Styky

If you are one who enjoys instant messaging and keeping up with contacts then styke is for you.Styky is a web based community that allows you to keep up with other from the palm of your hand. In other words, you cell phone, blackberry, or other mobile hand device. Everything is downloaded into one central area of Styke, and you are then able to change faces, keep up with friends, any several other services. The free service is for those who like to be "linked" constantly. If you are unsure if your phone is compatible, there is an area on their website where you can double check. They can check your phone by manufacturer, model, and cell phone number. Also this is compatible with Facebook, for those of you with this blog service.

How does this work? As said before, everything is downloaded into one central network and from there you can keep in contact with those you want, and even avoid people that you choose. they have a great FAQ section which is bound to answer any questions you may have. You can also take a tour of their website if so desired! If networking is something that is of interest to you, check out their website for more information.

This post is sponsored by Styke

My day yesterday :)

Oh wow was yesterday nice! We woke up yesterday, watched a bit of TV and cleaned. Around 12 I took the kids out for lunch at pizza hut. The older 2 had met their reading requirements for November so they earned a "Book It" coupon from pizza hut (for those of you who don't know what "Book It" is...is is a program that you sign up for at the beginning of each school year. You set certain reading "requirements" for your kiddos and if they meet those requirements they earn a coupon for a free personal pan pizza). All 4 of us went out to eat for $7 including tip! Not bad! Kyle had his Christmas dinner at work so he actually got out of work at 1. He came over and picked up the kids to go home and take naps/do reading time (Noah and Katharine each have to read for 30 minutes every day). I was actually able to do some errands....ALONE! BY MYSELF! WITHOUT KIDS!......wow was that weird lol. I ran to CVS and did a little shopping and then headed to Walmart where I stood in line for 40 minutes to make 1 hour photos (silly I know). After that I headed downtown where I picked up an Eggnog Latte at my FAVORITE shop, Madison Coffee and Tea and then headed to The Birdhouse...Katharine's favorite shop. I was able to look around for quite a while and finally decide on the last few things to get her for Christmas.

Christmas Meme

If you are reading this...consider yourself tagged!



1. Wrapping paper or gift bags? Both

2. Real tree or artificial? Artificial all the way baby! With 4 having allergies & asthma...fake is the only way to go

3. When do you put up the tree? the day after Thanksgiving
4. When do you take the tree down? Christmas day!
5. Do you like eggnog? SUPER YUM!!!!!

6. What was your favorite gift received as a child? When I was 7 I got my 1st real bike...it was a strawberry shortcake bike with a cute little basket. That's the one I learned how to ride without training wheels....not on my own initiative lol

7. Do you have a nativity scene? Yeppers:) AND its from Haiti...the manger is a coconut (Thanks Lori!)

8. Hardest person to buy for? My MIL & FIL

9. Easiest person to buy for? Kids..not just mine lol ALL of them...it's also the most fun!

10. Worst Christmas gift you ever received? socks

11. Mail or email cards? Mail
12. Favorite Christmas Movie? I am not picky lol...The Christmas Story, Rudolph, Frosty, The Nativity Story, and a new one to add this year...SHREK the Halls lol
13.When do you start shopping for Christmas? Usually I start shopping in September.....usually.....

14. Have you ever recycled a Christmas present? not that I can think of

15. Favorite thing to eat at Christmas? does everything count as one?

16. Clear lights or colored on the tree? Depends on my mood when I am putting up the tree. If I am feeling normal...sane...pleasant I go for white. If I am feeling nuts, insane, crazy, hormonal....colored lights. We have colored lights this year. Putting up the tree this year was NOT a pleasant day lol

17. Favorite Christmas song? The 1st Noelle, lots of the OLD Christmas songs....
18. Travel for Christmas or stay at home? I prefer to stay home....but will go out if dragged and beaten

19. Can you name all of Santa's reindeer's? Um no.....the person that did this before me already did....now I can look smart.... Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, Vixen, Comet, Cupid, Donner, Blitzen.... and the most famous reindeer of all Rudolph!
20. Angel on the tree top or a star? We have an brown angel on our tree this year

21. Open the presents Christmas Eve or morning? morning! I make my kids wait as long as humanly possible. Its one of the more legal forms of torture that I can truly enjoy

22. Most annoying thing about this time of year? too much commercialism

23. What I love most about Christmas? JESUS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I got paid!!!

Yepper doodles! I got my check in the mail today from cash crate! Pretty cool for just saying "no thanks" LOL

Hotel reservations.com

Hotel Reservations. com offers competitive pricing on everything from hotels to vacation rentals, flights, and cars rentals. I did my own little quick search on hotels in Indianapolis for the dates of the homeschool convention in April. I found the hotel that we had book at ..for $20 cheaper a night! I am always looking for good deals and will be switching from my "usual" booking site to this one. As always, I am out to look for a good deal and this time I have found one! Next time you are looking for a hotel and/or getaway, check out these Hotel Reservations and see what kind of deals you can score!

Our newest "temporary" family member

This is our newest (temporary?) family member....Claira.............no I did not choose the name...the kids did. This little thing was roaming around outside and made itself a "home" in Kyle garage. For some reason Kyle took a liking to this cat (that NEVER happens) and he brought it inside for us to look at....pet...etc. The kids fell in love and the kitty just melted right in. She had been VERY loving to everyone...especially Maddie...though I don't know why lol For example...Katharine just came out and said "Maddie put the cat in the high chair." Poor thing lol She just carries that Cat around and Claira just loves it. Sometimes she looks at us like "help me" lol but has never shown any signs of aggression. So far she shows the signs of a pretty good kitten. We have to double check around with our local vets and such to make sure she was not "lost." She is very pretty and soft, and she wasn't dirty at all. She took immediately to the litter box too. However, she has not been declawed or fixed and when Kyle gave her some food you could see all the bones along her back and hip bones so she obviously had not been fed. So we are not sure if she is a stray or just "lost."

Online financial services

When it comes to one of those times when you are looking for Loans to fit your needs, it may be about impossible to get into a bank a loan office due to their hours. Sometimes they aren't open looking enough for you to reach them after work, or perhaps you work and off shift job which requires more sleep time during the day. Therefore, another option would be to check online for various financing opportunities. It doesn't matter if you are looking for Car Loans or for Personal Loans, the next time you are find yourself in need of a loan, checking out loan lenders online may be a great fit for you and your busy schedule.




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My boy is ......um....narsty!

Do you know what this is?? Do you KNOW what this is??? This is a creation that only a boy would of thought of..............a ham and marshmallow fluff sandwich..........*blech* And yes he ate every last bite of it.....willingly.........

CVS....no longer a pain in my pocketbook

So am I the last person in the entire world to figure out the CVS ECB (Extra care bucks) deal??? On my latest quest to "save money" I have been reading on Money Saving Mom all about how if you work things out...CVS can actually pay you for what you buy. Between sales, manufactures coupons, and getting back ECB's at times they are actually paying you to shop there....check out what Mandy did at CVS. This is no longer a choice...this is a challenge......I am taking it personally lol...Terri..make sure manga checks out Money Saving mom!

Human Touch HT-7450 Zero Gravity Massage Chair

Massage Chairs are becoming rapidly popular in our day and age. With all the stress we deal with people are looking for a new way to help them relax and sort out their tension. Human Touch is a company that has been providing services for 25 years. Their massage chairs offer a penetrating deep massage. This penetrating deep massage is composed of compression, kneading, rolling (popular in sports medicine), calf massage, and foot massage. This massage traces the shape of your body and spine. You also are able to control the massage technique, strength , or even isolate a portion of your body that you want to be massaged.


Sponsored by Human touch

We are going to Six Flags...FOR FREE!!!!!!

yep you read that right! Earlier in the year we heard about a Six Flags/Weekly Reader deal about earning free 6 flags tickets. I thought it wouldn't hurt to try and if it was a scam..oh well lol at least my kids would read more! I emailed my information several months back and received my packet today...Its true!!!! This program is available for kids in grades k-6. All they have to do is read for a minimum of 6 hours FOR FUN (not school related), have it documented by a parent/guardian, then return it to the teacher. The teacher then submits all the forms by the 1st of April and all qualifying students AND the teacher will receive a FREE ticket to Kentucky Kingdom!

Ecommerce Software

ecommerce software offers a brand of software that is great asset for those who are looking to start an online business. This software allows the user to have his/her own shopping cart directly on their site. Payment is made easily by banks, credit cards, and paypal. To make things a bit safer they have even included ssl checkout security.

Not have they added extra security, but it come with many amenities that would makes things much easier on the consumer. This affordable software comes with tech support and special services such as "web promotion." Also it is made to be easy and personalized. You can create your own design to make it more of a unique style to you.

If you are thinking of using a shopping cart service, this may be the option for you. Ecommerce is offering a 10 day free trial so there really is minimal to no risk to you.

Thumbs up for smorty!

Just wanted to let ya'll know that I did, in fact get paid for my 1st smorty post this am. I was so excited! It pays through pay pal, and they pay the fee so there is nothing taken from the money you earn! If you are wanting to try it out, click on the smorty button on the side of my blog. It did take them about a week to approve my post but it was only a couple days before I was paid!

Looking for a unique Christmas gift?

If you are looking for a gift that is just a little bit more personalized for Christmas (or Personalized Birthday Gifts ) look and see what Vision Bedding has to offer. They can turn your picture and/or image into a something that can be cherished! UP top for example, is a picture of a blanket that was made out of a little ones pictures! How neat is that? They not only have blankets and throws, but they also sell personalized pillows and bedding. The bedding can be ordered for adults, kids, or even dogs (yes that is for all you dog lovers out there). If you are like me, and are always looking for neat ways to save your kids or grand kids pictures, this looks like a great way to do it!

*ug*...sickies....

So now we are all sick around here....Maddie and I both have sinus infections (i also have no voice), Noah and Katharine are just hacking away...IT'S THE MOST WONDERFUL TIME............................OF THE YEAR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! lol But we all just HAVE to be feeling OK for tonight as we are headed out to the homeschool Christmas party and presentation night tonight. The kiddos wont be presenting anything tonight thought :( I was going to have them sign the song "Happy Birthday Jesus" but then *things* happened and we weren't thought for sure we weren't going to be able to go...then viola! As of Wednesday we have decided we can head out....

We all have a HUGE Christmas dinner together with Turkey and Ham and all the fixin's. Then we have our HUGE Christmas dinner at the church on Sunday....two Christmas dinners over the weekend? Someone will have to roll me out of bed on Monday morning lol

Insurance

Whether you are talking about car insurance, life insurance, home owners insurance, you have to face the fact that you HAVE to have it. Sometimes just by necessity, sometimes required by law. Take care insurance for example, we have it and boy have we used it! Oddly enough it has never been through a fault of our own. There has been a time or two where we have been hit by someone else and their insurance refused to pay so our insurance got involved and the situation was settled. For more information on cheap car insurance check out Car Insurance information here.

We also have had our own deals with Home Owners insurance. Several years ago we had to deal with a dog attack (not our dog). The owners of the dog were reluctant to help with any of the expenses but their home owners insurance jumped in. Also, about 3 years ago our house was struck by lightening (yes, about 1 week before thanksgiving and I was cooking!). We lost our stove, computer, fax machine, and a few small appliances. Yikes! NO STOVE and cooking Thanksgiving?!?! Luckily our Home owners insurance stepped in and not only did they take care of our claim, It was taken care of so fast that I had a brand new stove a couple days before Thanksgiving! Check out this site if you are looking for more information on Home Insurance.






This post sponsored by Nations Finance

Biblical Womanhood

A couple weeks ago a friend of mine had emailed me about a blog that she enjoyed. I since have started reading it and thought I would pass the information on to you! Biblical Womanhood is a site that has already blessed me IMMENSELY! She is very frugal (and even has another blog about Saving Money) and passes her wealth of knowledge onto everyone. Right now I am trying to figure out how she squeezes all this gold from turnips, but it is slowly starting to sink into this old head lol. On her Biblical womanhood page we are working on "Home Organization" right now...something I DEFINITELY need!

Smorty

Recently I have been looking for a way to bring a little bit more income into our home. I had been searching through various survey companies, mystery shopping, and this is another great "find." This is one Smorty....what is Smorty you ask? Smorty is a way to blog for money. Imagine blogging..and getting paid to do it! Most of the time you are doing some type of advertising for a company. The advertisers submit information to Smorty, and the you look on your homepage for what is available to you.You give your opinion about it and just spread the news. You don't have to accept any offers you don't want and it literally only take s a few minutes to type up a review.I accepted my 1st one last week and it was just noted in my account that it was approved and I will be paid for it! So if you have ever wanted to get paid for blogging then check this out!

The Parade

As promised here are some pics of the parade...however, The camera had automatically shut off on Kyle without him realizing it so he wasn't able to get pics of Katharine walking in the parade :(

Here is a pic of the firetruck lineup (known for throwing the most candy lol)

Here is a pic of Noah and Maddie..getting ready for "Candy catching"

And here is a picture of the band we were right behind LOL...the camera just shut off..ug!

Bettercaring

Have you ever had an important question about your own health or maybe the health of a loved on that you wanted taken care of right away?If you are looking for various care homes, Better caring is the solution for you. When you check out their website, they have so many different areas that you are able to search.

Care Information- this section covers everything from taking care of your finances to if long term residential care or care at home would be the best suit for you. They have a section that contains frequently asked questions. When in doubt pop over and check it out.

Care search- This area will help you look for a residential or nursing home in your area.

Care Discussion- This is a general area where you can talk with others about the issue you are dealing with. They have topics ranging from illnesses all they way up to various facilities and how to fund care.

If you are in a situation where you are having to deal with some type of care for someone you love, check out Bettercaring and see if they can help you make the right decision!

Updated prayer list

Just to update... Peggy (the lady who broke her arm) was not at church tonight, she stayed home but Tom said she was feeling well enough to cook and such and that we should be worried about her. Also, if you can, pray for a family that lives just down the road from us as their house just burned down a week back. They have 3 children and its a horrible time of year to be having to deal with this.

Pray for us...I am homebound for the next few days lol let's pray I don't start to act like the peeps from "The Shinning." LOLOL

LapBands

With all the hype today about being fit and trying to beat obesity many are now turning to surgical weight loss solutions. One surgical weight loss solution is the Lapband. At Journeylite, a central florida lapband facility they perform this surgical procedure laparoscopicly. This procedure simply puts a small band around your stomach to make the pouch a bit smaller. The smaller the pouch, the faster you fill up, and the faster you fill up the less calorie intake. Simple! If you are considering having any type of surgery for weight loss, consider JourneyLite and their LapBand approach.








This post Sponsored by JourneyLite

What happening under the big top...

Here lately things have been getting pretty crazy with December being here and all..We are usually finished with school by now but somehow we ended up a week behind so we are finishing up this week. I am undecided if we are going to continue to work on math or not...and I am not sure if I am going to break with Noah just quite yet...he seems to have really gotten on a "roll" when it comes to reading this past week and I am not sure that is something I want to disrupt. Katharine on the other hand....is getting sick at the sight of her reading book and can't wait to finish this chapter so we can break for a while lol.



Last night Ms. Katharine had a girl scout meeting. This was actually a pizza party because they sold the most nuts/candies/candles in the county. Katharine was actually #1 (or #2?) in her own troop as far as sales were concerned so to all of you who bought...her full belly of Pizza sure thanks you lol.



Lets make matters worse...I forgot it was the pizza party and I had brought Maddie with me. Kyle had to work at the church for a while, then came home to work in the garage. With it being so cold out the kids can't go outside and play, so they were stuck in the garage. Noah can go in the garage without keeping an eye on him every second...Maddie on the other hand is a different story. She ended up with me and that was a big no no. Katharine had wanted me to stay for her party.....and I had promised to...(I know bad mom)...but then I had to go back on that promise because I couldn't let Maddie just sit there and "watch" the girls eat their pizza. SO Maddie and I were off to my sisters house (who was not feeling well) to drop off some stuff...then McDonald's to get a coffee...then to CVS. I think I looked at every item CVS had in order to pass time until it was time to pick Katharine up. At any rate, Maddie had a ball as I let her get some gummy bears and some Dora Flashcards (the girl is NOT wanting to learn her colors lol). All this to head home, catch dinner and watch my FAVORITE Christmas special....Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer.......



Today is kind of boring...we were supposed to have lunch at the school today but our friend had to cancel..then we have a meeting at the school at 2:30 to talk about Katharine's progress in speech and where to go from here....then headed home...dinner...out to bible study...and back home.........



*sigh*

More for the prayer list....

One of the ladies at church yesterday fell and broke her arm! This is on top of dealing with cancer/chemo treatments so please remember to pray for her!

Works for me Wednesday- Last Minute meals?

This week on Works for me Wednesday we are going to be talking about those last minutes meals. You know what I am talking about...those nights when you don't realize until about 5:30 that you haven't even thought about what dinner for the evening was going to be??? What do you do? For me...any recipe that deals with "Hamburger" will do the trick lol. However I do have a few recipes of things that I normally have around the house. I usually always have stock of instant mashed potatoes (not my fav but come in handy in a pinch), hamburger, rice, cheese, and some type of canned veggie. The 1st recipe is the one I use most often because it is quick, cheap, and only takes 1 pan to prepare it in (which = easy clean up..a plus in my book!)

Shepard's Pie

***1 pound pre cooked ground beef
instant mashed potatoes (enough to cover the bottom of a 9x13 pan)
a can of corn
cheddar cheese

We do this in layers....1st layer the mashed potatoes on the bottom of the pan making sure to spread them from corner to corner, then dump on the can of corn, then the ground beef spreading it from corner to corner. Last sprinkle on cheddar cheese (however much fits your fancy) and pop it in an oven at 350. Once the cheese is bubbly and melted...your ready!

Whatever you want to call it

This one doesn't really have a name....its more like whatever I can find I throw in a opt with rice and ground beef lol. However, based on what is normally in the house..this is how it goes...

1 lb ground beef
enough rice for each person in the family
1-2 green bell peppers, chopped
1 can of diced tomatoes
1 onion, chopped
basil
oregano
salt & pepper to taste

Cook your ground beef in a skillet. Add in the onion and green bell peppers and cook until well done. Toss in the can of diced tomatoes along with the seasonings to your liking (I usually use about a teaspoon of each). Serve over rice and you have a nice hot meal:)

***To save time, when I go to the meat processor and buy hamburger, I usually buy at least 10 pounds at a time (we only use 1lb per meal so adjust to your family). Out of that 10 pounds I will go ahead and cook up about 3 pounds of it and throw it in the freezer. This way when I am indeed in a hurry, my hamburger is already cooked.

For more ideas check out what Shannon has to say at Rocks in My Dryer!

"Winter time" blues??

I know I haven't posted any really good stuff lately..sorry :( Not sure if its just wintertime blues or what. I have just been kind of *iffy* around here lately so if ya'll think of me during your prayer time..please say a prayer. I am thankful for everything we have, and God is really moving us right now, both financially and spiritually. Kyle was able to get another job last night that the guys needs done in a hurry, and the profit will be able for us to at least catch up on all of our utilities..so that's a major praise. On one hand I feel joyful and on the other I could just cry and I am not sure why....just no rhyme or reason for it. I have great kids, I love my husband, I really am not "stressing" over anything right now...just kind of .....off........

You are all on NOTICE!

I have several member of family/friends that have not blogged in quite a while! You know who you are! Terri, Iana, Michele...am I going to have to tell everyone who you are?????? Lori! you are starting to fall behind too! My life has been so boring um I mean sad um I mean "normal"(???) that I need to thrive off of you guys for a while!!!! Spongemel and Brittan...get your moms in check! lol





crying out for a little blog love around here...........

Cash Crate

No kidding..I just found this site this past week after reading about it on the money saving mom site. I thought it wouldn't hurt anything to try it. I went to the site, signed up, and I have started out filling out some surveys. They don't pay much, but every little bit adds up. I couldn't sleep on Thursday so I sat around playing with it a bit. I ended up with almost $20 approved and $28 pending approval! They send out a check to come to your house sometimes in the middle to the end of the month and are paid on a month by month basis. For example, I checked this am and since it was the 1st of the month, my November earnings had been noted and my account cleared to start a new month (I still have all my pending offers though). I suppose we shall see what happens if I get a check within a couple weeks! If you are interested...click HERE to register. Once you reach $10 you are eligible for a payout and the majority of the offers are free (you don't have to do any you don't want to). If you don't make your $10 that's ok...it just rolls over to the following month!



Good luck and I will keep you updated on how I turn out!

It was COLD this morning!!!!!

To say the LEAST!!!! Today was the Christmas Parade here in Madison and my dear sweet Katharine was able to walk in the parade. I walked with her and it was cold, our noses were froze before we ever stepped out on the parade route! On the other hand, Maddie and Noah racked up the candy so they were pleased lol. All in all it went well. We were fine once we actually started moving. Also we were pretty happy to NOT be stuck behind the horses...and I mean that figuratively and literally....We usually head out to the free movie at the Ohio Theater after the parade (Usually it is The Polar Express) but this year I planned an Usborne Book Party at 2:00. I am glad the kids forgot about the usual outing to the movies lol. I know...bad mom. At any rate..I am off to get ready for the party and will post some pics later!!!