What's the second step to being an efficient wife?

This is the final day of the efficient wife theme on my blog.. I got one encouraging comment from the last post.. so I thought.. OK.. I'll keep it coming. Obviously I am not an expert.. and need a lot of work in this area. But... I thought I would share that I am currently updating my IPhone while writing this blog.. so, multi-tasking = efficient.

Man, I have ADD - That is not the second step.

The second step is getting on a SCHEDULE and STICKING TO IT! Especially when it comes to housework. Meal planning is definitely easier than this, trust me. If you saw my house right now, you would immediately tell me to STOP BLOGGING and CLEAN. Well, I am doing laundry while blogging - so, again I get stars for multi-tasking.

The expert in the area of making and keeping a schedule (specifically housework) is Fly Lady. If you haven't been to her site.. GO, READ, LEARN...DO. She recommends to start with baby steps (which I love). Two things I try to definitely do are... clean the sink / run the dish washer every night and unload it in the morning. Secondly, put one load of laundry in each morning. I think those are two things that can pile up.. and most women HATE doing. I also love how she breaks up the house into sections.. her plan would even work well for women who work, not only SAHMs.

Here are her 11 Commandments.. we all need to go by!

1. Keep your sink clean and shiny.
2. Get dressed every morning, even if you don’t feel like it. Don’t forget your lace-up shoes.
3. Do your morning and before bedtime routine everyday.
4. Don’t allow yourself to be sidetracked by the computer.
5. Pick up after yourself. If you get it out, put it away.
6. Don’t try to do two projects at once. ONE JOB AT A TIME.
7. Don’t pull out more than you can put back in one hour.
8. Do something for yourself everyday, maybe every morning and night.
9. Work as fast as you can to get the job done. This will give you more time to play later.
10. Smile even when you don’t feel like it. It is contagious. Make your mind up to be happy and you will be.
11. Don’t forget to laugh everyday. Pamper yourself, you deserve it.

I do so much better when I put myself on a schedule and stick to it... so I thought that would help us all. When your home is in order.. life is so much less stressful!

BONUS - FREEBIE FRIDAY - over on our giveaways site, we are giving away a Beaba Babycook - Babyfood Maker. It is valued at $150 - enter at http://www.chicgiveaways.com/.

Have a great weekend!!

Kate is 16 months already? Recipe & Freebie Friday

I have been completely neglecting my blog lately, which probably disappoints me more than you. I have a terrible memory, so I am hoping this is a way to somewhat help me remember what went on in my early days of motherhood. It has only been 16 months since Kate came into our lives and it seriously seems like a blur. Can you believe it? She turned 16 months yesterday. I will have to say, this is a fun stage! She is so interactive, intuitive and eager to learn. Oh, yes, she is also eager to show her strong will and trys to stand up to her mommy.. which I have already started to work on breaking. (ok, that part is not so fun.) The rest is though. She is learning new words all the time and it amazes me what she can understand. She will actually take our trash to the trash can and throw it away. Justin and I both think that is awesome! (it doesn't take much for us)

Her biggest obsession is shoes. It is really funny/weird. She wakes up pointing to her shoes and saying, "shoes". She is constantly bringing us our shoes and wanting us to put them on. She even had a melt down the other day when I didn't put the shoes she wanted on her feet. (btw.. the shoes I picked out won).

She also loves to dance, play with her doll house and swing on her swing set.

A lady gave her a "dum dum" lolly pop the other day and she loved it. She smiled and giggled the whole time she ate it. I have never seen anything bring her such joy.

To make things even better.. she is just about the cutest thing ever! I don't think I have put these on my blog before, so here are some of my favorite pictures we had taken for her 1 year pics.

She loves to blow kisses.

Kate with her cousins Sara Beth and Luke.

Aren't those pictures amazing? My sister-in-law set up a photo shoot with her photographer and he is amazing!

I know that Labor Day is coming up and if are like me you will be attending one or two parties. We are going to friends of ours for lunch/cookout and that night we are having friends over for the FSU/Miami game. (GO NOLES!!)

I made this a couple weeks ago for some ladies I had over and it was delicious!! I love trifles. They are so easy and pretty. I have made quite a few and this one is by far my favorite. Perfect for entertaining. Here is the recipe. I of course found it on All Recipes, but I didn't have all the ingredients, so I did some substitutes and it was amazing! Here is a link to the original (Strawberry Tiramisu Trifle). Below is the trifle with my changes.

Strawberry Trifle

INGREDIENTS
2 quarts fresh strawberries
1 Jar Marshmallow Cream
1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
4 tablespoons strong brewed coffee, room temperature
1 Container Cool Whip, thawed 2 Packages Pepperage Farms Milano Cookies 6 (1 ounce) squares Semi-Sweet chocolate, grated (I chopped up chocolate chips)

DIRECTIONS
Set aside three strawberries for garnish; slice the remaining strawberries. In a bowl, mix Marshmallow Cream and Cream Cheese together until smooth. Fold in whipped topping.
Dip cookies in coffee (if you don't like coffee dip in milk). Line the bottom of a 3-qt. trifle or glass serving bowl with half of the cookies. Top with half of the sliced berries, grated chocolate and cream cheese mixture; repeat layers. Cut reserved berries in half; place on trifle. Cover and refrigerate for 4 hours or overnight.

I know you are going to think this post is never-ending, but I wanted to let you know about our awesome giveaway this week over at our giveaways page. We are giving away an amazing pearl necklace from Nebo Beads a NY based jewelry designer. Check it out and enter at: Chic Giveaways.

Have an awesome weekend!!

Can I get a roo, roo, roo? Randomness & Freebie Friday

Ok, so the title is weak- sorry... I had to do little throw back to Arsenio Hall. Although the title may appear to be a throw back to Scooby Doo.. it was Arsenio I was aiming at. I watched VH1's 100 greatest songs of the 80's the other day and wow did that bring back some memories. It also made me want to increase my 80's playlist on my IPod. I forgot about some great songs. I didn't agree with their #1 - Bon Jovi's "Livin' on a Prayer". I know it was a big hit, but does anything get better than "Walk this Way" by Run-D.M.C.? Seriously, I still love that song.

I haven't really posted anything new because of my lack of things to write about (as you saw from my introduction). I was telling Justin last night, that I needed something to write about and he proceeded to tell me all kinds of things I could write about.. most of them being the exciting daily chores I do.. which is of course BORING!! I wish I could tell you about our fabulous shopping trip to Nordstrom during the tax free weekend, but that of course was in my dreams.. and instead my tax free shopping included a trip to Khol's with my mom, which was semi-fabulous. Oh, and I wish I could write about our relaxing vacation to the Atlantis, but that is again.. only in my dreams.

Here is a breakdown of our week.. and what we have been up to (for those of you who care).

My mom came in town last weekend and we did what we normally do.. SHOP!! I get my love of shopping from her. I also love to shop with her because I actually get to buy things.. well, technically she buys them for me and Kate. We also went to see Julie and Julia. It was so cute! I highly recommend it, especially if you love to cook and blog (i.e.-Lea).

My mom mainly came in town to see Kate.. who is growing up by the second. I seriously want to make it stop, but not really.. she is getting to be so much fun and a handful!! My mom seriously spoiled her. Here they are together...

Last but not least, as if I could throw one more random thing in this post.. our new permanent Giveaway's site is up (Chic Giveaways)and so cute. Sweet Cheeky Designs did the design and did a wonderful job. She is awesome at blog design!! Check it out. Every Friday, I'll post what we are giving away over at http://www.chicgiveaways.com/. This week we are giving away a set of Monogrammed Car Mats valued at $75. You have until Sunday to enter and a new giveaway will be posted each Monday. We have some awesome things coming!!

Happy Friday!! Have a wonderful weekend!

Love Candles? - Freebie Friday

Visit our new sister site and giveaways site at http://www.chicgiveaways.com/. This week we are giving away a Seda France Candle and Wickman Candle pack including a wick trimmer and wick dipper. Valued at over $50. Entries accepted until Sunday at 11:59pm. Be looking for our permanent site. It will hopefully be up and running next week. Check back weekly for great giveaways! Remember to share with your friends.. extra entries are given when you spread the love!

Have you ever been on a cruise? Freebie Friday

I found a great giveaway today! Justin and I have been wanting to go on a cruise, but since our vacations only consist of traveling to see our families... we haven't been on one yet. We both love the water. I prefer pool water, but love the ocean. I think Justin prefers the lake.. we just got back from the lake and I am going to post some pictures next week. Anyway... I came across this amazing giveaway. I have never wanted to win anything so much...except of course for the HGTV Dream House or the lottery (which I don't play).

Since I haven't posted a Freebie Friday in a while, I thought I would post this.

Norwegian Cruise Lines is doing a giveaway for a free cruise. I would love to do a Mediterranean cruise one day.. one can dream anyway.

Good Luck and have a great weekend!!

Want a free Doughnut? Freebie Friday

Did you know that today is National Free Donut day? Seriously, who comes up with these "holidays"? Anyway, Krispy Kreme and Dunkin Donuts are both giving away free donuts today. Are they completely trying to sabotage my 30 day shred? Krispy Kreme is giving away one free donut per customer (no purchase required) and Dunkin Donuts is giving away one free donut with purchase of a drink.

In case you were wondering...

Why is National Donut Day celebrated on the first Friday in June? In 1917, Salvation Army female volunteers known as “lassies” prepared thousands of fresh donuts to the homesick soldiers that served in France during World War I. National Donut Day was officially established in 1938 by the Chicago Salvation Army to raise much-needed funds during the Great Depression.

Donut Facts:
-In the U.S. alone, more than 10 billion donuts are made every year.
-The largest donut ever made was an American-style jelly donut weighing 1.7 tons, which was 16 feet in diameter and 16 inches high in the center.
-Per capita, Canada has more donut shops than any other country.
-The hole in the donut's center appeared in the first half of the 19th Century.
-Adolph Levitt invented the first donut machine in 1920.

Also, did you know there are two correct ways to spell doughnut and donut?

Ok, so enough of this boring, pointless and COMPLETELY RANDOM post. I guess I am bitter.. this free donut stuff doesn't really go with my 30 day shred!

Need a Father's Day Gift? Need Your Kate Fix? Freebie Friday

Two things have been greatly missing on my blog... an actual giveaway and an update on my baby. Today both of your fixes will be satisfied. I don't know why I haven't posted these before, but here are some of my favorite pictures of Kate with her grandpa ("Papa") and her great-grandpa ("Pap-Pap"). Since I am posting a Father's Day Giveaway.. I thought it would be fun to post pictures of her with my dad and grandpa. These are from their trip up for her birthday.

Kate with my dad, her "Papa D". She can actually say "Papa" now. She said it to us one night about 10 times. We called my dad so she could say it to him.. and of course.. she said nothing.

Kate with my grandpa.

Kate with her daddy... well with her daddy's legs. I seriously think he is the BEST daddy in the whole world. I wish you all could see him with her.. he is an amazing father.. and husband! She gets so excited every time he comes home. She walks to the door and yells, "daddy!" Don't you love her little Mickey cheerleader outfit?...It was her birthday gift from my grandpa.

Now for my Freebie Friday Giveaway...

Chic Giving is sponsoring a Father's Day giveaway featuring their new Timeworks Inc. Pop Out gift clocks and Poo-Pourri.

Timeworks Inc. is a high end clock maker. They have recently introduced a wonderful new gift line. This Men's Wristwatch Clock will be a wonderful addition to any home or office. These pictures don't do them justice. They are really beautiful and great gifts.

Added to this image, which was borrowed from the top of a 1940's wristwatch box, are the words of Leonardo DaVinci: "Time stays long enough for anyone who will use it." Wise words for any era.

Some other choices...

Here is a sample of what the clocks look like in the gift packaging and when they are popped out.

Also included in this giveaway is a 2 oz bottle of Poo-Pourri. Poo-Pourri is a funny and unique gift and something you will find in all our bathrooms. Stop embarrassing odor with Poo-Pourri's patent pending bathroom freshener. The natural essential oils create a film on the surface of the water, trapping odor at it's source. A citrus fresh blend of Lemon-grass, Bergamot, Grapefruit and other natural essential oils that leave the bathroom smelling clean and fresh! The 2oz bottle is the perfect size for your bathroom. The stunning package also makes this a "Show Item" for your bathroom. There are also other scents.. No 2. and Heaven Scent.

Their tag line: "Spritz the bowl before you go and no one else will ever know."

To Enter: Visit Chic Giving and check out the selection of clocks and Poo-Pourri. Fill in the form below and let us know what item you think your "special man" would like. Contest will be open until Monday, June 1st at 10am. Winner will be posted here on Monday and will also be notified by e-mail.

Love Bags? Freebie Friday.. Top Five

Today I am featuring my Top Five giveaways. Today it is all about bags. I will be having an actual giveaway next Friday here at Questions from a Wife and Mother. It will be a Father's Day giveaway. Check back next Friday.. to enter. Until then... Here is my top five giveaways I found today: Fabulous Bags!

Born out of Necessity Mini Tote ($269.00) {Deadline: 5/21 @ 11:59pm}

Petunia Pickle Bottom Clutch ($88.00) {Deadline: 5/17 @ 11:59pm

(I have so been wanting one of these!!)

Amy Kathryn Gladiola Magenta Handbag ($120) {Deadline: 5/19 @ 11:59pm}

Purse Organizer ($28.00) {Deadline: 5/16 @ 11:59pm}

$75 Gift Certificate from Jumeau {Deadline 5/20 @ 11pm}

Good Luck! Have a great weekend!

Is Freebie Friday Over? Yes.. and No

My 30 day blogging challenge from my husband is officially over, so I will not personally be doing a weekly giveaway. I will probably do a giveaway once a month on my blog. I will still be featuring Freebie Friday with links to the best giveaways I find.

Here are my top five. Have fun entering! (Oh, and yes, I have entered all these contest.) Good Luck. Make note some of these contest end today, so make sure you enter!

Also, feel free to comment and share your favorite giveaways.

1) Twisted Limb Paperworks $150 Gift Certificate

2) Adhering Words Monogram Wall Tile

3) Madson Bucket Cargo Bike (worth $1300)

4) Motorolla GPS

5) Pearl Swimwear Giveaway (Do you think you can win their body also?)

Need a Mother's Day Gift? - Freebie Friday

Today's Freebie Friday will make a wonderful Mother's Day Gift or a great treat for yourself.
Courtesy of Chic Giving, we are giving away a Seda France Pagoda Candle. These are one of the best candles you can buy. They have been featured in various magazines and TV shows. Check out the various scents at Chic Giving. We will be giving away the Citron Du Sud scent. These candles are packaged so pretty, you won't even need wrapping paper. Any mother will love to receive this special candle.

I have a new entry method. Hopefully this will make it easier for you to enter.

To enter: Leave your e-mail and answer to the question in the box below. The winner will be announced / posted on Monday after 10am. I will also e-mail the winner. Only one entry per person, but feel free to share with your friends...

Giveaway will be open to enter until Monday, May 4th at 10am.

PS.. I added some new features to my blog.. If you have a blogger account, you can "Follow" my blog. You can also sign up to receive an e-mail of my posts.

Yesterday marked 30 days of blogging straight (minus two weekend days.. come on they don't count.) In my eyes I won the challenge. Hopefully my makeover will be done soon! I can't wait.

Good Luck and Have a great weekend!

Do You Love the Style of David Yurman Jewelry? - Freebie Friday

I am so excited about today's giveaway! I was first introduced to David Yurman jewelry when I was in college. My roommate, Arianne, loved his jewelry. I love today's giveaway.. a bracelet inspired by David Yurman's designs.


Today's giveaway is a beautiful, Yurman-inspired cable bracelet courtesy of Finders Keepers Jewelry. Finders Keepers is an amazing website with high quality, affordable and beautiful jewelry.

To make things even better, they are giving my readers 10% off your entire order. {Enter coupon code DESIGNER at checkout and hit recalculate.} Mother's Day is coming up and jewelry is the perfect gift.

To Enter: Visit Finders Keepers Jewelry . {www.FindersKeepersJewelry.net}

Leave a comment including your favorite piece of Finders Keepers jewelry.

This giveaway will be open to enter until Monday, April 27th at 10am.

The winner will be announced /posted on Monday. Only one entry per person, but feel free to share with your friends... I will give you an extra entry for each place you post this giveaway.. e-mail, facebook, blog, etc. Just let me know where you post it.

PS.. I added some new features to my blog.. If you have a blogger account, you can "Follow" my blog. You can also sign up to receive an e-mail of my posts.

Good Luck and Have a Great Weekend!!

Freebie Friday - Don't you love old things with a Modern Twist?

I love old things with a new twist. Today we will be doing a giveaway for a Waxing Poetic Charm with the initial of your choice. They are made to look like old wax stamps. The charm will give away is their round insignia in Sterling Silver with a retail value of $38.00. This will be a beautiful addition to your chain.

These charms have been featured in various magazines. Here Misha Barton wearing a charm on the cover of Giant Magazine.

They also make wonderful mother's day gifts.

To Enter: Just post a comment including the initial you want and be sure to include your e-mail address if you don't have a blogger account, so I can get a hold of you.

This giveaway will be open to enter until Monday at 10am. The winner will be announced /posted on Monday. Only one entry per person, but feel free to share... if you share on twitter, Facebook, e-mail, etc.. please tell me and I'll give you another entry for each place you post it.

Don't you love free stuff? - Freebie Friday..

I promise, I will get to today's giveaway at the end.. but when I was writing the title to this post, I got kind of sad. We get so excited about the possibility of getting something free and I get so excited about giving something free.... but how excited do we get about the only perfect FREE GIFT.. SALVATION through Jesus Christ?

Easter is quickly approaching, and I have been stressed out about getting our house ready for our 20 guests, the menu, the Easter Egg hunt, Kate's first Easter, etc. I should be so excited to celebrate the most exciting day on the Christian calendar... the day that JESUS rose. I get sad, because I think that those of us who have grown up in church (ME) can sometimes get desensitized to the amazing Gospel and all that Christ did to save us. Want a challenge, encouragement or excitement for Easter?... read: I Cor. 15.

Want to see Kate's Easter dress? Here are a couple Easter photos of Kate in her dress...

Kate is getting so big! She even took a couple of steps this week (which totally blows my mind!) One thing I so look forward to as she is getting bigger... is starting traditions. I don't really think my parents did too many traditions growing up (that I can remember), but I want to do things every year with Kate. I am going to post a recipe tomorrow that will definitely be a tradition we will do with her. I also found this fun activity to do with your kids on the Desiring God website. I thought you might enjoy.. Don't Worry...The giveaway is posted at the end.

Tell the Easter Story with a Playdough Mountain

Here's a messy way to draw your youngsters into the meaning of this coming weekend. Make a mountain out of playdough to tell the story of Jesus' death and then turn it around and you have the tomb he arises from.
This idea can be found in Noel Piper's book, Treasuring God in Our Traditions. (I am going to order this)
Ingredients for playdough:
4 c. of flour
1.5 c. salt
1.5 c. water
1 Tbs. oil
(Increase or decrease depending on how big you want your mountain to be.)
Other items you'll need:
several pipe cleaners
2 twigs
1 small aluminum can

Making the Pieces
Bind two twigs together with a piece of pipe cleaner to make a cross about five or six inches tall.
Make some stick figures out of pipe cleaners that will represent Jesus and a "crowd." (You get to decide how many you need for your kids to be convinced it's a crowd.)

Making the Mountain
Mix playdough ingredients and knead. Add small amounts of water as needed until the texture is right.
Separate a small lump of dough and form a disc-shaped "stone" to cover the entry to the "tomb." (The can will be the tomb, so the stone needs to be a little bigger around than the can.)
Shape the rest of the dough into a mound. Embed the can into one side, open side out, to create a cave.
Press the cross into the top of the mountain to form a hole deep enough to stand the cross in. Make the hole a bit larger than the stick because the hole will get smaller when the mountain bakes.
Press a fork randomly around into the hill to make "footholds" for the stick people.
Bake the "mountain" and the "stone" 4-5 hours at 250 degrees.
When cooled, color with paint or markers.

Using Your Playdough Mountain
With your kids on Friday, you can reenact the story of Jesus' death—putting him on the cross, burying him in the cave, and rolling the stone in front of it.
On Easter, before your little ones are awake, take him out of the tomb and put him somewhere for them to find. First they'll notice the tomb is empty; then they'll see that he's alive and all the other pipe-cleaner people are jumping for joy.
Their excitement at seeing an aluminum can without a stick figure in it is a good reminder how much more excited we should be about the real thing.

___________________________

FREEBIE FRIDAY GIVEAWAY #2
Finally... Since I have a new minivan (yes, I am going to let it go.. and move on) and I am going to order these for the minivan... I thought it would be fun to do a giveaway of them.
Here is the giveaway... from Chic Giving... a set of Monogrammed Car Mats (2 front, 2 rear) valued at $75. You have a choice of four color mats (black, light grey, dark grey tan) and two fonts (Fancy and Curlz). Click Here to see the choices. These make wonderful Mother's Day, Birthday and Graduation gifts.

To Enter: Just post a comment of your favorite family tradition below (if you have one, if not.. it is fine to still enter) and be sure to include your e-mail address if you don't have a blogger account, so I can get a hold of you. This giveaway will be open to enter until Monday at 10am. The winner will be announced /posted on Monday. Only one entry per person, but feel free to share... if you share on twitter, Facebook, e-mail, etc.. please tell me and I'll give you another entry for each place you post it.

I hope you all have a wonderful EASTER!! Come back tomorrow for a great Easter recipe to do tomorrow night with your kids. The recipe will be posted first thing Saturday morning.

Is it Freebie Friday? YES!! ... Giveaway #1

Welcome to Freebie Friday! Today I will be doing my first giveaway! Due to a challenge from my husband, I will be blogging every day for a month straight. This month we will be doing a giveaway each Friday. So check back daily or at least weekly.

Drum Roll Please..... today we will giving away a gift certificate for a Three Designing Women Custom Stamp. It is valued at $48. Courtesy of Chic Giving. You can go to the Chic Giving site for a preview of some of the stamps. You will choose the style and personalize it with your information. Make it for yourself or give it as a gift. These make wonderful Birthday and Mother's Day gifts.

Here are the rules:

Leave a comment (only one entry per person). Please tell me about your favorite gift. (One that you have received...) Please include your e-mail address if you are not a blogger member.. so I have a way of contacting you. Please send this to your friends, post this on your blog, Facebook or Twitter. Please let me know (in your comment) if you post it on another site and I will give you another entry for each place you post it.

This giveaway will be open until Monday morning (April 6th) @ 10am. The winner will be selected using a random number generator and will be announced on Monday.

Good Luck!

P.S... my baby girl is 11 months old today... countdown to age "one" and the big party has begun. Wow, these past 11 months have flown by!

I hope you have a wonderful day!