Christmas Wreath

I found a wonderful recipe in our local newspaper. It was tasty, easy to make and
T could help me!!

Holiday Pretzel Wreath
1 package (about 6 ounces) of your favorite chocolate- milk, dark or white
1 bag (10 ounces) (I used Kroger brand) of mini, thin or homestyle pretzels
Red and Green holiday candies- (I used m&m) jelly beans or sugar sprinkles
1 package of red shoestring licorice (we don't care for licorice at our house so I
omited this step)
Wax Paper

1. Line a cookie sheet with wax paper. I traced the bottom of a plate to make the
wreath shape.
2. Melt chocolate in microwave (but do not burn like I did) or double boiler; stir.
Using tongs or a fork, dip the pretzels into the chocolate and layer in a circle, like a wreath, onto the wax paper.
3. After the wreath(s) are formed, use the red and green candies to sprinkle or place on top of the wreath(s).
4. When you have completed the wreath(s), cool until set, using the shoestring licorice to tie into a bow, at the top of the wreath.
5. After completely dried, transport to your serving dish carefully.

I took this to my Junior League cookie swap and the only thing bad about it is that it is a little hard to serve. I think men would love it though and dig right in and not think about messing up the wreath shape. LOL.

Here are pictures of my little helper (yes, his shirt is on inside out and backwards but he put it on all by himself and I wasn't going to crush him because he was so proud)....


Sorry I forgot to take a picture of the end product.

Merry Christmas

May you and your family have a very Merry Christmas and remember Jesus Christ is the reason for the season.

Here are my favorite Christmas Songs...







Here are my hubby's favorite Christmas Songs..





"For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior which is Christ the Lord." Luke 2:11 KJV

Today is the Day

This Christmas....Give yourself the Gift of Spa :)
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Today is the last day to save 10% off of
lip cremes, fall shadows and great gifts. Remember
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Check out everything on sale here and click on the great gift sale!!!

Happy Birthday!!

I want to take a break from Money Monday to send a shout out to my hubby on his
25th birthday!!!
Happy Birthday to my wonderful husband, Chance!!! He is a wonderful Christian husband who works hard for our son and me. He is also a wonderful father to our little boy!! I couldn't ask for a better friend to spend the rest of my life with!!
Here's one picture from this summer that shows what an awesome dad he is...

He is so supportive of my BeautiControl business and helps me around the house and with our little boy so much.
Look forward to celebrating many more of his birthdays!!!

Soccer

This year T man played 4 year old soccer. It started mid September and went until the end of October for 2 nights every week. T loved it and he was so fun to watch!!
4 years olds are entertaining anyway but put them on the soccer field and try to be organized and keep their attention and you will be even more entertained.

I will let the pictures speak for themselves...
First Practice...







The Wolverines...




The best part...shaking hands or as our team liked to do, having both hands out like an airplane



With Coach Brittany at their end of the season pizza party....

Product of the Month

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Christmas Shopping List- Stay On Track

Another great post from Josheph Sangl...

8 years ago, my family figured out how to stay within our Christmas spending budget.

1.We planned BEFORE buying a single gift (using the Mini-Budget)
2.We pulled the planned money out in cash (except for on-line purchases)
3.We put away the debit/credit card (except for on-line purchases)
4.We stuck to the plan (diligence)!
You can do the same!

How are YOU doing with your Christmas spending?

Okay this is me, Blakely, talking now. I have found one thing that works great for my family and me is purchasing items all year round. I like to just buy the item(s0 when I see them and they look like someone in our family. Much less stressful than just going in a store and having to come out with a gift. Also, purchasing the item(s) when they are on sale or I have a coupon to that store for example a 10% off coupon, $5 off, etc. so I can get them a nicer gift and still stay in our budget!!
Hope this helps you!!

Our Nephew turned 2

The weekend before Thanksgiving, we celebrated our nephew's 2nd birthday!!
My sister in-law is very creative and did a great job with his construction party!!
I'll let the pictures speak for themselves

Dry Skin?

Cold weather can mean dry skin. Combat dry skin with these
tips for healthy winter skin...
* For drier winter skin, a non-soap body wash is your
best bet.
This one is wonderful here.
* Although a steamy shower sounds great on a cool day, exposing skin to
water at 98.6 degrees and above can result in drier skin. Keep hot showers
under 5 minutes and remember to pat your skin dry.
* To get the full moisturizing effect of body lotions, apply them while your
skin is still damp. Check out this great moisturizer here.

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Financial Margin

Financial margin is something we all want and need in order to stay focused on the far more important things in our lives!

#1 – Reduce interest rates on existing debt

This escapes many people because the interest rate of debt is usually “out of sight –out of mind”, but it could very well be the greatest one step you could take to gain financial margin.

Joseph Sangl highly recommend using his free tool – the “Actual Cost of Debt calculator” to determine just how much your debt is costing you – be sure to find out your actual interest rates so that the numbers will be accurate.

Here are two areas I where I see people save tons of money by reducing their interest rates.

1.Mortgage Interest Rate For every $10,000 finances, a 1% reduction in interest rate will save $100. So if you have a $150,000 mortgage and could lower your interest rate by 1%, you will save $1,500 per year in interest – $125 per month! I encourage you to use CNN’s Refinance calculator to see what refinance deals would work best for you.
2.Credit Card Interest Rate This is where I typically see ridiculous interest rate charges that are simply not necessary! Consider $6,000 in credit card debt at
21.99%. That will result in interest charges of nearly $1,300 a year. This is why Joseph is such a fan of 0% Balance Transfer Credit Card offers and maintain a list of offers on this website. If that $6,000 of debt were moved to a 0% balance transfer credit card offer, that incredible amount of interest would actually be applied to debt reduction!
Here are other areas to look at – vehicle loans, medical debts, furniture loans, personal loans, payday loans, 401(k) loans, and any type of loan where interest is being charged.

Thanksgiving

I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving last Thursday with their family!!!

I loved this idea from Pinterest my friend Addie shared with me.

T with our Thanksgiving Tree

T and I made it our own...

He did a great job drawing pictures of this he is thankful for. I am going to save these and look at them every year!!!


T's preschool and our church sang for our church Thanksgiving sermon. T did a great job. My parents, my in-laws and my grandmother came to watch!! We enjoyed a delicious dinner at Ma Fia's downtown so check it out if you are in town!!





T's class was assigned crackers and cheese for there Thanksgiving lunch. This is the max of my creativity...pumplin and leave cheese. T loved doing this!!


I am so thankful I work for myself and can set my own hours so that I don't miss things like T's Thanksgiving lunch.

Cute turkey cupcakes someone made

Aunt Kella and Mr. DJ came to enjoy the lunch too

T with some of his school friends

Our church has a wonderful program called Mom2Mom that meets once a month. This month we talked about forgiveness and sacrife. Our preacher's wife led the devotion and she is wonderful. Such a Godly woman. Then we made a wreath to have on our table for Thanksgiving!! Thanks to Mrs. Joan for helping with this task!! I love having real items in the house for decorations!!