Art Show

Marley had a piece of artwork selected to be in an art show.

She was so excited!

Marley and her art (a yarn leaf):

 

We really enjoyed looking at all the artwork. Some of our favorites:

 

 

Fashion Finds

I haven’t posted any fashion finds in a long time. The truth is, I walked into thrift stores many times over the last 6 months, but I always left empty handed. I just didn’t find anything.  I finally found a few things in December then some more last week:

I was so excited to find these boots. They fit perfectly and I don’t think they were ever worn. Let’s see a close-up:

I love finding Ann Taylor clothing:

Last week I went to my favorite thrift store (it was 1/2 off day). I spent a total of 12.60 and purchased the following:

4 dresses for the girls (the second to the right is for Marley, the rest are for Claudia):

For me (a shirt and a black dress):

For Jason (a pair of shorts):

 

I would love to go on a shopping spree at the Mall or even Target, but we are trying to save money, so I will stick to Thrift stores!

A few things I am loving right now!

 

I love opening the windows and letting the fresh air in.

I love that Maya likes to lay out in the sun!

I love that the girls in the neighborhood enjoy climbing trees!

I love new make-up. Thanks to a recurring eye infection, I was forced to buy all new eye make-up, but I’m not complaining!

I love how soft my skin feels after I use my favorite body scrub (only $5.88 from Wal-Mart).

Love, love, love Pandora! Pandora is a free online radio station. It is really cool. I started by entering one of my favorite artists, Sara Watkins, and then it plays her songs and other artists/songs who have a similar style. 

Love that I have a library only a mile from my house. I love checking out books!

I love that my husband takes pride in his work. This is a recent kitchen he did (the homeowner has been on TV and is the owner chef of a few restaurants)!

I love being able to give the girls a haircut (it saves money)!

I love that spring is right around the corner!

Valentine’s Day

Today was full of so many surprises.

I made a 98 on my test and a 100 on my blood pressure check-off.

 

Jason and I got each other Braves t-shirts – how cool is that? We didn’t even discuss getting each other gifts, nor talk about t-shirts, it just happened!

 

We found out that Marley made it into the gifted program at school – I am so proud of her!

Claudia gave us this heart-shaped clay bowl – this is the kind of gift that brings tears to my eyes. She created it with her little hands – and I will cherish it forever!

Nannie came by with cookies!

The girls ate a ton of candy.

 

Including M&Ms. Marley won this jar at Church. She said she used math to come up with her estimate – she was only 1 off.

Here’s my valentine:

At the end of the day, we got to enjoy a nice steak dinner with only a few interruptions!

What a happy day!

A great day with a weird ending!

Today was an awesome day!

1. Claudia had her 100 book club celebration at school. Each 1st grader had to read 100 books before Christmas to make it into the club. I loved how excited she was – she almost couldn’t sleep last night!

2. I had coffee with a friend – I wish we would have had more time to chat!

3. I went with Jason to spec out a job in the city. This is the view from the home’s front porch – awesome city view!

4. We went to eat at Metro Fresh. It was awesome. I had lentil and vegetable soup and a spinach salad with a basil dressing.

5. I quickly went to Trader Joe’s next door and purchased the following:

6. Then we drove to Decatur (to my doctor’s office). I was going to have to pay $3,500 to continue my medicine (silly deductibles), and I just couldn’t shell out that kind of money right now! When I called my nurse to let her know I was going to have to stop my meds because I could pay for it, she told me not to worry – she had plenty of samples.  I went and got 7 pens today and she told me she would call the drug rep to get more when I run out. I am now getting my medicine for FREE! I feel very blessed today!

7. Drove the girls to ballet:

8. We ended the day with a hamburger dinner (Marley ate 6 bites this time). We had Cascadian Farms tater tots with our dinner. This is when it gets weird. Towards the end of our meal, Marley took a bite of her tater tot and bit into something. It appears to be a bone! Why would a tater tot contain a bone? Luckily she didn’t choke on it. I will be calling the company tomorrow.

Just goes to show, you never know what’s in your food!

School Days

On Mondays and Wednesdays, I have a medical skills class from 8:30-1:30. I am the only student that brings a bag full of food with me. I guess everyone else eats when they leave, but I can not go 5 hours without food!

I usually eat breakfast in the car. Today I had bacon and eggs and coffee – of course!

 

Around 10:00, I have a smoothie. Today I had kefir, kale and cherries.

Loving my awesome new blender – makes a very smooth, smoothie!

Then around 12 or 12:30 I eat my lunch. Today I had a peanut butter sandwich (on some awesome new gluten free bread), a homemade granola bar, cantaloupe, and a small piece of chocolate.

I am usually home by 2:30 and ready for a snack!

First time for everything!

There’s a first time for everything, and we had a first in the Russell house tonight. I am very excited to announce that Marley ate a hamburger for the first time in her life – today! I am such a proud momma tonight.

How did it happen?

I was fed up and I was getting tired of her being so picky. Tired of her turning food down and tired of fixing something different just for her. So today, I just told her that we were having hamburgers for dinner and that she was eating one too. I may or may not have offered her a bribe with a bowl of ice cream!

She ended up taking 5 good bites and said it tasted a little plain. We decided that every Thursday would be hamburger night and once she eats a whole one, we would take her to Bruster’s for an ice cream. She agreed!