I'm BACK!

Adalee is now 3.5 months old and finally sleeping a little more at night! So I'm back!

I hope to get back into the swing of things quickly and will get working on more Take Ten Tuesday posts and Make it Work Wednesday posts! Again, if you have any suggestions for either of these topics, please send them my way!

We're currently one month away from being completely DEBT FREE! Our next goal is to save up as much money as possible, as quickly as possible, and purchase our first home 100% with cash! So I'll be talking more about how we plan to accomplish that soon!

Anything else you'd like to read about, let me know!!!

That Savings Feeling!

We are by no means "living the high life". We are stretched very thin financially because I'm a Stay-at-Home Mom. We sacrifice going out on frequent dates, seeing movies, eating out a lot and buying name-brand anything. We don't get to go on many vacations and we buy a lot from second-hand stores. We're not able to be brand snobs at the grocery store and we DIY as much as possible around our home.

However, one thing we're not willing to skimp on is our savings account. We learned a long time ago to "Buy Used & Save the Difference". We also learned that when you have a "Murphy's Law" account set up Murphy tends to stay away. Don't get me wrong. We still have plenty of "things" come up that require us to dip into our savings account, I.e. unexpected medical bills, car repairs, vet bills, etc. but we're prepared for it most of the time.

We have a savings account set up for each of our goals. We use ING Direct for our savings accounts.

Emergency Fund
- We set aside a certain amount each paycheck for our emergency fund. This account is only used for emergencies - car repairs, medical bills, etc.

FIJI Trip
We hope to go to Fiji for our 10 year Wedding Anniversary so we're setting aside money for that as well! We've got 4.5 more years to save up for this!

10 Year Anniversary
We plan to throw a 10 Year Wedding Anniversary Reception! We want to be able to "do-over" our wedding reception. We got married young and while our families blessed us beyond what was necessary we would love to really do it up! We plan to rent the same location but have a live band and a catered meal! Seriously, it's going to be huge and SPENDY so we're saving for that too!

Miscellaneous
Any time we want something that's not in our budget we save up for it. For example: my Husband wants a Chameleon so we're setting aside a small amount of money each paycheck until we can afford to purchase it. I really want my Husband to be able to take a good amount of time off of work once this Baby Girl is born so I've been setting aside money to cover the loss of pay we'll take once his vacation time runs out.

Basically we have a budget that we work hard to stick to and if it's not in the budget it's not getting purchased until we save up for it! Our budget basically includes Food, Poop Containment and Gas. It's hard to have that self control when you really want something but it's for the best! I promise!!! And your family will thank you for the security financial stability brings!

What are your tips for saving up?!?

Miche Lovin'

I'm a huge fan of organizing, if you didn't notice! I love being organized but rarely have the time necessary to tackle organizational projects, especially something only I use, like my purse. Plus, why can't I still be Trendy even though I'm a Mama?!? Enter, the Miche Purse!

Miche is a great purse that comes with a base bag. They have four sizes of bags right now.

The largest is big enough to be a diaper bag, overnight bag or even commuter bag.

The smallest makes a great handbag, date purse, etc.

There's a size for every woman's needs!

The magic of Miche is that the shells are magnetized, as are the bases. So you get to easily remove the cover whenever you feel like changing up your look. The best part is that you can get your base organized and then simply change the cover instead of having to completely switch over the contents of your entire purse!

FAQ

Do the covers stick to doors, railing, or anything else metal?
I've only had the cover come partially undone when bumping into a fully metal object. The cover has never fallen all the way off the base, just one side.

Is Miche expensive?
When you look at how much the average purse costs Miche compares nicely. I find the most benefit is in the time you save switching looks. Instead of transferring everything from one purse to another, you simply pull off one cover and stick on another cover!

How do you store all the shells?
Miche sells a closet organizer that allows you to hang up the shells. Otherwise, we use a file organizer to hold our shells in easy view!

They also store flat on a shelf or in a closet/pretty bin!

How do I buy Miche?
Visit us at Trendy Mama Miche. You can also host a party for your family and friends and earn more shells!

Got my Nails Did!

Yep, that's right! My Mama and I went to get our nails did last night! My Husband graciously agreed to watch the kiddos so I could escape for the evening! He even made dinner and put them down to bed! We both got mani/pedi's and it felt great! We used to get our nails done once a month but we got artificial nails. It's been over a year since we last got anything done to our fingernails because they were so damaged from the process. So now that our nails have begun repairing themselves, after all the torture we put them through for three years, we went in for regular manicures!

I ended up getting the Shellack treatment and it was quite intense. I've read that the UV machines used to dry polishes faster can actually cause skin cancer on your hands. Unfortunately they cure the shellack by putting your hands into the UV machine for like 10 minutes each, alternated two minutes here, two minutes there. Anyway, I probably won't get the shellack again so I don't have to use the UV machine. BUT, they do look and feel gorgeous now! The shellack should last about three weeks too, which is great!!

Here's the finished product! LOVE IT!

The best part for me is that my Husband thought they were artificals because they look so great! They're at the perfect length right now!

And yes, I got the "go-ahead" from my Doctor before getting any polishes put on my nails. Considering I used to get my artificial nails refilled every few weeks while I was pregnant with my first and second this seemed "ok".

FREE Nursing Cover!

If you're a breastfeeding Mama, will soon be a Breastfeeding Mama or know of a Breastfeeding or Soon-to-be Breastfeeding Mama you should check this out! If you plan on using a nursing cover I highly recommend Udder Covers! They've got a stiff neck so you can see down to baby while feeding. There's a neck strap that keeps the cover in place. The fabric is wide enough to keep everything covered. Plus, they come in gorgeous fabrics!

Right now, for World Breastfeeding Week, Udder Covers is offering FREE nursing covers!!! All you pay is Shipping! Simply Enter the Code: BREASTFEEDING2012 at the check out and you'll get your nursing cover(s) free!!!

It really is a great deal! I own three of their covers and love them! They have kits that include a cover, breast pads and bracelets that will be discounted with the above code also!

View their supply of nursing covers HERE

Please know that I am not saying women must "cover up" while feeding their babies. I personally am choosy about when I use a cover and when I don't. I'm simply offering the coupon for anyone who would use it!

*This is a personal opinion and I was not asked nor paid to endorse this product

Grammar Disclaimer!

I always try to proof read my posts but the majority of the time I end up getting interrupted by somebody! So here is my disclaimer! I apologize in advance if I spell something wrong, add too many or don't add enough coma's, use the wrong words or even miss words. I try to make this as grammatically correct as possible but I'm only human! Thank you for being patient with me!

Photo Credit


If you see any grammatical or spelling errors that drive you nuts feel free to comment and I'll fix them as soon as possible! I know how hard it can be to read something that is spelled wrong or grammatically incorrect. It actually drives me nuts and can make it hard to focus on the rest of the article. So, again, I apologize in advance for any terrible mistakes!

MELALEUCA MAGIC!

We love Melaleuca at our house! My Mom has extremely sensitive skin and Melaleuca has changed her life! Her hands were so bad that her fingers would split open and bleed. She used to need a prescription hand lotion that was considered dangerous. With Melaleuca she no longer needs that hand lotion!!!

I LOVE how well their cleaning supplies work. Everything smells wonderful. Best part, it's natural and safe! I have no problem giving my kids the cleaning wipes to "help" Mama clean because I know they're truly non-toxic!

Everything is concentrated so it saves you money and space! Simply add water to the solution and walah!

Seriously! We love Melaleuca! They sell EVERYTHING from cleaning supplies to make-up, vitamins to pet foods!

You're interested in learning more or signing up? Check us out HERE and enter "Melaleuca" as the password.

Comment below and we'll get your family started on the track to healthier living inexpensively!