Month: December 2015

New Year Goals {for 2016}

As I’ve gotten older, I have become less of a fan of resolutions and more of a fan of new year goals.  The word “goal” just feels more positive then “resolution” and positivity is what I need in my life. It’s what we all need in our lives, am I right?

According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, the simple definition of resolution is:

: the act of finding an answer or solution to a conflict, problem, etc. : the act of resolving something
: an answer or solution to something

Now, that’s fine and all but I don’t want to focus on problems when I start off the new year.  I want to focus on achievements.  I want to reach for new goals.

So this year I am say bye to New Year Resolutions and hello to New Year Goals.

Here’s what I have on my agenda for 2016:

  1. Deliver a healthy baby boy
  2. Develop a stronger relationship with J
  3. Connect deeper with my faith
  4. Pride myself in all of my work
  5. Give time to my family and friends to see them more

That’s it.  Simple. Concise.  And to the point.  My key goals for this coming year.

new year goal sheet, freebie

Those goals are what is most important to me, which means that is where I need to focus my energy.  I figure working towards these goals will help everything else in my life fall into place.  I need to focus on my key priorities first to really make a difference in any other area of my life.  I created a freebie that you can print out and use as you come up with your top 5 goals for 2016. I  even created a little reminder as to what a goal is at the top of the freebie.  Just click the image and print it out.

What are you New Year Goals?

Gender Reveal Party – It’s a Boy

During the first part of December, J and I finally threw our Gender Reveal Party. It was a killer holding onto that envelope with a little note tucked inside for almost 2 months.  I don’t know how we did it, but we didn’t peek!

gender reveal party invite

We wanted to be sure to share our big news with his family and mine, along with some of our closest friends.  It was really important to me and to J to find out together, hence why we threw a gender reveal party.  Let’s be honest, this little bundle is going to be so loved by so many so it’s really a tribe-thing.  I have to say that it was really hard finding a weekend that most of us could all get together.  That’s why we held onto that little envelope for soooo long.  It was soooo hard!

Our plan for the day was to have a fun-filled time with those that are important to us.  But we had to keep it under budget.  Christmas was just a few days away and we knew money would be stretched.  Luckily, our families are awesome and really helped us out with everything.  My in-laws rented a cute house in the middle of a park not too far from their home.  My parents picked up the cookies from my all-time favorite bakery in town.  My sister and brother-in-law had all of the paper products and serving trays, plus she made most of the food.

gender reveal party ideas

The biggest splurge we made was on the candy bar.  I went to Party City and picked up 4 types of candy – 2 in pink and 2 in baby blue for $6.99 each.  I also had ordered our balloons for the day from there and they came out to be about $20.  So overall I spend close to $50 at Party City – not too bad!

I had to call around to different Party City stores though.  The first one I called, which was the closest to the party told me they didn’t put confetti in balloons.  I would have to stand there and put the confetti in then they would blow them up.  Well that defeated the purpose of us not knowing.  So I called another store that was about 30 minutes away and they had no problem handling it all for me.  I called a few days before the party to place my balloon order and had my office manager tell them the color.

I didn’t want to ask everyone to wear pink or blue because I knew some would be traveling.  So I used clothespins.  I found a tutorial on Pinterest that I just loved.  I purchased a pack of wooden clothespins from Walmart for less than $3. I also added some craft paint in light pink and baby blue for less than $1 each.  Then I just painted one side of the clothespin and let them dry overnight.  We placed a bowl next to the door and asked everyone to wear their guess.  It was a huge hit!  Everyone got involved and our little nephews just loved it!

gender reveal party ideas

I guess everyone had a pretty good feeling because the blue pins went super fast!

After everyone had settled in, we handed out the black balloons.  Each couple got a balloon and a thumbtack.  Then on the count of three, we popped!  Once all the confetti settled there was no denying the blue everywhere.  It’s a boy!

gender reveal party ideas

gender reveal party

This gender reveal party was amazing!  I wouldn’t have traded it for anything!  I was so glad that J’s family was there and most of mine were able to come.  Plus his best friends made it and my best friend (who’s due in January) made the trip down to my surprise!

My Christmas Wish List

I’ve been dreaming of Christmas for awhile now.  Nothing beats waking up on Christmas morning in my new Christmas pajamas and seeing what Santa brought.  Now that I’m older, it’s not so much what I am receiving, but so much more about our little cousins and our nephews.  I love spending time with our family and getting to share the day with everyone.  

J and I alternate between his family and mine each year.  This year we’re spending it with his family, which will be great.  His nephews are at the perfect age and are a blast to be around.  Not to leave my family out, we spent last weekend together at my Grandma’s.  Most of my cousins came into town, we had a huge feast and opened a few presents.  It was a blast.

Now it’s time to get thinking on what J could have possibly gotten me for Christmas this year.  I do know at least one thing I am for sure getting of my Christmas wish list.  That’s a robe.  I’ve been wanting a new one so I finally ordered it and told him he could wrap it for me! HA! Sometimes you just have to do it.

I wanted to share what’s top on my Christmas wish list.  Now some of these are in my wildest dreams and I’m okay with that, but a girl can dream!My Christmas Wish List

1. area rug  2. robe  3. massage  4. watch  5. purse/diaper bag  6. candle  7. new blog design  8. desk set  9. cardigan  10. Maskcara palette

What’s really on the top of my Christmas wish list is just spending time with my family.  Getting to spoil my new cousin, seeing the rest of my cousins and their little ones and laughing until it hurts.  We might even throw in a game or two. Merry Christmas!

Why We Didn’t Decorate for Christmas

Why We Didn't Decorate for Christmas

I’m a huge Christmas fan – HUGE! But I wasn’t in the festive spirit this year.  I don’t know what it was, but I just couldn’t get into the swing of things this year.  Maybe it’s because I’ve been so sick with this pregnancy that I’ve had zero energy.  Maybe it’s because I realized that from now on we’re going to be going all out for Christmas for the little one and the thought of doing it this year just didn’t seem as important.

No matter the reason, J and I agreed together to not decorate for Christmas.  And you know what?  I’m 100% okay with it.  

I’m the girl that would decorate my apartment when I lived by myself.  I know I’m the only one that enjoyed those decorations, but I would still go out all – a tree, wreaths, stockings (for me and the pup), and lights.  This year the only Christmas task I’ve accomplished is hanging my Christmas wreath outside, but I didn’t even get that done until mid-December.  So bad!

To be fair, I’ve been putting in extra time at work, studying and trying to stay focused on spending time with my family.  Plus, having to put a lot of energy into getting ready for a baby has been a lot.  This year we’re spending Christmas Eve and Christmas Day with his family out of town.  So that was another reason to not drag out the boxes.

One thing I know for sure is we’ve saved money this year by not decorating.  We always find some light, decoration or blow-up figurine that we just HAVE TO HAVE.  So this year, by not decorating, we weren’t tempted.

J and I know this time next year our house will be fully lit up every day in December.  We’ll have our brand new tree (that was bought on sale after Christmas last year) up and decorated.  We will even have our stockings hanging.  We want the baby’s first Christmas to be great, even if he won’t remember it!  We watched the Christmas Light Fight on TV the other night and J is already dreaming up designs for our front yard.  So we might be making up for the time and money we saved this year by doing double next year!

 

The Newest Edition Coming May 2016

pregnancy announcement with dogs

Yep, you’re seeing that right.  J and I are expecting our first little bundle of joy in early May.  I have so many emotions and thoughts swimming through mind all the time.  I’m excited, scared, nervous, happy, thrilled, terrified, overwhelmed and frightened.  

We sent this pregnancy announcement to our family and friends a few weeks ago.  I have admit, trying to take this picture with all three dogs was difficult.  We ended up with over 50 pictures just to get one good one.  It was a great idea, but hard to execute!

Last weekend we had a gender reveal party with our family and friends.  We gathered everyone together and we each popped a black balloon filled with confetti.  It was a blast!  I’ll have to share more pictures about our party later.  But the good news is we found out we’re having a…

gender reveal gender reveal party

Christmas Wish List for Him – Under $25

We all need a little inspiration this time of year to find the perfect gift for the hardest guys in our lives.  I am so lucky because I have two really difficult men to shop for – J and my Dad.  

J is horrible at giving hints and Dad always just buys whatever he wants/needs.  So, this year I came up with a little Christmas wish list to help me stick my budget and surprise them.  The biggest priority to me (besides getting everyone something nice) was not wasting money.  So I have scoured sale racks online to find some of the best deals.  Each of these gifts are under $25 a piece while on sale!  

Men's Christmas Wish List

1. slippers  2. button down shirt  3. picture frame  4. pocket knife  5. holiday socks

J, if you’re reading this post then don’t think I don’t have a few surprises for you this year.  

 

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