Mac Help! Please!

Help!!! I am currently looking for anyone that might be able to help me with computer clean up.  I've kind of gotten in over my head in photos and movies on my computer and my Iphone.  I am always so worried about losing my pictures and movies that I save them in a million places and I am so afraid to delete them! So I currently can't really do anything on my Iphone because I have so many movies on it, and I have tried burning DVD's of my iphone movies, but for some reason some are missing.  We have so many different back up devices that we bought, more memory for our computer, and I am just not sure what to do with it all, or how to find out that I am really saving things there.  I am pretty clueless about Iphoto, IDVD, Imovie, Itunes, etc. and although I attempt to use all of them and can get some things done, I know there has got to be an easier/better way! 

Anyone good with this stuff that could possibly give me some quick tips so that I would be able to use my phone this weekend?? Or for longterm know of anyone/anywhere I can take my computer to to get help with this all. I don't really want to just drop my computer off to have someone do it for me, I really was hoping to kind of sit/talk with someone to figure out how to do it all on my own.  

Recipe of the Week: Marinated Tomato Bake...or something like that!

Another Pinterest find, I don't have the link to the recipe or a name for it! But it was REALLY good and healthy! I also don't have amounts for any of the ingredients, I just sort of winged it!

Ingredients:
Tomatoes
Balsamic Vinegar
Lemon juice
Spinach
garlic
Salt
Shredded cheese (I used mozzarella)
Directions:
Marinate sliced tomatoes in balsamic vinegar for 3-4 hours (or longer if desired). Place on foil-lined cookie sheet and bake at 350 for about 7 minutes.  Meanwhile, saute spinach and garlic with a dash of salt and lemon juice.  Put spinach on top of tomatoes and sprinkle with cheese.  Broil until the cheese is golden brown!




Click the "Follow Me on Pinterest" button below for links to more great recipe finds!

25% OFF Oldnavy.com

Since a recent visit with her cousins, my daughter has been asking me to get her "blue flip flops like Nicole's".  She wants to be just like her older cousin.  So I have been searching for blue ones all over.  Found some at Target that had zebra print with them and thought she would love them, but of course they were not solid blue "just like Nicole's".  I figured Old Navy would have to have them since they have flip flops in every color of the rainbow and they are cheap! So I finally made it to Old Navy to find these darn shoes....and of course they barely have ANY flip flops, let alone light blue ones in her size.  

After calming the storm from not being able to find the flip flops she HAS to have (and remember she's only 2 and 1/2!!!), I told her I would look on the computer to see if I can order them for her.  And with my luck they happened to have light blue flip flops in her size at Oldnavy.com.  They have butterflies on them, but I am praying she will be ok with that! And as I am shopping, I realize they are also having the 25% off promo going on! So of course I then bought her a few more things, some things for post pregnancy, and a few things for baby boy so I could also get free shipping! 

Spend $50 you automatically get Free shipping, use the code SPRINGSAVE to get 25% off (30% off if you spend at least $100, i think).  Pretty sure you can also mix and match things from Gap and Banana Republic in your order too! 

Happy Shopping! 

Letter of the Week

A few weeks ago I decided that baby girl needed some more structured play/learning time at home.  We had always been running so many errands and going to all different classes that we weren't home all that much! So this winter, to get some sanity back and save some money, we spent more time at home.  I started to feel like she was always entertaining herself by simply emptying her toy bins in every room, constantly calling for me, or watching WAY to much TV.  

So I decided to do a search for some kind of "letter of the week" or beginner preschool activities that we could do each day/week.  I wasn't really sure what I was looking for, but just wanted to see what was out there to just give her a little time each day where she has to sit and focus on ONE thing (she tends to struggle in that area a little bit).  And I just happened to stumble upon an incredibly amazing program that I am soooo excited about! 

Erica, from Confessions of a Homeschooler, has created a "Letter of the Week" program that (in my opinion) is absolutely phenomenal.  

According to her website "This curriculum is a full 26 week core program for preschool students (ages 3-4). Included are weekly lesson plans that cover all the subjects a preschooler needs and more!" I can't imagine the amount of time she put into creating this program, as well as MANY other curriculum programs that she shares on her site.  She offers many of her printables free on her site, but I chose to purchase the entire program on CD for 3 reasons: It is inexpensive, you don't have to download/save the files on your computer (my computer is almost completely filled with photos), and after seeing all the work she put into the program, I felt she really deserved the credit (and money) for it! Don't get me wrong, as a teacher, I am all about sharing ideas/resources/etc., but if you take a look at this program you will see why I wanted to pay her for it! 

I received my CD within a few days (thank you!) and immediately got started with planning how/when/where I was going to use everything.  I don't plan on homeschooling my kids, although the thought is still in my head, I just wanted something a little extra and fun to keep her busy when her baby brother arrives.  I have only prepared the vowels so far, as  I quickly found that preparing all the materials is ALOT of work, I can't imagine having to create them all, then print, cut, laminate, organize. I also have not printed everything, but picked and chose different activities for each letter/week. I am hoping to spend the next several weeks before baby arrives, hopefully finishing the entire alphabet! It definitely gets easier to organize once you learn what all the activities are and how they are used! Baby girl has gotten her hands on some of the finished products she found in my office and asks almost everyday is she can "play" with them.  Makes me even more excited to really jump into the curriculum with her.  

I plan to use a similar system to Erica's Workbox System to organize our materials each week.  I bought a 5 drawer shelf from IKEA and plan on putting 3 or 4 activities into each drawer for the week.  Baby girl can then take out her box for the day and work on the activities, either on her own or with my help.  This sounds so good on paper, but we'll see if it works or if I keep myself organized enough to actually do it.  I am hoping after I put the work into the printing, cutting, and laminating, it will motivate me to really stick to a schedule with it! 

Speaking of laminating, I also love using my new laminator from Walmart.  It only cost $25, and is so easy to use! Thanks for the recommendation, Erica.  

There are so many great ideas for all ages in Erica's lesson plans and on her website, www.confessionsofahomeschooler.com. Even if you don't homeschool or plan to, I highly recommend checking it out! She is pretty amazing and also provides links to so many great products and other great websites!  

Recipe of the week: "Man-Pleasing Chicken"

Of course another Pinterest find! I am completely addicted to Pinterest, which is one of the reasons my blog has been so quiet! I should probably title this "recipe of the month".  But here is the recipe for"Man-Pleasing Chicken"! (I think I actually enjoyed it more than my man, though)

Ingredients:
1 1/2 lbs. chicken thighs (I used chicken breasts)
1/2 cup of Dijon mustard
1/4 cup of maple syrup
1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar
salt/pepper

Mix mustard, maple syrup, and vinegar in bowl. Place chicken in baking dish, salt and pepper chicken, pour mixture in pan coating the chicken. Bake at 450 for 40 minutes, basting once or twice throughout.

We ate ours with sweet potato and broccoli! So easy to make and really yummy! Enjoy! 

Easter Activity

12 Days of Easter

Can't take credit for this one! Found this awesome activity on Pinterest and all the details for it from the family volley blog.  

This activity looks great for teaching the real meaning of Easter in a fun way. I of course haven't tried it yet, but wanted to post this in case anyone else was interested in trying it out this year! I am thinking my 2 and 1/2 year old might be a bit young for it, but we'll try it and save the materials so we can do it again in a few years if it doesn't work out this year! Started getting all the materials together so we have it ready to start 12 days before Easter.  

There is a different scripture hidden in an egg everyday, along with a small item that helps explain the bible verse and how it relates to the Easter story.  It is simple to prepare and you don't need many materials! I won't list them all here, check out this link for all the details and bible verses! 

Do you have any other fun Easter activities to share?? Would love to hear about them! 

The "not so crazy" coupon lady....

A few months ago,  I decided I was going to jump on the "coupon" train.  Ordered a Sunday Paper and started clipping...for about a month! haha  Just isn't really for me I guess. Or maybe I am just not organized enough.  I still like to use coupons for everyday things I buy, laundry detergent, paper towels, toilet paper, but I don't really know how/like to go crazy looking for the best deals, where coupons are doubled, etc. etc. I'm more of the "one stop shopper" and will pay a few cents extra if it means I don't have to drive all over creation and pull a toddler in and out of the car!

So needless to say I ended up with quite a few expired coupons over the last few months! I hated to just throw them away, so when The Krazy Coupon Lady posted on Facebook that expired coupons could be donated to Military Families I thought that would be a perfect thing to do with my expired coupons.
Spent a few minutes cleaning out my coupons and sent them out to the KCL Overseas Coupon Program.




Split the coupons into "food" and "nonfood" piles and sent them on their way.  (ABOVE is the East Coast Mailing Address).  Check out this LINK for more information on how to send your expired coupons to Military Families serving our country.

Also, if you know of any local organizations, military, food banks, etc. that have programs like this, please let me know!

Or if you are in any kind of coupon "swapping" club fill me in on that too! We only use specific coupons from our Sunday paper and end up throwing so many away! Would love to share them with you or anyone else that may want/need them!

"Unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to get better. It's not."

I am one of the lucky people that share a birthday with Dr. Seuss! And Oh, What a birthday it's been! I spent my last 2 birthday's in Florida visiting my family, without my husband :( And of course he surprised me down there both years with Spa days, which were totally amazing! I didn't really think it could get much better, UNTIL TODAY!

Was first surprised by my husband waking up and telling me he took the day off to spend with us! That alone would have been all I needed for my birthday, but he had some more surprises up his sleeve!
He got us a Babymoon! :) :) And our last hurrah before our Baby boy arrives includes a Flyer's game and a weekend in Philly, hotel and all! Soooo incredibly excited, have not had a "date" with my husband since our Anniversary, in AUGUST!!! He has even scheduled the babysitters for the weekend at the end of March!!

And the surprises didn't stop there! He had the day planned with The Lorax movie tickets and lunch at The Movie Tavern.  I had never heard of it, but it has now become one of my new favorite places! Lunch served to my comfy reclining chair while I watch the movie! Yes please! Would have loved to top it off with a Margarita or glass of wine, but refills of water at the push of a button worked just as well! :) And baby girl loved her first trip to the movie theater! Not sure we should have started her out there, she's probably a little spoiled now!

I recommend the Thai Chicken Flatbread! So Yummy! 

I had such a great day with my little family! And even had a whole chocolate cake waiting for me when I got home!

Thank you hubby and baby girl for such an awesome birthday! I'm one of the luckiest people out there! <3