Keeping your car organized

 Yes, I am indeed still crafting.  Things have just been hectic lately with all the storms. 


Those of you with children know how hard it can be to keep your car looking clean.  We've got blankets, toys, an extra cup and even emergency diapers.  I needed a better way to keep them organized so when JoAnn's had a pattern sale (at this point I only buy patterns when they are on sale for 99 ¢) and got a pattern for a car organizer.

McCall's pattern M4403

I'm so glad I found this pattern.  I wasn't originally looking for it but came across is during a pattern sale and thought it would be useful in the car.  The pleating was a bit intimidating and I wish the instructions were better but I don't think I did too bad of a job. I still count myself as a beginner. Now his toys don't end up all over the floor and we can easily swap them out or get to his things.  As he grows we can put other things in it for him to play with in the car.

Full of stuff already

I used my teflon foot and it made sewing with the layers of stabilizer much easier.  I opted not to do multiple sections in the top pocket. I also decided not to do the top stiching all the way around because we just wanted to get the car cleaned up.


Even if you don't have children this is a great storage idea for your vehicle.  It makes everything easy to find and nothing gets lost under the seats.

Free or Cheap Fridays: The Sale Rack

Yes, we know, we've heard it before.  Shop sales.  But I'm not talking about the once or twice a year holiday sales that stores have (and I hate those because there is nothing worse then a hugely crowded store while trying to find what you are looking for).   I'm talking about the sale rack. 
I always make a beeline for the sale rack anywhere I go.  The items there are marked down sometimes as much as 60-70%.  But check those signs because items on the sale rack are usually marked down even more.  

I've gotten a $50 Ann Taylor top for $10 on the sale rack.  Or a pair of $35 jeans for $8 at Old Navy.  Even my mother likes to tell the story of the $2 top I found.

Then there was my recent purchase at BabyGap.  For $30 I got 3 pairs of pants and 2 tops.  The shirts are for him to wear now and the pants are 18-24 months and 2T. I'm also lucky enough to have a small child and I can gauge what he'll be fitting into.  I buy in advance.  The "winter" stuff is going on sale.  Who says jeans are just for the winter?  Snatch those styles up.

I don't mind wearing a style from last year because I tend to stick with more simple and classic looks.  I rarely ever pay full price for my clothing.  Even TJ Maxx and Marshall's have sale rack.  Can you argue with a $150 Michael Kors top for $10?
You just have to have a little patience to look through the racks but it pays off in the end.  Since I buy off season my son has things that most other children don't have because it isn't out now.   And that $30 of stuff we bought at BabyGap...would have been about $180 if we bought it all full price.

Dinner can be crafty too

In an effort to eat better and save money Ben decided to make his own pizza dough.  We froze half of it and used the other half to make a delicious olive and pepperoni pizza.
Now we thawed the other half and Ben wanted to make pizza again but I'm more in the mood for calzones.  I love calzones but for some reason here in Boston they don't make them with Ricotta cheese.  Ben isn't into calzones so he'll be using his portion of the dough to make a personal sized pizza.

It doesn't look so tasty in the bag

I found a calzone recipe to help guide me.  I'll keep it simple and make a Ricotta and Spinach calzone.  We both love making our meals and being creative with it and hope that Garrett will enjoy helping us cook as he gets older.  We know he loves to eat what we make.

Ready to go into the oven

It was fun to try something new and in the future we can add different things and try new flavors.  It's a great meal option because everyone can make exactly what they want without having to make different meals for everyone.

All cooked and ready to eat

Pre and Post parenting differences

I'm never going to let my child eat anything processed.  I'm never going to let them have plastic toys.

I'm never going to be able to stick to these rules.

We say all these things before we have children.  We swear that we'll do certain things (or not do certain things) in the name of being the best parent in the world.   I did my best to make sure I said "I don't want him to have that many plastic toys"  I tried to keep an open mind.  It didn't always work and I know there were things that Ben and I said we'd never do.  But we kept that between us, we discussed that as parents to be and didn't think the rest of the world needed to know our plan for raising our child.

While I was out with some friends they started talking about how they were going to raise their children.  I didn't think it was a big deal because everyone talks about things like that.  She then started in on how her child would never have a cell phone before they were 16 (she's not even pregnant yet) and that any parent who did so was a shitty parent.
That got me.  Again it's the habit we seem to have of cutting down other parents.  I said that she might change her mind when she has a child and to keep in mind that she doesn't know what the deal with cell phones will be in 16 years.  
It almost felt like a person attack.  I had a friend who had just gotten her 13 year old a cell phone because it made it easier for them to reach her.   I did a ton of extracurricular activities in school and a cell phone would have really helped my parents know that I was ok and if I'd be late.

But truthfully it was her attitude that got me.  The "I'm going to be a better parent then all of these schmucks".   We all think that when we start, but she was saying it to me in a way that directly criticized my parenting.   When I reminded her to keep and open mind she got angry at me and said she knew what she wanted.

I think when she finally does have children she's going to be in for a hell of a shock.  Things aren't going to be so simple and her rigid thoughts on parenting won't work.  She'll learn the hard way that you have to be a lot more flexible with your parenting to fit the needs to everyone involved. 

Having an idea of how you want to parent is great.  Keeping an open mind is going to be a huge help.

They keep giving me blog awards

I'm going to get a big head.  It's ok, it makes my day to see someone finds me a worthy recipient.

As always awards come with instructions:

1. First, thank and link back to the person that gave the award.
2. Answer the 10 survey questions
3. Pass the award along to other bloggers whom you think are fantastic.

Many thanks to Barbara over at Notes from the Second Half for this award.  If you don't read her blog you probably should.  She writes from the heart about so much.  And now I want cake :)


1.If you blog anonymously, are you happy doing this?  If you aren't anonymous, do you wish you started out anonymously, so that you could be anonymous now?

I've always been a person who stands by what I say.  

2.Describe an incident that shows your inner stubborn side.
I asked Ben to help me with this one and he said "just one?"

3.      What do you see when you really look at yourself in the mirror?
Boobs!

4.What is your favorite summer cold drink?
Cherry Slurpee

5.When you take time for yourself, what do you do?
Tweeze my eyebrows, craft...depends on how I'm feeling.

6.Is there something that you still want to accomplish in your life?
I'd love to get a book published

7.When you attended school, were you the class clown, the class overachiever, the shy person or always ditching?
Overachieving class clown.

8.If you close your eyes and want to visualize a very poignant moment in your life, what would you see?
I was with my father when he died.  I think that's the root of a lot of my insomnia at this point.

9.Is it easy for you to share your true self in your blog, or are you more comfortable writing posts about other people and events?
I'm sort of a raw and honest person in general so I always speak my mind.

10. If you had the choice to sit down and read a book or talk on the phone, which would you do and why?
Depends on the book, who I wanted to talk to and how I was feeling.




When passing on this award there is really only one person who comes up to me when I think "utterly fantastic"  and that is my friend Samantha over at She's not broken, she's just a baby.  I've known Sam for almost 2 years and she's been an amazing and wonderful friend.  I'm so proud of her for publicly chronicling her struggle with PPD.

Free or Cheap Fridays : Coke Points

I've decided to start a new series on this blog.  I've been told I'm very good and finding ways to get things for free so I thought I'd share some money saving tricks to get freebies.
I already posted about Swag Bucks and how I get lots of free things just for searching on their site.
Another way I like to acquire free things is through Coke Rewards.

We don't drink soda often, but Ben does like the occasional bottle of Coke.  Sometimes even work provides soda and he brings home the caps.  Each cap is worth 3 points.  There are even cokes on cases of Coke and while it may not seem like much it adds up.  I've gotten free magazine subscriptions and items on SnapFish.
Plus when you're done you can use the bottle caps to make mini pincushions.

Besides, if you're going to drink soda why not get some free stuff out of it.

Am I getting penalized for NOT being a single mom?

Before I get started let's make one thing clear:  I have a lot of respect for single mothers.  It's hard enough being a parent but I couldn't imagine raising Garrett by myself.

Lately I seem to have found that being married has become a sort of obstacle when it comes to my son.  We're looking into Early Intervention and I was on the phone with them.  They asked my marital status and if I was married to Garrett's father, if we lived together.  I responded yes and got this disappointed "oh".  It sounded as if we would suddenly be less qualified for EI because we are a 2 parent home.
I had something similar happen at a play group.  While chatting with the woman I said something about my husband and she seemed disappointed that I wasn't a single mom.  I do understand that you want people who will understand what you are dealing with but I don't understand the reaction from most people.  Does my being married mean I can't have friends who aren't married?

I have single friends, married friends, divorced friends, child free friends, single mom friends.  Never at any point when I was meeting them did it ever even occur to base my friendship on their marital status (or what choice they wanted to make long term).

In a society that swears it prides itself on diversity there seem to be a lot of people who only want to surround themselves with people just like them. 
Even Ben gets the short stick in this.  So few men's restrooms have changing tables, and he often gets looks from people who ask him why his wife doesn't change the diapers.  And really why does it matter if there even is a wife or not, we share the work.   He's wondered if I'd make more friends if I went to some play groups on my own.  Probably not because I'm not going to pretend to be a single mother and I don't think having or lacking a spouse should really change anything when it comes to making friends.