Wknd Shenangigans; over 10K Views, and 24 followers ( SO close to a draw!!! )- GIVE AWAY!

 Linking up with Sami for this past wknds Shenanigans!

Well, I had quite the wknd, and not in a good way (well, it didn't seem that way).

Friday: The day started out ok. I watched movies and was in my jammies when I got a call from the place that I was planning on working for/at; hopefully in the next wk or so. I got a call from them saying that they couldn't offer me employment. I was not happy. I asked them why, and one of the reasons was that they felt that I was too "aggressive" in pursuing the job in the last couple of weeks since my interview. Well, I was very upset. I don't know if I have never been that upset re: a job in my life!

I got dressed, threw stuff in my purse, slammed the door, and left. I also had a good cry in Anker's arms. I left and went to the church, to talk to my friend who works there, and I also had a chat with one of our pastors. If you have been following me on FB, you will know how the rest of the wknd went...but if you didn't, here is the rest of it...

I went to the mall and had some New York Fries:) They were VERY GOOD! It was Black Friday (yes, Canada has some sales this wknd, too), and the mall was NUTS! I didn't stay too long at all. I came home and just hung out. I watched some Grey's Anatomy, and called mom/dad. My aunt called, which was really sweet:) My dad was nearly crying, he was so upset.  I spent the rest of the afternoon/evening being upset and eating:) I did go to my friends place on Friday night. We went to Walmart (it will only be open 24 hours for the three days before Xmas); it is currently open til midnight:) We had fun wandering around. I didn't spend a dime:) Came back her house and hung out and vented.

Saturday. I slept in and relaxed in the morning, and then my friend called and asked if I could take her to the bank. Mom also called and asked if I could go to the store and get a few things for her for the seminar that afternoon. Dropped my friend off and met up with mom and Val at Sw!ss Cha1et. I went to the mall for a second, as I thought that I had lost something (I ended up finding it in our couch), and then off to the seminar. I had no idea that there were going to be that many ladies. There were about 10 paying ladies for the SOF seminar. It went well. As we were all leaving, my aunt gave us some money to watch Catching Fire. I think we will go this week to watch it. I just came home and watched some movies. I hung out with my friend for a bit in the late evening.

Sunday. I went to church alone (after talking with hubs for a few minutes), and then went to the mall to grab something to eat. I did wander the mall a bit this time. It was still pretty busy, but not as bad as on Friday. I came home and relaxed all afternoon. I did fold some laundry, and organize our room a bit. I hung up some pictures on our wall, and watched way more TV than what is good for me. Hubby and I watched some DVDs from the library; The Company Men, and Guilt Trip. Hubby went to bed, and I watched a movie (well, I finished a movie), then ran up to my friends for an hour.

Please note that the entire weekend I did not succumb to Starbucks ONCE! I did go and grab a snack, but NO Starbucks!!

This morning, we woke up to SNOW! I think I will be staying at home today:) It is after 1, so I should probably get a few things done.

 I also should say that I have had now over 10K views on my blog!! I am very happy!! That was a long time coming, and I am very proud!!!

 I also have 24 followers. Once I get to 25, I will do a random draw for a small Avon product.

Happy Monday!

TToT-Household and Hygiene Products Edition

Since I had to grasp at straws yesterday for FOF, I thought I would do a TToT about household and hygiene products:) I thought it would be a way to keep this fun and new!! And because I don't feel like coming up with 10 new things to be thankful for this week!!

These are my 10 household/hygiene products that I couldn't live without (or at least would find it hard).

1. Toothpaste! Honestly, what would be like without toothpaste? I did try the baking Soda route, and trust me, it is gross. I guess I could live without it, but it would be pretty hard:)

 

2. Hand Cream. I never used to use it, but lately, I have been using it at least once a day. Love it. I carry the Avon travel size (I have about 4) in my purse, plus I have a few at home that I use. True story.

 

3. Lip Gloss. Same thing. I have about 5 of these in my purse. I love getting the holiday (Halloween, Christmas, etc) tasting ones. Yummy!

 

4. Hand Sanitizer. I have the Bath and Body Works brand, and I have about 10 of these. I am trying to use them more, partially because I have so many to use up.

 

5. Pads/Tampons/Cups. I was reading in a magazine awhile back on how girls in Uganda (and I am sure MANY other parts of the world) don't have access to pads. I can't find the article at the moment, but it is something similar to this. This is something that we women take for granted. We can drive to the corner store and grab one of about 1,000 different kinds of brands. Young girls in Africa don't have access to these, and they often will miss school during their periods. I am so grateful to have FULL ON access to these great products.

 

6. Toilet Paper. 'Nuff Said.

 

7. Toothbrushes. Again, something so simple that I am sure most people in third world countries don't have access to.

 

8. Laundry Detergent. Something so simple and LD is often overlooked in places that have just been through natural disasters. I often think of Tides Loads of Hope (this is the US site, but I am sure there is a Canadian/UK site as well), and all the wonderful things they do for people that have been through floods, hurricanes, tornadoes, etc. As for me, well, it just makes everything smell prettier!

 

9. Vacuum Cleaner. We may not be the worlds BEST and constant cleaners, but when we do clean, we LOVE (and use) our vacuum. ALL.THE.TIME. We got ours (after the belt went in mine) for about $50 a couple of years ago. Love it.

 

10. Rubbermaid (or any other type) Bins. I have two that are empty, that should have stuff put in them, but we already have a lot that have stuff stored in them. I think when/if we move next time, we will pack everything in bins.

 

Linking up with Liz for Ten Things of Thankful!

Happy Saturday!

Tell Us Tuesday/Wild Card Wednesday

Just a few things today...

My email address is april.t.wainwright@gmail.com
I now have 18 followers:) Remember, my 25th follower will get something from me.
I actually did stuff before getting on the computer this morning. Cleaning, folding clothes, etc. I know. I am awesome.
We got new stuff at the store today.
October is Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness month... 1 in 4 have been touched by loss...My mom has suffered 6 or 7 miscarriages. I can count at least 10 (?) ladies that I know FOR SURE that have lost babies (either through miscarriage, stillbirth, died shortly after, etc).

This was shared on FB today.

 

We had a yummy supper last night.  Pork medallions, fresh corn, potatoes, and I had a salad, and we had some crepe things for dessert. I just relaxed last night. I watched TV, and hubby and I watched TLC, JJ, and TAR together.

 

I found out what that towel thing was that my friend got me. It is to be worn after you have a bath or shower (or the beach or pool). I actually kind of like it.

 

My DR wants me to come and see him about my blood work. I am a bit nervous, and I am taking Hubby with me.

 

I was feeling really tired yesterday, as I mentioned, and I wasn't feeling well last night at all. I seem to be feeling better today, though.

 

My Avon package is delayed a day. BOO!

 

I saw these little things on the internet the last few days...

 

One of my blogging friends posted this on her blog over a year go, and referred to it again today. I hadn't watched it yet, and I had time, and it was very moving. Her church did this neat project/video. She is on 3:45, and her daughter (with her family in the background) is at around 6 minutes.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=nSGQfGh9-Hc#t=393

 

Chr1s T0mlin Video...

 

http://www.faithit.com/what-happens-when-worship-leaders-from-around-the-world-take-the-stage-with-chris-tomlin-just-watch/#.UkkdpULRxug.facebook

 

Saw this on FB as well...it is a few minutes, but watch it if you have time.

http://www.faithit.com/this-guy-writes-a-confession-letter-to-his-down-syndrome-daughter-that-will-break-your-heart-in-100-ways/

 

I think I am going to pin my Mac n Cheese Recipe to Pinterest:)

 

Speaking of Pinterest, I now have 12,291 pins to my board.  I clearly have a problem, no?

 

Linking up with Courtney at One Fine Wire for Tell us Tuesday

 

 

 

Linking up with Mal @ Mals Smiles for Wild Card Wednesday!

 

 

Why I "do" Coffee (a lot), and SUYL Cleaning Tips

Well, I wasn't going to blog today, but I kind of wanted to do a quick recap on our summer, and join in with Kelly in SUYL from this last Friday on Cleaning tips. I am not really one to talk (type) since my house is in a bit of disarray, but I do LIKE to clean, but I have to be in the MOOD to clean.

First off...Summer.

Dear Summer, where did you go? How did you leave us so quickly? Actually, summer isn't technically over, but the School Zones are telling me to slow down again, so I guess this means fall is here.

Actually, I would say we had an OK summer. We didn't do anything extravagant, or go far away, but we did manage a wk away camping at my parents. We did do a few day/wknd trips to the farm as well. I did manage (and I still might) to go to the beach a couple of times this year, and I went to the Lake with my sisters. We (or I) went to a few get togethers with my friends.  We had great weather, so we really cannot complain about that. I don't know about the highlight, though. For me, it would be going to the lake with the girls. I think for Anker, it was probably moving the sheep up the mountain (speaking of which, I need to put up some more pics of the next move that he went on). I am kind of glad that we didn't spend ALL summer going here and there. To be honest, I don't know how people can afford to spend ALL their (or even every wknd) away. I like to stay home and chillax, and do day trips, or even just sit at our local park (which I also did). I would be too tired if I were gone all the time. It amazes me on how people can be so busy (even just within their city) all the time...travelling, time with friends, etc. I can't believe on how the people on the blogs I frequent are busy.ALL.THE.TIME. Don't they get tired? I get that it is fun to go and hang out with people (trust me, I do, and we do do our fair share of visiting), but isn't it fun to just stay home with your family and hang?I I also think it is interesting on how many people travel (whether out of their city/state/province/country) so much! There are a few blogs that I frequent in which people are always travelling? How can they afford it? Don't they like staying home? I do love to travel, but I also like to stay home and work, and enjoy my own city. Ok..enough ranting!

Another thing I wanted to explain (although I don't need to) is reason I go for coffee so much. Yes, I realize that if I didn't go for a year, I would probably have enough $$ to go to Disney Land or somewhere...but just bare with me. I don't get fancy hair cuts. I don't get fancy clothes. I don't get my nails done every week (or even every month). We DON'T travel much, and we (although we should) don't buy a lot of things for our home. We rent, so we don't have a home/mortgage to keep up with. We don't have car payments. We don't have kids that we need to spend money on. Going for coffee is MY thing. I love St@rbucks. I love the feel of going into the coffee shop and enjoying my drink, and people watching. I love the smell. I could go to Tim's (and I do, I love their French Vanilla), but it just isn't the same. There are a couple of coffee shops that I do frequent that aren't SBX, but most of them are on the other side of town (and honestly, more expensive). I get my weekly mags, because like my coffee, it is MY thing. (I also do get a lot of mags from the library) Do I feel guilty about going? No. Why? Because it is MY time to relax (even differently than if I were at home) and just be me. I don't have the cat, or our small (messy) house to worry about. I usually don't bring my computer, so I am free of that. It is my therapy (along with journaling). To be fair, I don't need to go as often as I usually do. What I did this week, is load up my card, with some money (I try to be reasonable on how many times I usually go, but with some smallish amount), and when I am done, I am done! (at least at that shop..ok, I am kidding) Unless someone invites me (they will pay) for coffee, or if I have a free coffee on my card (another reason I like SBX...they give you free drinks), then that is the end of my coffee trips until next payday.

SUYL-Cleaning Tips.

I used to be a real freak, at least more than I am now. When I lived alone, I tried to keep a clean apartment. When I got marred, I acquired my husbands stuff. He also has electronic/solar hobbies, and since we don't have a yard or a garage, he does it here (don't get me started). He tries to keep most of it to his work bench in the kitchen, but sadly, most of it get scattered all over the house. I try to keep our bedroom free of his clutter, but it will often spread. Ugh! To be honest, I hate it. When I do get the urge to clean, I try to just tackle one thing (or a type of cleaning), or room at a time. Like earlier today, I just concentrated on clutter. I (altho not done yet) cleaned off clutter from the table, and stuff in our room that was taking up too much space. I find that best way to keep our place clean is to try to keep the kitchen and our bedroom as clean as possible. Then, if our living room is a mess, then I can at least retrieve into our room. Our living room and bedroom still have carpet, so we have to vacuum. Hubby usually will clean out the bathroom, and will vacuum. We just don't do these things as often as we should. As far as deep cleaning, dusting, etc? I hardly ever dust (sad, I know) and things like cleaning the fridge, my windows, etc, well, those are done twice a year.

 

I find the best kind of cleaning is the time when it isn't planned out ahead of time. I start on one project and end up dong another, which I love, because then I can enjoy getting stuff done that I hadn't planned on. As far as laundry goes, we have to pay for it, so we only do about 3 or 4 a week. I am terrible with folding and putting away, so loads of clothes can stay in the baskets for weeks at a time. True Story. Although they usually do get folded with in a week of getting washed. I try to and go through at least my clothes about twice a year. That is one way that I try to keep my wardrobe fresh. Like I said, I don't buy new or expensive clothing (at least not very often), so I may buy a few items a year. As for general clutter, I try to keep a bag going for our local charities so that I can just give them a call, and they can pick it up.

 

I know those aren't really tips, but that is how I keep house lately. I know it is sad, but that is the way it is. I am jealous of going to people's houses and their house is always cleaner than ours. I will say that we aren't hoarders (yet!), and every time I do watch a show on Hoarding, I don't feel too bad.

 

I hope that helps, Or doesn't. However you chose to use these is up to you!