December Goal Progress

Happy New Year!  This is also.. the year of BABY!  I can't believe how fast this pregnancy has flown by, it seems even closer now that we are in 2016.  We go back to the specialist today for some more measurements and just to doublecheck that everything still looks a-okay.  Excited to see my little munckin again - it's been 5 weeks! 

I wrapped up December strong on some goals and not-so-strong on others!  That's ok, I like tracking the progress and seeing my comparisons each year.  

1.  Used up Products

• Tree Hut Epsom  Sale in Tropical Mango - not sure this product really soothes any aches but the smell is divine.  Really enjoying this brand of products. 
• Vaseline Lotion in Aloe Fresh - a favorite of mine and Adam's
• Neutrogena make up remover cloths - I don't find that these alone remove all my make up so I use a cleanser after but they're good for travel when I don't want to worry about staining other's washcloths
• Urban Decay Melt Away Eye-Makeup Remover - good riddance!  Not impressed at all with this product. 
• Bath and Body Works Sweet Cinnamon Pumpkin Hand Soap
• Misty Mountain Spiced Cranberry Hand & Body Lotion - full disclosure, I didn't use this up because it started smelling funky.  Hate to throw away a practically new bottle of lotion but I can't handle how it smells now.  It's only about a year old too - not sure what happened to it.
• Fresh Sparking Snow Bath & Body Works Travel Hand Sanitizer
• White Sands Glaze Plus Medium Hold Hair Product - I bought this in 2010 when I was still living in Baton Rouge and it's taken me this long to use up!  Again, I'm never really sure if hair products are doing anything or not for me!
• Mama Bee Belly Butter - didn't love this scent at all.  Product is fine but just not my flavor.
• Bath & Body Works Brown Sugar and Fig Shower Gel
• Bath & Body Works Brown Sugar and Fig Body Cream
• Blistex Ultra Rich Hydration
• 2 blush brushes - both broken that I've been hanging on to for what reason? who knows.

2.  Books & Magazine

• Holy magazine!  I read and tossed 13 this month.  I also read an ACTUAL book while we were away for the holidays.  Still really enjoy the Mary Higgins Clark books.  
• I also listened to two Audible books - The Glitter and the Gold and The Last Anniversary.

 

3.  Blog Posts

• 4 for the month

4.  Get More Exercise

• January = 40.71 miles
• February = 41.11 miles
• March = 49.59 miles
• April = 52.51 miles
• May =  50.86 miles
• June =  80.38 miles 
• July =  77.46 miles
• August = 72.02 miles
• September =  57.56 miles (not a good month, more on that in another post)
• October = 60.9 miles  
• November = 46.09 miles
• December =  48.24 miles

5.  Scrapbook Progress

• January = 30 pages
• February = 66 pages
• March = 31 pages
• April = 3 pages (bummer)
• May = 29 pages 
• June = 57 pages  
• July =  30 pages
• August = 88 pages
• September = 6 pages
• October = 0 pages (ugh)
• November = 44 pages 
• December = 27 pages  

So glad I was already able to get our trip to Spain and Portugal documented/scrapbooked and put on the shelf!  

 

Bathroom Under Sink Organization

It's hard to believe that come February, we will have been in our house for FIVE years.  Several areas definitely reflect that and have become major catch-alls!  Other areas, I don't think we are best utilizing the space.  One of those catch all/under utilized areas is under my husband's sink.  He has very few products that he requires each day and most fit in a basket (that's supposed to be loaded up and dropped back under the sink each morning but hardly ever happens).  But since he has so few items, I have re-purposed the area for other items.  

Here's a quick look at how it looked when I finally had enough of the mess:

Husband's side of the vanity

Site for sore eyes.  The only thing really working in this cabinet is where I store my washcloths for quick daily grabs (twice a day actually).  I also store the bathroom cleaning products under his side and that hot pink basket is a major catch all. 

I took most items out and gave it a quick wipe down.  I decided to leave the current shelving in place because it's working for the most part, esp. since you can remove/move around the slats.

The after.  I put away 90% of the items that had collected in the hot pink basket to their appropriate places around the house (jar of buttons to the sewing kit, various medical things to the medical baskets, fitbit accessories to the rest of the iPhone/device storage bin, etc.) and repurposed the basket to corral all of the cleaning supplies.  Now we can just pop out the basket when it's time to clean the bathroom vs fishing around under the sink.  The top shelf holds various items that are used in the bathroom at a least frequent basis. 

There's still plenty of space to pop in my husband's daily basket of items too. 

This took me about 30 minutes to straighten up and for sure, looks much better!  I'm slowly making my way through the house... one messy room at a time. 

Project Life Card Organization

My love for clear containers multiplied last night.  I have been on the hunt for a way to better organize and use my Project Life cards.  I was storing them in my Ikea shelves but I found that to be too much of a hassle because I would be in and out of the different core kits and it was just easier to leave them in a pile in the floor for easy access.. see below

While this was somewhat easier, it still isn't ideal - I don't want the big pile in the floor AND Project Life changed the style of their packaging so now the cards just come in the flimsy tray (see the kit on the top) vs in the nice cardboard box which presents problems with stacking. 

So, I turned to my friends Bed Bath and Beyond and The Container Store.  Since we don't have a Container Store here, my first option was Bed Bath and Beyond.  They had one clear hinged box I thought would be perfect but when I got it home, turned out to be about 1" too short to clear the cards (I want them to be standing up in the boxes).  However, I loved those boxes so much I used them in my bathroom cabinet to give that room a refresh - I think clear boxes are always the way to go!  I need to do a few more tweaks and I'll share an updated look at this cabinet too.  LOVING the clear containers though. 

Since I ended up with an additional 6 containers that didn't solve my Project Life problems, I turned online to The Container Store.  I had a couple reservations with ordering 1) you have to spend at least $75 to get free shipping; 2) I'd be guessing more or less on the products since I couldn't actually see them in real and 3) I'll have to go to Atlanta or Nashville to return (not paying the fee to mail back!) if they don't work.

I settled on 2 different style boxes and placed my order... the next day, I had shoppers remorse and did some online research to see how others organize their cards.  Not many people use completely clear containers and that's really what I was after.  I finally stumbled on a quick youtube video where the lady had used the large shoe storage drawers from The Container Store!  I headed back to the website and placed another order for 6 large shoe boxes and also the dividers (sold separately).

My first order arrived Monday and it was obvious that the products weren't going to work.  I had a complete miss with that order.  Last night, my second order arrived and the stars aligned!

The drawers are such a nice clear, sturdy container and they slide very nice and smooth on the tracks.

 (ignore the mess in the back!)

 Here's a shot of the dividers - I love that you can use them 3 different ways. I chose to section them off side to side and keep a complete core kit together in one section (4x6 cards and 3x4).  They fit perfectly and have room to flip through the cards as well. 

 I added a post it tab to label which core kit is in each section.

 The stack of empty core kit boxes I was asble to transition to the clear boxes! 

 I'm pretty sure the boxes will live like this on the corner of my scrapbook table for easy access.  I do need probably 2 more to fit the rest of my core kits as well.  I also noticed that when the top drawers are completely extended it gets top heavy.  I may stack my pen/scissor/foam mounting supply box on top to serve as an anchor.  

Now I'm itching to get up there and try out my new system.  In the meantime, I can enjoy my eye candy! 

Favorite Maternity/Baby Related Items so far (halfway!)

The world of baby and maternity is a whole new world for me!  I wanted to share some items that I have found to be helpful (halfway through!) my pregnancy journey.  

A recent favorite, the Baby Bargains book, has so many great tips for new parents on every product under the sun for baby.  They have several different price point categories so you can really find something that works well for your budget.  This book has gone with me everywhere and I rely on it often.  I ordered mine from Target but I've seen them on Amazon as well.

Obviously, I'm a sucker for anything memory-related.  I saw this adorable pregnancy journal at Hallmark and had to have.  I didn't find it until 16 weeks or else I would have bought the signs for each week milestone too!

 

This maternity shirt from Gap is one of the first things I ordered.  I LOVE how comfortable it is and also has such a classic style.  I also get compliments when I wear it.  I actually ordered it in another color combo during all the sales this week too.

We picked up this adorable whale stuffed animal when I went for my gender ultrasound.  The technician recorded Baby Boy's heartbeat and put the recorder in the whale so when you squeeze it, you hear the heartbeat.  LOVE it. 

 

Next up is the Cosabella "Never Say Never Mommie" nursing bra.  I got mine from Nordstorm but lots of stores carry this line.  It was a bit pricey but I was in so much pain from the other bras I've bought at Motherhood Maternity that I was willing to splurge on this one if it worked.  It's actually on sale right now and I'm working to get a price adjustment!!

 

My last favorite item I stumbled upon by using up a sample I had in my stash.  I had been using the Burt's Mama Bees Body Butter but I really don't care for the smell of it.  I had a sample for Soap & Glory The Righteous Butter and LOVED it immediately.  I found that Ulta carries it.  I'm hoping it's got all the same(ish) ingredients as the Burt's Bees body butter and combats potential stretch marks.  So far, so good!

 

November Progress Toward Goals

I could get use to 4.5 days off work!  Although, I felt like I needed to come back to work in order to get some rest.  I think I def. overdid it this weekend with the cooking, fall undecorating, Christmas decorating, shopping and keeping the house tidy.  We had a great time visiting with my parents and grandmother though so I wouldn't change a thing!  It was nice to have the extra help with the above mentioned items too.  We did venture out and do some shopping Thanksgiving afternoon/evening, Friday afternoon and again Saturday.  

Big purchases were the baby's furniture and stroller, car seat and extra base.  So glad to get those big items checked off!  Not excited to see my credit card bill in a few weeks! lol

I seriously need to get myself back in line with purchasing beauty products that I don't need!!!  I really don't use up as many as what I buy and I'm never going to make a dent in my collection at this rate but I just can't pass up a deal!! HELP!

I also can't believe that we find ourselves at the end of another month!  Where has the time gone this year?!?  This week also marks 19 WEEKS for Baby Gray's progress!  This pregnancy is just flying by.  Baby Boy will be here before we know it.  

1.  Used up Products

• Bath and Body Works Sweet Cinnamon Pumpkin Body Lotion
• Bath and Body Works Japanese Blossom Body Cream (there was some left in the bottle but I know I have had this at least since 2009 and I'm completely over it!)
• Fusion Hair Spray - This didn't have but a few drops in it and I completely love the scent.  I know I got this the fall of 2008 and just haven't wanted to throw it away because I knew I wouldn't remember what it was called.  
• Tarte Eye Lash Primer - would not repurchase

2.  Books & Magazine

• Just one sad magazine!  This shows how tired I've been at night when I finally make it to bed!

• I also made it through this awesome book about baby products.  The couple has soo many helpful reviews.  I would def. recommend this book to anyone that's having a baby.

 

3.  Blog Posts

• 4 for the month

4.  Get More Exercise

• January = 40.71 miles
• February = 41.11 miles
• March = 49.59 miles
• April = 52.51 miles
• May =  50.86 miles
• June =  80.38 miles 
• July =  77.46 miles
• August = 72.02 miles
• September =  57.56 miles (not a good month, more on that in another post)
• October = 60.9 miles  
• November = 46.09 miles

5.  Scrapbook Progress

• January = 30 pages
• February = 66 pages
• March = 31 pages
• April = 3 pages (bummer)
• May = 29 pages 
• June = 57 pages  
• July =  30 pages
• August = 88 pages
• September = 6 pages
• October = 0 pages (ugh)
• November = 44 pages 

Baby Gray is a ....

BOY!  

Here comes a world of blues for me.  We found out last week at an ultrasound people that you can go outside of your regular doctor to find out the gender early.  So, of course, I had to know!  It's more reliable once you're at 16 weeks so I made my appointment for 16 weeks and 1 day.  

The belly has popped!

 Plus, we had the first appointment of the day so I didn't have to drag it out any longer!  The girl that did the ultrasound was great and spent so much time with us.  We literally saw within seconds that Baby Gray is a boy.  He's very proud.  He kept waving his arm around and was showing off for the camera.  We got some cute pictures.  As soon as we left, we facetimed my parents and then Adam's.  I also called my Grandma and Ashleigh, Adam's sister.  We also called one of his brothers and then sent a group text to the rest of the siblings/spouses.  We had settled on a boy name even before we were trying to get pregnant so the name part was super easy - but only if it was a boy - we never reached agreement on a girl name. 

We got one of the stuffed animals that you can put a recording of the heartbeat in.  The little whale was too cute to pass up.  How about Adam wore blue to the appointment??

My sweet boss had me a gorgeous floral arrangement delivered to my office.  Everyone was so excited to find out what we are having.

 For some added fun, I picked up cupcakes that had the "mystery" icing in the middle

It was a race to see who could bite into the middle first!  Can I just say these cupcakes were SOOOO yummy

 Making fun memories with my work family

This past weekend,  I went to Mobile to visit one of my best friends.  We of course had to go shopping for the new little man!

Also, when I got to work Monday, another co-worker had a huge surprise for me - a giant gift bag full of goodies!  My co-workers spoil me. :)

White Chili Chicken - Quick and easy!

This is the first week in a while I've actually felt well enough to cook (and eat what we cook).  Monday night we had crock pot beef tips,  corn and mashed potatoes.  Last night we turned to a recipe we discovered last year and had forgotten about!  Anyone else ever do that?  At one point, I was trying to make a spreadsheet of all the possible meal options but then gave up on it at some point.  I really should finish it though, it would be a handy reference tool and a good way to have variety in meals.

Alas, I wanted to share a quick, easy dinner with you.

Literally all you have to do is follow the step by step instructions on the back of the seasoning packet and dinner is made!  It is really spicy so be warned.  The only things you need to purchase are chicken, white beans and the seasoning packet (I use McCormicks).  Enjoy!