$50 off $100 Old Navy Coupon Giveaway

Hey all! Thrifty Northwest Mom is giving away three $50 off $100 coupons to Old Navy! You can go here to enter! Good luck!

'Tis the Season...

'Tis the season to be thankful. I've been thinking this last week about things that I am thankful for and I wanted to journal them for future years to look back on. So here are a few that I know I take for granted in no particular order:

1. disposable diapers, I am so glad I don't have to wash dirty diapers!

2. modern medicine

3. tampons, 'nuff said

4. insurance, necessary evil

5. temple work, I'm thankful that we can help make families forever by doing ordinances for the dead

6. motherhood, what an amazing experience to see the world through innocent eyes!

7. a place I can call "home"

8. my husband, who gives me a sense of security and fills my life with love and laughter

9. running water, electricity, air conditioning and heating

10. having the knowledge of never being alone

11. my calling, kids make me feel so alive and full of worth, especially the nursery ones

12. those fighting for our freedoms so that I can be with my family eating turkey and pie

13. the scriptures, it gives me the strength to keep going day to day

14. to be a part of a wonderful family

15. the Atonement, without the sacrifice of my Savior I wouldn't be where I am today

Dancing Queen

Walking

This is for those of you who live out-of-state and haven't seen Desi walking yet.

Why?

Why is it when I want to take a picture, Desi has her eyes closed,

won't smile,

is trying to touch the camera,

has her eyes closed again

or thinks she's funny?

Finally, a half smile!

Say "cheese"!


Desi loves to watch the washing machine,

climb into the computer desk,

read books,

have Daddy chase her

and tickle her!

All 7 Grills With The Only Boy

For those of you who hear me talk constantly about my wonderful sister-in-laws, here they are with their only brother! Top row, left to right: Becky, Liz, Erin, Wendy. Bottom row, left to right: Laura, Tom, Jeanette & Krista.

I've been jumped!

I can't believe it! I got home from a girl party in Park City on Saturday and Tom and I were talking and playing with Desi in the family room. I was laying on the floor and Desi was standing next to me when all of a sudden...she jumped on me just like a body slam! She didn't just fall over, she jumped and threw her body on my stomach! Is was so random and funny! Tom and I just bust up laughing and looked at each other like where did she learn that from? I couldn't believe she had done that! She just laughed because she thinks she's funny especially when Tom and I are laughing whether or not it's at her. Silly girl!

Cute Cakes!

I just found some very cute birthday cakes. I still can't decide what to do for Desi yet especially because she won't care, it's more for me. But you can check them out here. I love the dump truck and bulldozer! I think in a few years I will make Desi the castle one. I never thought of using ice cream cones so creatively!

Bittersweet

Desi took more than two steps tonight, she was really walking instead of taking a step and falling over. I'm so excited! But for some reason I'm having issues with her growing up so fast. I was talking to Erin about this today and I know it sounds psycho but I don't want to stop breastfeeding because then she won't have anything to depend on me for. I mean I know there are other things but my baby is quickly becoming a toddler and it makes me cry. Is this normal with the first one to feel so attached? Or is this just one of many moments when you realize they grow up too fast? Don't get me wrong it's so fun to see the new things she's learning and discovering and I LOVE the look on her face when she's proud of herself! Maybe that means I should have another one.=)

Post Just For Mickie

And I just had to add this because it's so cute and I want to do it in Desi's room but maybe you could make it work if it was bigger.

FREE ADMISSION

If anyone is interested, Tracy Aviary is letting people in for free the next few days. You can check it out here.

Waffle & Syrup

This was on Martha Stewart's website of Halloween costume ideas. I think it's so funny, I would have never thought of this!

Great Baby Gifts!

Hey girlies that don't know about my very creative sister-in-law, Erin, she has an Etsy shop with adorable onesies that would make great baby gifts! She also does adult shirts, baby sleepers and flower hairbows. She's having a sale on the onesies, buy one get one 1/2 off. You can check it out here.

Emergency Essentials

For those of you who don't follow the money saving blogs, here is a great freebie and very easy to do. You can get a free $10 gift card from Emergency Essentials just by putting their button on your blog. You can click here for instructions.

WooHoo!

I am so excited that my friend's baby girl is finally here! I don't want to step on Lori's toes and post a picture first but this is for my family who hears me talk about Lori this and Lori that and for the girls in my ward who can't wait to see what she looks like. This picture doesn't do her justice but I didn't take my camera and this is the only one I could snag off a relative's blog that wasn't blurry. She is soooooooooo cute!!!! She was born on Monday evening and weighed 10 lbs 3 oz and is 22 1/2 inches long. I just love her hair!

Check out this Blog!

This lady is so funny! Some of you might have seen or read her articles/posts because she writes for Deseret News. I've read her blog a few times but I think it might become a daily ritual. She also writes about some interesting controversial topics which I enjoy. The following is from yesterday and make sure to check out this post and tell me what you think.

I really mean it this time!

Erin Stewart
DeseretNews.com blogger | Sept. 10, 2009 at 6:34 a.m.

The terrible twos. Somehow they crept into our house while I wasn't looking and now my husband and I are trying to agree on a discipline strategy for our daughter, Nicole.

We've hit some snags on our quest for the perfect discipline plan that will not only make her an adorable toddler and well-adjusted adult, but also make us look like amazing parents. We've gotten a lot of advice from, well, everyone, but nothing seems to fit just right.

One member of my family who will remain nameless (let's just say she may or may not have given birth to me) suggested a stern "No" followed by a classic "I'm going to count to three" maneuver.

This tactic, however, usually ends with me counting ridiculously slowly to three while Nicole misbehaves and laughs. I also throw in a series of escalating threats as I get closer to the dreaded No. 3. It goes something like this:

Me: Nicole, pick up your cup. I'm going to count to three. One. I mean it. Pick it up. Two. I'm really serious now. You're going to get a time out. I'm not joking. Two and a half. OK, no dating when you're in high school. Two and three-quarters. That's it; I'm really not joking this time. OK, there goes college tuition. Three.

I fear that in the end, I'll be left with a child who is grounded until she's 36 and has an irrational fear of the number 3.

We've also employed the tactics of a series called "Love and Logic." Basically, you empower the kid with choices and then deliver immediate and natural consequences when there is misbehavior.

But the trouble is this requires quick thinking. It's not easy to think of common sense, logical consequences for misbehavior when your child is slapping the dog's face while attempting to ride it like a cowgirl.

So what has worked for you? Tell me what discipline methods you've used and why they've worked for your kids. The one that can get my child to dismount from the dog before I count to three wins.

"X" marks the spot

Thursday night we headed up to Jeanette's house in Garland for the weekend and on Friday we went to Bear Lake with Jeanette, Erin, Laura and families. It was really windy when we got there but it calmed down AFTER Tom and Kendall got back from "sailing". I think they were holding on for their lives more than anything hoping the boat wouldn't tip over. Desi LOVED the water, especially splashing and standing on the shore waiting for the next wave to come up. She even got mad when I took her out of the water to warm her up.
Don't worry, I made sure to keep her covered with sunscreen and sometimes a jacket.I just forgot to cover myself with a little something..."X" marks the spot where I didn't get sunburned. And yes it feels as bad as it looks!I think between Kendall, Tom and me, we will be making sure to slather on the sunscreen for this week's campout and I will definitely bring a bottle of vinegar. Who knew it takes the sting out of a sunburn? Thanks again Erin for putting up with the stink of it to put some on my back. (Sammy wanted to be in the picture too.)

Refugees

What a wonderful country we live in! We can say anything and do anything! I take SO MANY things for granted! I'm so thankful that we have soldiers fighting for our freedoms!! These people are very happy to be here but they have no friends and family and they're starting over in a totally different culture. I hope we continue to have some refugees move into the apartments in our ward. They bring such a neat spirit!

http://www.ksl.com/index.php?nid=148&sid=6830264

If anyone knows of someone that needs an eagle project, etc this would be GREAT!

Silly Girl

Tom took this video on March 15th of Desi laughing because of the noises I was making. We just can't get enough of her smiles and giggles! (I've been meaning to post these videos but just figured out how.)

Laundry

I recorded this video on May 2nd while I was folding laundry. Desi was laying on the bed watching me and I was flipping the shirts to straighten them/get the wrinkles out. She started giggling when I waved one over her face plus she had the hiccups making it even cuter!

Peekaboo

We recorded Desi playing peekaboo on June 5th. I can't believe how much she's learning and how fast she's growing!

Ready for Spring!

We're ready for spring! I forgot I had these shorts and she now kinda fits in some of her shoes.

My sweet baby girl is now five months old!

I realized I hadn't taken any pictures of her on Easter so I grabbed some eggs for her to play with but she had a hard time hanging on to them. (when she wasn't trying to eat them)

Thanks Aunt Tina for the cute stuffed frog.

GREAT DEALS!

$2.52 plus tax


$2.15 plus tax

I just wanted to share these great deals I got!

I LOVE GROCERY SMARTS!

I have saved over $1100 so far and I've only been at it for a few months! And for those skeptics out there (Kristina), I added up what I have saved in manufacturer's coupons which is just over $300. This amount does NOT include store coupons that come in the ad. I want to thank Wendy for having the first class so Liz could have the second class that I could attend. Now all I need is some more room to put food. My shelves, floor and freezers are all full! I think Desi might have to share her bedroom with the granola bars, Gatorade and cereal.

It's happened!

I've been sucked in! I watched the movie with Tom last night and now I can't wait for the other ones to come out! When Tom talked about the books while he was reading them, I thought they sounded stupid, but now I want to pick up the fourth book and just read the ending to find out what happens. Or does anyone want to just tell me if Bella ever ends up a vampire and stays with Edward?

General Conference

I don't know about any of you, but I really enjoyed conference! I tried to prepare myself more this time and I can't believe how many of the talks, I felt were directed to me. My prayers were answered and I'm so thankful to have a living Prophet and other church leaders who are inspired by God! I even went online last night and listened to a talk that I missed. How grateful I am to have the internet! Well, I better get crackin' because as I listened this weekend, I realized how many things I need to work on!

Last Few Weeks

Here's what has happened the last few weeks...
My baby turned four months old.
Whenever I pull out the camera, she stops smiling.
She is now 25 inches long and in the 75th percentile for length!
I went from this...
To this...
My sister and I cut our hair together to donate to Locks of Love.
Desi went on her first four-wheeling ride.
My niece, Maggie, was finally born on St. Patrick's Day.
And Tom's brother-in-law got a hole in his thigh from his dirt bike. If you want to see all the pictures and disgusting video footage, you can link here.