

1 lb chicken breasts, boneless, skinless and cubed

1 lb beef sirloin, boneless and cubed

1/2 C canola oil

3 garlic cloves, minced

1/3 C pineapple juice

2 tsp soy sauce

1 tsp red pepper flakes

4 jalapeno peppers

8 strips of bacon - cut in half

16 toothpicks

 

How to Make It:

 

Whisk together the canola oil and minced garlic in a large mixing bowl.

 

Add the pineapple juice and soy sauce and continue whisking until well blended.

 

Stir in the red pepper flakes.

 

Place the mixture into a large zip lock bag.

 

Trim any fat away from the pieces of meat.

 

Place the meat into the zip lock bag, close tightly and shake to insure the meat is completely

covered by the marinade.

 

Allow the meat to sit in the marinade at least one hour.

 

Meat can marinate over night if you prefer.

 

Remove the meat from the bag and discard the marinade.

 

Cut the peppers lengthwise and remove the seeds, membrane and stems.

 

Cut the peppers into strips.

 

Place one strip of pepper on each piece of bacon.

 

Place one cube of meat on top of each pepper strip.

 

Add another pepper strip on top.

 

Wrap the bacon completely around each piece and secure with a toothpick.

 

Heat grill to medium hot or if using coals place coals in the center of the grill and when the coals burn down to a slight gray spread in a single layer.

 

Cook 20 minutes, turning every 5 minutes to insure they are cooked on all sides.

 

When done the bacon should be crisp and the juices from the chicken should run clear.

 

When cooking with jalapeno peppers if possible wear gloves.  Never touch your face or eyes until you have washed your hands thoroughly.

Removal of a two year old autistic child from airplane

My friend shared this article with me this morning: Autistic Toddler and His Mother Removed From Plane For “Uncontrollable Behavior” I was just completely appalled at it.

A mother and her 2 1/2 year old autistic son were kicked off an American Easgle flight Monday after the crew deemed the child “uncontrollable”.

This is a quote from the article: “the flight attendant made things worse.

“She kept coming over and tugging his seatbelt to make it tighter, ‘This has to stay tight.’ And then he was wiggling around and trying to get out of his seatbelt. And she kept coming over and reprimanding him and yelling at him.”

Where is the understanding here? What good does yelling at anyone do much less a child? What if this family was on their way to a medical appointment they needed to make? Was the comfort of the other passengers more important than the needs of this family? Apparently American Eagle thinks so.

There are unruley typical children on planes all the time. Crying or screaming babies on long flights whose crying is “uncontrollable”. Are they next to be kicked off planes? What, are airlines going to start stopping in mid-flight to get them off? Yes, that is a ridiculous thought and so is this situation.

It is my hope that this family gets justice here in this unjust instance. And that the distress this chid was put through is taken into account.

All flight crew members need to be trained in dealing with autistic people from children to adults. In case they haven’t heard it affects 1 in 150 children. Are they planning on kicking them all off?

Things like this just burn me up.

Oil Painting for Beginners

Once you have selected your canvas or panel and set your palette, you have only to pick up some color on your brush or knife and begin to paint. It’s as simple as that. Of course, how you hold your brush or knife and the manner in which you apply paint to canvas can make a very great difference in the kind of picture you will paint. But there is no one approved way and artists tend to be even more individual in their painting habits than in their handwriting.

You will, of course, eventually find the way of working that suits you best. In the meantime, it is well to beware of one especially bad habit that painters sometimes fall into at the beginning and later find very hard to break: staying too close to your painting as you execute it.

When you work too close, your eye tends to focus on a few square inches at a time, with the result that you may be tempted to overdevelop this limited area, and then the next such area, thus losing the bigness of conception and boldness of execution without which a painting is usually doomed to failure.

As a preliminary to painting a picture, it may be helpful to experiment with your brushes and knives to find out what kinds of lines, tones and textures you can produce with each one. Squeeze out four or five colors on your palette. Use the paint just as it comes from the tube for these exercises unless you find it unworkable, in which case you can add a minimum of medium.

You might choose White, Burnt Umber, Ultramarine, Cadmium Yellow and Alizarin Crimson for these experiments; such an assortment will give you a wide range of hue and value, but any colors will do. The important thing here is not the way the colors combine,but the way you can use your tools to achieve particular tones and textures.

Exercise 1: Lines - With each of your brushes, in turn, carry some single strokes across your canvas. Use paint generously. Don’t be disturbed by the ridges of paint which may squeeze out along the edges of a stroke, or by the way the line breaks and lets some canvas show through as the brushful of paint becomes exhausted, giving the result known as “dry brush.” These effects are characteristic of oil painting and often are created intentionally.

Do some lines with the flat sides of your brushes, others with the thinner edges. Try light paint, medium paint, dark paint. Tip the bristles at different angles to the canvas. Vary your pressure. Make wavy lines, broken lines, zigzag lines. Invent lines of your own. Ultimately, you will need them all. As you work with your brush, you may find that you will want to turn it over, or up on edge, every little while in order to use the paint which accumulates. That’s all right, too.

Exercise 2: Broken Color - Now dip your brush into two or more colors at a time and draw a number of lines again. As you paint, these colors will automatically blend somewhat, yet each will remain visible in places. Accidental effects obtained this way can be telling at times.

After you have experimented with elementary exercises like these, you will be well on your way to starting a real painting. Good luck!

Are You Using A Paint Color Chart Yet? You Should Be!

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http://www.paintcolorchart.net/

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