Love Is In the Air

Confession: There's something to be said for cheap whimsy when it comes to gift giving.

February is just around the corner, which means so too is the holiday that somehow manages each year to be as equally anticipated as dreaded. Valentine's Day.

Personally, I have always loved the day set aside to celebrate love. I was never one to mope if I wasn't in a relationship, or get stressed about giving or receiving the perfect gift. To me Valentine's Day is about more than fancy dinners or a nice bouquet of flowers (not that I'm opposed to either of those if you're reading his, Hubby). It's about celebrating all the relationships in your life, and being thankful for everyone you love.

With that in mind, here are some fun and easy homemade V-Day gift ideas perfect for anyone. Girlfriends, daycare providers, coworkers, oh and your spouse too! Unfortunately I don't have pictures to share with these ideas. I assembled the candy jar for Hubby's and my first Valentine's Day while dating and the cookie bouquet for our third, but didn't think to take pictures at the time. So use your imagination - I know you can do it!

Message In A Jar
You will need a bag of mini or snack size candy bars, sticky notes and a jar. Cut the sticky notes in half or thirds and write a nice message on the inside of each. Then wrap one note around each piece of candy, sealing with a piece of tape if necessary. Each time your loved one reaches for a piece of candy they'll have encouraging words to know how much you care. This homemade version costs so much less and is so much more personal than any versions sold in stores.

Cookie Bouquet
There is definitely some merit to the phrase "the way to a man's heart is through his stomach," and one of my husband's favorite food groups is chocolate chip cookies. While most people would be more than happy with a zippie bag full of cookies, sometimes a little whimsy is good for a relationship. You can prepare your own dough, but the refrigerated break-apart squares actually work best as they're a little firmer and the pre-portioned dough is the perfect size. Insert a wooden skewer or popsicle stick through each cookie (like you would a campfire stick through a marshmallow, without poking through the top) and bake as usual. Allow cookies to completely cool, then place in a vase or trim the skewers short and place in mason jars or beer mugs for a more "manly" look. Click here for Nestle coupons!

There are all kinds of great ideas online for inexpensive, whimsical gifts. I think the best Valentine gifts are the thoughtful ones that really show your friends, family and spouse how much you care.

Show 'em some love this year. Happy gifting!

Are You Prepared?

Confession: Those Boy Scouts were on to something.

Unfortunately, I've had several reminders this week that life is a delicate, precious gift that can be taken away in an instant, without warning. No one is ever emotionally prepared for the loss of a loved one, but having your affairs in order in case you were to pass away unexpectedly can save your spouse and/or children an immense amount of psychological stress.

Working at a tax office, I constantly see examples of clients passing away and their surviving spouse not having a clue about how many retirement accounts, insurance policies, monthly bills, etc., they have. These are not all elderly couples, either. Tragedy can strike at any time, regardless of age. I think those Boys Scouts were on to something when they chose "Be Prepared" as their motto.

Now here is the real Confession to this post: I'm preaching from a totally and completely hypocritical soapbox. I handle all the bills, insurance policies and finances in general for our household. If I were to die unexpectedly, I would leave a huge headache for my husband, and as much as I love him, I think he'd be kind of lost without me as our financial operations status currently stands.

The only way to create change is to act, so I'm going to act. My plan is to make a Family Binder to house pertinent information in one place. You can find many amazing ideas for in depth, completely comprehensive Family Binders on organizing blogs and sites like Pinterest, but I think our binder will be fairly simple.

I'm hoping to have a good start on the binder this week, and I will check in with you when it's complete. Do you have a Family Binder? What suggestions do you have for organizing your important information?

Tuesday Pick-me-up

Confession: We all need a little pick-me-up now and again.

It's an unfortunate fact that until I've had my morning coffee, I'm kind of worthless. The truth is, every now and again we can use a little pick-me-up; something to inspire a fresh outlook on life. As I walked into our bathroom a few weeks ago, I realized the room could use a little morning coffee... some fresh inspiration.

I knew my bathroom inspiration wouldn't be as inexpensive as my morning coffee, but I didn't want the project to break the bank either. So, I thought about what decorations we had in our house that weren't being used to their full potential, and set a $50 budget for the remaining items.

Before: The room was fairly plain, and lacking warmth and a concrete theme.

 

After: With just a bit of staging and a new color scheme, our bathroom is warm and inviting.

 

 

I repurposed the shelving unit from a guest bedroom, the flowers and vase from the basement, and finally found a home for a set of sconces we received as a wedding gift. I purchased the storage baskets for $25, the valance for $10 and the accent towels for $16. I also did splurge on the matching waste basket ($15) for a total $16 over budget, but it was worth spending a little extra!

The project must have ignited a little inspiration spark, as I decided to also add a few cozy details to our kitchen - details and pictures to come!

These were simple projects that were thought of and carried out within a week, but sometimes simple projects are all a modern "housewife" has time for. The kitchen is the first room our house visitors see, and one of my top priorities is to (try to) maintain a clean bathroom. Now our guests can admire our homey decor upon arrival and while visiting the powder room, dunny, john, water closet or (my personal favorite) urination station. Ever looked up all the nicknames for a restroom?