~Happy New Years~

Steven drove to Texas yesterday to get his new car!  It is a Nissan Pathfinder.  Steven is very happy to have his new car!  Next year I will get one and Lauren will get my car.  I'm thinking about getting a Pathfinder but am not sure if I want to drive that large of a car.  I kind of like to drive the smaller ones.  I have to say the passenger side seat is so comfortable I feel like I'm in my recliner at home.

 The girls hosted a New Years sleepover again this year.  This is half of the girls, as they could not all fit at the table at once, so they had to take turn eating pizza and fruit.

They all got multiple poppers to designate at midnight!  

After the poppers were done I reminded everyone to text loved ones half of the girls went outside to set off the tiny poppers that you throw on the ground.

Here is my messy little kitchen after the sparkling grape juice was had.

Here was my living room right after the poppers were set off.  Steven and I picked up what we could, and then I was going to vacuum the rest...can you believe that I plugged in my vacuum and it made a tiny noise and then would not turn on.  Of all times for your vacuum to break.  LOL  So tomorrow morning if Steven can't get it to work, I will head to Walmart to purchase a new one.

From our family to yours, we wish you a very Happy New Years!  We hope your 2017 will be filled with joy and love.  Thank you for taking the time to come visit our little space.  Hugs.  Juli 

~A Peek Into Our Week~

We have had a very nice week with a lot of family fun.  On the 23rd we went to a mall about an hour away from our home to do some shopping.

This is the main reason we went to this mall.  Megan wanted to get some of the Victoria's Secret Pink clothing.  She found quite a few cute things.

Here is a photo of Tristyn and Kaylee snuggling up at a Christmas gardens display.  They look so sweet!

Here are two of my new books that I am reading.  I got interested in life on the homefront during WWII thanks to grandma Donna's blog that my cousin Teri shared with me.  It is www.gdonna.com if you are interested in checking it out.

On the 24th we went to Steven's Mom's house and all of the cousins on that side got to play together.

Lauren wore a silly hat that played music.

This was our little house's living room on Christmas morning.  

I had a Perfectly Pine wax melt going to give us a Christmas tree smell.  

I got up early and made home made cinnamon rolls and crock pot hot coco for breakfast.

Here is my new little bag I use to keep my little pink camera in.  

Here is a tree I saw at Dillards that I thought was pretty.

Now that Christmas is over we are gearing up for our annual children's New Years party.  Steven is actively shopping for a new car, and I am a bit under the weather, so I'm trying to take it easy a bit today.  The above photo is Megan with three of her friends at the mall last night.  They were on their way to go see a movie.  The only thing that would have made Christmas better is if I could have seen my family.  I am hoping to make it down to see them all soon after the New Year begins.  One of our Christmas gifts was new luggage!  I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas and I hope you have a blessed New Year.  Hugs.  Juli  

~It's The First Day Of Winter~

Here is a picture of my sweet little niece Lilah having some outdoor fun in the snow.  

Here are my two sons and my little nephew.  We had gone to see a movie where Tristyn was running the theater that day.  Three sweet boys that are very dear to my heart.

Here are some cute little things that Lauren and I saw at Starbucks yesterday.  I just think the little Gingerbread Cafe kit is too cute!

Here is the book I'm reading on my Kindle right now.  It is called Midcentury Christmas and so far it is very good.  Of course I'm a Christmas enthusiast, so this book is a good fit for me.

Here is Steven after his company Christmas party last night.  He got a $50.00 gift card to Lowes, which he can use on his apartments and such.

Here is Lauren yesterday purchasing Christmas gift cards for her friends and her Dad.  She has used up most of her birthday money to buy gifts for friends and family.  What a sweet girl Lauren is.  Megan also went Christmas shopping last night to buy some things to make a gift for one of her friends.

I have had a busy morning today already.  I woke up at five thirty to help Justin finish reading a book for school and get some homework finished up, then I had to take the children to school and I came home and made beds and such, now I am going to take it easy for a bit, because I have to pick up the children at 11:30 this morning and they are out for Christmas break.  We are all getting excited for Christmas.  Tomorrow the children and I plan to make some Christmas candy.  That should be fun and tasty too.  We are making fudge and peanut butter balls.  I hope your all having a nice week and enjoying Christmas time as much as I am. Today is the first offiicial day of winter!  Hugs.  Juli

~Happy Sunday From Our Little House~

This morning I've been working on my organizer.  I have added birthdays for next year in the calendar, this helps me to not forget birthdays for loved ones.  I am also using a free app on my phone called Cozi.  Cozi is a calendar app for your phone.  I just have to use my main organizer and make sure I put all the information in my mobile app.  This is nice when I'm on the go and don't have access to my paper organizer.   I would not want to only use the mobile app for my organizer as I really like the real organizer to use on a daily basis.  It's funny, but I have been using a organizer since I was a young girl.  Before I had a real one, I would make lists on note book paper to keep me organized.  I also use a free app that I love called wunderlist.  Wunderlist is what I use to keep all of my lists.  I love that app and use it all the time.  I have my goals list, a house to do list, a daily to do list, a quick shopping list, menus ideas list, my daily water list and many others.  The great thing about this is you can easily remove an item when you complete it, or no longer want it on your list.  To remove the name of a list, such as Daily To Do List, you must do this on your computer.  The great thing about Wunderlist is that if you loose a device, you can log into it on any tablet, phone, or computer and all of your information will still be there.  I truly believe that no matter what you do in life, such as run a home or run a business,  you must stay organized if you want to do it well.  I think they should teach a class in school about organization, as it is something that is very important in life.

Megan has made a very awesome fort in our down stairs family room.  She pulled one of the couches up and she has the blankets over the entertainment center where she can watch Netflix.  She also took the memory foam topper off of her bed to lay on so she has a little bed inside her fort.  Then for the very awesome touch, she has her Christmas lights inside to add a very nice atmosphere.  What a creative little girls she is.

This morning I made this coffee cake for breakfast.  It is a recipe I found in my Betty Crocker Cook book.  

Yesterday Steven and I did some shopping for Christmas.  Here are the shoes that Megan wanted.  We still have more shopping to do, but we did get a lot done.

When I was a girl I had a stuffed mouse that I named Mousekins that I had gotten for Christmas one year.  Yesterday Steven and I were in TJ Max and we found this little Christmas mouse.  I had to get it.  It reminds me of childhood, so it will be a new Christmas decor that will be in our little house every Christmas.  In case you were wondering, I named her Mousekins.  

I love looking at our Christmas orniments.  The one with the stocking and two little mice is one that my Grandma Smith's friend made and my parents bought me as a child.  

We got our first snow of the winter yesterday.  I love the look of snow, it is so pretty.  There is something that is just cozy about winter, having the cold outside and the nice cozy warmth of home inside.

There is a emergency at one of the apartments today, so Steven is there working on that now.  He is such a hard worker, and I do hope soon things can slow down for him.  I keep thinking it will and then he buys another house or apartment house.  Well, I hope everyone has a happy Sunday.  We are just staying inside and tending to our little home and it's chores today.  Hugs.  Juli

~using my new app to upload pictures off of my phone~

I made this picture on a hp srpocket printer app on my phone.  Now I can use my phone to put photos on my blog!

Here is one of Tristyn and Kaylee's engagement photos.  What a blessing they are to my heart.

Lauren and Megan had their Christmas program last night.  They did such a great job.  They both looked so nice, I wish I could have gotten a better photo, but Lauren is looking at us in this one at least!

Here is Megan being silly!  She is wearing a toy story hat that Justin got at Walt Disney World years ago.

Here is Justin at school doing a cup stacking challenge, he was focusing quite hard!

Here are my wonderful parents a little over 48 years ago.

Here they are now, still in love and such a blessing to have for my parents, I love them very much.

Here is my darling niece Lilah, she is getting ready to go look at the moon and stars.  

Well, I think I'm going to have a cup off coffee and read for a bit.  Have a wonderful afternoon.  Hugs.  Juli

~A Peek Into Our Week~

This was the sunrise outside of our little house the other day.  I can't wait until I have a screened in porch some day so I can just sit and sip my coffee and enjoy the beauty.

Here is Lauren getting ready for school.  It won't be long, she will have the down stairs bathroom to use.  

Speaking of the down stairs bath room, it is coming along nicely.  We need to finish the walls and the trim, paint and then hang the mirrors and decorate the bathroom.  Lauren and Megan will each have their own sink and mirror to put their makeup on.  To the left of the tub, Steven is going to make shelves to put towels and wash cloths on, and a hamper to put dirty clothing in.  This will really make our little house a bit more user friendly.  Two teenage girls and a Daddy who does a lot of sports makes it hard to get ready in the mornings with only one full bathroom.

These are the two wax melts I am melting right now.  I have the iced Lemon Sugar Cookies going in the living room and down in Megan's room, I have the Orange Buttercream Cupcake going.  They have a very similar smell.  They kind of smell like fruit loops.  I like them.  Not sure if you can still purchase the iced lemon sugar cookies, but I know for sure that my Walmart has the Orange Buttercream Cupcake still.  Out of the two, I prefer the Iced Lemon Sugar Cookies a bit more.  

I am enjoying my second cup of coffee this morning, as I'm writing this blog post.  Thinking of my wonderful family and how much I love them.  My niece Madison graduates soon from Dental Hygiene School and I could not be more proud of her.  I am just so blessed to have such a loving family, and though I don't see them as often as I would like, they are in my heart daily.  

My little washer and dryer are humming as they do our daily laundry.  I still remember when I used to have to go to the laundrymat back when Tristyn was a baby, and I still feel blessed to have my own wahser and dryer.  I truly think it is a blessing to not just have everything right away, because when you have to do with out, it truly makes you appreciate the things you have later in life.  We are far from rich, but I feel like we are so blessed to have a simple, beautiful life, and I would not trade it for all the riches in this world.

We have been so busy the past couple of weeks that I have not had a lot of down time.  Even the weekends have been pretty busy, so today I am taking some time to relax, aside from doing my daily house work.  I am in my comfy night gown.  My sister Lori bought me a night gown from LLBean and I love it so much, I have ordered two others.  I had not worn a night gown in years and forgot how much I love them.  I am the type of person that if I am home for a while and we don't have anyone over, I will put on my comfy PJ's in the middle of the day.  Well, I better finish my daily cleaning and then perhaps get a bit of reading done and enjoy my time off.  I hope you all have a wonderful week.  Hugs.  Juli