Holiday Deals:This Week at Snapfish

Snapfish is a GREAT free site to load images and they always have great deals on great products!

Below are some of my favorite deals they have this week:

• Free Shipping: Coupon code FSNOV25 good until November 30th.
• Penny prints: Get up to 500 4” x 6” prints for only a penny.  Coupon code PENNYNOV good until December 3rd.
• 50% off Products:  Save 50% on just about everything. They have awesome mugs and not just any mugs check out their magic picture mugs. Ornaments are also GREAT holiday gifts. Coupon code CYBER50 good until December 3rd.

HAPPY SHOPPING!!!
 

My Baby is Turning 3

My lil one turns 3 tomorrow and over the weekend we had her birthday party. It was great having Friday off to prepare for it. My lil one insisted she have an astronaut party so I had to do a little research to make sure her wishes were fulfilled.

I ordered her plates and decorations online.

I found a astronaut from the theme "Toy Story" from Walmart which has heels because it's barbie astronaut to put on her cake-which I loved. I was going to attempt to make a cake but instead ordered one from Carvel with a rocket ship and for favors I ordered Astronaut Ice Cream-which was a hit!
                                                                                                                                                                         

I made a number 3 out of crescent rolls-which were the Stop and Shop brand because they are more tasty then the name brands and chopped out hot dogs-which tasted like corn dogs and even the adults loved them.

We have a friend who makes designs out of fruit. He made us a Mouse and seals. They were a hit and looked great on the dessert table.

My sister and brother in-law took her on a shopping spree at Toys R Us.

Overall it was a great party, my lil one loved her cake and decorations, our guests loved the food and favors and the weather was perfect.

Happy 3rd Birthday My Angel

Happy Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!


I hope today and everyday you surround yourself with the people you love. Thanksgiving is a great time to reflect on all your blessing and cherish the gifts of family, friends, loved ones and all the people you have been blessed with. Cherish one another and be grateful for what you have! I'm thankful for all of my readers and want to wish you all a wonderful Thanksgiving!

"Not what we say about our blessings, but how we use them, is the true measure of our thanksgiving." W.T. Purkiser

Be Thankful Quote

"Be thankful for what you have; you'll end up having more. If you concentrate on what you don't have, you will never, ever have enough." Oprah Winfrey

Feel Good Song: Good Feeling by Flo Rida

This is a great song!

Thanksgiving This Week...

I can not believe that Thanksgiving is this week already. I must say I am pretty excited about it. 3 years ago I went into labor on Thanksgiving so every year I am so grateful for my little one and all the wonderful people in my life. I must say Thanksgiving isn't only about the food but about being around those you love and cherish.

I am being a little lazy this Thanksgiving since I've been so busy these past couple of weeks with planning my lil one's 3rd birthday and trying to squeeze in some holiday shopping that I decided to just make Pumpkin Muffins-per my lil  one's request-to bring to my Aunt's for Thanksgiving. But I must admit they sound pretty amazing!

Pillsbury® Pumpkin Muffins

 

FILLING

• Crisco® Original No-Stick Cooking Spray
• 1 (8 oz.) package cream cheese, softened
• 1 large egg
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 2 teaspoons grated lemon peel

 

MUFFINS

• 1 (14 oz.) package Pillsbury® Pumpkin Quick Bread 
• 3/4 cup milk 
• 2 tablespoons Crisco® Pure Vegetable Oil
• 1 large egg 
• 3 tablespoons butter, melted 
• 1/4 cup chopped pecans- I am using almonds instead

HEAT oven to 350°F. Coat 12 muffin cups with no-stick cooking spray. BEAT cream cheese in medium bowl with electric mixer until soft. Add egg, sugar and lemon peel. Beat until smooth. PLACE pumpkin bread mix into large bowl. Remove 3/4 cup dry mix and set aside in small bowl to make topping. Add milk, oil and egg to remaining bread mix in large bowl. Stir 50 strokes or until blended.

FILL each muffin cup with about 1/4 cup batter. Make indentation in batter with small measuring spoon sprayed with no-stick cooking spray. Put 1 heaping tablespoon cream cheese mixture in center of each muffin. ADD melted butter to reserved dry mix. Stir with fork until crumbly. Add pecans. Crumble about 1 tablespoon over each muffin. BAKE 20 minutes. Cool 10 minutes in pan. Remove muffins from pan. Place on baking rack to finish cooling.

Marriage Quote

"Marriage isn't easy, it's just like everything else in life; you have your good moments and your bad. But the ones that last are the ones that can see past all that!"

Everything Happens for a Reason Quote by Marilyn Monroe

“I believe that everything happens for a reason. People change so that you can learn to let go, things go wrong so that you appreciate them when they're right, you believe lies so you eventually learn to trust no one but yourself, and sometimes good things fall apart so better things can fall together.” Marilyn Monroe

Peace of Mind Quote

"Every goal, every action, every thought, every feeling one experiences, whether it be consciously or unconsciously known, is an attempt to increase one's level of peace of mind."  Sydney Madwed

Face Your Fears

Ever had to Face Your Fears? We all have them, some are bigger than others, but reality is once you do it feels pretty good.

I know this sounds silly to most people but I have a huge fear of attics, so much that when I was looking to buy a home I insisted it could not have one. Silly right? But amazingly my house doesn't have one and I love it. So with that said the other day one of my sisters was telling me that she kept having this weird dream about my parent's attic. She wanted to go up it so she could try to figure out what it was about it that she kept dreaming about. We're all very into reading signs and over analyzing situations, ect...

Now my parent’s attic is freaky. It is one of those walk up these small steps and their house is a fairly large ranch so the attic is the whole lengthen of the house. I insisted she was on her own, so much that I felt sick to my stomach. So long story short I ended up making my way up to the attic with her, first time in my life. Yes at first I was shaking, pale, and freaking out but once I got up there I was ok.

Yes, this may be a small "Face Your Fears" to you but to me this was huge. I would have nightmares about this attic, not really sure why, but I faced one of my fears and am now over it. Life is about over come our fears, fears that hold us back and prevent us from moving forward. Not sure if I will ever really like attics after this but I figured trying to overcome this fear would only make me better not worse.

There’ll always be situations we have to face that we don’t want to face, some really big ones, some really small ones. Reality is facing up to them allows you to move past them. I have been trying my best to face up to some things that have been holding me back in my life, and at the end of the day it helps me move forward.
So tell me have you ever "Faced Your Fears?"

Alcohol Effects After a Night Out Drinking

Ever have a night out and wonder why the next day you feel so depressed? It's a common feeling among my friends and I. Although I must admit I am not really a "drinker" I do enjoy my nights out. With that said the next day I always feel like the weight of the world is on my shoulders and want to sleep all my worries away. So I decided to do some research since so many of us feel the same way after a night out.

Alcohol Effects After a Night Out Drinking:

• Alcohol is a depressant, so the depression caused by alcohol alone goes with the territory
• Alcohol tends to potentiate the mood of the user. Thus, if one is sad, alcohol may make you sadder. If you are happy, alcohol may make you happier.
• Alcohol affects the chemistry of the brain, increasing the risk of depression.
• It is now known that some of the systems that are involved in producing the symptoms of low mood, anxiety, poor sleep and reduced appetite in depression are also affected by alcohol.
• Alcohol diminishes the function of the mind through various processes. It affects many of the hormone functions in the brain within 1-2 minutes of consumption. Besides that, alcohol intake slows glycogen metabolism. This means the brain receives less glycogen, so it doesn't have much energy

"We can more easily be fooled when we drink alcohol or smoke. I want to be sure of the real world around me as possible, and they can fuzz the edge of rationality and reasoning powers - I do not use either of them.”
June Russell

Sources:
http://howistoppeddrinking.org/depression-and-loneliness-after-a-night-of-drinking
http://chemcases.com/alcohol/alc-07.htm
http://www.rcpsych.ac.uk/mentalhealthinfoforall/problems/alcoholanddrugs/alcoholdepression.aspx
http://www.medhelp.org/posts/Anxiety/Anxiety-panic-attacks-the-day-after-drinking/show/514905
http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/swordchucks3.htm

Feel Good Song: Andy Grammer Keep Your Head Up

Great feel good song! Happy Saturday Everyone :)



Remember "only rainbows after rain"

Who Do You Want to Be Quote

"Never mind searching for who you are.  Search for the person you aspire to be." Robert Brault

Happy 11-11-11

Funny how so many of us believe in signs and are superstitious...like today is a lucky day because it's 11-11-11. Not really sure where that came from but we all have known forever that 11-11 is good luck for some reason.

Growing up my girlfriend and I would always say make a wish when the clock struck 11:11. I think we all just like to know that there is a little magical, fictional world we all live in. Gives us something to look forward to, be hopeful for and feel that signs help bring us to our destiny. It's fun to let your imagination run free once in a while especially with the way the world has been these past couple of years. So with that said I hope you all had a great and lucky 11-11-11!

Great Coupon and Deal Websites

The Internet is full of great sources for deals and coupons. Below are a couple of sites that I use and recommend and are FREE to join.


*Groupon: you buy coupons and receive discounts. ex: Pay $15 for $30 worth of food at a restaurant. Great website http://www.groupon.com
*Living Social: similar to Groupon, buy coupons and receive discounts only difference is they have AMAZING deals on getaways, hotels, spas. I have seen packages up to 75% off. http://livingsocial.com
*Ebates.com: sign up and receive coupons for stores you shop at PLUS cash back on purchases. http://www.ebates.com/

Happy Shopping!!!

Happy Veteran's Day!

"How important it is for us to recognize and celebrate our heroes and she-roes!" Maya Angelou

My little Astronaut

My lil one insisted that she was not going to be a pirate but an astronaut for Halloween and I must say she made a really cute one! I hope you all had a wonderful Halloween as well!!!

1st Toddler on the Moon!

Lose Weight While Eating Every 2 Hours

In the past 6 months I have been devoted to watching what I eat, working out and living a healthier life style. I began eating every two hours and 6 months later I HAVE to eat every two hours. Now with that said, I eat 5 small meals a day. I have trained my metabolism to "wake up" and it burns calories faster. Bad thing is that I MUST eat every two hours or else I am starving. I keep extra bars and 100 calorie packs of almonds in my purse just in case I am not home or someplace I can eat.


Now this is not easy to do without preparation. Most of the time I make a meal and split it in half so I can eat the other half in a couple of hours. Once you train yourself you get fuller faster. It takes some work at first but once you get used to creating meals and teaming up foods it becomes very easy. Below are some examples:


• Egg Sandwich on 9 grain bagel: In a pan use Pam Olive Oil spray, add 3 eggs-1 with the yoke the others white. Top with a slice of cheese. Toast bagel but take out some of the middle you do not need the extra bread or calories. EAT HALF, save other Half for two hours later. This has about 12 grams of protein at each serving.

• Yogurt and almonds: Nonfat Chobani yogurt and roasted almonds. This has about 15 grams of protein

• Grilled Chicken Wraps: Buy the low carb wraps. I like the 100 calorie ones. Add grilled chicken with salad and balsamic dressing. This is about 14 grams of protein.


These are just some quick, easy, yummy treats. Make sure whatever you eat is high in protein, low in sugar and fat.

Below are great articles on why eating every two hours is important in weight loss:

• How to Lose Weight Eating Every 2 Hours
• Eat More Often, Lose More Weight
• How to Lose Weight With 6 Small Meals

Exercise is VERY important with aiding with weight loss. I work out 3 x a week for about an hour and I mix up my routine every time. I do an hour class a week, and the other two days cardio and weights/machines. Challenge yourself, start off slow and stick to a plan that will work for you. After years of the scale going up and down I am loving this new "lifestyle" that I created that helped me get back in shape and more importantly, stay in shape! I love having the same body I had 7 years ago!

Change Within Quote

"Change must start from within. You can't change a situation until you change the way you think and feel about the situation ."

Life Quote

"Things aren't always as they seem; sometimes they're better, sometimes they're worse!"