Currently // October 27, 2014

So, Monday is already almost over and it frightens me a little bit that I already feel super behind on this week's projects. Here's hoping for an early bedtime and much productivity tonight! 

Thinking // 
...that it's ridiculous that my babies will soon be two and four years old. Make it stop.

...about what we're having for dinner tonight. It was supposed to be BBQ Chicken, but I forgot to put it in the crock pot earlier in the day. So, now I'm not sure what to do.

Pumpkin Patch adventuring this weekend - it was SO HOT! They were super sweaty.

Dreaming // 
...about Christmas and vacations and other things that are going to be delightful and simultaneously hard on our finances.

Organizing // 
...the whole house. Still. Yesterday, I cleaned off my kitchen table. I honestly can't remember the last time it was not piled high with all sorts of random nonsense, so it's a really big accomplishment. 

...all of the lovely products arriving for my Holiday Gift Guide! Wait until you guys see all the cool stuff I get to feature in this year's guide. I'm excited...my kids are excited...I think you will be, too.

We had sprouted crust pizza twice last week and it was yummy.
Maybe this will be dinner tonight?

Laughing At // 
...the number of babies Addie tries to snuggle with while nursing to sleep (photo below). She doesn't care if she has them in bed or not, but she tries to balance everything on my lap with her.

...some of the things Lincoln says lately. I'm trying so hard to write them all down, but there was something yesterday that I have already totally forgotten. It cracked me up for ages, whatever it was.

All the babies.

Reading // 
...mostly just books with the kids because there is not a whole lot of time right now for me to fit in reading books or blogs or anything. We're loving a lot of Berenstain Bears and Clifford and Little Critter books these days.
This post feels random, but hey - it's done. How's your Monday going? Linking up with Hannah for Currently.

Currently // October 20, 2014

Doing //
...all the things. Seriously. SO. MANY. THINGS. I have lists coming out of my ears and I'm losing my mind just a little bit. Thankfully, over the weekend I had a couple of kid-free hours and my kitchen table no longer looks quite as bad as that photo above.

...some backyard therapy in an attempt for everyone to play happily while Mom gets some work done. It's been...reasonably successful so far.

...a lot of Etsy shop marketing. I think it may be working - I had four sales last week!


Planning //
...Addie's second birthday party. I've only started the initial planning stages for this, but since it's barely a month away, it seems likely that I should get busy.

Holiday Gift Guide arrivals! Oh, to be a blogger's child.

...the Holiday Gift Guide for the blog! I haven't done a gift guide since 2011, when I was a full-time coupon blogger. So this is fun (and a little overwhelming, since it's been three years)! If you own a business or an Etsy shop or anything like that, read more about how to be included in my guide!

...a mini vacation next month. We loved Silver Dollar City last Christmas and had so much fun exploring Branson as a family this summer that we just can't pass up the opportunity to go again.


Remembering // 
...to use my real camera sometimes. All the photos in this post are blurry because they were taken with my phone. I want to get back to keeping a daily Project Life scrapbook and I know that I will prefer "real" photos for that. I still think phone cameras are great. But expensive cameras are nice, too.

...that having a meal plan is helpful. I've done slightly better this past week at having some sort of intentions as far as dinner and even that has made life a little easier. If I actually cooked every night, wouldn't it be fantastic? Cooking is not my strong suit. There are so many other things I would rather be doing. I can't be the only one who feels like this, right?


Wishing //
...that I were planning a trip to Disney World. Hey, I can dream.

...for more hours in the day. I sort of feel like this is going to be a lifelong desire.

Loving //
...the way Lincoln and Addie actually play together sometimes. It was more than a little crazy having two kids under age two, but they are really starting to be able to entertain themselves and each other with imaginative games and giggling races. Now - just because they can entertain themselves does not mean that they always choose to do so. A lot of time is still spent fussing and whining in our home. Sigh. 

What are you up to this week? Hope you're having a happy Monday! Linking up with Hannah for Currently.

Currently // October 12, 2014

 Thinking // 

 ....that I say yes far too often, and seek out more responsibilities than I ought. It's hard, having an entrepreneurial spirit while also being a stay-at-home mama. I dream of great achievements, but keep trying to remind myself that caring for the hearts of my children is by far the most important thing on my ever-growing to-do list.

...about Christmas and birthdays, both right around the corner. I hate the "stuff" mentality that seems to come along with these events and want to address that this year. I don't want my kids to expect a boat load of gifts. They already have far more things than they need.

Making //

....lists and lists about my upcoming Holiday Gift Guide. More info about that here.

...poor use of my time. The past few nights, I have not gotten much sleep, and it is so difficult for my to focus when I feel like I am in a haze.

 ...new shabby headbands for the Etsy shop (preview here). Hopefully will be listing this in the next few days! 

...progress (slowly) on the disaster state of my house. I'm tired of feeling overwhelmed by all the clutter, and I would never invite anyone over to see this mess, so it needs to be a higher priority, I guess.

Wearing //

...nothing fashionable, aside from my amazing Charlotte's Web tee. Sorry to disappoint. There is not really money in the budget for purchasing new clothing right now, but I am reaching the point of desperately needing new jeans because every pair I have is too big - I wear them once and they are stretched to the point of falling off. This sounds like a good problem to have, but I'm a jeans snob so I don't know when I'll be getting new ones.

...thankfully, I am not wearing snot all over my body and clothing. After about a month of illness, I think we are all finally relatively healthy with no more hacking coughs or atrocious sneezes. 

Anticipating //

...Addie's birthday party, just over a month from now. Putting aside the nonsense that she's turning TWO YEARS OLD, it's going to be so much fun. I'm starting to think about party crafts and DIYs and birthday outfits and balloons and I love every bit of party planning, so I'm excited.

...a possible trip to Branson in November. We went to Silver Dollar City's Old Time Christmas festival last year and really hoped to make it a yearly family tradition. I'm not sure if we can make it work this year or not, but I really hope that we can.

 Thankful for //

...small mercies and God's promises. This year...let's just say it's held few unexpected things for us, and a lot of days lately are moment to moment around here. I'm grateful for children who are quick to forgive a frustrated mommy. I'm thankful for grandparents who are willing to take energetic little people off my hands for a few hours at a time.

...this blog and other freelance work. Maintaining it requires a lot of dedication and self-discipline (not something I'm great at, but I am trying), but I have reached a place where writing is actually helping our family's income substantially. That's a good feeling.

...all of you. Because, without you, none of the paragraph above this would be true.

Linking up with Hannah this week for Currently.

Currently // October 6, 2014

Happy Monday, friends! I'm trying to have an intentional/productive day over here, but I woke up to a child jumping on my face and then headbutting me...so I didn't get off to the best start. I'd probably feel a little more motivated if the cold/cough/ick I've had for three straight weeks now would just clear up and die, too.

However, I'm also trying to minimize whining and complaining because they are not exactly preferred or attractive tendencies in anyone - so let's get on with the day, shall we?

 Thinking //

...that I need a much better daily routine. Or, a routine at all. I just don't know how to establish this when my kids are up five times a night. Being exhausted all the time does not bode well for productivity, and just the thought of getting up even earlier makes my head hurt.

...that I'd love to be a vendor at a craft show, but I can barely get my Etsy shop stocked with new items more often than a few times a year. Putting together enough stuff for a show sounds like crazy talk.

...that I need to purge some STUFF. My.house.is.a.mess. And by mess I mean complete-and-utter-ridiculous-disaster-of-things-piled-everywhere. I'm past the point of "I can't deal with it anymore" to "I don't want to deal with it anymore," which means now I might actually do something about it. Great logic, right?

Listening //


...to Lincoln eating crunchy cereal while watching the new Octonauts movie I found at the library. Yep - my kids watch TV so I can blog. Addie is still asleep, after having been up several times in the night.

...to the beautiful sound of my dryer running in the basement. It's fixed after about three weeks of downtime. Hallelujah! And it only cost $32 for a part, vs. buying an entire new dryer.

Doing //

...a LOT of blog work today, I hope. I have a full week of posts lined up, plus need to do some prep for kid craft ideas floating around in my head, and start working on my Holiday Gift Guide (email  me if you want to be featured - directorjewelsATgmailDOTcom).

...preschool this week, after an unexpected couple of weeks off. Between living at my parents' house for three days due to curb reconstruction and all of us being sick and the mega piles of laundry in every crevice, I have not been motivated to make school happen. Going to get back on track this week.

...massive housework and organization. Somewhere in my head, I'm believing that it has to look worse before it can look better, but this is what a good room in my house looks like right now:

Thankful for //

...my now-working dryer and husband who spent all of his free time for the last week dealing with it. The poor contraption is going to run literally all day today.

...crisp, fall air and thunderstorms. I'm way beyond tired of heat and mugginess.

What's up with you? What are your goals for the week? Linking up at Hannah's Joyful Life.

Currently // September 29, 2014

I've seen the awesome "Currently" link up many times on some of my favorite blogs around the web, but I've never joined the fun. It's been hosted at A Mama Collective, but starting next week can be found at Hannah's Joyful Life.

So, anyway - here's what I'm currently....

Fast asleep during church yesterday.

Thinking about // The 3,000 books that need to be sorted and find a new place to reside in our crammed house. What costumes to make for our family for Halloween. How I need to weed the yard and cut some mega trees out of our fence line. How delicious Lindt chocolate tastes, especially late at night while blogging. How I wish Addie would decide nurseries are okay so I can quit hating them.

Listening to // The Broadway cast recording of Beauty & and Beast. The movie soundtrack to Oklahoma. By Faith by the Galkin Evangelistic Team.

Watching // Anne of Green Gables. It is every single bit as beautiful as I recalled and I feel that all entertainment should be this heartwarming and breathtakingly brilliant. The scope for the imagination in average television is sorely lacking.

Thankful for // A lower-than-expected quote to fix up our roof before winter (such a huge answer to prayer). The opportunity to homeschool my children, even if I have yet to achieve a balance even for preschool. My parents' and in-laws' dryers, since mine is not working.

Enjoying // Sprouted organic cereal (not an affiliate link). Because I'm battling tooth decay (sigh), I'm trying to avoid all grains that are not sprouted because of their high phytic acid content. I enjoy eating healthy veggies and meat, but sometimes...you just need a bowl of cereal.

My resident Luigi.

Photographing // Kids doing cute things. My baby stroller and car seat to sell on a Facebook swap page (the car seat will expire before we could have another baby to use it).

Making me happy // Shopping for food at Trader Joe's and Whole Foods. If anyone could inspire these brands to bring a store to my hometown, I would be super appreciative. Right now, I visit on Wednesdays when we're making a trek to our awesome chiropractor anyway.

Okay, so we aren't ALL quite that excited about Trader Joe's shopping.

Loving // That Lincoln has slept in his bed all night more than half of the nights in the past week. The fresh flowers on my table (scheming about buying more). Peach and strawberry smoothies. Blissful, beautiful sleep...which is where I am headed now, friends.

What are you currently up to? I hope you have the loveliest week!