Brooklyns tie

Brooklyn just came home from school with a very exciting announcement. As you can see she is successfully tying her own shoes. Hurray for Brooklyn!

Brooklyn's 6th Birthday

It's hard to believe that 6 years ago we were in the hospital having a baby! Where has the time gone? I'm very proud of the sweet little girl that Brooklyn has become. Her birthday party was Saturday and as always we all had a great time with our family. Brooklyn and Kennedy LOVE there cousins and everyone always plays together so nicely. Her theme this year was Littlest Petshop and she had a lot of fun decorating the house with all her little toys. Papa and her even made paw prints with chalk leading up to the house and after dinner we painted faces up like dogs and cats and had dance party.

Doggy School

I am proud to announce that Boscoe Thuma is now a graduate of Beginners Obedience School of Flushing Animal Hospital. He graduates with top honers in the following commands: sit, sit stay, down, down stay, heel, about turn, about turn left, stand, and come. I have allocated several awards to Boscoe and some of his classmates. Teachers Pet: Charlie. Loudest dog: Buddy. Meanest: Ginger. Scariest: Max. Most popular: Jazmin. Class Clown: Boscoe. Most likely to take a big shidooby on the floor: Susie. As Virginia Slim herself would say to Boscoe if she knew him-You've Come A Long way, baby. And he has. I'm proud of him. When I think about the fact that he was a stray dog wandering around Flint and now he has become such a nice family dog and has enriched our lives so much it makes me really proud that we rescued him and really happy that we are able to give him security and a loving home. Hats off to you-animal rescue groups. You make the world a better place indeed.

cost cutting & the end of the election

Hey fellow bloggers
I was just thinking about different ways to save money. I think this is something that most of us are having to really think about these days-not just us stay at home mommies. Some tactics I'm working on:
coupon clipping
reading the store ads and trying to find sales in stores that match coupons that I have clipped (this is actually very worth it sometimes)
cooking rather than eating out
making coffee at home vs. running through Starbucks (but I still have to occasionally because it's it's in my blood to want Starbucks constantly)
using tupperware vs. buying ziploc bags
drinking yummy Flushing city water vs. buying bottled water
hitting the library for movies vs. ordering through on demand
Having at least a couple dinners per week that contain no meat (it's healthier for us anyway)
Outlet shopping
Utilizing the outdoors for climate control (AKA opening windows)

What are your methods?

P.S. How is everyone feeling now that the elections are over? Since I have been alive I don't know of another election that people were so emotional about. People who typically don't get involved in politics were informed and passionate. I certainly feel as though I may have a few more white hairs because of it. I will never forget Tuesday. I will never forget what I did that day. I will never forget about how I felt when I was watching the election coverage. I will never forget seeing Jessee Jackson crying and hearing McCain's speech at the end. I was so impressed with his speech. I felt like he really said some great things and handled losing very eloquently.