Friday, August 30, 2013

Thankful Thursday

Thankful Thursday



I just wanted to tell you what I'm thankful for today.

There's a little intro story into what I'm thankful for tonight and it goes like this.  Today was errand/cleaning day.  After running our errands we came home to take care of our yard furniture.  I started taking all of Sophistication's yard toys to the basement for winter storage.  When I was finished I started to go upstairs and a giant frog jumped at me!  It looked like this: 




Ok ok ok I KNOW it wasn't really THIS big! BUT it felt like it was!


The frog was probably the size of a small apple but that thing FREAKED me out!

Soooooo What I'm thankful for:

MY HUSBAND!

Yup, he heard me screech and ran downstairs to see what happened and if I was hurt. 
He then preceded to chase the frog until he caught it!  Even better is he took it way out back by the big creak to let it go.  My hubby is AMAZING!  

I Love You C 
&
All that you do for me.  < 3
I love you more than words can describe.  
Thank you for loving me, being my partner and an great father!


~ Dee

Tuesday, August 27, 2013

What's happening this week ending August 25th 2013

What happened this week!  Sophistication turned 22 months old!  Where did the time go???  We went to the park on her month day and she LOVES the slides.  She has absolutely NO fear of climbing all the way to the top and then sliding down on her own.  However, Mommy is terrified of this!  Therefore, Papi hung out at the top of the slide and Mommy at the bottom to make sure she made it up and down safely! :-)  My baby is getting to be such a big girl already!

Talking about being a big girl, I French Braided Soph's hair for the first time this week!  WAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHH :(  

I still can't believe how big she is getting!
This previous week also brought us new kittens that have adopted us.  We have a boy and a girl that look almost identical and are super friendly.   We himmed and hawed if we were going to give them names or not and Papi said we had to call them SOMETHING.  Then he named them Buffy for the little girl and Tuffy for the little boy.  I am surprised that they let Sophistication carry them around so much but they seem to love her just as much as she loves them.  

I wanted to show off this weeks manicure too.  I wore Bondi New York's Brick Road topped by a Wet and Wild orange glitter polish that I have NO idea what it is actually called.  One of my co-workers said this was my candy corn manicure and I completely agree.  Now I just need to find a pearl white to finish it off for a perfect Halloween mani!

I hope you all had as amazing a week as I did!  Enjoy the last days of summer before they are gone, I know I am! 




~ Dee


Sunday, August 25, 2013

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Wednesday, August 21, 2013

Flash flooding August 2013


I have been deciding if I want to blog this at all.  I have lived in my home since I was 6 years old and I have never had to deal with this.  My house has stood here for 65 years.  My grandfather built it!  In those 65 years it has NEVER flooded.  Well that all changed on August 9th 2013.  It was a freak thing.  I had received an alert on my phone that there were flash floods in my area but I ignored it because that is down the road, not at my house, never my house.  I am far enough up the hill that I normally do not have to deal with those things.  

What/How it happened:  I live next to a small creak.  There had been some pretty crazy storms going through the previous few days that made the stream levels higher than normal but that's not what did it.   The rain weakened the side of the embankment right where a large tree grew.  Between the weakened embankment, continued rain and weight of the tree the tree fell into the creek.  Normally that still wouldn't do anything.  On this one day, this one chance tree falling it fell with the top pointed towards the bridge over the stream.  The tree was then pushed into the opening of the bridge and all the branches and leaves blocked the flow of water.  This made all that water go rushing up and over the bridge and road right into my yard, garage and my basement.  My mail carrier witnessed it as it happened right when she was delivering mail.  She said the water was half way up her tires of her SUV.  That's pretty dang high!  Lucky for us she called from her cell phone to have the road crews come unclog the tree ASAP.  She told me that by time she did the next part of her route and came back towards my house the water was gone and she could continue down our road approximately 30 minutes later.  All this mess in such a short time amazes me.

My garage had over a foot of water in it.  The basement flooded and I lost a lot of my Christmas items.  The force of the water and mud was so much that totes that were full were picked up and flipped into the muck.  Other totes had water and mud deposited into them from the top even though they were closed because they are not water proof.  The riding lawn mower moved over 100 ft down the driveway.  Sophistication's Cozy Coupe went from in front of the garage all the way into the way back yard.  We found railroad ties in the middle of our yard as well as a TON of bamboo.  I was lucky.  Even though I am still cleaning everything the important stuff is still there.  My hot water tank still works, the washer, dryer and freezer all work.  My furnace is opened all the way to dry it out so my cousin can come check it out (he works for a company and does it professionally so I'm in good hands).  

Once the house is finished being dried out, cleaned, and organized the yard comes last.  I'm pretty sure that the yard will not be done until next year.  It is a last priority of mine.  Sophistication has somewhere to play out front so the back and side yards can be a mess.  It will get done, eventually.  

In some ways this has been a blessing.  My basement and garage are getting cleaned when I have put if off for years and years and it keeps just collecting junk.  Now I will have a nice, clean, organized basement.  My garage is the emptiest I've seen it in YEARS and it's nice to think I will be able to pull my car in it this winter.  I may have lost stuff.  But that is all it is, it is STUFF!  It is NOT important in the grand scheme of life.  It is all stuff that is replaceable.  

~Dee

Spencer Picnic 2013



This past week was our local fair.  I had to share some adorable pictures that I took the two days that we went.

Sophistication was technically big enough to ride on the rides this year.  However, I did not let her go on any as I was afraid she would try to get out or cry the whole time.  She's not even two yet but she seems like she is older until she doesn't! :-)

She had fun watching all the people, walking around and visiting all the booths and eating some great fair foods.

In the picture at the top, she is eating fluff and trying to get me to eat it too.  I caught the picture just at the right moment that she made a funny face while eating and just HAD to share it.

In the pictures on the right you'll see where she gets the funny faces from.  She's just like her daddy!  She also had a great time hanging with Papi so I could eat.


If you'd like a little history on our town you can visit the official Spencer Picnic website at www.spencerpicnic.com

There is also a video from 1991 that I am in!  I'm not going to tell you where I'm at in the video but I am there!  They need to save it to a different format or load it to YouTube because there is NO skipping ahead in the movie :(  This can be found HERE.

While we were in the park Sophistication found the joy of slides.  I took a short video and some stills because it was just so cute.  I love the look of pure joy on her face.  When we went back a few days later she remembered where the slides were and wanted to keep going down them and even tried to climb the hill to get to it on her own.

We made some great memories by taking a few hours to just stop and enjoy our day with each other instead of stressing over all the little things that have happened this summer.

I hope your enjoying that last few days of summer before the fall hits us.  I know we are!

~ Dee










Tuesday, August 20, 2013

Citrus Lane August 2013, 28mo girl box

Citrus Lane August 2013 

28 mo girl box




What we got in our box this month!



Total Value of our box is $33.04 and we actually loved it all!

Review of Items:

Bear on the Go First Puzzle by Barefoot Books:  Sophistication already threw these around the room several times.  I keep putting them together, she tears them apart, in the box, out of the box, and right back in.  She certainly loves them.  What I love about them is that they are great beginner puzzles at only 4 pieces each.  

Orange Vanilla sanitizing wipes by Clean Well:  These will come in handy in the coming months as the weather continues to cool and the leaves start falling.  They also smell interesting!

Ouchies Jr adhesive bandages, the world of Eric Carle: The Bear Series:  These are supper cute and Sophistication HAD to wear one today.  When the bandages are gone I'm sure she'll love the tin as well.  I like that her crayons can fit in it and I can toss them in my purse and not worry about them getting broken.

Fun Things to Color A to Z from Creativity for Kids:  The pages are adorable in this color book.  I was worried initially by the markers however they are washable.  The size is perfect for Sophistication's hands at the moment too!  I had to hide this from Sophistication when it was nap time because she wanted to color and not nap.

Cheddar Bunnies from Annie's:  I opened these for snack time today.  Sophistication ate a few then decided mommy needed to eat them instead of her.  When I declined after a few she then fed the dogs.  My personal taste testing; I thought they were ok, however not the greatest taste to me.  I like that they are organic but they have a kind of bland flavor.  


All in all I am very pleased with this months box.  I can see us using these products in the near future for their intended purposes besides what we are using them for now.  


About Citrus Lane

 For those of you that have never heard of Citrus Lane here is a quick overview of the company.

  • Citrus Lane provides monthly care packages for children ages newborn to 3 years old.  
  • They provide 4 to 5 "best of" products.  
  • There is a $25 per month fee with free shipping or packages can be purchased in 3,6, and 12 month gift packages (Ours is a 6 month.)  
  • The items are a surprise every month, there are often spoilers on their facebook page and twitter feed.
  • Sophistication is almost 22 months old but I have her aged up 6 months to 28 months.  We have been getting boxes for just over a year and enjoy them so much that I stalk the USPS tracking page as soon as I receive the shipping notification!
  • Citrus Lane's Facebook page is an awesome resource for asking just about any question to other mom's!

If you are interested in trying out Citrus Lane for yourself Click HERE for a more information.  Also use code "TAKEHALF" to receive your first box 50% off for a month to month subscription.  Multi-month Subscriptions get $10 off by using my referral link HERE.

I paid for this box and have not received any compensation for my blog post.  All opinions are my own and I was not influenced by anyone or anything except a great product and I would never recommend anything to anyone that I would not, myself, use or that I felt was not worth spending money on. 



~Dee

Wednesday, July 24, 2013

Monster Hand Puppets!
























I recently participated in a box exchange on a group I belong to on facebook. Box Love B/S/T is a place where people who subscribe to subscription boxes can buy, sell or trade their items with other people who also love sub boxes! Because we all love getting surprise boxes in the mail every month we recently did a box exchange with each other. One of our awesome group members was kind enough to organize everything by getting our information, what we would like in our box and what we wanted to send out. I was paired with another mom, however most others did not have the same person that had them. I had "C" and she has two little boys. I decided to make them a couple hand puppets to include in their trade box from Sophistication as I have seen so many "Monster" theme'd things this summer that are popular for kids recently.  These are really simple to make whether you crochet or knit.  Take a basic mitten pattern and add extra "thumbs" for the extra arms.  Easy peasy :-)  Enjoy

Monday, July 22, 2013

Summer Project #1: Toy Storage



One of my summer projects was building toy storage for Sophistication.  I am still amazed at how great it turned out!  The final project measures 14"H x 22"D x 48"L.  We decided to do a larger compartment in the middle to hold larger items like Sophistication bowling set, guitar and other toys.  I also thought that this would be good for when she gets older and can be utilized as shoe storage.  Boots and sneakers in the middle, heals and flip flops on the sides, was my thinking.  I cheated by buying pre-sanded wood at Lowe's to save on time and sacrificed money.  The total length was determined by me not wanting to have to cut the wood length by 6 inches to match the book shelf that I wanted to sit on top of the toy storage, also laziness.


List of items I used:
2   4ft x 20inch pre-sanded wood panel:             $15.94 each
2   4ft x 12inch pre-sanded wood panel:             $11.94 each
1   4 ft x 6 inch pre-sanded wood panel:             $9.76
1   8ft x 1 inch interior corner molding:                $2.98
1   quart Mahogany Flame stain (over half left!):  $16.48
1   quart fast drying Polyurethane:                       $10.77
4   Dollar store paint brush 3 pack
     Gorilla Glue (on hand)
     1 1/4 inch screws  (something like this here)  not sure exactly WHAT my hubby used but this is what they LOOK like.

Total cost:  around $100 (due to having NO clue what hubby spent on screws)

I found similar toy storage's for the same or even more in cost.  One here is smaller in length and would not work for what I wanted it to do.  Same with this one.  Even though I paid a similar cost to hand build our storage, it's something that Sophistcation will be able to know as she grows that mommy and daddy made it for her.  Another reason I love our design!

We chose the color to match the book case I wanted to stack on it.  I have had this book shelf since I was a child.  One other thing we have "planned" is to make a flip top lid for the storage using another piece of 4 ft x 20 inch wood (un-purchased thus far) and piano hinges.  I will also need to purchase more polyurethane as we used the ENTIRE quart!    Now your wondering where the second 20 inch width panel went that I already purchased.  Well I had Lowe's cut it into 12 inch sections for the side walls.  My cousin cut the angles on the now 12 inch x 20 inch sections for me as I do not own the tools (also remember above... I'm lazy!)  At this point my husband decided he was going to "put" it together himself so it would be "Our" project and not "My" project.  He pre-drilled all the screw holes and did the "sinks" for the top of the screws.  I MADE him gorilla glue between the panels so no dust and dirt and toy junk would get in between the sections and to make for easier cleaning in the future.  Then one coat of stain, 5 coats of poly then voila! it's done!  I hope you enjoy my little project. :-)




Post contains links to where I purchased materials myself.  Prices and availability subject to change.  I received NO compensation for this post.  IF you stack items like shelves PLEASE remember to use wall mounts so your little one can NOT pull it down on themselves!  Safety first!

Friday, July 19, 2013

Munchit Subscription Box Review Week 2!

Banana Split!  Yum!

There's a new Subscription Box on the block and I happened to receive my second box this week.  Munchit is a box of snacks that are delivered to your door once a week for only $3.58!  This includes shipping!

Included in your box is an all natural food snack mix of your choice.  You can pick one or more varieties so you can be surprised on which one you get.   There are currently 10 flavor combinations with what looks like more to come.  Your snack mix comes in a two portion container.  I received  Banana Split and it is a concoction of Banana coins, butter toffee almonds and honey roasted peanuts.  I normally do not enjoy almonds but I LOVED these!

My only complaint is that the mix you receive is supposed to be a two serving size.  I would personally prefer the portion to be a one serving size at a specific calorie count instead of different calories depending on the mix.  After thinking about it for some time this week, I think somewhere between 200 to 250 calories would be a good portion.  This is considering the fact that there is NO way I could only eat half of what arrives as it's just THAT YUMMY!

First Look
 Next, make your choices for hot and iced teas.  There are ten hot tea flavors and five iced tea flavors to choose from.  Your box will contain one of either hot or cold.  I received Twinings Green Tea with Mint Iced Tea and was able to make a few cups of tea out if it as I don't like mine brewed very long.

 Choose your all natural treat next!  There are several different hard candies as well as a couple chocolates.  I received the Organic Cherry Hard Candy. It was quite yummy!  This one is not listed on the website however I clicked surprise me! :-) Now if I only had 2 or 3 in the box to have on another day.
 Lastly you get all natural gum.  The gum is Xylitol based.  There are four little squares of gum in the box which I used two at a time last week but haven't used them this week as I'm on vacation.

Thank you Tim for my wonderful box!
All in all I really did love everything in this box.  I wish I could get the snack mix in bulk!  Or even order multiples of just the snack mix to toss into my husbands and my lunches.

Munchit can be found on their Facebook Page Here or on their website Here!


  I received this box for free as there was a computer glitch with "Fred" the Munchit billing computer.  There was a cute little note included in my box that you can see in the First Look photo explaining what happened.  However, I loved it.  I can not say if Sophistication loved it as it arrived during her nap time and mommy didn't share!  All opinions are my own and even though I did receive this box free from Munchit, I was not influenced by the free product and I would never recommend anything to anyone that I would not, myself, use or that I felt was not worth spending money on. 

I've suspended my subscription for a few weeks while I'm on vacation to preserve freshness but I will start up again mid-August so be on the lookout for more reviews!

Munchit only delivers to some states at this time.  They can be found here.

P.S. I added up the shipping on the box and it's $2.41!  Wow! That's crazy when they charge nothing for shipping!

Thursday, July 18, 2013

Influenster I Do Vox Box Review

 I was lucky enough to receive an Influenster Something Blue VoxBox, also known as the I Do VoxBox this summer.  I have waited to do the review to give myself some time to try the products.  First off I was surprised on how much was included in the box.

First off is the Luster Now! Instant Whitening Toothpaste.  I loved how quickly this got my teeth white, however I did not like the taste.  After the first use I actually re-brushed my teeth with my regular tooth paste to get the taste out of my mouth.  But it is amazing how quickly it does get your teeth white!

Next are Kiss Nails everEZlashes.  I had NEVER used fake eye lashes before!  I was quite surprised that I got two boxes and a coupon!  My 18 year old cousin already stole the second box and the coupon!  Needless to say I was horrible at attempting to put them on, and they just felt funny to me.  Although my trip to the store a local lady noticed how full and long my lashes were so that was a bonus!   If I ever had to use fake lashes for something again (i.e. photos) I would definitely use this product!

Next were Precision Tip Qtips.  For some reason I can't find the photo even though I know I took one!  There were also two travel size boxes included.  I love these for cleaning things!  I used them to clean my keyboard on both my desk top and my laptop!

The Urgent Rx Fast Powder for headache relief to-go is amazing!  The only disappointment is the closest place that sells it to where I live is an hour and a half away from me!  I NEED to get some of these to toss in my purse for when I'm on the go!

Dr.Scholl's For Her Ball of Foot cushions were also included.  I don't wear heals very often but these would be a god send when I do.  However, I do use Dr.Scholl's cushions in my shoes on a daily basis as I'm a server and extra support is a MUST!

Lastly was a discount to MyTrio Rings.  I had never heard of this company before and the jewelry looks sublime.  I'm already married but I did pass this information onto my cousins who were getting married and looking for rings.  Hopefully my husband remembers this site when he's looking for a Christmas present for me this year ;-)

Below is the information card included in the box.  I love when companies include values on items when they send you things to try like this because you can really think about if you would buy the items in the future or if they are a miss for you.



 This is the first thing I have EVER had the pleasure to review complimentary!  Yay!  However, I was not influenced by the free product and I would never recommend anything to anyone that I would not, myself, use or that I felt was not worth spending money on.  I hope you enjoyed my input and thoughts on these products and that they help you make your own informed decisions on whether to purchase them or not. 


Tuesday, July 16, 2013

Auto Awesome with Google Android Photo Backup!


 For those of you who are not android users, you may not realize that android automatically backs up your photos. 
Well, when your phone backs up those pictures there is a NEW surprise in store for you. 
Auto Awesome is a new tool used to create fun extra photos for you. 
Auto Awesome, automatically makes Mix Photo's like seen on the left. 
It also makes Motion photos out of 5 or more photos taken in succession.  I love this new motion animation of Sophistication! 
 
 
 








There are also a few other options but I have not taken any pictures that prompt these Auto Awesome options.  These include HDR (High Dynamic Range), Smile (merging photos of groups with the best smile) and Pano ( a series of photos with overlapping landscape views into one panoramic image.)

 
I love these new animations and mix photos.  I wonder when I'll actually be able to use the other options though ;-) 
 
I hope you enjoyed and if you'd like to follow please click the follow button on the right.
 
~ Dee  a.k.a. Sophistications Mom



Thursday, July 11, 2013

Munchit Subscription Box Review

box size compared to packaging tape! 

There's a new Subscription Box on the block and I happened to receive one today!  Munchit is a box of snacks that are delivered to your door once a week for only $3.58!  This includes shipping.

Aww, Nicole packed my box!  Thanks Nicole! 
Sophistication tried to dig in before I could get a picture.
Included in your box is an all natural food snack mix of your choice.  You can pick one or more varieties so you can be surprised on which one you get.   There are currently 10 flavor combinations with what looks like more to come.  Your snack mix comes in a two portion container.  I received the Red Eye and it was amazing!

 Next, make your choices for hot and iced teas.  There are ten hot tea flavors and five iced tea flavors to choose from.  Your box will contain one of either hot or cold.  I received Twinings Peach Iced Tea and was able to make a few cups of tea out if it as I don't like mine brewed very long.

 Choose your all natural treat next!  There are several different hard candies as well as a couple chocolates.  I received the Organic Mini Dark Chocolate.  What the website doesn't tell you is that this is Swiss Chocolate and it is by far the BEST dark chocolate I have ever had! :-)

 Lastly you get all natural gum.  The gum is Xylitol based.  There are four little squares of gum in the box which I used two at a time.

All in all I really did love everything in this box.  I wish I could get the snack mix in bulk so I would have it all week long as both Sophistication and I loved it.  It was actually a war on who got to eat it.


Now she's stealing my treats!

Finally a child free picture!
















Sophistication picking out what she wants to eat next.
Yumm Mommy!




















Munchit can be found on their Facebook Page Here or on their website Here!


  I received this box for free as I was one of the first 300 to sign up for a box when it launched last week.  However, I loved it and so did Sophistication.  I am eagerly awaiting next weeks box to see what I get new to try.  All opinions are my own and even though I did receive this box free from Munchit, I was not influenced by the free product and I would never recommend anything to anyone that I would not, myself, use or that I felt was not worth spending money on.

Munchit only delivers to some states at this time.  They can be found here.

P.S. I just added up the shipping on the box and it's $2.41!  Wow! That's crazy when they charge nothing for shipping!


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Wednesday, May 1, 2013

Family Magnets :-)

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Tuesday, February 19, 2013

Citrus Lane Feb 2013

Sophistication opened her box for the first time with out mommy's help! So far we love everything :-)

Included in her box is

Book: 
     Sea Animals from Chronicle Books 
     including a code to get 20% and free ground shipping from chroniclebooks.com

Musical Instrument:  
     Clatterpillar from Hohner Kids

Other stuff: 
     Little Buddy Wipes from Me4Kidz
     ~Antibacterial wips for on the go

     Tooth Gel from Branam
     ~Fluoride, SLS and saccharin free.  Contains Xylitol, which is clinically proven to reduce cavity causing bacteria and is safe to swallow for children as young as 6 months or when the first tooth emerges.
    ~code for 25% off branamsmile.com good through the ENTIRE YEAR!  I'm very excited to try this!

     Lip Balm from Pangea Organics
     ~Special Treat for Mom!  I just tried this and I love it!
     ~Also included is a code for 20% off through 3/31/13



As you can see from the pictures the box is as big a hit in our home as the products inside.  The box was considerably smaller this month than in previous months (but hey, it didn't need to be bigger).  Sophistication couldn't decide if she wanted to climb in or wear it.  :-)


About Citrus Lane

 For those of you that have never heard of Citrus Lane here is a quick overview of the company.
  • Citrus Lane provides monthly care packages for children ages newborn to 5 years old.  
  • They provide 4 to 5 "best of" products.  
  • There is a $25 per month fee with free shipping or packages can be purchased in 3,6, and 12 month gift packages (Ours is a 6 month.)  
  • The items are a surprise every month!
  • Sophistication is almost 16 months old but her box is for a 21 month old as I've found I prefer to up her age a bit.
  • Citrus Lane's Facebook page is an awesome resource for asking just about any question to other mom's!

If you'd like to try Citrus Lane for yourself you can click on my link below and get $10.00 off your order!


All views and opinions are my own and I purchase this out of my own money.  I do not receive any compensation for this blog.