Summer Vacay Dailies: Week SEVEN- seven people...not many weeks left

District baseball is upon us- which means not so many games each week and more time as a family, which I very much appreciate.  We love baseball season, but by the end I think everyone (players, coaches, and parents included) is ready for the end and some time to just relax- or in our case get some work done around the house.  A certain cute little somebody hit a milestone, too!

Thursday July 11

Happy Second Birthday Cailyn!

Cailyn woke up to Minnie Mouse balloons taped to her bed, which she loved and immediately began to swat at them like a kitten.  Jerod had a game Thursday night so Cailyn, my sister, and I visited Reiman Gardens, picked out birthday cupcakes at the Cupcake Emporium, had some amazing pizza for dinner at Great Plains Sauce & Dough, and hit up Sam's Club to pick out a new movie to watch at home.  My favorite part of the night?  Cailyn trying desperately to run past the world's largest gnome and skidding to a halt in the gravel when he came in to her periforal vision!

 Friday July 12

So, I love to shop anywhere, but I especially love to shop at places where I can use coupons that are good on everything!  I signed up for a Kohl's card a while back to get the initial 20% off when you sign up (my total definitely looked better to Jerod with the 20% off).  Anyway- I never cancelled the account and I get those time-to-time coupons for 15, 20, or 30 percent off your total purchase.  Well, for the first time ever I got one for 30% off!!  So, Mama went shopping and scored a ton of stuff including all of the above pictured tops and a couple pairs of shorts for Cailyn (none of which I paid more than $2.50 each for).  A few weeks ago I purchased a special bra that will hold my breast pump on so I can be hands-free- Cailyn wanted to try it on...

 Saturday July 13

Cailyn received her first big fat boo-boo via Jerod's knee.  Don't worry, it was an accident, she tripped over his foot and voila.  Her tooth cut through her lip a bit, but about 3 popsicles and 7 ice cubes later she was looking a little better.  That night we had friends over for fowling, grilling, and just an all in all fun time.

 

 Sunday July 14

Sunday was a nice family day- just us.  We took it easy in the morning, and visited Aunt Manda at Tropical Sno in the afternoon.  We topped off the day with a trip to the old school house to play in the water pump and then skipped on over to the library park for swings. 

 Monday July 15

One of our summer goals is to have three new entry doors and four new screen doors installed (hopefully by my dad since I'm not quite up to the task given the large and in charge baby boy growing inside).  So, we ordered the ones we liked at Menards- and coincidentally were able to rescue a friend of ours whose van decided to poop out in the parking lot.  Anyway, the plan is to paint the back entry door and the garage entry door the same color as our front door- which is very orange.  My down-the-road plan is to paint the house (or even better- reside the house with vinyl) in a medium gray color.  I love how neutral it is.  We can always change the door colors when I get sick of them-which is inevitable according to my husband.

 Tuesday July 16

We had a two year routine physical in the monring- no shots, but a little bloodwork in the form of a finger poke and then squeezing tiny vials of my baby's blood out.  I hate that she has to have that done sometimes!  That night we went to the Trojan boys' district game- which they won!  Have you ever heard of Target Cartwheel??  You can use it as an app on your phone or just as a website, but regardless of which route you choose- it can save you some money.  I joined with my Facebook ID and so when my Facebook friends join Target Cartwheel it increases the number of coupons I can add to my list.  I was able to get 20% off of Circo brand shoes for Cailyn, 5% off soem school supplies, 5% off Huggies (which I'm stocking up on for you-know-who), and a few other good deals.  Since I have the app on my phone I just open it, and the cashier scans the barcode to get all the deals I've added to my list.  If you do it through the website, you just print out a paper with your barcode.  Plus, I have the Target RedCard debit card, so I get another 5% off my entire purchase without having a monthly bill like with a credit card.  P.S. I just happen to love Target- I'm not being paid for any of these recommendations- I just call it being a smarter shopper.

 Wednesday July 17

We finally got part of our basement put back together!  The carpet was a little short after unrolling it, but, via some advice from friends, we rented a carpet kicker and Jerod was able to stretch it back over the tack strip.  Baseboards went back in, and we used a carpet tucker tool to jam the edges underneath.  After a nice carpet shampooing, we put everything back in- it's nice to have this room back!  I've also started party prep for Cailyn's birthday party this weekend.  Everyone knows Minnie Mouse loves bows so our black and pink theme is extended to some nice bow garland- super easy to make, too!

 Now, I'm going to take some "me" time and get a haircut, it's only been two months this time thank goodness!  Last time, I think I went 5 months in between cuts, and before that over a year!  I think I deserve to take care of myself better than that, because we all know what happens if Mama's not happy...