Home DIY Project List – 2013

Now that tax season is upon us, my husband Mark and I have been discussing things around the house that needs taking care of or upgrading. We are always talking about / daydreaming about what needs to be done but this year we are going to take some action. We have been in our current house for almost 9 years and there are things that have needed to be done from that long ago. There was always something that held us back. Not this year!





Here’s our list!

• Paint the kitchen, living room, and upstairs hallway (Has never been painted since we’ve lived here! Yikes!)
• Replace living room picture window
• Cut down the tree in our front yard (The poor tree is starting to become a bit of a hazard!)
• Cap the upstairs fireplace
• Install a pellet stove
• Install a dishwasher
• Get a new fridge
• Make more use of our finished basement
• Create an area for our kids to play
• Make an office / craft space for myself
• Paint the garage floor
• Power wash the outside of the house
• Refinish and paint our deck

I’m sure I forgot something but this is a pretty good idea of what we’d like to do this year. It might not all happen but it’s our goal!

Do you have any special projects you’ll be working on this year?

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The Importance of Dating your Husband and a List of Fun Date Night Ideas!

With Valentine’s Day just around the corner I thought I’d discuss the importance of dating your husband. Ok so, I know what you’re thinking…..Date my husband?? Been there, done that. While the concept seems strange, it’s something I’m committed to doing this year.



Before having kids my husband and I had a completely different lifestyle. We went out to dinner a few times a week, went to the casino, saw shows, movies, took a few vacations a year, you name it. We were always out and about enjoying each other’s company.

After the kids came it was a big change to our busy lifestyle. Don’t get me wrong…..I love my kids! We love our kids! Which brings me to my next point. I truly believe a happy household is built around a happy marriage. If you are just accepting that marriage with kids means changing diapers, struggling with money, staying home, and hoping for an extra 30 minutes of sleep on the weekend, then you are probably setting yourself up for failure. To me, having a happy marriage means love, communication, and having a relationship outside of your children. It’s very easy to get caught up in the daily hustle that you just update your husband on the important things going on and look forward to setting your head on the pillow every night.

The truth is, if you don’t take the time now to date your spouse, you never will! We need to prioritize our relationship with our husbands just like we prioritize our work, children, and any other commitment we have throughout the day.

Ok, ok so what am I getting at? Having a regular date night is a must! You don’t need tons of money or sometimes even a babysitter! Just start by making date night a ritual. Schedule it just like you would any other commitment that you have throughout your week and stick to it! Many marriage experts agree that one way to keeping your marriage strong and a priority is by spending time together. I totally agree with this!


Here’s a list of some fun date night ideas!




Outside the home:


- Go to the movies. If you can swing it, go for dinner too!
- Go shopping
- Visit a winery
- Attend a cooking class
- Go to a “paint your own pottery” store
- Dinner cruise (My husband has been begging me to do this! Maybe I will!)
- Attend a comedy show
- Bowling
- Go to a coffee shop
- Go for a walk. Find a few local trails if the weather is good.


Inside the home:


- Rent a movie and make your own homemade popcorn (NOT the microwave one! Have fun with this!)
- Play cards or a board game
- Watch an entire season of your favorite TV show
- Have a fondue night
- Make a meal from scratch together. Something you’ve never tried before
- Order in and watch DVDs. Chinese food is my personal favorite!
- Spend an afternoon watching old movies
- Have a theme night. For example, French night…Make a unique French dish, wine, cheese, and watch a foreign film
- Re-watch the first movie you ever watched together
- Splurge on wine, cheese, fruit and crackers



**Do you have date nights with your spouse? If not, will you commit to doing it? I’d love to hear if you implement this in your marriage!

Have a great day!

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~Nikki

Hello and Happy Monday!

Ahhh Monday already! Did you have a good weekend? We celebrated my daughter Madison’s first birthday on Saturday and then Sunday we just hung around the house and watched the Superbowl.

Today, I thought I’d share with you some pictures from her birthday party. When I first started researching her party, I decided to do a rainbow theme. Madison is a very happy little girl. Always smiling and laughing. If she cries, something is seriously wrong. I consider myself very blessed seeing with my son, we spent months and months walking up and down the hallway in our house trying to comfort him from his awful colic he had. It’s definitely a breath of fresh air seeing such a happy baby. So the rainbow theme was perfect for her because she has such a bright and cheerful personality.

I’m a bit of a simple person when it comes to birthday parties. When I was growing up, birthday parties consisted of a family gathering with pizza and cake and a few presents. I still carry on that tradition today. I definitely do not have the extravagant parties that I sometimes see on Pinterest and such with the magicians, clowns, and a petting zoo for a first birthday. I personally think that’s a bit too much but again, that’s just my opinion. So for Madison’s party, we had a rainbow cake made, had a bunch of colorful balloons, fried chicken and all the fixings, and a bunch of laughs. It was a really good time.

Here’s some pictures from her party!…..










What kind of parties do you have for your kids?

Hope you have a great day!

~Nikki

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5 Tips for Staying Sane and Stress Free Through the Holidays!

Ahhhh the holidays are here again! The most wonderful time of the year, yet the most stressful! I’m here to tell you it doesn’t have to be this way. Learn from my mistakes! I can’t tell you how many years have passed that I look back and wish I could have done things differently!

This year, will be different!



I promise if you put these tips in place you’ll have a stress free and fun holiday season!

1) Lists! Make lots of lists! Then, prioritize what needs to be done first. If you are like me, there is a million and one things you’d like to get done this holiday season. Make a list of everything you want to do. Shopping, baking, wrapping, holiday parties, mailing out cards, decorating, everything. You will feel so accomplished when you are able to cross things off your list! PLUS, you’ll remember everything you’ll have to do to!



2) Get the family involved. I can’t even begin to tell you how many times my husband asks to help me out and I decline his offers because I feel like I have to do everything myself. So listen up! You don’t have to be Super Woman this holiday season. If your husband says he can help, take it! This is something I’m still struggling to work on. This year though, he will be helping!

3) Write out a budget and stick to it. This one is important. Millions and millions of consumers every year put themselves into deeper debt buying gifts for their loved ones. If you are like me, you start out the holiday season swearing up and down that you will not swipe that credit card to buy a gift and then all of a sudden, you’ve swiped a bunch of times! The holidays aren’t about what awesome up and coming gifts you can buy. It’s about family and tradition. Remember that when you go shopping. Write out your budget, pay cash, and don’t overextend!



4) Start shopping / wrapping early. Getting your shopping done early and before all the crowds start is a great way to stay happy and stress free this season. I’ve already finished my shopping for my kids and have just a few things left to get for family. While I love to go out Black Friday shopping, (I know, I know, I’m crazy. I love the atmosphere) I won’t be needing to go this year. I’ll be staying home nice and warm with my family. That stress is off my plate. Also, when you bring the presents home, wrap them!

5) Not everything needs to be perfect. This is the biggest one. You are not perfect. No one is! That means, the holidays do not have to be perfect. If you don’t get everything done on your list, try not to let it bother you. The most important part of the holidays is to spend lots of time with your family and friends celebrating each other!

Hope these few tips will make your holidays a little smoother this year.

Please enjoy this free printable I made to help out with your holiday shopping!


                              (Click here for the printable)


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Stay tuned for lots more great holiday tips just for you!

Happy Holidays!

~Nikki

Meal Planning 101

Welcome to my first of an ongoing meal planning series for Mom’s and Dad’s!  As a very busy Mom who is taking care of two children, running a business, and going to school, I find it very difficult to not have a plan in place when it comes to meals during the week.  Before I started meal planning, my husband would pick up take out on the way home from work or I’d cook frozen junk that really took no effort at all.  Both of these are extremely unhealthy and not creative.  Now, don’t get me wrong, I don’t cook gourmet meals every day.  I make things that are not only healthy, but quick and easy as well, because let’s face it, who has the time! 

So, twice a month I’ll be sharing with you my lovely and faithful readers our menu and give you some tips on what works for me.  I do my big grocery shopping trips twice per month and then weekly I get my essentials, milk, fresh fruit, veggies, etc.  I plan according to what is on sale and I also clip coupons.  This is a bit time consuming on my Sunday nights, but I have saved a significant amount of money. 

Without further ado, here’s my menu for the next two weeks!

Sunday	Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday	Saturday
Mother’s Day Dinner at Aunt Sue’s House	Crockpot Chicken and Broccoli with rice	English Muffin Pizzas with Italian Chicken Sausage	Stuffed Peppers	Chicken Parmesan with Salad	Tater Tot Casserole	Teriyaki Steak on the Grill with Veggies and Baked Potatoes
Crockpot Bolognese with Salad	Chicken Enchiladas	Meatloaf Muffins with Rice and Veggies	Crockpot Chicken Philly Grinders and French Fries	Tacos with Mexican Rice	Grilled Honey lime chicken with Mexican 3 Bean Salad	Grilled Pork Chops with Sweet Potato and Roasted Brussels Sprouts

Note:  I post my menu on the front of the fridge so I know what I need to thaw out first thing in the morning.  This way, I don’t even need to think about it!  I also keep a magnetic notepad on the front of the fridge as well so if I run out of something my husband or I will make a note of it.  This makes life very easy when it comes time to plan my grocery shopping trip. 

I’m also going to be sharing with everyone some of the recipes I make for our dinners.  Now, keep in mind, I’m feeding an extremely picky five year old!  Need I say more?  I cook very easy, very kid friendly meals that work for my family.  I try very hard to instill what my Mom taught me which is to have a meat, veggie and a starch at every meal.  Do I do this every night?  Nope.  I’m human!  I do try my best though. 

Tonight I’m making English muffin pizzas with salad.  I’ll be sharing the recipe tomorrow so please stop back!

Have a great day!

~Nikki

Budget Living: Eating Organic

I know what you are thinking…..”Buying organic is so expensive.  How can I feed my family organics and not break the bank?”  Well, I’m here to tell you it is possible!  Getting healthy and saving money has been on the top of my to-do list for 2012.  With having two small children and staying home with them it is important to save wherever we can.  I have managed to do this in a number of ways that are so simple anyone can do it!

1.  Coupons. 

ü  There are a ton of coupons for organic and natural foods popping up everywhere.  I also never hesitate to email or contact a company I like to inquire if they have coupons available.  Most companies will usually send out coupons to consumers that take the time to complement them on their products. 

2.  Find a good resource.

ü  Don’t just limit yourself to natural food stores.  Instead, look at farmers markets or a local co-op.  Usually when visiting farmers markets you can pay 20%-40% less than supermarket prices. 

3.  Buy in bulk. 

ü  Even stores like Whole Foods will usually charge you less for items like organic dried fruits, granola, nuts, and grains if you are willing to put it in your own bag rather than buying it pre-packaged.  Even big warehouse stores are starting to stock organics.    

4.  Buy in Season.

ü  Prepare your taste buds to eat like your Momma did!  I’m sure she never ate watermelon in the dead of winter.  Foods that are grown locally are usually more economical than those that are flown in.  In short, if you eat with the season, you’ll be eating more affordably. 

5.  Shop big box stores.

ü  Target and Wal-Mart are starting to see the interest growing in organics and are finally answering the demand by stocking organic foods.  Look for their private-label organic selections.  They can be considerably less expensive than the brand-name organics and just as good.  I have scored some pretty good deals! 

6.  Grow your own.

ü  This is a nice easy way to save money if you have the time to keep up with it.  This will be the first year my husband and I attempt a garden but now that I’m home with the kids I’ll be able to take care of it.  I like this because I have complete control over what I want to grow and I’ll be able to can and pickle things for the winter months. 

7.  Shop online. 

ü  More and more companies are starting to have really great online deals for organic foods and green products.  Amazon is one of my favorites. 

Please note:  I do not exclusively buy organics.  I do though; try my best to ensure my family is eating as healthy as possible. 

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~Nikki