Crafty Mom I Am. LOL

Having kids means Always spending extra money. Sometimes it's not the, "We don't have the money for this."  A lot of times it's "I'm not wasting money on that." Needless to say, 2 theme kid parties within 2 weeks times 3 kids equals 6 costumes/accessories that will never be worn again out the house. One party, a 50s theme, the other a Superheroes theme. The things I could do with the money that I would spend on these parties....

So I got to thinking. There has to be something I can do to make this happen. Having 2 boys who didn't care too much about the 50's theme. I decided to keep them simple. White socks, white t-shirt, cuffed jeans. My daughter though, needed a poodle skirt. I knew I would be better off making the skirt vs buying it. Online they were running around $40- not gone happen. I preferred not to sew and just in time I found a couple no-sew instructions and made it happen for just under $6. Found some inexpensive pink and white felt at the fabric store. Already had sparkly sequins and funky ribbons. Also used my hot glue gun and a button and that's about it..  Even made a skirt for her doll.  Came across a poodle template at www.obseussed.com and resized it to my daughter's shirt and her doll's skirt. Such a fun activity to do with her and Grandma!!

For the Superhero costume party, I decided to go ahead a just do a major search for a few days for the costumes my kids wanted and found pretty good coupon codes online. Four costumes with masks for just under $70 with shipping was the best I could do. However, my youngest really wanted to  be Captain America because he wanted the shield!! Ughhh! That's all he really wanted. Well, I decided that we would have to make the shield and the night before the party, we did.
Used the cardboard box the costumes were shipped in, an old blue folder from last school year, the white packing paper from the costume packaging and red spray paint, which we already had.  Saved myself $20 and the shield actually looked pretty good! Cost- FREE!


I'm pretty crafty by nature, just not always very precise.  Overall, I was pretty pleased with my last couple projects for the kids. More importantly, I showed them that there are plenty of things you can create right at home with supplies we already have and save a little money.

Meal Plan Monday

Here is my meal plan for the week of August 5th.

 

 

 

Again we will be utilizing much from our garden for vegetables at breakfast, salads at lunch and veggie sides at dinner. We also toss spinach, kale, Swiss chard or Bok Choy in the blender when we prepare our shakes.  Meats for the week will include chicken, turkey and steak. Love to include protein at every snack. Cottage cheese, Greek yogurt, hard boiled eggs and string cheese are my faves at snack time.

 

 

 

Here are some pics from last week meals.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Last week went fairly ok. Our first Wednesday "Earth Day" of clean vegan inspired eating went fairly well.  Since we spent a large portion of the day running errands we packed the car with snacks like lots of fresh fruit, baby carrots and almonds. The problem I think was that we felt more like we were snacking all day versus eating meals. It's not that that's a bad thing.  It's just kind of different thing. And then there was also a point where the kids and my husband felt like they ran out of options.

 

This week I will have more options available to them and have a new dinner recipe for us to try out. The kids loved having a large bowl of fresh fruit salad for breakfast and juicing later during the day. So we will keep that part in the plan.

 

We attended 2 parties this weekend that switched up my meal plan in the evening. My meal plans are a guide for me when my schedule is pretty typical. When I remember that I am supposed to be somewhere else, like a party, I make changes in my normal eating routine to accommodate for eating away from home. I usually will eat and drink and possibly have dessert while out. That's just me. So on those days, I simply had a Shakeology in morning and snacked on fruits and vegetables and drank tea and water before heading out to those functions.

BONUS- I weighed myself this week and I am finally pushing past a plateau. Down a couple more pounds and I know that my midsection is tighter and more toned. Will take measurements next Monday.

 

11 Years

The end of August will mark 11 years of wedded bliss for me! Not sure of exact plans for August and October,

(we celebrate twice) but what I am sure of is that I want to look good doing whatever we will do!!

My goal for month end is to lose another 5-7 pounds. That is reasonable and attainable if I am committed to do it. I am ALL about putting in the work. No quick fixes, so I just will have to keep myself in line.

To Keep Myself in Check I will...
 

• Post a meal plan weekly
• Track everyday during week on My Fitness Pal
• Keep my FB Challenge Groups motivated daily
• Complete my Focus T25 Workout according to schedule
• Add in a couple days a week of strength training- Body Beast
• Keep snacks healthy and meals filling
• Drink Shakeology daily
• Continue Wednesday as "Earth Day" (that's what my kids call it)
• Keep processed foods to a minimum. (I do not eliminate food groups)

As always, if you have healthy recipe ideas- PLEASE SHARE!!