Target Time

I love when Target does their seasonal markdowns! After some practice, I've finally figured out a little more about when and where to find their deals. You've probably seen some suggestions on Pinterest about how and when they do markdowns. I haven't been able to tell that all those suggestions always apply, but some definitely do. My tricks are shopping the end caps of the inside aisles and knowing that seasonal markdowns  move quickly. They do seem to continue marking down seasonal items every couple of days, where regular items may go a whole week before being marked down again. I've also noticed that the percentage off on a sign may not actually reflect the markdown. For instance, someone had put a 30% off sign up yesterday where items where actually 70% off.

Digging is a way to de-stress for me, maybe not the best but I keep it in check. Well I won't bore you with the details, but if you know anything about our life lately you can probably guess that I've needed some de-stressing. Perfect timing since there are a lot of summer sales. I don't think I've even spent $10, and I haven't had any amazing finds yet, but I have picked up a few fun items that I know will come in handy.

I've liked these little baskets since they came out, and I got them 70% off. I think they would be good to hold baked goods or lotions and such for gifts. I could also use them to hold fresh fruit in the refrigerator or to hold little kitchen gadgets in cabinets.

I found these napkins for 70% off also. I had picked them up at 50% off but decided I still wasn't happy with that price. I'm glad I waited! Waiting doesn't usually work, but there were three of one print and two of the other. They are from the Privet House line that Target tried out this summer. I loved all of that collection! I have several ideas for these as well. I may mix them with other napkins for casual entertaining, or they may be used for a craft project (iPad cover, shopping bag, pillow). They could also add a little pop to a bucket filled with goodies for a gift. Any other ideas?  I've been on a Christmas kick the last week or so, so that's what I had in mind when I found them.

What about you? Any shopping tips? When do you start planning Christmas gifts?

Lazy Summer Day

Today we've had a lazy day! The kind where toys are everywhere, and Brennan is still in his pj's at nap time.   I promised myself when I became a SAHM that we would get up and get dressed everyday. I pretty much stick to that promise, but every once in a while I need an exception.It was suppose to rain today you know, so the day would have been perfect. Oh well!  The one productive thing we have done today is try a new recipe. Brennan loves to help cook right now, especially treats....he's so my child. He came to me this morning and asked to make muffins. I gave him the maybe answer, which he has already learned means probably not. He said, "Muffins always make me feel better." Really, all two times he's had them they made him feel better! Ha Ha!  I just love him!

Well it's always good to feel even better I think, so we made "muffins". I had actually wanted to try making cupcakes with this easy, lower fat recipe:

http://cookiesandcups.com/soda-can-cupcakes/

You use a cake mix and a can of soda, that's it. I used a Funfetti cake mix and Sprite, both just what I had on hand. They turned out pretty good. They are really moist and  have a light taste to them. We didn't ice them, since they are technically muffins today. They are a nice little treat to throw together.  I would like to try chocolate cake mix and coke sometime. I think our "muffins" have about 120 calories each. Since they don't have eggs, Brennan also got to lick away at the beaters and bowl. I think his day went from good to great!

Our New Summer Favorite: The Shrimp Boil

We've found a new recipe favorite that is a crowd pleaser! It's really not new, just new to us. We are loving shrimp boils this summer! For some reason I always thought it would be complicated, but it is probably the easiest meal I've ever done for a group. We use the recipe from Old Bay seasonings website:

INGREDIENTS

4 quarts water (16 cups)

1 can (12 ounces) beer (optional)

1/2 cup OLD BAY® Seasoning

2 tablespoons salt

8 medium red potatoes, quartered

2 large onions, cut into wedges

2 pounds lean smoked sausage, cut into 2-inch pieces

8 ears fresh corn, shucked and halved crosswise

4 pounds unpeeled jumbo shrimp (21 to 25 count)

DIRECTIONS

Bring water, beer, OLD BAY Seasoning and salt to boil in 12-quart stockpot on high heat. Add potatoes and onions. Cook 8 minutes. Add smoked sausage. Cook 5 minutes. Add corn. Cook 7 minutes.

Stir in shrimp. Cook 4 minutes or just until shrimp turn pink.

Drain cooking liquid. Pour contents of pot into large serving bowl or platter. Or, mound on paper-covered table. Sprinkle with additional OLD BAY Seasoning, if desired.

http://www.oldbay.com/Recipes/Shrimp/Main-Course/The-Original-OLD-BAY-Shrimp-Boil-Shrimp-Fest.aspx

This recipe seems to have just the right amount of seasoning. We've done it with and without beer and couldn't tell much difference. I do usually add a bulb of garlic. The prep is fast, just cut up a few ingredients. The clean up is even faster. We use a plastic table cover with a few paper towels in the middle for the food. No utensils, no plates, no fancy paper goods, no problem. We dump the food in the middle of the table and dig in. I sit a couple of bottles of squeeze butter and cocktail sauce on the table, spread a french loaf cut into chunks throughout, and scatter some lemon wedges. We just pour the butter and sauce right on the table. There's always a big roll of paper towels available for sticky hands. Once we are done, everything pretty much goes in the trash. This recipe feeds at least 8. The general rule is a half pound of shrimp per person. If you have guests like these two who mostly ate corn, then the leftovers aren't too bad warmed up either.

A few tricks we've learned: the Kroger frozen shrimp (about $7.99 a lb.) is really good for this. You definitely want the shells on because that holds the flavor. I want the shrimp deveined already, and these are.  We do all the cooking and eating outside. The seasoning is very potent, so a fish cooker in the great outdoors keeps it bearable. Lots of good food also calls for lots of beverages! We enjoy good ole sweet tea, and have needed more than usual every time for this meal. If you like to save a buck, Aldi seems to have the best price on red potatoes.

Here's my shopping list in case you need to pull together a quick summer party:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1PhPnenP6yh3aHCvgI8114kacojLIGxGg88N56y9Zwpg/edit

The Writing Is On the Wall

Or the various chalkboards I've made recently. I think I'm addicted! I'm on a mission to find a use, or a new home, for some of the stuff I've been hanging onto (which is a slow process by the way). It turns out a few of those items make great chalkboards.

It all started with this frame. Mom had the idea of making it a chalkboard, and passed it on to me. It was a gold frame with a piece of cardboard in the back. I painted the cardboard with chalkboard paint and painted the frame.  We used it for our Memorial Day party.

While I was painting that frame, I thought it would be fun to have a large board to use outside. I had this old shelf that no longer had a home. Now it gets to make special announcements outside.

This week I decided to turn this picture into an indoor chalkboard, of course inspired from Pinterest.

 I bought the picture at a yard sale a few years ago for $5. It was perfect in my dining room in Harvest, and there's just something I like about the colors. But, it hasn't had a home in this house and the hubs would like for it to stay that way. Apparently he isn't a fan of fruit, who knew. So I took the board out, painted the back with chalkboard paint (preserving the nice fruit just in case the hubs has a change of heart), sanded and painted the frame with some trim paint, and gave our dining room a little something new.

Independence Day

How are you planning to celebrate on the 4th? We're still finalizing/deciding our plans.It seems kind of tricky with the big day falling on Wednesday.  I think we are going to keep things a little smaller this year and switch up the menu. There will be some key people missing so I kind of want to change it all. For the past three years, we have done BBQ from Southern Hickory. You can't beat that for a crowd. This year I think we may try a shrimp boil. We actually did one a few weeks ago with our supper club and LOVED it. If the pool isn't boiling by then, I'm sure there will be some splish splashing. Maybe we can make it to a fireworks show before we crash!

I love all things Americana in the summer.

 I've added a new red, white, and blue decoration to my stash this year.

I'm in love with pennants right now, and they are so easy to make. I used scrap fabric I had, cut triangles, folded the top over a piece of jute yarn, and sewed a straight line just under the yarn. You could use fabric glue also I think. I made a short one for this cabinet and a longer one that I hang outside. There's just something about red, white, and blue, and summertime! Happy Summer!

What's In a Name

A blog name that is. I don't know that I've ever explained how our blog got it's name, but this summer if you could read my mind it would be self-explanatory. I'm a planner, I'm a dreamer, I like things my way, I don't particularly like uncertainty. But I have this friend, more like a Father really, who knows me so well. He knows my imperfections, my weaknesses, my greatest desires, and my plans. He also knows my future, my needs before I even express them, and even the number of hairs on my head. He knows where I need to grow and change in my life, and he knows exactly when everything should happen.  Above all, he knows what He has Planned for me.

At the time I started this blog, God was revealing more of his plan in my life. I was married to a godly man I greatly desired but had almost given up on finding, and was expecting a baby that I greatly desired and had so feared I would never get to have. I was preparing to move back to the area where I grew up, something I would have never imagined just a few years earlier. I was moving to the street where I had pretended I lived as a little girl, but hadn't given a second thought since. Soon I found myself with not just a desire, but a need to be a stay at home mom that could not be ignored. I had never even considered staying home before.  It didn't happen in my time, but in God's time that need was met. With each of those life changes, I knew it had to be God's plan because it was more than I could even imagine. Over the last year I've marveled at how much better his plan is than mine ever was.

Of course, I've also continued to try to make my own plans. My plan was to go to a three day technology conference last week while my aunt kept Brennan. My plan has been to stay home until Brennan is at least four and a half. My plan was to keep marking projects off our to do list. My plan was to already have the hall bath redone, the carport painted, the back porch finished, and our bedroom completed. My to do list even had dates next to each project! My plan included a fall vacation again. My plan included seeking His plan for our family. Is one child enough? Should we have one more? And I hoped to have that answer by now because I'm not getting any younger, and spring birthdays seem nice!

God's plan.....a little refining moment, a little test of faith, a little reminder that he is in control. The first thing that comes to mind is a whole lot of uncertainty. I don't know if my aunt will ever be able to keep Brennan again, I don't know if we'll have an income in two months, I don't know if these changes are his answer about another baby for us. In moments of weakness, I fear all of these unknowns. I fear that I should be going back to work to ensure an income,  I fear that I will have to go back to work and miss out on this job at home. Then I remember God's promise to never leave or forsake us. I know he has a plan for us, that his plan will be perfect, and that it will be revealed in his time. He has already answered prayers daily from the smallest to the largest. Some of those answers have been so instant and so exact that any doubt of his power for us I might let creep in is instantly erased. I believe he guides our desires and plans to align with his when we seek him. That's my plan right now, just seek his will and let him do the rest through me. I know it may or may not go as I would like, but This Life He Planned is pretty great!  Even through the storms he reigns!

If You Need To Find Me.....

I'll probably be sitting out here.

This has become my favorite outdoor spot! It is a porch to the barn. It's behind the house, beside the pool, and a great location to keep an eye on a toddler. There are two high powered fans that keep the air cool and the bugs sparse. The furniture is what Mike bought when he proposed in my backyard in Harvest. The little bench/coffee table, tall bird feeder, and side tables are from my grandparents. I'm loving the white impatiens there this year. I don't usually get to sit for long, but I try to stop and sit a bit every day.

This big guy thinks it's a pretty good hangout as well. He turned nine last week, so he's pretty much a master at hanging out.

And this is what I photographed around to make it look all relaxing. Ha! Ha! Actually there was a toddler on a "cell phone", a dog with a Capri Sun pouch, and numerous toys scattered all around. Got to keep it real!