The Stuff I Live For

Giveaway - A Mushy Bug Creation May 4, 2009

I finally mustered up the energy to whip up something different to add to my shop. Though it didn't require much creativity, I enjoyed making these diaper wristlets because they're something new for my eyes. 

You can fit at least a few diapers inside, as well as a travel size wipes case and the strap fits easily over the wrist. I really like the idea of keeping it in the car and grabbing just the diaper wristlet on your way into wherever you're heading and leaving the big diaper bag in the car. They're also great for throwing in the stroller for trips to the park or walks in the mall. I think they're priced great, especially for the quality. I padded them nicely so they're super-soft.

Ashley over at Swoon is working on her new blog about "Swoonworthy products for you, your home, and the babies." It's a nice looking blog and I like her taste. She's got some good products and finds on there and would love a visit/comment from you if you have a second to visit her.

She purchased two diaper wristlets today and is giving away one here. Enter for yourself or to give to a friend for a great Mother's Day gift!

Clippin Coupons April 29, 2009

Will I stick to it? Who knows. It may be just one more thing in life I can’t keep my attention on. I have such a short attention span. Hey, I’m honest.

Also, this may seem like a silly, time-wasting task for me since I can be somewhat of a, shall I say, frivolous spender. Again, at least I’m honest. Aside from unnecessary purchases like my zillions of yards of fabric, I also have a top-of-the-line, crap-ola dryer that takes at least two hours to dry one load of laundry but which I continue to avoid replacing. We run the dishwasher sometimes twice a day. I take two, sometimes three when I’m working outside, showers a day, as does Eric. We waste enough food to feed China by not planning well and letting groceries go bad. I just bought a new, cheap-o, 9 foot patio umbrella thinking I was saving us some money instead of buying a more costly one and it broke after two days. The list could go on.

I will try to tell myself using coupons is a little way to make back some our wasted finances. After making this new ‘resolution,’ first thing to do… buy something else! Of course I’m a huge Amy Butler fan and thought this sweet little coupon organizer by Crunchy Cute on etsy would help keep me motivated!

It has 7 pockets and tabs to stay organized. I just love it. Yes, I know I could’ve made this myself, but it’s fun to buy myself a little treat sometimes.

Or two.

It’s a bit too small for all the coupons I already have, so I’m going to use the little one for stores like CVS, Joann’s and restaurants and stuff. A few minutes ago, I bought one a little bigger (the Deco Rose print on the right) with 13 pockets from Crunchy Cute which I’ll use for just the grocery store.

Cathy seems like a sweet lady. She’s got a couple of verses on her shop announcement which are great reminders to not let money rule our universe:

Ecclesiastes 5:10
Those who love money will never have enough.
How meaningless to think that wealth brings true happiness.

Proverbs 16:3
Commit your works to the Lord and your plans will be established.

Sharing: T.G.I. Friday’s Coupons April 25, 2009

I have coupons for Friday’s if anyone’s interested! I cannot figure out how to put them on here, but if you email me or leave me a comment, I’ll email them to you. We used them tonight. They’re 100% usable, completely fine to be printed from your own computer.

One is: Buy One Jack Daniel’s Entree, Get One Free

The other: Buy One Lunch, Get One Free

They’re both on the same document, so you’ll get both, but hurry they expire April 30th!

A Note From Me April 23, 2009

Hi All!

Somehow, somewhere along the line, I totally lost control of my time management. Somethings I liked to do were replaced with some more things I had to do, without me even realizing it. Aside from Hell’s Kitchen and The Amazing Race, which Eric and I watch together, I’ve forced myself to not get involved with any television programming because, time-wise, I can’t afford to want to force myself to sit down infront of the TV at specified times. (No, we don’t have Tivo! Is that even how you spell it? I am not exactly technoligically with-it.)

Anyway, this loss of free time, is not exactly a problem. I’m so happy and thankful that Mushy Bug is doing well on etsy. I’m having a great time with it and have recently begun to at least manage my time well enough that I’m not staying up in my little studio till well after midnight anymore. Hopefully, Christmas time 2009 will bring back those crazy hours, but for now, I’m happy with my etsy biz.

I’ve actually had a lull in sales these past two weeks, and will try to use my extra time to get motivated to blog once again. I’ve been getting comments here and there over the past couple of months, quite a few more subscribers, and my average daily page views has gone up over 100 more than it was before! All while I’ve not written at all. Hmm, maybe you all prefer to visit me when I don’t update?! Kidding. I appreciate all the comments and emails from my regular visitors asking where and how I’ve been. I’ve truly missed reading all the great comments.

There’s so much that’s gone on in the past couple of months that I didn’t get to write about. It’s sad because I like to think of The Stuff I Live For as my journal. I didn’t get to post the great pics of my biggest baby’s 5th birthday

So, I suppose I have lots to say and I should get with it again. I’ve made some good etsy purchases recently and will be posting about them for sure. If I haven’t lost you, thanks for still visiting me! I will be catching up with many of you on your blogs soon…

~Elexis

My Snow Angels February 5, 2009

Although I am allergic to the cold, I did step outside for three seconds yesterday in my slippers and no coat to snap a couple of quick pics. The day before I even helped make a snowman. Now that’s enough for me for the year. I’m ready for shorts and sweating!

Her First Mod Purse… Win One! January 29, 2009

There’s still a day left to enter at An UnPink Life and win this…

Her First Mod Purse from Mushy Bug!

Bloggy Carnival Giveaway! January 26, 2009

Commnets closed! The winner is…

Random Integer Generator
Here are your random numbers:

106 Timestamp: 2009-01-31 15:49:07 UTC

Linda!

Check out the Bloggy Carnival for TONS more giveaways. Like, so many you couldn't possible enter them all.

Here's mine!

From Mushy Bug you'll have your choice of any of these matching Mini Wallet and Key Fob sets.

For now, simply leave a comment to enter. Once the winner is chosen by a random number generator on January 30th, I'll contact that person to find out their choice.

UnPink V-Day Gifts January 25, 2009

This is my public 'thank you' to the fabulous Gina at An UnPink Life for her un-ending thoughtfulness. Not only did she host a giveaway with one of my little mod purses as a prize, we also got some fun and unexpected mail a couple of weeks ago. (Yes, I know I'm much late here. I simply haven't been able to commit any of my time lately to sitting at the computer.)

Gina purchased these sweet necklaces for Ayla and Shay with a cupcake and their initial from another etsy shop.

Thanks again, Gina, for everything! You never know who you’ll meet in the blogging world.

In the spirit of Gina's good finds, Valentine's Day and my love for etsy, here are some of my recent etsy faves which I think would make great 'unpink' V-Day gifts.

My Over-the-Top Dining Room Cabinet January 4, 2009

I bought this cabinet about a year ago. It spent months lookly sad and bare because I was coveting some really cool plates that I knew I shouldn't buy. So, I crazied it up myself over the summer. I was playing with my new camera today wanting to take pics of something with lots of color and remembered that I never shared pictures of my over-the-top dining room cabinet. I've reaffirmed my knowledge that pictures taken with a camera flash just aren't great. Natural light is amazingly better, but I had to use a flash in this room.

I put a different fabric (my fave thing of course!) behind each shelf.

On the top shelf is a gorgeous plate from a really unique etsy shop called Love, Lindsey.

No one who sees this in my home gets the plate on the second shelf, so I'll explain… There are FOUR of us!! I just stuck a decal I bought from Lowes on there. The salt and pepper shakers took a ton of time. I had to go through a zillion magazines to find black-only prints of S's and P's. And finally, a too-cute stuffed fabric bird in black and white.

On the bottom shelf I placed the felt cupcakes I made a while back. I told the girls not to touch them and amazingly they haven't. The 'cake stand' is a simple green plate from Target sitting on top of an upside down candlestick holder. If these were real cupcakes, or a glass plate, I'd have glued the plate onto the candlestick holder.

This really epitomizes my style. I love, love, love color. It makes me happy. I could never have white walls in my home. In fact, I wish painting were easier. I'd change our wall colors every year or so.

Christmas Pics - Yes, Late January 3, 2009

While Eric's big Christmas gift was a telescope, Santa gave me a great, new Canon camera. Unfortunately, it was nearly the last thing I opened, so I didn't get too many great gift-opening pics with it. Later, we spent the afternoon at my mom's and I was the papparzzi, taking pictures of the same thing over and over. Even though the camera has tons of functions, I've yet to read the instruction manual. I'm a man like that and think directions are for suckers!

My main reason for wanting a good camera was for taking pics of inanimate objects for Good Pails and Mushy Bug. For this, it is working fabulously and for this, I don't need no stinkin' directions.

So, here's some pictures from our wonderful Christmas of 2008, taken without touching any of those knobs or buttons which I know nothing about…

The cupcake maker - fun, but messy.

The girls are loving this Fisher Price Kid Tough camera. They like to take pictures of Elmo on the television!

Maybe this camera shows a little too much detail!