Dreaming of warmer days

   So, as with a lot of people he new year brings with it thoughts of spring and gardens :)  After one of my favorite past times, searching Pinterest I have discovered something called snow sowing.  Since I don't yet have a greenhouse I have been looking at ways to start some of my plants early to hopefully keep costs down.  Buying plants in May or June can get expensive.  This year I am also going to be fencing in my garden because if you looked over my garden posts from last year I had a problem with something eating my broccoli, and when you buy 24 broccoli plants that can be a real pain in the but and loss of money.

   So back to this snow sowing.  What that basically is is you take gallon size clear plastic containers which can be milk jugs or in my case since I have a lot of these, old vinegar jugs, (just make sure to thouroughly wash them before use.) 

   You cut the container about half way up, but do not cut the whole way through the container, leave a piece still attached so it acts like a hinge.  Drill about 15 holes in the bottom of the jug and a few around the bottom this allows for ventilation and drainage.  Next fill with potting soil, wet the soil, plant your seeds then you are basically done.  Tape the container back together then using a permanent marker write what is inside the container and the day planted so you can keep track of when to transplant.  Oh, and don't forget to take the caps off and leave them off.  This is how your plants gets water, but make sure to check in early spring to see if they need a little water from you.  Unlike when you start seeds indoors, this method does not require you to harden your plants off before transplanting to your garden when the time comes.

   I am really excited to try out this method of gardening and hoping it will turn out well for me and my garden.  This year I have decided to change up this a little bit and only grown about a dozen or so veggies so that I can hone in on how to grow these few crops well.  So this year I have decided to try my hand again at broccoli, cauliflower, brussel sprouts, lettuce, cucumbers, peas, carrots, and green beans. I ordered these seeds yesterday online.  I will not be using my mini greenhouses for all of these, some of them are direct sowes.  I will also be planting potatoes again.  Last year my corn did not do well so I am going to be buying that in bulk again like I did last year.  It worked out very well and I was able to support local farmers.  I will also be buying tomatoes this year since I did not have good luck with those last year.  By the time I had enough ready to can, half of them were already rotten.  I have only planted carrots before once, and I have no experience with growing peas but I am thinking ahead and plan on making them into baby food for the little one on the way.

   Here are some trow back Thursday picture for you of my garden from last year.

   Follow along with me on Facebook A Life of Organized Chaos and Instagram under m_mitchell07. 

Starting off our Christmas fund.

   So sometime last year I was looking into ways to make money from home.  Being a full time mom leaves little spare time to do other sorts of things.  I have tried doing some other things in the past that didn't work out for me, everything from survey taking, (which works for a lot of people, just not for me) to more costly adventures like when we spent $2500 of our tax return money on a course to become a medical transcriptionist that I wasn't able to complete within the time frame I was given, I really thought I could do that one.

   But then I found something on a blog I follow.  Actually several blogs i follow seemed to have a high opinion of Swagbucks.  It didn't cost me anything to join so I figured it couldn't hurt anything to try it out.  So try is what I did, and it worked for me!  Swagbucks gives you swag points for doing simple things like watching a short video, which you can do with the sound off and as time allows you, playing games, taking polls, or even surveys.  I recently downloaded the app for my phone and I can get points for downloading apps and all I have to do is open the app to get credit for using the app, then I delete the app.

   All the points you gain add up and you can even get bonus points for reaching a daily goal that Swagbucks sets.  Once you earn enough points you can turn them in for rewards which are very numerous and cover a wide range of things but my favorite is the gift cards.  Last year all the points I earned went towards gift cards to Amazon, (it's the best deal where you can get a $5 gift card for 450 points, most other $5 gift cards require 500 points.)  With these gift cards I was able to pay for almost half of my Christmas presents for free :).

  So this year I am starting off a little earlier in the year, I believe I started last year in April or so, I'm being a little more aggressive in getting my swagbucks, and I'm going after the $25 Paypal cash (which is 2500 points but I'm still hoping to get at least one of these each month.)  With what I leaned from last year is that I can sometimes get presents from other sites with better deals than Amazon and can just transfer the money over to my bank account to use or just pay the merchant through Paypal.

   So that is how I hope to achieve one of my goals for this year.  Last year Christmas kinda snuck up on me quickly, plus we have yearly taxes due at the end of the year so money is tight then.  That is why this year I am being more proactive about Swagbucks this year and I hope to be ahead of the ball.  Plus there is also the addition of another child to buy Christmas present for next year.  If you would like to check out Swagbucks for yourself here is a link to check it our for yourself.  And yes they have a referral program in which you can earn points for everyone who signs up using your referral link, but I just want to spread the word how easy it has been for me to earn free money that will help us tremendously at the end of the year.  So head on over there and good luck!

Goals for the new year.

   So this year I have decided that I am going to set goals for myself that I will do my best and hardest to complete.  Some things are just a one time thing and others are things that I will do all year long, hopefully.

   2014 was a year pretty much like any other year.  There were some firsts, including the older guys joining soccer this year, but mainly just the every day bumps and lumps that come from raising three boys in this world. 

   So here is what I hope to accomplish this year and things I would like to put into practice this year.  These are in no particular order.

   - Buy a new vehicle.  We have been trying to do this for awhile, but for one reason or another have not been able to save up the money to put this into action.  Plus my current SUV has continued to chug along so its been a blessing. 

   -Get Gabriel a new bed.  He is currently still in his crib turned toddler bed, which he still fits into, but it squeaks when he moves around because it has been jumped on too many times, lol.  I am going to look into bunk beds that can convert into two single beds so that way we can either put Gabe and Julian in a room together or have them still set up like they are depending on if we move to a house with more bedrooms this year or not.

   -Declutter.  When we had our house fire three years ago we lost everything but then got a lot od stuff given to us and as usual there are the extra things around the house that don't get used that are just taking up space.

   -Make room for baby.  This kinda goes along with the last goal but is still a little different because it focuses more on my bedroom than the whole house.  For the most part the new baby boy will be in the master bedroom with us this coming year but that room is what needs the most cleaning out because stuff just kinda gets put in there so it needs organized and moved around a little bit.

   -Get caught up on laundry.  This is something that comes and goes yet kinda goes along with the last goal too, but it never seems like I am caught up with the laundry but I want to figure out a system as to where the laundry is more manageable, but that may just come when I get some energy but who knows when that will be, lol. 

   -Read more books.  This past year I havn't been reading as much as I would like to.  I don't have a set amount of books I would like to read, just an overall want to read more.

   -Read more with the kids.  We have gotten out of the ritual of doing this with the kids recently.  Between running late with the bedtime schedule and momma being rather tired at the end of the day we havn't ended up reading together as much as I want to.  So my goal is to read to the kids at least 3 days a week, doesn't have to be at bedtime though just whenever it fits in.

   -Keep in touch more with family.  Not to much to expand on there, lol.

   -Work on the Christmas fund.  I plan on doing this by saving up money throughout the year and buying things as I see them on sale rather than wait for Christmas like I have done in the past.  Any money I make from selling things in the declutter department will go towards birthdays and Christmas funds.  Also I plan on working hard with the Swagbucks that I have been doing which earned me some of the money via Amazon gift cards that paid for some of Christmas this year.  It's a pretty cool program that gets a monetary reward for little output. 

   So hopefully with some of these in place we will be more prepared for Birthdays and Christmas monetary wise.  But also I just hope to be able to enjoy this year with my family and become closer and more organized.  But who doesn't want that, lol.  Here are a few pictures from the last year.

 
   And that does it for 2014.  Hello 2015.  Be good to me please. 

Christmas and we are having a Boy!

   So it's been fun and crazy week around these parts.  The kids really enjoyed Christmas and got lots of new stuff to play with and have fun with.  Murphy even got a stocking and some treats for Christmas too.  He really enjoyed his Christmas as well.

  Christmas morning Julian and Gabe woke up earlier as usual so they got to look through their stockings before Sebastian woke up, so of course they had to help Sebastian look through his stocking quickly once he got up (at 9:30, lol) so they could open their presents.

   Sebastian really likes his new scooter.  He always tried to ride his brothers but they are only two wheels and he couldn't ride it very well so he got one with three wheels.  

   Someone woke up not feeling well yesterday with the cold that is going around.  But after 14 hours of sleep last night he seems to have woken up feeling better.  Giving momma a smile while he watches a movie :)

   I vacuumed  this morning so I put one of the kids recliners on the couch and of course it got used while it was still on the couch, lol.  Oh, and Sebastian got one for Christmas too so now we have three :/

  Let's see what else has been going on, not really crafting much since Christmas has been so busy.  But I did order fabric online to sew up some receiving blankets for the new baby, which is another boy btw, and some burp clothes too.  I will put up some pictures as I do them.  If anyone has any suggestions for baby boy names, I'm all ears.  I have used all the names I really liked already so this time around will be a little tougher naming the little guy.  Oh and as the New Year is right around the corner, as my OB said as I was leaving the office after my last appointment, Happy New Year, and don't forget apple cider looks just like champagne, lol.

   Don't forget to look me up and follow along on Facebook, and Instagram at m_mitchell07. 

As the countdown comes to a close.

   Edit: I wrote this last night on my phone on the blogger app but it wouldn't post for some reason.

   So, there is just two days left till Christmas.  More like one since its evening and tomorrow is Christmas Eve.  I hope you all have your shopping and wrapping done.  Me, I ran out of tape last night, of course, so I have to finish up my wrapping tonight.  But I refuse to wrap presents on Christmas Eve.  It just kinda feels pointless to me since they will get unwrapped in less than 12 hours anyway.  But its not like we put our presents out under the tree or anything.  That would be disastrous with Sebastian around.

   Today I thought it would be cool to make Julian and Gabe Santa hats.  I have ones that I bought but they are falling apart so I decided to crochet them.  I looked at patterns on pinterest, found one Gabe liked and while we were at the store today picked up some yarn.  So we will see how they turn out and hopefully I will be able to get them done soon.  The first one is more than halfway done so they don't take long to work up.

  So my day tomorrow looks like it will be full of laundry, crocheting, and I need to make dinner rolls for Christmas dinner.  So, Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night. :)

Busy week, but what's so different about that, lol.

   So, I've been pretty busy the last few days and will be for the rest of the week too probably.  If you follow me on Facebook or on Instagram you know what I've gotten myself into, lol.  I've been baking cookies, getting my craft on, and wrapping up some Christmas presents while the older two kids were at school.

   Last year I made a few of those snowflakes made with a hot glue gun.  I even went out and bought a glue gun specifically for this project because I did not have one.  Well, not all of my snowflakes made it through the seasons of storage that come with Christmas decorations.  So I decided to make some more.  So I grabbed my trusty glue gun, wax paper, glitter, mod podge, and a brush.  It took a snowflake or two to get the hang of it back going over the pattern, then everything went rather smoothly.  Except for my helpful little elf, Gabe, who came over every few minutes and asked if he could put on the glitter yet.  But then came the time to take the snowflakes off the wax paper, and they didn't, :/  Last year I used parchment paper, so I don't know if that made any difference but I also forgot to put a little bit of Dawn on the paper before starting since that is supposed to help with getting the snowflakes off, so now I have eight snowflakes that are stuck to a piece of wax paper and I'm not sure what I'm going to do with them.  Also, now I need to make more that I can actually take off the wax paper.

 

   Today I also started the long process of making Christmas cookies.  Today I made snickerdoodles.  I also plan on making chocolate chip cookies, some kind of sugar cookies, and peanut butter cookies.  I think there was another kind I was thinking of making but I can't remember it at the moment.  I signed up to make cookies for the fellowship after the kids Christmas program on Sunday.  I also need to make something for Christmas dinner, so I figured I would just make extra cookies to take.  And any extra I have will go to work with my husband, hopefully.

  
   Also on Thursday I have a baby appointment with my anatomy ultrasound scheduled so we will be able to find out what we are having!  Yay, I'm so anxious though.  This is the first pregnancy that we have found out what we are having.  I don't want to take anything away from the birth of our baby if I experience gender disappointment, especially since this will more than likely be our last baby.  So we will be finding out what this baby is.  I was a little upset when our third child turned out to be another boy, but I think in the back of my mind that I always knew we might have another baby so it would be ok.  So with this pregnancy I'm not exactly sure how it will go if we are having another boy.  But all will be well and we will be happy with whatever God gives us.

   We also decorated the Christmas tree this past weekend.  Sebastian tried to help, he would shove the ornament into the tree then when it didn't stick he would say "uh, oh," at it fell on the ground.  He is too cute.

  
   And to leave things, a cute little picture of my Sebastian.  I love it when he sits like that with his little hands under his chin.

Holiday break.

  I know, long time no post, but my computer is still being wonky a little bit, and it's just been busy around here the last few weeks.  So let's see what I've been up to recently.

  The week before Thanksgiving I had family in from out of state, two of my brothers to be exact, and my mom came over too, lol.  But this also meant two additional dogs in the house as well.  Little Murphy loved it.  And Sebastian did too, as you can see, lol.

  This is what happens when uncle come to play, but luckily nothing got broken.

   The Saturday before Thanksgiving it was beautiful here and we enjoyed some much needed outside time to burn off all that energy from having guests.

    This was taken a few nights ago.  My two oldest enjoy having sleepovers when they don't have school the next day.  Notice the Santa hat on Gabe.  They call it the Christmas spirit hat and really enjoy wearing the Santa hats. Gabe even wore it to school one day.  Also notice all the soft toys on the bed, apparently they cannot sleep without all that stuff, lol.

   I am very thankful for this item in our basement.  We can get wood for free from where Josh works so heating out house has been a lot cheaper this year than in years past.  We put in a heat pump when we moved into this house, which is hooked up to our fuel tank and that kicks on when it reaches a certain temperature outside, (we have not had to get oil since we moved in almost 3 years ago.)  But the only problem with the heat is that it increases our electric bill over the winter to around $250-$300 a month.  Well last month out electric bill was only $135, which I am very thankful for.  This little guy is thankfully in our basement but still heats our whole house very well.  The only problem with wood burners is not being able to regulate the heat well and our house is usually 75 to 80 degrees depending on where you are in the house.  So it may be winter time but I have windows open, lol.  But at least it helps to regulate the temperature.

   With the Christmas season coming up I try my best to make sure my kids know the reason for the season.  The older two guys are in the Christmas program at church which is taking up some time in our schedule, not that they mind, lol.  So they have practice during services on Sunday morning, evening, and Wednesday evening.  The program is on the 21st of December and Julian and Gabe keep singing Christmas carols around the house, lol.

    And finally a baby update.  Don't mind the mess in my room, I do not have a big mirror, just this one sitting on the floor in my room, and that clear plastic container has the decorations for our Christmas tree, which we havn't gotten yet (thank you hunting season, lol).  It's a big container and heavy so I just threw it in my room instead of dragging it downstairs.  Anyway, back to baby.  I am currently almost 20 weeks.  My anatomy scan is scheduled for the 18th of December and at that time we are hoping to be able to find out the sex of the baby.  This is our last pregnancy and it was a surprise in general, but after three times of not finding out and three times having a boy, I'm finding out this time, lol.  So come what may we will find out what our new family member will be  soon, yay.

  Don't forget to look me up on Facebook, and I also now have Instagram so look me up at m_mitchell07.  It's my new addiction and I have been putting up bunches of pictures on there.  I will probably be updating more on there and Facebook and only leave the blog for weekly or so posts.